The record-setting numbers of boats competing in the fourth annual Havana Cup May 28 from Tampa Bay to Havana, Cuba, also set a record for the fewest number of official finishers. Light winds forced 82 of the 103 racing boats to abandon the distance race and motor in to Marina Hemingway along Cuba's north coast.
    The largest boat in the fleet-the Biloxi, MS, based MacGregor 65 Fast Company-covered the 276-mile course in 45 hours, 3 minutes and finished May 30 at 6:08 a.m. Co-skippers Ed Reardon of Mandeville, LA, and Prince Turner of Mobile, AL, put the boat across the finish line first overall but dropped to fourth place after PHRF calculations.

Fast Company and Decision (51092) do battle at the entrance to Tampa Bay
Doran Cushing photo

    The Santa Cruz 50 Passion, skippered by Steve Hastings of Corpus Christi, TX, won overall and Spinnaker Class I honors with a corrected time margin of almost 39 minutes ahead of the second place boat-the J/130 Bonkers, skippered by Bill Zartler of Houston, TX. Passion also won the El Moro race to Havana Harbor later in the week. Bill Terry of Tampa, FL, was the Spinnaker Class II winner aboard the Farr 36 Hot Tub, beating Ed Collins' Ericson 41 Epsilon by 22 minutes after more than 57 hours of racing in the Gulf of Mexico and across the Gulf Stream.
    Other class winners included Bob Fisher's Catalina 32 Mirage in Spinnaker Class III, John Matthew's Hunter 37.5 DeAdelaar in Non-Spinnaker I (based on provisional results), and Don Balthaser's Lagoon 57 Windy 3 in the multihull class.
    "We sailed the race without any wind instruments," Reardon said. "Seat of the pants sailing." He reported a top speed of 13.4 knots during the trip but was slowed to less than two knots during the periods of almost nonexistent wind before they reached the Florida Straits.
    "The best part of the race was the last night when the winds picked up," Reardon said. "The last 80 miles were great!"

    The regatta also included a flotilla division of more than 120 non-racers, including powerboats. Added to the racing fleet, plus some 60 sport fishing boats, which came to Marina Hemingway for a fishing tournament, the marina was packed to capacity and stretched to provide adequate services to all of the boats.
    While there may have been some logistical problems-both with the light air/incoming tide start and the congestion at Marina Hemingway-the success of the event has to be measured in the numbers of sailors who made the trip. More than 1,000 folks, many visiting Cuba for the first time, came back to the U.S. with an up close and personal look at Havana and the surrounding region.
    On the negative side, past visitors to Cuba who had made friends among the locals found the security at the marina a severe limitation as few Cuban nationals could get into the marina to visit.
    This restriction was possibly a side effect of the crackdown on prostitution, which had become somewhat commonplace at the marina in recent times). (including in the U.S.), but the problem was amplified by the absence of a method to clear the early arrivals before the later ones.
    Despite efforts by the Cuban authorities to staff up for the huge influx of boats, clearance into Cuba was tedious and frustrating. There was no apparent system to clear into boats in based on their arrical at the docks. Some boats came and left as others waited for the parade of officials from the various agencies. Granted, the number of boats would overwelm any bureaucracy (including in the U.S.), but the problem was amplified by the absence of a method to clear the early arrivals before the later ones.
    Given the problems with weather, contrary tides, a crowded marina, and the rescheduling of the castle race (many race boats had left when the race was held late in the week), the Havana Cup likely will be equally as appealing to sailors next year. Race organizer Jim Duncan has already announced that the start of the race will be moved out to the Gulf of Mexico and that more time will be allowed for the diehard sailors to finish under sail.
    Perhaps the most common element of the Cuba experience was expressed by Prince Turner of Fast Company. When asked about the best part of the trip, he replied, "The Cuban people are fabulous."