11- Team Hodge: Rob Hodge and Sock Monkey aboard “Lady Jane” ( 19’ Lightning)

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Rob Hodge is a ship-fitter in Seattle:

I was in both the 2016 and 2017 R2AK first legs in the minnow, a 12 foot pram yawl of the oozegooze design. 2016 went well, 2017, not so much. i’m a member at Corinthian Yacht Club of Seattle.

The boat is the ‘Lady Jane’; a lightning with sail number 6724. Built in 1960 on Beacon Hill in Seattle, this boat once competed in the old lightning fleet 132 on Lake Washington. She’s spent the last 20 years in a barn on the Kitsap Peninsula, and is currently undergoing a major overhaul, which will include the addition of a cabin.

10- Team Moon Jelly: Chloe and Blaine Stragier aboard “ Barracuda” (18’ Mower Dory)

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Our first Raid love story, these two met as teenagers on the final Shipyard Raid, in competing Sea Scout boats. Having done this course already, in a longboat and a skin on frame umiak, these two are back as husband and wife, ready to take on the fleet.

Chloë: I grew up around boats, and now I live on a boat. When not on the water, I enjoy mountain biking, going on adventures, spending time in the sun, and good food. I’m a veteran of the 2007 and 2009 Raids, and I’m excited to be back again this year, this time racing with Blaine rather than against him!

Blaine: Ever since my first Shipyard Raid, my relationship with water has continued to grow. I’ve been a dragon boat racer, kayaker, whitewater rafter, and Salish Sea cruiser. I met my wife on the mother-ship Temujin nine years ago on the last Shipyard School Raid. Along with boating, the mountains are where I spend the other half of my life. I also like doughnuts.

Our Raid boat is “Barracuda” (kindly loaned to us by Quill Goldman), a beautiful 18-foot Mower Dory built by the Silva Bay Shipyard School in 2005-2006. Its sails are made of dragon wings, and the hull is of the lightest chicken-of-the-sea bones. It is held together with unicorn spit, and blessed by the mermaids. We were lucky enough to race against Barracuda in the past, and are excited to train and get her ready for this year’s Raid.

They are the winners of the 2018 Barefoot Raid!

Who’s Raiding so far? 19 sailors on 10 boats!

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The applications have been rolling in and getting approved. Nine teams have signed up with beautiful boats, mostly monohulls, but also two multihulls thus far.

All entries as of today are listed below. You can learn more about each team and see photos of the boats on the entries page.

Jenine Adam
Tor & Heidi Baxter
Heather (and Dan, we presume) Drugge
Quill Goldman
Jeff Hilberry
Pierre LaRochelle
Ronald Mueller
Cooper Rooks
Suzanne Steele
Ben Stevens
Scott Veirs
Ryan Wegwitz
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9- Team Alfred Greenling: Tor and Heidi Baxter aboard  “Alfred Greenling” (14’ Penobscot)

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Tor and Heidi have been sailing together since 1989 on Rainbow Chaser a Tbird. Tor grew up drifting down the Seymour River then exploring about Deep Cove and the Arm. Heidi also spent time making and drifting in rafts on the Cowichan river, later fish guiding for 7 summers near Stuart Island. Both spent vacations on wind, ice & power boats, exploring rivers & coasts East, West, North & South.

Imagine gazing into the depths amongst the upwelling florescent jellyfish of a back eddy or leaning against the wind. It is more fun sailing even if it means getting cold or having a soggy sandwich for lunch. After being R2AK tracker fans, they are trying to figure out new rigging and are super-excited to be in the Raid.

8- Team Nomadica: Ryan Wegwitz and ….? aboard his 17’ Hobie Wind Rider

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Raced in R2AK 2016 with my good friend Brian Croll as Team Nordica. We had a blast sailing in my little Nordica 16 but the doldrums of that year took their toll on us. We retired from the race just south of Cape Caution, it was a tough decision but the right one. Not finishing the race was something I thought about everyday after. R2AK 2017 came but this time I entered solo and finished in a Craigslist Bomber Windrider 17. R2AK  The Barefoot Raid excites the hell out of me, it’s a hall pass to go goof around in boats. The camaraderie of fellow racers and the challenges of dealing with situations like when your sailing and something taps your shoulder and you realize its your shroud that came undone, you know…that stuff.

She’s a 2002 Windrider 17, I’m not proud of how she looks or that she is plastic but when you sail up onto a log at dusk off of Banks Island you appreciate roto-molded hulls. Propulsion comes from sweep oars and an old CCM rowing machine sliding seat. Custom made aluminum ribbed floor for storage, fully wired including solar. My Mom made her a boom tent that’s held up to 40 knots. It’s common to find her tape deck in the Main Salon playing Iron Maiden at Happy Hour. She is fun to sail but does not point to wind, like never.

7 — Team Bunny Whaler: Cooper Rooks and Nate Rooks aboard “Bunny Whaler” (17′ Boston Whaler, Harpoon 5.2)

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Nick Reid, 2016

 

Cooper: I’m a party animal with a quiet side. I like short walks on long beaches.

Jenine: I like sailing a lot. Race dinghies. Offshore racing. Pacific crossing. I own a marine canvas shop, I love boats and surfing and scooters and running.

Bunny Whaler is like a Toyota pickup, not especially good looking, but pretty capable. Apparently it can’t sink… we tried in Dixon Entrance. It made it to Ketchikan, slowly in 2016 (R2AK). Jenine calls it “a classy bathtub with sails.”

6 — Team Do Something: Ron Mueller and Ben Stevens aboard “Pas Assez” (14’ Ilur)

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Ron enjoyed the first two Shipyard Raids with Ben joining him to win the 2006 Shipyard Raid in Mother Merry – based on his Merry Wherrys. Imagine a French design, built by a German, painted Irish Green – did we mention it has Swedish oars? The Ilur has a great rough water cruising reputation and should be just the ticket for these northern waters.

Ron has been paddling and sailing for nearly fifty years in western waters and is not about to stop now! Having just sold Just Enuf, a 19’ power catamaran, he looks forward to a active summer enjoying his new Ilur. Ben has been enjoying small watercraft – canoes, kayaks, rowing shells, daysailors – for an equal time and really enjoys camp cruising in small boats. Both of us are looking forward to windy northern Salish Sea sailing – we are tired of just rowing fast!

Ilur is a 14’ sail/oar boat designed by Francois Vivier. Two Ilurs have been to Ile of Sein, at the extreme west of France, one of the worst places to go with tremendous tides and the difficult sea conditions. Ilur is deep and wide with a generous freeboard for good seakeeping ability – in the “sail and oar” spirit.

5 — Team Coastal Express: Heather and Dan Drugge aboard “Mirror Mirror” (16’ Mirror dingy)

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Heather and Dan have been sailing small wooden boats up and down the coast since 2003 and have been dinghy sailors since 1969. As participants in stages 1 and 2 of the 2015 R2AK, Heather and dan decided they had better ways  to spend the next 2-3 weeks of their summer than bashing into gale force headwinds, and sensibly turned around and went downwind instead.

Built in 1971, theirs is a 16 foot, wooden Mirror dinghy. She was originally built by Bells in England and shipped to Boston where she was sailed, but then eventually wrecked on a breakwater. She was advertised for free in Wooden Boat and Dan rescued her and restored her. Since then we have re-framed and reskinned Mirror Mirror. She is lightweight, at only 200 lbs with plenty of sail area at 70 sq. ft,  plus a full spinnaker.