Mike Birch (1 November 1931 – 26 October 2022) was a Canadian navigator.

Biography

Birch began sailing later in his life, but gained notoriety in the 1976 OSTAR where he came in second on a 30' trimaran "The Third Turtle" beating the 236' "CLUB MEDITERRANEE". He continued his surprising success as a solo sailor in the inaugural

Route du Rhum The Route du Rhum is a wikt:transatlantic, transatlantic Single-handed sailing, single-handed yacht racing, yacht race, which takes place every four years in November. The course is between Saint Malo, Brittany, Metropolitan France and Pointe-à- ...

in 1978. His sailboat, the '' Olympus Photo'', a 12-meter trimaran, caught up with the larger ' of late in the race. Birch's victory at the Route du Rhum would begin the reign of the

multihull A multihull is a boat or ship with more than one Hull (watercraft), hull, whereas a vessel with a single hull is a monohull. The most common multihulls are catamarans (with two hulls), and trimarans (with three hulls). There are other types, wi ...

, particularly following the death of Alain Colas. Birch continued a long career racing offshore, completing his final race at the

Transat Jacques Vabre Transat may refer to: * Transat A.T., Canadian tour and travel agency ** Air Transat, Canadian airline owned by Transat A.T. * Concept Composites MD03 Transat, French ultralight aircraft * "The Transat", also called the Single-Handed Trans-Atlant ...

in 2007, where he finished in 16th place. Birch died in

Brech Brech (; , ) is a commune in the Morbihan department, region of Brittany, northwestern France. Population Inhabitants of Brec'h are called in French ''Brechois''. Breton language In 2008, 19.56% of primary-school children attended bilingual ...

, France on 26 October 2022, at the age of 90.

References

1931 births 2022 deaths Maritime navigators People from Vancouver {{Canada-bio-stub