Bill Lee's Merlin handily won the inaugural Pacific Cup in 1980. His designs ushered in a generation of ultra-light boats that embodied his "Fast is Fun" philosophy.
Not content with just being a great designer and racer, Bill has put serious personal effort into helping improve the world of ocean racing in various organizations.
Recognizing his contributions, Pacific Cup has announced a new trophy: the Bill Lee "Wizard" Trophy for best performance by a Lee-designed boat. To date, there are five such boats entered, and organizers anticipate at least a few more (including Merlin herself?) before entries close.
Merlin held the elapsed Pacific Cup time record until 1994 when it was broken by the custom Wylie 70, Rage. However, Lee designed boats, including Santa Cruz 27s, 33s, 40s, 50s, 52s, and 70s have continued to be mainstays of the Pacific Cup, with many overall and division wins. In the double handed division, SC27s are particular favorites.
"I've always been pleased that the Pacific Cup race provides the opportunity for recreational entries as well as high performance teams," said Lee. "It's great to see current owners of so many of my designs still having fun racing to Hawaii."