(Newport, RI)- The 2019 edition of the J/Fest New England Regatta, hosted by Sail Newport at the fabulous Fort Adams facility, had great racing for a fleet that included a J/PHRF fleet as well as the 2019 East Coast Championships for both the J/80 and J/109 classes.
The eight-boat J/80 fleet had a number of very strong teams representing each of the major fleets on the East Coast, including North American and Key West Champions. In the end, it was quite clear which team outclassed the fleet; winning with straight bullets in five races and crowned as 2019 J/80 East Coast Champions was Will & Marie Crump and Thomas Klok’s R80 from Annapolis YC in Annapolis, MD. A distant second place went to Conor Hayes’ MORE GOSTOSA with 11 pts, and rounding out the podium in the bronze position was Jason Viseltear’s UPSETTER with 17 pts.
The seven-boat J/109 class was also loaded with past North American, East Coast, and New England Champions. However, it was not one of the dominant New England teams that won. Instead, it was a cast of characters from Houston, TX that spoiled the party, with Tom Sutton’s LEADING EDGE winning with all podium finishes (three 1sts, two 2nds, one 3rd) for just 10 pts. While LEADING EDGE set the pace, it was a full-blown battle for second place between Ted Herlihy’s GUT FEELING and Brooke Mastrorio’s URSA. The outcome literally came down to the last race. Holding on to 2nd place going into the last day, Mastrorio’s team just had to maintain their consistent performance to stay on the podium. However, her team nearly blew it on the first race on Sunday, posting an uncharacteristic 7th place. Regrouping after that shocking outcome, Brooke got her team motivated and posted a deuce to take the silver. Had she posted a 1st, she would have won the regatta; nevertheless, she still got on the podium with a bronze medal.
Winning the J/PHRF class of seven-boats was Joe Brito’s J/121 INCOGNITO with an unassailable record of four bullets and a deuce for 6 pts total! Second was the new J/99 shorthanded offshore speedster- AGENT 99 skippered by Jeff Johnstone with an impressive tally of one 1st, two 2nds, and two 3rds for 11 pts. Just behind the two leaders, it was Kevin Dakan’s J/110 MEMORY that fortunately survived an unfortunate dismasting to take the bronze. For J/Fest New England overall results. For more J/Fest New England sailing information Add to Flipboard Magazine.
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