Jim Dolan, at the helm, and his crew aboard Sagamore, cover rival Sayonara at the start of the Newport to Bermuda Race.

HAMILTON, BERMUDA — Frustratingly light winds brought the leaders in the 42nd Newport to Bermuda Race to a screeching halt yesterday some 45 miles from the finish line off St. Georges, Bermuda. After a tactically challenging final stage that lasted almost 10 hours, Jim Dolan's maxi Sagamore crossed the line just before midnight EDT to snatch line honors from rival competitor Larry Ellison's Sayonara. Sagamore finished with a time of 3d, 23h, 2m, and 39s, followed closely by Sayonara less than 13 minutes later, but neither boat could eclipse the course record set by Boomerang in 1996. The victory came on the heels of what looked to be a record-setting run down to the Onion Patch, but after spending the first 515 miles in consistent breeze, the leaders ran out of wind.
Joining Dolan on Sagamore as the onboard tactical wizard was Admiral's Cup and America's Cup helmsman Ken Read of Newport, RI, with Ian Moore of the UK serving as navigator. Ellison's Sayonara also had a talented afterguard, which included Whitbread veteran Chris Dickson, ocean racing veteran Mark Rudiger as navigator, and winning America's Cup tactician Brad Butterworth.
Bob Towse's Blue Yankee, with Ross Field as navigator and Peter Isler as tactician, crossed the line in third with a time of 3d, 23h, 53m, and 44s, beating the third maxi and course record holder Boomerang, which finished just 10 minutes later. Among the cruiser-racers, Skip Sheldon's brand new Zaraffa led the crowd with a finish time of 4d, 00h, 30m, and 37s. Fred Detwiler's Andrews 70 Trader crossed the line second in 4d, 1h, 1m, and 10s.
These elapsed time finishes, however, do not secure final positions in the race since all competitors will be scored under IMS and Americap handicap systems. Corrected times and overall results will be posted on the race web site along with daily position updates for racers still on the course competing for class and fleet trophies, including the coveted St. David's Lighthouse. For additional information, log onto www.bermudarace.com