Winning four of the seven handicap classes, J/Boat sailors were having more than just fun at the Rolex International regatta in St. Thomas., they were collecting silver. In total, (including the IC 24 class) over 37% of the Rolex fleet were sailing aboard J/Boat hulls at the event.Winning Spinnaker Racing 2 was Gilberto Rivera's (Guaynabo, PR) J/24 Urayo, which also won in 2006. Rivera, who gave his Rolex watch to his father in 2006, gave this year's prize to foredeck crew Francisco Velez and plans to give any watch he wins in the future here to a crewmember until it's his turn. "That's so my crew will stay with the boat," said Rivera jokingly. "Seriously, this is such a great event; we've been coming since 1998."
Jens Hookansen (Middletown, R.I.), who steered Robert Armstrong's J/100 Bad Girl to win Spinnaker Racing 1, had similar sentiments. "I love coming down here," said Hookansen, a native of St. Croix and past J/24 World Champion. "The venue is fantastic and you get a chance to wear a Rolex home. What could be better?"
Non-spinnaker Racing class was won by Juan Moline's (Vega Baja, PR) J/24 Medalla Light, while Spinnaker Racing/Cruising class was won by James Dobbs' new J/122 Lost Horizon continuing his string of 2008 wins... results and pics.
