The (provisional) results are in: Alli Bell will be the first female skipper to win the Transpac. She and her crew aboard her Cal 40, Restless, finished on Sunday at 10:23pm local time with an elapsed time of 12 days, 12 hours, and three minutes. Official results will be confirmed when all competitors have reached the dock.
Bell, a first time Transpac skipper sailing a boat designed 60 years ago and flying secondhand sails may seem like an unlikely hero in a race full of racing sleds, legendary sailors, and some of the most competitive programs in the country, but her victory was no happy accident. Bell has been preparing the boat for years and considers her family a “Transpac family,” having the race deep in their blood.
When asked how she felt about being a role model for future Transpac sailors, she responded with characteristic humility: “I don’t think I’m a role model,” she said, emotion in her voice. “I’m just someone who wanted to do something and did it.”
“In a difficult race, with a lot of great performances, this one stands out,” said Bill Guilfoyle, Commodore of Transpacific Yacht Club and a five-time Transpac Race veteran. “It demonstrates that anybody with a well-prepared boat who sails well has the potential of winning.”
“This should be an inspiration to anybody who doesn’t have the multimillion-dollar budget and wants to compete,” Guilfoyle continued. “This shows you can do that.”
Restless’ crew was primarily amateurs, consisting of her cousin, Graham Bell, as navigator; her husband, Stephen Driscoll; plus friends Eric Heim and Greg Reynolds.
Like much of the rest of the fleet, they suffered some sloppy weather at the outset, but took the lead in their fleet early on and never gave it up. The front runners in the race managed to skirt or avoid a massive wind hole in the middle of the course, and Restless and a few other first wave starters managed to get far enough west that they could keep the speed up even when it set in.
Restless has its own pedigree, having been raced by Stan Honey back when he was in high school and spurring a lifelong love of the Cal 40 in the Transpac’s winningest navigator.
“[Alli] is the daughter of one of the other Bell’s in my generation who I did a number of Transpacs with in the old days, so I’m absolutely delighted to see Alli Bell and Restless do so well,” he said in a call with SAIL Managing Editor Lydia Mullan for the Transpac Onboard webseries. Honey also competed in the race and, along with owner Bryon Ehrhart and the crew aboard Lucky, took line honors.
Relive the race where, just a few days in, things weren’t looking so rosy for Restless and crew.
For more on this year’s Transpac and to follow the remaining boats as they finish, visit transpacyc.com
