This summer, PlanetSail founder and sailing journalist Matt Sheahan joined us in Chicago to experience the 2026 Race to Mackinac firsthand and share the story of the Mac Race with sailors around the world.
From the start off Chicago to 333 miles of offshore racing on Lake Michigan, the new film explores the scale, challenge, people and traditions that make the Race to Mackinac unlike any other offshore race.
The 117th Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Wintrust once again demonstrated the scale and competitive depth that have established it as the largest annual offshore race in the world. The 333-mile course–spanning the length of Lake Michigan–challenged 250 teams with nearly the full spectrum of offshore sailing conditions, from upwind and downwind racing to heavy air, tactical light winds and powerful overnight thunderstorms.
All competitors are safe following a strong line of thunderstorms that swept across the fleet in northern Lake Michigan overnight during the 117th Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Wintrust.
Sailors reported winds exceeding 35 knots as the storm moved through, with winds causing several teams to experience moderate damage, including one report of a broken rudder and another of a mast failure.
Peter Thornton’s 104-foot ketch, Whitehawk, claimed line honors for the fourth year in a row, finishing the 117th Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac Presented by Wintrust at 3:31 p.m. ET / 2:31 p.m. CT on Sunday with an elapsed time of 1 day, 23 hours, 11 minutes.
It marks the fourth consecutive year that Whitehawk has been the first boat to complete the 333-statute-mile race from Chicago to Mackinac Island.
The 117th Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Wintrust is fully underway after 208 Racing Division boats started Saturday morning in ideal upwind conditions.
The “Skyline Sprint,” introduced last year in celebration of Chicago Yacht Club’s 150th anniversary, provided Chicagoans the opportunity to see the 208 Racing Division boats engaged in intense tacking battles along the shoreline towards the turning mark near Montrose Harbor.
Cruisers and Racers,
The Skippers Meetings and Weather Briefings video for the Cruising and Racing Divisions are available for replay along with the Weather Briefing Report. Sail fast, sail safe! See you on the Island.
We are starting to see boats back in the harbors and the horses have made their way to Mackinac Island, which only means one thing - it’s almost summer. We are looking forward to a fast and fun 113th Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac, and I wanted to share a few reminders as we are approaching some deadlines.
Racers,
In order to provide the best experience for our competitors, we will be delaying the opening of registration until February 15th. We are putting the final touches on our brand new registration system and we need a little more time. Data from past races will be imported, but competitors will have to reset their passwords prior to completing entries or crew profiles. The Notice of Race and Chicago Mackinac Safety Requirements will be published as scheduled on February 1st on the Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac Website.
Welcome to 2022! I hope you had the opportunity to spend time with your friends and family this holiday season. This past year was the year of “return to racing” with the 112th Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Wintrust and many other events taking place. We look to build on that success this year with the 113th CYCRTM, and I have a lot of exciting news to share about the race.
Chicago Yacht Club has appointed Sam Veilleux to be the chairman of the 113th and 114th Races to Mackinac taking place in 2022 and 2023. The announcement was made at the Race to Mackinac Awards Banquet held on November 6th at Monroe Station. More than 300 competitors, members of the sailing community and honored guests were in attendance.
"The Race" is the documentary about the Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac from start to finish, but more importantly, the actual experience of the race as told by the countless competitors turned "on board reporter" to help T2PTV Sailing on Demand tell the story of this 112-year-old race. The traditions, old and new, the challenge and the range of conditions explain why the families on board these boats are bonded by blood, sweat and joy.
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