Cape Hatteras, NC
5/18/2000, 5:30 PM
By Zack Leonard
The Race, Part 2
While the sailors pushed off the beach and selfishly focused on the issues surrounding their 80
mile sail, the shore crew were put to the test today. This leg was a true test of dedication for
the race organizers, journalists and shore crew who follow this nautical steeple-chase. The shore-side
trip from Atlantic Beach to Hatteras was rife with hazards and sand traps that made it nearly impossible
to beat the sailors to the finish. But, while disaster lay hiding at every turn, the drive wound it's
way through one of the most beautiful areas on the Atlantic Coast.
The drive from Atlantic Beach to Cedar Island was the prologue - a one hour jaunt through Beaufort
and out into the countryside. Sandy, coniferous woodland stretches gave way to wide-open wetlands
and meandering watercourses. Barkless, barren, and marsh-strangled trees jutted up out of the reeds
to warn off interlopers with ghost-like authority, while Rorschak ink-blot islands of tall grass filled
the spaces between the solid-ground sanctuaries for men and their homes. At the end of this drive was
Cedar Island -- and a ferry that was loading at 11 AM. Miss the ferry, miss the finish.
The shore party (and that's what it became) boarded the ferry on time and hunkered down for the 2 hour
trip across Pamlico sound to Ocracoke Island. The breeze was a solid 20 knots from the south inside
the sound causing a tension among the shore crew that was palpable. Would the boats reach the finish
before we could get there?
No one wants to miss the finish, not just because we need to provide assistance to the racers, but
also because the finish is the coolest part of the race. The whole day of waiting is a buildup of
tension and anticipation that is resolved with the finish. When the leaders surf up on the beach
you are let down from a climax of speculation and your heartbeat slowly returns to normal.
When the ferry approached Ocracoke, the mood was getting tense. Ocracoke is about 14 miles long.
The ferry from Cedar Island arrives in town at the Southwestern end of the island. At the Northern
tip of the island is another ferry that crosses another inlet and deposits riders at Hatteras, only
3 miles from the finish. The plot thickens. The ferry from Ocracoke to Hatteras is less that 1/2
the size of the first ferry. If you don't make the first ferry to Hatteras, you won't make the finish.
As the ferry unloaded, the pelleton wended it's way through the small town and took in the quaint
village with a view to get out quick. As soon as the last dwellings were cleared the speeds increased.
The road up Ocracoke is a long straight path running along the beach with views of windswept scrub
growth and virgin dunes. The vegetation is raked to the west from years of abuse by Atlantic breezes.
The speed limit is 45 but that was out the window. Winnebagos were doing 70 trying to hold off
marauding passenger cars who attacked like gnats, passing the behemoths at 80 and 90 miles per hour.
Alexander's on the bay ran their van/trailer rig at 90 and passed several SUVs who thought for sure
that their finishing positions were secure. At the end of the road the speedy were rewarded with a
spot on the small ferry that plied the waters to Hatteras.
The traffic was dense at Hatteras, but the leaders were secure they had done their best. As they
pulled into the hotel lot the cars unloaded and the shore crews ran to the beach to check the horizon.
The group topped the dune and looked down at the beach to watch Brett Dryland and Rod Waterhouse surf
onto the beach. Another day at the Worrell 1000.
