(Chicago, IL- August 14-16)- The 2009 J1/09 North Americans were held at the Verve Cup Regatta hosted by Chicago Yacht Club. Fourteen teams competed for the championship including teams from the west (Team VALOR with Fleet Captain Tom Brott from Seal Beach Yacht Club), the south (Team SURPRISE/HAMBURG with Fleet Captain Albrecht Goethe from Lakeside YC in Houston), the north (Wisconsin Team ZEITGESIT with Rob Zerban froom Kenosha, WI) and the east (Team STORM with Rick Lyall from Cedar Point YC in Westport, CT). There were 10 other strong teams mostly from the Chicago area. At the conclusion of this "storm-tossed" event, Rick Lyall's appropriately named STORM won the event.
Pete Priede, Captain of the southern Lake Michigan Fleet (11), Kevin Saedi and Riccardo Navon did a remarkable job organizing the championship for the J/109 class, especially considering they had never run a championship event that required crew and sail registration and boat inspections prior to the event.
The class would also like to recognize the tremendous effort put forth by the staff of the Chicago Yacht Club in running the Verve Cup. The event was very well organized and the racing and social events were top notch. We would also like to recognize the excellent race management offered to the class by Ms. Vickie Matthews, PRO of the B Fleet where the J/109 championship took place.
The competition began on Thursday, August 13th in sunny but very light conditions with winds as low as 2-3kts during the first race. However they built slowly to the 5-8 knot range and the J/109 fleet was able to get in 3 races. We were the only fleet racing for four days so we had the B Circle all to ourselves. At the end of the first day, STORM led with 5 points followed by ZEITGESIT with 9 points and SURPISE/TEAM HAMBURG in third with 10 points. A different boat won each race.
Friday brought more sunshine and winds of 5-10 kts along with the addition of another 147 boats to the regatta. The “big boats” consisting of Great Lakes 70s, Farr 40s and 3 PHRF fleets of 30-50 foot boats competed on Circle A. Circle B included the Beneteau 40.7s, also racing for their North American title, J/109s, Beneteau 36.7s, a PHRF fleet of 30-40 footers and the J105s.
Racing in the J/109 fleet was again tight with STORM winning the first race, David Gustman’s NORTHSTAR the second and SURPRISE/ TEAM HAMBURG the third. Friday was also the practice day for the Chicago Air and Water Show so we were occasionally privileged to witness military aircraft racing along the Chicago skyline or circling overhead. At the end of the day, STORM retained the lead, SURPRISE/ TEAM HAMBURG moved up to second and NORTHSTAR moved into third.
Saturday dawned bright and sunny, with temperatures in the high 80’s. Winds were again expected to be in the 5-10kt range but actually ended up a bit stronger. SURPRISE/ TEAM HAMBURG started off strong winning the first race. REALT NA MARA, crewed by talented Star class sailors Joe and Tom Londrigan who had placed 7th overall in the Chicago-Mackinac race, took the bullet in the second race. Rob Zerban on ZEITGESIT got the gun in the third race. STORM posted a consistent 2-2-2 to remain in the overall lead, followed by SURPRISE/ TEAM HAMBURG and ZEITGEIST.
Saturday was the first day of the Chicago Air and Water show and there was a huge turnout of spectators boats to the north of Dusable basin. The wave action from the power boats streaking back and forth and reverberating off the shore caused what could kindly be called a washing machine effect extending out a least a mile offshore. This made the ride into the dock quite an adventure.
Sunday, the last and final day of the regatta, came with the promise of strong breeze and a chance of thunderstorms. Early forecasts called for 10-15kts with the possibility of 20+ in the mid afternoon with approaching storms. We soon learned that would prove quite conservative! The fleet saw 15-20kts on the 6 mile ride out to the racing area and he winds built to 20-25+ kts during the first race. STORM led around the course and took the gun followed by Jack Toliver’s VANDA III and SURPRISE/ TEAM HAMBURG. The second race was even more “interesting” as winds built to 25-30kts. NORTHSTAR sailed a great race and led the fleet around the course to take the bullet. SURPRISE/ TEAM HAMBURG also sailed a solid race but rounded up on the second downwind leg and managed to hold their position after dropping their kite and finishing with main and jib. STORM broached on the first downwind leg and dropped from 3rd to 7th at the gate but climbed back to finish 3rd.
Elsewhere on the course there was havoc, with a number of “man overboards” hailed over the VHF. The race committee hailed the fleet that their 20 foot pin boat had capsized. The Coast Guard sent a helicopter to rescue three crew who had fallen overboard from a Beneteau 40.7, one of whom had been struck by the boom and was unconscious in the water. The three were airlifted to a local hospital for medical assistance. We understand all of them were fine the next day.
And then things got even more interesting….. The winds continued to build on the ride back to the dock. As the fleet approached the Dusable basin, a squall hit with torrential rain and winds of 50-60kts. The squall lasted only a few terrifying minutes but there was essentially zero visibility as the crews struggled to shorten or douse sails. Everyone made it back to the dock completely drenched, some with damaged sails, but generally pleased to have participated in such a great regatta.
This was clearly a terrific North American Championship for the J/109 fleet. We raced in virtually all conditions that ranged from shifty, light 5kts or less all the way up to a challenging 30kt hang on and hike hard full on blow. Racing was generally very close with tight starts and mark roundings. Five different boats held on to win races. Chicago was a great venue for this event and we certainly look forward to holding another championship there.
