The Cal 40

"Journeyman"

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In August of 2017 while in Hawaii preparing to deliver a Santa Cruz 50 back to the mainland it came to my attention that there was a well appointed Cal 40 for sale in the same marina. In the midst of all the work that goes into preparing a crew and boat for a 2000 mile, often upwind, trip I looked at the boat and put in an offer. About 800 miles offshore I found out via satellite phone that we were the new owners of a fine specimen of an offshore racing classic. I was both elated and not looking forward particularly in delivering another boat over 2000 miles back to the mainland in what is considered the end of the same season. Fast forward and the two transpacific deliveries and 2 week long cruising classes in three months and the summer was over and the work was just beginning. The dream of building a program that could prepare people for this bluewater bucket list experience that I have learned is shared by quite a few people share is now on its way to reality.

Captain Rhys Balmer

 

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It is hard to grasp the significance of Lapworth’s Cal-40 design without having it surrounded by the rest of the 1963 racing fleet. In 1963 racing boats were all over the map in terms of design, and many of them were not good boats. The Cal-40 has endured as an efficient and handsome design. This modest appearing design changed the direction of racing boat design forever.
— ~ Robert H. Perry Naval Architect
We bought Illusion in 1988 intending to go cruising, but old habits die hard so we mostly raced. We’ve raced Illusion to Hawaii 5 times. I set the singlehanded Transpac record in 1992. Sally and I won the Pacific Cup overall fleet in 1996, sailing doublehanded. We won class in the Transpac and 3rd overall in 2003 sailing with Cal40 legends Jon Andron and Skip Allan on our four person crew. Sally raced Illusion with a four woman crew in the 2005 Transpac and got 2nd in class. We’ve also won the Northern California inshore YRA series and the offshore OYRA series, and have competed in countless Farallon Races, singlehanded, doublehanded, and crewed, and won our share.
— Stan Honey