SAILING : Latest Starters in Transpac Have Wind in Their Favor

The most powerful boats were off to a fast start in winds of 15 to 18 knots after the first day of the 38th biennial Transpacific race to Honolulu on Monday, but the conditions weren’t expected to last.

The 78-foot Sayonara from San Francisco that started Sunday was right on Merlin’s record pace of 11.1 knots, but earlier starters were running out of wind the farther they sailed offshore.

The smaller boats farthest out were logging as little as 41 miles per day in winds as low as 1.6 knots and were projected not to finish until after July 20.

Antara, a Cal 40 boat with an all-female crew, will be at sea for 24 days if projections hold. The record for the 2,225 miles is about 8 1/2 days set in 1977.

The problem is the absence in the northern Pacific of the usual high-pressure zone that generates the strong northerly tradewinds the sailors usually enjoy about 500 miles after leaving the mainland.

Sayonara, owned by Larry Ellison, has America’s Cup veteran Paul Cayard and veteran Transpac navigator Stan Honey among its crew.