History made in 2025 Transpac Race

Skipper Alli Bell and the crew of her Cal 40 Restless has claimed the ORR Monohull Overall title for the 2025 Transpac Race following their late night finish on July 13. After starting on July 1, Restless posted an elapsed time of 12d 12:03:16, with Bell as the first woman skipper to win the King Kalakaua Trophy.

Restless topped the corrected-time leaderboard for all but a handful of hours, beating many teams that benefited from newer, faster designs, better sails, and fully professional crews. By contrast, Restless was flying second-hand sails aboard a boat that was designed in the mid-1960s.

The seeds of Bell’s historic win were sown decades ago when her grandfather, Willard Bell, purchased Westward, the family’s Lapworth 50. Bell sailed the first of her five Transpacs in 2013 aboard Westward with two of her uncles and three of her cousins, describing the boat as an older cousin to her Cal 40, itself a design with its own Transpac pedigree.

Family ties abound amongst the Restless crew: Bell’s winning team consisted of her cousin, Graham Bell, who served as navigator; her husband, Stephen Driscoll; plus friends Eric Heim and Greg Reynolds. Another cousin, Mara Bell-Hoshina was planning to sail with the team, but broke two ribs about a week before the race and had to remain ashore.

“It was just something that happened,” said Bell about the last-minute crew shake-up. “We dealt with it and adapted our schedules.”

When Bell bought Restless in 2019, her first call was to her cousin Graham, requesting his services at the navigation station. Then, a lengthy work list began. “Pretty much anything that could be touched, was,” said Bell. This included upgrading the boat’s hull-to-deck joint, replacing the toe rails and the cockpit coaming handrails, and repainting the interior.

“A bunch of people saw that I was upgrading the boat for the race, and they offered secondhand sails, boat parts and equipment to help us,” said Bell, who works ashore as a higher-education policy analyst.

Unlike many boats that were vying for the King Kalakaua Trophy, Restless isn’t a high-dollar program. “In a difficult race, with a lot of great performances, this one stands out,” said Bill Guilfoyle, Commodore of Transpacific Yacht Club and a five-time Transpac Race veteran.

“It demonstrates that anybody with a well-prepared boat who sails well has the potential of winning,” he said. “This should be an inspiration to anybody who doesn’t have the multi-million dollar budget and wants to compete. This shows you can do that.”

Restless crossed the finish line at 10:23pm local time and about a half hour later, arrived at their slip in the Ala Wai Harbor to the sight of more than 100 family members, friends and fellow competitors. “It was so awesome,” said Bell.

When asked how it felt to be a major role model for tomorrow’s Transpac sailors, Bell characteristically downplayed her achievement.

“I don’t think I’m a role model,” she said, the emotion thick in her voice. “I’m just someone who wanted to do something and did it.”

Event information – Race details – Results – Tracker

The 53-boat fleet began the 2025 Transpac Race with staggered starts on July 1, July 3 and July 5 for the 53rd edition of the biennial 2225 nm crossing from Los Angeles to Honolulu. 

Source: TYC