our story

11th Hour Racing Team’s mission is to build a high-performance ocean racing team with sustainability at the core of all team operations, inspiring positive action among sailing and coastal communities, and global sports fans, to create long-lasting change for ocean health.

Launched in September 2019 by team co-founders Skipper Charlie Enright and CEO Mark Towill, our team is based out of Newport, Rhode Island, USA, home to our sponsor 11th Hour Racing.

Having a higher purpose is the beating heart of our campaign. Our participation in The Ocean Race 2022-23 gave us the chance to prove that it was possible to not only build a credible campaign with sustainability at the core of all operations, but in fact a winning one, and win not in spite of the changes we made but because of them.

In the beginning, there were concerns about how we would toe the line between authentically holding sustainability at the core of all operations and running a high-performance team – one capable of winning one of the toughest sporting events on the planet.

Four years on from when our campaign was first created, here we are. The first American team to have ever won The Ocean Race in its 50-year history – a title we accept proudly.

Ultimately, winning the ocean race provides a unique opportunity to capture the world’s attention and use that platform to advocate for sustainability and inspire positive changes for the protection of our oceans and the planet as a whole.