Micah Davis, co-pilot of the Portland-based Amhas II sailing racer, which took part in the Atlantic Cup races in Portland Harbor Friday and Saturday, says it is much more thrilling competing inshore than offshore.

The 40-foot-long Class 40s – the monohull boats used in the race – are designed for straight-shot trans-Atlantic racing, said Davis, a Harpswell native.

Davis is a member of one of the nine teams from six countries that competed in the 1,048-mile biennial event, which took the boats from Charleston, South Carolina, to Brooklyn, New York, and from Brooklyn to Portland.

The two days of racing by seven boats – two boats dropped out after the first two legs – around Portland Harbor were more exciting to watch and to compete in than the sailing out at sea, said Davis.

“It is gassing along at 14 knots and you are 14 inches away from another boat going that fast with lots of buoys and other boats,” he said. “This inshore racing in many respects is the hardest and an instantaneous thrill.”

Davis, who lives in San Francisco and manages a global natural resources fund, co-owns the boat with Maine Yacht Center general manager Brian Harris.

A crowd gathered Saturday at the Race Village festival set up at Fort Allen Park on the Eastern Promenade to watch the final two of five inshore races. Emcee Dave Rearick, a former Atlantic Cup winner, provided commentary while the boats jockeyed for position at the starting line off Fort Gorges.

“They can’t cross that line until the gun goes off. It’s a game of inches,” said Rearick, noting that one bad bump can cost the boat owner several thousand dollars in repair bills.

The boats were vying for the $5,000 cash prize awarded to the winner of each leg of the race.

The Spanish boat Tales II and the Earendil of France took first and second place, respectively, in the Atlantic Cup after the competition ended Saturday in Portland. The two boats led the pack by a large margin before the last two inshore races Saturday. Oakcliff, a boat homeported in Oyster Bay, New York, took third place overall.

Tales II won both offshore legs and Earendil was second in those legs, giving both boats a big lead heading into the inshore races in Portland. Tales II ended up winning two of those five inshore races, and finished second, third and fourth in the others. Earendil won one inshore leg and finished second, fourth twice and fifth in the others.

Oakcliff took third on a tie-breaker with a boat called Toothface.

“We are really thrilled about winning the Atlantic Cup,” said Gonzalo Botín, who skippered Tales II with Palbo Santurde. “The combination of offshore and inshore racing made it exciting and challenging, but we are really happy with the end result.”

Davis said it is wild racing in Portland Harbor, where the waters are constantly churned by pleasure boats, fishing boats and ferries.

“Everyone has been really accommodating. We appreciate ferries doing figure eights to keep out of our way,” said Davis.

The crowd at Fort Allen Park was filled with boating enthusiasts, including Dhara Williams and her husband, Mike Shuman. The Portland couple said they wanted to get a bird’s-eye view of the races rather than watch from their 28-foot sloop.

Shuman said the Atlantic Cup, which came to Portland for the first time this year, makes perfect sense for the city. He said he hopes the event returns to Portland in 2018. Atlantic Cup officials are expected to decide on that in the next three months.

“A lot of people come here for the ocean,” said Shuman.

Staff Writer Edward D. Murphy contributed to this report.

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