New N.Y. To Bermuda Record: 17 Hours

September 28, 2012

[Updated with video] The New York to Bermuda record was broken yet again, with an Italian team roaring in at 10am this morning [Sept 28], in a time of approximately 17 hours.

They left New York at approximately 5pm Bermuda time yesterday to make 780 mile open ocean transit, and ended up smashing the previous record by over 4 hours.

The boat was by noted Italian yacht designer and builder Fabio Buzzi, and is 39.9′ long, weighs 9 tons and is powered by 2 FPT 650HP engines. It is a military boat, and used by the Italian Army special forces.

Created by Boating Magazine in 1994, the Bermuda Challenge is an offshore powerboat endurance race which begins at the Statue of Liberty in New York City and finishes at the sea buoy in St. Georges, Bermuda.

The first run was in 1996 by Larry Graf in his Glacier Bay 260 Canyon Runner with twin Honda 90s, and was completed in 37 hours. In 1997, a World Class 266 SF catamaran powered by Mercury Optimax 150s cut the time to 29 hours, 30 minutes.

In 2002 the record was broken again by Bermuda’s Dr Neil Burnie aboard a Renaissance Marine Prowler 302. Last month the record was broken yet again, with Chris Fertig finishing in 21 hours and 39 minutes.

Update: The boat’s name is Col Moschin, and the crew were Fabio Buzzi, Maurizio Bulleri, Antonio Binda, Emilio Riganti and Roberto Rizzo. They were welcomed in by St George’s Deputy Mayor Garth Rothwell.

When asked what prompted them to make the trip, the Captain joked that they wanted to “find the most expensive and complicated way to see your beautiful island.”

They also noted that the “Someone was doing this two months ago and they did 30 knots with American technology, and we have done 40 with Italian technology.”

Click to enlarge photos:

Read More About

Category: All, Marine, News, Photos

Comments (30)

Trackback URL | Comments RSS Feed

  1. bornbermudian says:

    Dat guy was floatin!

  2. Paradise Reclaimed says:

    So cool!

  3. JB says:

    Well done. Another way to generate tourist $

    • Hamilton Commuter says:

      Generate tourist dollars? Not likely when HM Customs and Immigration Dept were so hostile towards Fabio Buzzi and his crew. According to Brian Derby and ZBM news these officials held the Italians for 35 minutes, would not let anyone onto Ordnance Island to welcome them and threatened to confiscate news cameras. Very, very sad.

  4. JB says:

    Can we get more details like average speed, sea conditions,how many persons on board etc? Was the Italian military involved or is Mr Buzzi promoting how fast and seaworthy his boat is?

  5. justcool says:

    Cogratulations!…
    Beat the last record by 4 hours WoW!

  6. bir says:

    Great Speedster CONGRATS I T A L I A N O

  7. 1minute says:

    We be jammin’ – Awesome job – Congrats

  8. Serious Though says:

    i think Corp of St.Georges should embraces this and promote more..

  9. plato says:

    Wait til they get the refuelling bill at pw’s for those twin 750′s !!!

    • Sh$t Happens says:

      I guess you don’t know Fabio that bill won’t hurt him.
      I raced with him in Key West Florida.

    • elBee says:

      I had been wondering about that myself. About how much fuel would it take to make that run?

  10. smith says:

    ..visiting boat, gets duty free fuel.

  11. Dirtbox says:

    i live cut road st.georges and could hear that boat from far away!.. good job! wish i was on that boat! LOUD AND FAST!

  12. Triangle Drifter says:

    Some stats would be nice. Average speed, fuel burned, gph, that sort of thing.

    Good going, but these guys put the competition out of the reach of the ‘average’ guy, if you will, with a pair of outboards.

    What are the parameters for the boat? Less than 40′? How much HP?, Diesel or gas? Stuff like that.

    Time to introduce some classes of boat.

    Wonder how long one of dem byes with a Seagull would take? I’ll bet the thought has crossed the minds of a few of them.

    • UncleSam says:

      I like your idea of having different classes! Maybe BPA can work out how to sanction it, keep it organized locally. I remember many years back some guys showing up here in a 16′ boat, from Cape Hatteras, to promote the builder.

  13. Truth is killin' me... says:

    Come on Branson…dust off that hat of yours and get crackin’!

  14. Boom Bye Bye says:

    I want one!

  15. Harry P says:

    Great idea for St George’s lets see if the Government of the day can develop this idea. There are plenty of “Bransons” out there looking for a challenge.

  16. happy onion says:

    Congrats to the crew, designers & builders of the “Col Moschin” who safely broke the record!!! Now perhaps if Bermuda ever gets a coastguard we should consider investing in at least one of Mr. Buzzi’s boats? ; )

  17. Neil Burnie says:

    It’s a great feat, BUT …” THE BERMUDA CHALLENGE ” Record initiated by Boating Magazine was established for OUTBOARD engined boats of less than 40 feet. I got the impression that they dropped the outboard rule for Chris Fehrtig’s boat as none had broken the Bones record in 10 years, and the magazine wants the publicity.
    I WAS hoping to do the run in 2013 in a 34′ Prowler but now we’re competing with big Factory dollars, it’s like a privateer club racer taking on a Ferrari Formula One team.Out of the hands of your average boat consumer now, but makes my summer a lot easier to plan!. Well done Fabio, but can you fish and spear out of it! If so, I’m sure ODI-WUN will get one!

  18. Terry says:

    All depends on the winds and seas.

  19. Kevin Falvey says:

    Neal Burnie—

    The Bermuda Challenge was never restricted to outboards. It just worked out that outboard-powered catamarans were the most prevalent early challengers. Cats and outboards are a very efficient, seaworthy combination ( You ought to know!) The “class” is simply “boats” under 40 feet.

    Kevin Falvey
    Editor-In-Chief
    BOATING

  20. Laura says:

    Who should I contact to get high-res photos to possibly feature in our monthly column, Racing Roundup? I need it ASAP though. Please email me as soon as you can to hopefully work on this.

  21. Challenge accepted Fabio, we will raise the bar by using a boat half the size to beat your record.