Hunter 44 Wins FIGAWI Cruising Race

Bud Harris and crew aboard the Newport, RI based Hunter 44 Paradise won their class in the recent Figawi race from Hyannis, MA to Nantucket MA.

With a reputation for robust post-race social activities, the annual 20 mile season opener drew over 200 entrants this year. Rob Lawnsby of Advantage Yacht Sales (a friend of Bud's) sent in this preliminary report.

"Bud is not a racer guy, in fact this is probably one of the first races he has been in with his boat. Paradise has a standard mainsail, shoal draft keel, bow thruster and plenty of liveaboard personal belongings. He is a performance guy however, and knows how to trim sails and get speed.

Wind for the "pursuit" style start was about 20 knots on the beam. With a team of 7 friends as crew, they focused on keeping their speed up, and finding the right path between all the boats that had started ahead. They passed 80 boats during the 2 1/2 hour race, including last years winner and averaged over 8 knots. The faster boats that started later never caught up and they were all by themselves when the crossed the finish line.

Bud said the boat screamed along for the entire race leaving the passed boats in a wake of disbelief. The race was a serendipitous combining of Glen Henderson's hull, Bud Harris's sailing skills, and wind direction/speed that let the Hunter 44 shine.

He used the mainsail that came with the boat four years ago with new battens, and had a new jib the same size as the stock jib. He has made improvements to the traveler and put adjustable lines on the jib tracks."

We look forward to seeing the photos and detailed report that Rob has promised soon.

Congratulations Bud & Crew!