Lake Superior as race course: First yachts sail into Duluth to finish Trans Superior

DULUTH — Talisman was the first yacht to cross an imaginary finish line between a temporary buoy and the lighthouse on the north pier in Canal Park — giving skip Bruce Aikens and the his crew bragging rights, if not the outright win, in the Trans Superior Yacht Race.

It was a mostly quiet first finish on Monday afternoon. A race official honked a horn from the pier in front of a handful of onlookers. Back at race headquarters, behind the Garden, the celebratory sparkling wine was on ice.

The biennial race started Saturday in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario with three dozen yachts from a mix of classes competing. Each vessel has a handicap rating — like in golf — that plays into its final standings. In preliminary scoring, Amante 2, with Saginaw, Mich., skip Greg Velez, was listed as fastest finisher, followed by mc2, led by Dan Lewis, out of North Oaks.

Regardless of where it falls in final standings, Talisman's finish is its own victory.

"We do make a big deal about the first one to finish," said Stacy McKenzie, president of the Duluth Yacht Club, holding the title of commodore. "We've got a big plaque for them and we bring Champagne to the boat."

As of Tuesday morning, just five boats had finished. More were expected in the afternoon and into the night, according to McKenzie. Some would likely miss the awards ceremony.

"It's real slow," McKenzie said.

On Monday afternoon, Talisman, a 58-foot slate-grey yacht, circled near the shore while it waited for the Aerial Lift Bridge to rise. Then it passed through the canal to park in the bay behind the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center.

"What a race," Aikens said from aboard, sails down, as the crew of 10 others tended to the yacht.

Aikens, of West Bloomfield, Mich., has competed on this course five times, but this is his first time earning first-to-finish honors. Stories from along the route would take two days to tell, Aikens said, but the short version is that the winds were fickle. As is the standard, the crew members were on watch for four hours, then off for four hours to maintain clear focus. It's hard work, Aikens said, and if you're tired, you're stupid.

"I cannot stress enough how great a racecourse Lake Superior is," Aikens said. "There are so many dimensions that are hard to figure out."

And, he added, it's gorgeous.

Aikens and company were still dealing with the complexities of this course in the final 5 miles, where Talisman could get caught in a lull — then off it would go as the water turned scaly and rippled.

"That was a sweet little puff," said Dave Johnson, watching the final miles of the race from the yacht club's boat.

McKenzie said optimal conditions are a consistent 10-20 knot breeze out of the northeast, but yachters were facing lighter conditions for this race. A few were stuck bobbing while they waited for shifts in winds.

"I think some of the boats are getting a little bit of cabin fever out there," she said.