Organizers say the 42nd Shaw Island Classic was “a race to remember.”

The weather on Aug. 11 was near perfect with the temperatures in the low 70s and a breeze out of the North. The event was hosted by the San Juan Island Yacht Club.

Fifty-five boats were on the line, which unlike previous years saw good wind and two clean starts. The Shaw Island Classic is unique in that boats can choose to circumnavigate Shaw Island in either direction. Slower divisions were over the line at noon followed by the faster divisions at 12:15 p.m.

The fleet split in search of the right combination of wind and current, with boats making good headway in both directions. It is estimated that 40 percent chose the clockwise direction. The counterclockwise boats made good progress until they reached Upright Channel, at which time the winds got light and stalled the turn at Hankin Point. The clockwise boats made good progress until they reached the always troublesome Wasp Passage.

The clockwise boats appeared to have made the better choice as “Blue Steel,” a F32R multihull captained by Nigel Oswald, was the first boat to cross the finish line at 3:32 p.m. and about 10 clockwise boats finished before the first counterclockwise boat was sighted by the race committee.

“Ekono Juan,” a San Juan 24 and perennial favorite skippered by Orcas Islander Ryan Forbes, was awarded first place overall on a corrected time of 4.05 hours. “Blue Steel” captured fasted elapsed time in 3.29 hours.

All results were based on finish times with the exception of Cruising Class B and C, where the awards were based on midcourse times.