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Merlin (sailing vessel)

Merlin was designed by Bill Lee. Merlin is considered to an Ultra Light Displacement (ULDB). The racing yacht has won numerous offshore yacht races including the Transpac (Transpacific Yacht Race) in 1977 establishing a course record that stood for 20 years. She is a 68 foot long by 12 foot wide monohull weighing in at 25,000 pounds. Merlin is currently owned and raced by William F. “Chip” Merlin, founder of Merlin Law Group, for his team Merlin Yacht Racing.

Biography

Named after a combination of the Arthurian legend, the P-51 aircraft engine and a small falcon hawk, Merlin surprised even those who expected her to be fast. In July 2016, Sailing Magazine declared Merlin “the most noteworthy racing boat of the last 50 years.”

Course Records

• Transpac, Los Angeles to Honolulu (July 1977)
• San Diego to Manzanillo, Mexico (February 1978)
• Victoria BC to Maui, Hawaii (July 1978)
• Pacific Cup, San Francisco to Hawaii (July 1980)
• Windjammer,San Francisco to SantaCruz (September 1983)
• Transpac,LosAngeles to Honolulu (July1987)
• Transpac,Los Angeles to Honolulu (July 1995)

Transpac’s The Merlin Trophy

In 2009, Trisha Steele, a fourth-generation Transpac racer and herself a former owner of Merlin, dedicated a new trophy, The Merlin Trophy, for the fastest elapsed time for the unlimited class of yachts competing in the Transpac Race. The trophy was built by Ken Gardiner and is a scale model of Merlin itself. The Merlin Trophy is for RSS 51 and 52 waiver yachts (exempt from the Racing Rules of Sailing limitations on moveable ballast and/or stored power) up to 100 feet with the shortest elapsed time.

Ownership

• First: Bill Lee 1977–1983
• Second: Don Campion 1983–2000
• Third: Al Micalief 2000-2002 (Briefly changed name to Merlin’s Reata)
• Fourth: Orange Coast College School of Sailing and Seamanship 2002–2004
• Fifth: Trisha Steele 2004—2007
• Sixth: Bill Lee or Donn Campion 2007—2008
• Seventh: Jere Sullivan 2008-2015
• Eighth: Bill and Lu Lee 2015–2017
• Ninth: William F. “Chip” Merlin 2017—Present