Growing up on Lake Michigan, Pittman said he often "dreamed about sailing the big boats faster than the wind." On July 24, the 50-year-old health care industry senior executive, along with a crew of 23, will have a chance to do just that in Pittman’s fast, new state-of-the-art sloop, Genuine Risk.

At 90 feet, Genuine Risk is the largest monohull sailboat entered in the 2004 Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Lands’ End Business Outfitters. Because of its size and design, the boat arrived in the Great Lakes region from San Diego last month – on six separate trucks. Crew had been training on the new vessel in San Diego after it arrived there from Sydney, Australia, where it was constructed. On Thursday, July 22, Genuine Risk sails into Chicago waters as its crew makes final preparations to compete in the 333-mile race to Mackinac Island, Mich.

"I believe we’ll set more records with normal or slightly above normal winds because this boat sails so much faster than the wind," said Pittman.

Named after the second filly ever to win the Kentucky Derby, Genuine Risk carries the latest in sailing equipment, and it is one of only three boats that have been launched with the new Canting Ballast Twin Foil (CBTF) technology. Two helmsmen, one fore and one aft, will operate the boat’s twin turning foils that replace the conventional rudder system. Pittman says the sloop maneuvers in turns more like an automobile with power steering than a sailboat. The other CBTF boats are Disney’s newest boat, also named Pyewacket, and SAP chairman Hasso Plattner’s Morning Glory. Both the new Pyewacket and Morning Glory are 86-foot Max Z86’s.

Pittman, who grew up in Holland, Mich., is no stranger to Lake Michigan or Chicago. As a child, he frequently piled into the family car to make the trip around the lake to Evanston, Ill., to visit his grandfather. Later, as an adult, Pittman resided for several years in Lake Forest, Ill. He currently divides his time between Ypsilanti, Mich., where his company is located, and San Diego. During the last three Chicago to Mackinac Races he sailed in his smaller J-160, Ruffian.

"I grew up on Lake Michigan dreaming about someday racing big, fast boats like Windward Passage and Kialoa, two legendary boats that really inspired me as a child," said Pittman. "I feel it’s important to bring Genuine Risk back to Chicago to compete in this traditional event. I’m really hoping the next generation of sailors become inspired by Genuine Risk to start doing some dreaming of their own."

Pittman, a seasoned veteran of both freshwater and ocean sailboat racing, wanted to create the fastest monohull sailboat possible without regard to any rules. Four years in the making, Genuine Risk was designed by a team headed up by Dubois Naval Architects and included America's Cup veterans Clay Oliver and Andy Claughton. It was built by McConaghy Marine in Sydney.

Last year, racers faced the challenge of particularly slow winds, which brought many boats to a near standstill for hours at time. A severe storm during the 2002 race helped make it one of the fastest in the event’s history.

NEW 90-FOOT GENUINE RISK SET TO SAIL
"FASTER THAN THE WIND"

Named after the second filly ever to win the Kentucky Derby, Genuine Risk is the largest monohull sailboat entered in the Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac this year, and owner Randall Pittman has set his sights on shattering the Race’s speed record set in 2002 by Roy Disney’s Pyewacket. At 90-feet, the sloop had to be delivered to Port Huron, Mich. on five separate trucks. Genuine Risk boasts the latest in state-of-the-art sailing equipment, and is one of only three boats that have been launched with the new Canting Ballast Twin Foil technology. Among the 24-person crew will be two helmsmen, one fore and one aft, to operate the boat’s twin turning foils that replace the conventional rudder system. Pittman says the sloop maneuvers in turns more like an automobile with power steering than a sailboat turning on a rear rudder.

NEW "TURBO" SECTION ADDED FOR HIGH-TECH CONTENDERS IN

2004 CHICAGO YACHT CLUB RACE TO MACKINAC

PRESENTED BY LANDS’ END BUSINESS OUTFITTERS

CHICAGO (July 13, 2004) – A new section of sailboats has just been added to the 2004 Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Lands’ End Business Outfitters. The new "Turbo" Section of the Mackinac Cup Division was announced by the Mackinac Committee to recognize the advances in yacht design and the specialized use of new technologies.

"People in the same section essentially had been sailing in different winds, and that’s not ideal racing," noted Rick Lillie, chairman of the 2004 Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac Committee. "We’re acknowledging that across the spectrum there is a group of boats at the leading edge of sailing technology and that there are other, more traditional boats with little or nothing in the way of this type of technology."

The Turbo Section was carved out of Section 1 of the Mackinac Cup Division, which generally included the larger, faster boats. What sets the new Turbo Section boats apart is that they are equipped with high-tech, lightweight materials such as carbon fibers and feature new sail and hull designs, and the latest innovations in canting keels and moveable water singular.