By Andy Camarda In the previous article in this two-part series, I discussed how I took a 30-year-old racer/cruiser from the boatyard to the podium on Mackinac Island. If you haven’t yet read that story, follow the link HERE. After the blisteringly fast Chicago Mac race, I turned my attention to the 100th anniversary Bayview […]
By Andy Camarda Each year, the Chicago and Bayview Mackinac Races are the most well-attended races on the Great Lakes. With the races starting on back-to-back weekends in July, nearly 300 boats pull out all the stops to try and collect these two prestigious trophies. The longer, 290 nautical-mile Chicago to Mackinac race started first […]
This year’s Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac proved to be one of the fastest on the books for just about every team that participated. As always, Lake Michigan threw everything she had to offer at the fleet, from brief yet extreme squall lines to areas becalmed for hours on end. We would like to congratulate everyone who participated in this record-setting race, and we thank Chicago Yacht Club for allowing us to sponsor such a prestigious and historical event.
One team in particular made the 115th Race to Mackinac one that will not be soon forgotten. Maverick, an Andrews 80 owned by Bill Kinney and Sandy Curtis smashed Pyewacket’s race record by over an hour, setting the new record at a blistering 22 hours, 22 minutes, and 23 seconds, But they didn’t stop there. The team continued on to Port Huron and took a full 10 hours out of the previous “Super Mac” record. This amazing achievement was credited to a 19-member crew largely comprised of Corinthian sailors hailing from Ohio.
At Evolution Sails, we are proud to not only be the sailmaker for Maverick, but to have our team participate alongside their crew to achieve this spectacular result. Evolution Sails founder Rodney Keenan was onboard and played a large role in designing and delivering a re-invented sail package that propelled them to their record result. Andy Camarda, the local Evolution representative from Chicago, caught up with Rodney between regattas to get the inside scoop on Maverick’s race.
Hi, my name is Andy Camarda, and I am the founder of 180sails.com.
I started sailing before I could walk 30 years ago, and have been working for major sailmaking brands in the industry for over 8 years.
I have been a part of a team that has won every major event in Chicago including the Chicago to Mackinac, the Verve, and the NOOD.
