The Chicago Yacht Club has officially announced that its ever-popular Race to Mackinac presented by Wintrust (CYCRTM). Started in 1898, the race annually hosts over 3,000 sailors and covers 333 statute miles, starting from Chicago’s Navy Pier on Lake Michigan and finishing at Mackinac Island, Mich. on Lake Huron. The 115th edition starts Friday, July 12 for cruising sailboats and Saturday, July 13 for performance sailboats.

The Racing Starts take place on Saturday, July 13 beginning at 11 a.m. and continue every 10 minutes until the last section departs at approximately 3 p.m.. A cannon is fired at the specific start time for each section.

The Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Wintrust is one of the world’s largest annual offshore races, drawing top-notch sailing talent from around America and the world.  Known as “The Mac” to everyone in the region, the ultimate test of Great Lakes navigation starts each July just off Chicago’s Navy Pier. Passing through some of the most beautiful coastal waters in the world on the 333-statute mile (289 nm) race route, the fleet faces the storms, reefs, calms and competition that truly make it “America’s Offshore Challenge.”