Commodore Out Front

He sailed around Cape Horn at the age of four on the boat he joined two weeks after his birth. Warwick ‘Commodore’ Tomkins lived aboard the 81 foot schooner Wanderbird until 1941. Commodore never gave up his love of the sea.

“I am a waterman,” Tompkins has said. “All I wanted to do in life was to command my own vessel and go to sea and do it well.’’  Over the next 80 years, Commodore sailed over 500,000 miles, working as a rigger, designer, skipper, racer … anything on the water.

Commodore’s current ride, Flashgirl, is a Wylie 39. She’s done multiple voyages to the Pacific including the 2016 Pacific Cup when she was hit by lightning and sank at anchor in Kaneohe Bay. [Your author was riding out the same storm in the same bay and got luckier.]

Raised, cleaned up, rewired, Flashgirl continued many more voyages.

TODAY, Commodore and Flashgirl are racing in the 2026 Pacific Cup. Commodore has appointed Marco Misbach as the skipper for purposes of the race. Local legend Johnathan Livingston and Chris Klein round out the crew.

As of 5 pm on July 8, Commodore, Marco, and Flashgirl are leading the entire PHRF fleet. It turns out these guys really know how to handle the boat!

It’s a long way to the finish, but we’re thrilled to see the performance to date and look forward to more.

For more about Commodore see his movie! https://lifeonthewater.us/warwick-tompkins/

photo credits top: ht20shots.com left Helen Be