How Fast Can You Sail a Beach Cat up the Bay in a Day... in Perfect-Wind Conditions?
We wondered, “How fast can a 20-foot beach cat like my Nacra 20 make the run from Hampton to Annapolis?” In 2021 it took us 19 hours, but in variable four- to 12-knot breezes. In 2009 I did it the other direction, Annapolis to Hampton, in 22 hours in light to moderate southerly breezes. But how fast could it be done if we picked the perfect wind day?
My crew Ross Morley (ex New Zealand Navy) and I used PredictWind to look for that right day. As most know, the summer wind on the Chesapeake is predominately southerly. We picked a day in June with a favorable 12- to 20-knot southerly breeze. That’s as good as it gets in summer months on the Bay. Also, no chance of thunderstorms, as T-storms and beach cats do not play well together (ask me how I know this, or related: how fast a capsized beach cat can ‘sail’ away in 40-knot-plus summer storm).
Our goal was under 12 hours. Secretly, knowing the speed potential of the Nacra 20, I was hoping for under 10 hours start to finish. My various handheld GPS readings in the 23 years I’ve owned her indicated that an open-Bay cruising speed of 13 to 17 knots is easy-peasy when jib reaching or with the spinnaker up in 10 to 15 knots of wind. Another datapoint for a Nacra 20’s speed: I used to shadow the boats some years during the annual overnight Governors Cup races to St. Mary’s City and have made the run from Annapolis to the Point Lookout rounding mark in just over four hours.
Since bragging rights (aka beer) started kicking in, we decided to Google what the fastest sailboat run from Hampton to Annapolis, or vice versa, was. In 2013 a TP 52 doing the Down the Bay Race sailed from Annapolis to Hampton in seven hours and two minutes. Holy cow! As an additional reference, the venerable Running Tide set the previous record for 11 hours for the Down the Bay Race in 1974.
So, once the PredictWind-approved day was chosen in mid-June, we trailered the boat down a day early to 37 North Marina in Hampton near Fort Monroe. Capt. George who runs the marina there was extremely gracious in our special needs, as this is primarily a big boat marina, not for a little beach cat with no motor. For folks looking for a very nice marina when visiting Hampton by boat, 37 North Marina is the ticket. The Deadrise Restaurant at the marina makes excellent seafood burritos that are roughly the size of a subcompact car!
We started off Fort Monroe at 7:20 a.m. the day after trailering down with winds at seven knots from the south. It did not build as fast as anticipated, but within a couple of hours we were cruising at 11 to 13 knots of boat speed. Our game plan was to stay between the western shore and mid-Bay, doing deep broad reaches as true wind was directly astern.
By Smith Point (the southern mouth of the Potomac) we were making 13-14 knots of boat speed and around 12 knots VMG to Annapolis. Ross and I alternated steering every hour or two. If not steering, we navigated with a Garmin 78 handheld, did spinnaker trim, and kept watch for surfacing rays ahead of us, as hitting a ray at speed can shear off a daggerboard or rudder on a beach cat (ask me over a beer how I know this).
At the Patuxent River area the wind was at 17 knots due south, just as predicted. So far so good, making up for our slow start.
Around North Beach the wind built to a steady 20 knots, which is the upper limit for most beach cat sailors. A bit later I found out why. I was steering when I went high coming down a wave, and we capsized. We both landed on the mainsail and put a 12-foot vertical rip in it. We also mangled the port wing/seat as we held on to it hoping not to fall onto the sail, but the aluminum weld gave in. We were in about 12 feet of water.
We righted the boat and sailed from North Beach to Thomas Point under the little jib only. We finished before sunset. It took 12 hours and 55 minutes. Our maximum speed was 19 knots and average boat speed was 10.3 knots. We travelled 137 miles on a 120-mile rhumb-line course.
Now next year, I wonder how fast we could do it if we wait for a perfect 12-knot easterly?
Beach cat sailing is fun, fast, and intense.
By Eric Miller
Find more Chesapeake sailing stories here.
