On the third day of the race, Merlin's crew is settling into the rhythm of the race, sailing well despite light winds, and getting to know each other. By Chris Museler
It’s not unusual to see other competitors sailing across the stretch of sea between Newport and Bermuda. And besides Rambler and a handful of large, ultra-fast boats, Merlin finds herself within sight of the TP 52s, a Volvo 70, and even two Gunboat catamarans and an Open Class DSS Foil boat Maverick.
It’s a well-known motivator having a boat next to you in an ocean race. But the position reports are the gauge on progress that guide this crew’s emotions. Three sail changes in an hour saw Merlin gain on every boat on the top of the fleet save Rambler 88. “She’s humming now!” hollered someone on deck as crew moved in and out of the cabin, pulling and packing sails while laughing and sweating together.
Like the Hobie Cat rudder hum that so many free-spirited, fun sailors are familiar with, the sounds produced by Merlin at 13-plus knots must have been designed into the boat by Bill Lee. For those who know, that hum means fast. And Lee always said, “Fast is fun!”
Keahi Ho and several of Merlin’s crew know the sound. Keahi watched Merlin pull into Oahu at the end of a Transpac and inspected her as a seventh grader at the Lanai Yacht Club. “The first time I saw her she was coming in with lead bricks on her deck for some rating rule issue,” remembers Keahi. “It looked like there was a street curb on each side of the deck.”
Since then Keahi, 43, never lost the inspiration to cross oceans. In 2015, he took his three children and wife on their Lidgard 38 and went for it, from Maui to Tahiti, with a stop on Bora Bora. “It was, surprisingly, an entirely magical experience.”
At our Thursday night crew dinner, he raised his hand. “I’d see this boat in Hawaii and dream about her. It’s a privilege to sail on her, for sure. Thank you.”
The tall, dark Hawaiian, a national mix of Chinese Hawaiian immigrants and Irish heritage, doesn’t speak much unless he has something to say. So far, Keahi has been the quiet nerve center of each maneuver, linking the bow crew directly to the pit and confirming readiness to the back of the boat.
He knows this role well, studying under champions Morgan Larson and Olympic Gold Medalist Carl Buchan in the 2017 Transpac aboard Merlin. Even Bill Lee himself was there, orchestrating the boat’s 40th anniversary of the race to Hawaii.
That race book ended Merlin’s West Coast run, which started back in 1977. Keahi is taking over where Lee left off – placing the first bookend of Merlin’s other ocean’s racing life.
