Global Interest Strong in J's Latest Speedboat
(Newport, RI)- Since the announcement during the Annapolis Show, over 9,000 unique visitors worldwide have gone to the J/111 web page to learn more about this exciting new design from J/Boats. It appears evident the newly announced J/111 is striking a sensitive chord amongst sailors who are looking for that next-generation 36 footer. Breaking new ground in its looks, layout and performance, sailors are looking forward to the J/111's introduction next year. No wonder, the J/111 is a sleek, modern one-design, with a large day-sailing cockpit, easy-to-handle sail plan, and 6' headroom below for weekending.
Monday, October 26, 2009
J/95 Annapolis Show Interview with Rod Johnstone
J/97 Introduced to Great Lakes!
(Chicago, IL- October 19)- The J/97 has officially arrived in Chicago after having started its world tour from the its builder, J/Europe in France back in May. After a terrific reception at the Newport and Annapolis Boatshows on the East Coast, the J/97 will be available for demos in Chicago starting Monday next week (pictured here at Chicago YC). After sailing the J/97 for a few days on the spectacular waters off Chicago's renowned waterfront, Richie Stearns had this to say about the J/97s performance and handling: "Wow, what a fun boat to sail! Everyone's impressed by the boat's speed in almost no air and even in the eighteen knots we had today it performs really great! In today's good breeze (Wednesday) the boat easily hit 8.0+ knots off the wind while surfing down the waves. It looks like we've got a winner for our sailors here on Lake Michigan!". To schedule a demo, please be sure to contact Rich Stearns at Cell# 847-404-2209 or email him at rich@stearnsboating.com.
College J/FEST
University Michigan Wins Highly Competitive J/109 Class in ICSA Offshore Championshihps
(Larchmont, NY- Oct. 10-11)- Here are the facts- forty boat fleet, thirty four (34) of them are J/Boats (85% of the fleet)- one-design classes of seven J/44s, ten J/109s and thirteen J/105s and the balance of J's distributed amongst the only two handicap classes- IRC40- J/122s and J/120 and IRC35- J/35. The ICSA might as well have called it "J/FEST Intercollegiate Championships"! The ICSA has been hosting the Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta in cooperation with Storm Trysail and Larchmont YC for the past nine years, once again introducing the joys of big-boat racing to boatloads of college sailors. Interestingly, the event has become the largest college regatta in America, with 31 schools and 327 sailors racing 40 boats ranging from J/105s to J/44s.
The largest sailboats in the regatta were the J/44s sailed by teams from the service academies and St. Mary's, which have offshore teams. These boats are large, fast and demand experienced crew. All the J/44s used class-owned one-design sails, which made the seven boats a very tight one-design group. Maine Maritime won the J/44 Class by sailing STC Commodore Jim Bishop's GOLD DIGGER-- they crushed the rest of the fleet and beat the second-place team from the Naval Academy by nine points, garnering a 1-1-1-5-1-4 record. Behind them in second was J/44 RESOLUTE, also sailed by the US Naval Academy with owner Don Rave, getting finishes of 3-2-5-3-2-6. The J/44 MAXINE sailed by USMMA and owner Bill Ketcham was third with a 2-5-3-2-3-7 record.
In the IRC 40 Class, Navy found its pace sailing George Petrides' modified J/120 AVRA to a 1-3-1-2-1-1 record. They eclipsed the second place team from Georgetown University, sailing Steve Furnary's J/122 PATRIOT, by nine points as well who had a 2-1-3-3-5-4 record. Rounding out the top three was Tufts racing the J/122 GEORGETOWN owned by George Marks to a respectable 5-4-4-1-2-5 tally.
In the 10-boat J/109 class the teams from the University of Michigan and Webb Institute tied for first. But the tie only existed because Michigan did not finish the third race due to blowing up a chute and losing the wind instruments off the top of the mast in a broach that occurred when a 30 knot-gust hit a majority of the J/109 fleet halfway through the race. Michigan, sailing Andrew Berdon's STRIDER, had to count the 11-point DNF (did not finish) since the regatta had no throw-outs. On the water, the team out-sailed the other J/109 teams upwind and downwind. No kidding! With finishes of 1-1-11-1-1-3 it's apparent the "scuttlebutt" on the dock was the "GO BLUE" Michigan team were THE team to beat and should be headed to Marseilles to rep the ICSA in the Student Worlds. Oh well, better luck next time guys. Trailing them on the tie-breaker was the J/109 RELENTLESS raced by Webb Institute and owner AL Minella with a record of 3-3-2-2-4-4. Just off the pace was LOKI sailed by the crew from Cornell and owner David Rosow with respectably consistent scores of 2-2-6-6-3-2.
The biggest fleet was the 13-boat J/105 class. The team from Bowdoin, a regular at the event, sailed Carl Olsson's J/105 MORNING GLORY to a slim two-point victory over the second team from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy sailing Kevin Grainger's J/105 GUMPTION 3. First-time participant Trinity College from Hartford, Conn., finished third with three firsts in their score line racing Barry Gold's J/105 WARHORSE.
"This regatta could not happen without the generosity of the boat owners who not only lend their boats but lend their expertise onboard," said Regatta Chair Adam Loory. "These guys come because we work hard to convince them that the regatta is a chance to give something back to the sport, but they return because they have so much fun with the kids learning from them and, at times, they learn from the kids.
Dr. Dan Herron, owner of the J/105 LIQUID COURAGE, a first time participant, said after the regatta, "Thanks again for the opportunity to participate. Watching the expression on the skipper's face as he surfed LIQUID COURAGE downwind on Saturday was priceless!" For complete results and pictures, go here. Regatta Photos credit- Photoboat.com
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(Larchmont, NY- Oct. 10-11)- Here are the facts- forty boat fleet, thirty four (34) of them are J/Boats (85% of the fleet)- one-design classes of seven J/44s, ten J/109s and thirteen J/105s and the balance of J's distributed amongst the only two handicap classes- IRC40- J/122s and J/120 and IRC35- J/35. The ICSA might as well have called it "J/FEST Intercollegiate Championships"! The ICSA has been hosting the Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta in cooperation with Storm Trysail and Larchmont YC for the past nine years, once again introducing the joys of big-boat racing to boatloads of college sailors. Interestingly, the event has become the largest college regatta in America, with 31 schools and 327 sailors racing 40 boats ranging from J/105s to J/44s.
The largest sailboats in the regatta were the J/44s sailed by teams from the service academies and St. Mary's, which have offshore teams. These boats are large, fast and demand experienced crew. All the J/44s used class-owned one-design sails, which made the seven boats a very tight one-design group. Maine Maritime won the J/44 Class by sailing STC Commodore Jim Bishop's GOLD DIGGER-- they crushed the rest of the fleet and beat the second-place team from the Naval Academy by nine points, garnering a 1-1-1-5-1-4 record. Behind them in second was J/44 RESOLUTE, also sailed by the US Naval Academy with owner Don Rave, getting finishes of 3-2-5-3-2-6. The J/44 MAXINE sailed by USMMA and owner Bill Ketcham was third with a 2-5-3-2-3-7 record.
In the IRC 40 Class, Navy found its pace sailing George Petrides' modified J/120 AVRA to a 1-3-1-2-1-1 record. They eclipsed the second place team from Georgetown University, sailing Steve Furnary's J/122 PATRIOT, by nine points as well who had a 2-1-3-3-5-4 record. Rounding out the top three was Tufts racing the J/122 GEORGETOWN owned by George Marks to a respectable 5-4-4-1-2-5 tally.
In the 10-boat J/109 class the teams from the University of Michigan and Webb Institute tied for first. But the tie only existed because Michigan did not finish the third race due to blowing up a chute and losing the wind instruments off the top of the mast in a broach that occurred when a 30 knot-gust hit a majority of the J/109 fleet halfway through the race. Michigan, sailing Andrew Berdon's STRIDER, had to count the 11-point DNF (did not finish) since the regatta had no throw-outs. On the water, the team out-sailed the other J/109 teams upwind and downwind. No kidding! With finishes of 1-1-11-1-1-3 it's apparent the "scuttlebutt" on the dock was the "GO BLUE" Michigan team were THE team to beat and should be headed to Marseilles to rep the ICSA in the Student Worlds. Oh well, better luck next time guys. Trailing them on the tie-breaker was the J/109 RELENTLESS raced by Webb Institute and owner AL Minella with a record of 3-3-2-2-4-4. Just off the pace was LOKI sailed by the crew from Cornell and owner David Rosow with respectably consistent scores of 2-2-6-6-3-2.
The biggest fleet was the 13-boat J/105 class. The team from Bowdoin, a regular at the event, sailed Carl Olsson's J/105 MORNING GLORY to a slim two-point victory over the second team from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy sailing Kevin Grainger's J/105 GUMPTION 3. First-time participant Trinity College from Hartford, Conn., finished third with three firsts in their score line racing Barry Gold's J/105 WARHORSE.
"This regatta could not happen without the generosity of the boat owners who not only lend their boats but lend their expertise onboard," said Regatta Chair Adam Loory. "These guys come because we work hard to convince them that the regatta is a chance to give something back to the sport, but they return because they have so much fun with the kids learning from them and, at times, they learn from the kids.
Dr. Dan Herron, owner of the J/105 LIQUID COURAGE, a first time participant, said after the regatta, "Thanks again for the opportunity to participate. Watching the expression on the skipper's face as he surfed LIQUID COURAGE downwind on Saturday was priceless!" For complete results and pictures, go here. Regatta Photos credit- Photoboat.com
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RICHARDSON CUP 2009
J/22 Fleet Hosts Icy-Hot Match Race
(Lake Minnetonka, MN)- It was June 18th, 1924 when English mountain climbers George Mallory & Andrew Irvine looked at the path before them. Climb the coldest place on earth: Mt. Everest. Five times they had tried to climb Everest and five times they had
failed.
It was October 8th, 2009 when Dutch sailors Chris and John VanTol and Irish veteran, Michael B. Hoey, looked at the path before them. Sail in the coldest place on earth for the 2009 Great Lakes Match Racing Championship: Minnetonka, MN. Five times they came within close reach of the summit and five times they had failed.
The winner of the event would be awarded the coveted Richardson Cup. The Richardson Trophy was established in 1912 by Commodore S. O. Richardson, Jr., of the Toledo Yacht Club, Toledo, Ohio. It is a Sterling Silver Trophy (created by Tiffany & Co) which is the second oldest sailing trophy in US history. The 2009 event was the 70th running of the Richardson Cup.
On Friday, Wayzata Yacht Club and Lake Minnetonka in Minnesota greeted 11 different teams with brisk winds and 45-50 degree temperatures. By Saturday, temperatures had plunged into the 20's and the forecast was for a high of 34. Winds were 15-25 mph with a wind-chill of 18 and a layer of steam blowing from shore to shore. The J/22s were covered with about an inch or so of snow. At the end of this "ice match", Chris Van Tol and team prevail with a 14:1 record over Steve Lowery with a 13-2 match race tally. Thanks to Mike Hoey for the story. For more info.
(Lake Minnetonka, MN)- It was June 18th, 1924 when English mountain climbers George Mallory & Andrew Irvine looked at the path before them. Climb the coldest place on earth: Mt. Everest. Five times they had tried to climb Everest and five times they had
failed.
It was October 8th, 2009 when Dutch sailors Chris and John VanTol and Irish veteran, Michael B. Hoey, looked at the path before them. Sail in the coldest place on earth for the 2009 Great Lakes Match Racing Championship: Minnetonka, MN. Five times they came within close reach of the summit and five times they had failed.
The winner of the event would be awarded the coveted Richardson Cup. The Richardson Trophy was established in 1912 by Commodore S. O. Richardson, Jr., of the Toledo Yacht Club, Toledo, Ohio. It is a Sterling Silver Trophy (created by Tiffany & Co) which is the second oldest sailing trophy in US history. The 2009 event was the 70th running of the Richardson Cup.
On Friday, Wayzata Yacht Club and Lake Minnetonka in Minnesota greeted 11 different teams with brisk winds and 45-50 degree temperatures. By Saturday, temperatures had plunged into the 20's and the forecast was for a high of 34. Winds were 15-25 mph with a wind-chill of 18 and a layer of steam blowing from shore to shore. The J/22s were covered with about an inch or so of snow. At the end of this "ice match", Chris Van Tol and team prevail with a 14:1 record over Steve Lowery with a 13-2 match race tally. Thanks to Mike Hoey for the story. For more info.
GARMIN Hamble Winter Series Rages On!
(Hamble, So'ton, England)- For the Big Boat Series entrants, sponsored this weekend by Wight Vodka, it was the second half of their twelve race schedule that began in tough conditions a fortnight ago. Racing this Saturday commenced in a 15 knot northerly breeze that gradually reduced, and with a falling tide, the course had to shifted to the northern side of the Brambles Banks for the last two of the four scheduled races.
In the IRC class Neil Martin’s J/133 JAMMY DODGER maintained her domination with two more firsts, with Ian Matthews J/122 JINJA also grabbing a win in Race 4. The J/80s were dominated by the irrepressible Ian Atkins on BOATS.COM.
While Saturday had been overcast and chilly, Sunday was the epitome of high pressure October weather, with brilliant sunshine and only just enough breeze to get racing underway. It soon turned into a drifting match, and with only three finishers in the first White Group races, and the bigger boats with little prospect of finishing, racing was abandoned for the day. Even so it had been a beautiful sight, with the brighter coloured spinnakers transforming the normally grey Solent.
Next Sunday’s racing (25th Oct.) continues with the full Winter Series programme for White and Black Group racing. Full details of the 2009 Garmin Hamble Winter Series, plus Hamble Big Boat Series and Autumn Championships results are available here.
In the IRC class Neil Martin’s J/133 JAMMY DODGER maintained her domination with two more firsts, with Ian Matthews J/122 JINJA also grabbing a win in Race 4. The J/80s were dominated by the irrepressible Ian Atkins on BOATS.COM.
While Saturday had been overcast and chilly, Sunday was the epitome of high pressure October weather, with brilliant sunshine and only just enough breeze to get racing underway. It soon turned into a drifting match, and with only three finishers in the first White Group races, and the bigger boats with little prospect of finishing, racing was abandoned for the day. Even so it had been a beautiful sight, with the brighter coloured spinnakers transforming the normally grey Solent.
Next Sunday’s racing (25th Oct.) continues with the full Winter Series programme for White and Black Group racing. Full details of the 2009 Garmin Hamble Winter Series, plus Hamble Big Boat Series and Autumn Championships results are available here.
Norway's Hollender Regatta- J/133 FLIRT Wins
(Oslo, Norway)- Eivind Astrup and his team won the illustrious Hollender Regatta in Norway recently, emblematic of their late summer/early fall offshore sailing championship, dominating a huge class. Here is Eivind's account of what took place in the land of the northern lights:
"We love our boat and we sail our J/133 always as fast as we can. The link below is the results of the main fall event in Norway, the "Hollender" regatta with 330 entries. The distance is 50 nm. I think you will like our class result (1st out of 33 boats) and you will note that we have reasonably good boats behind us. Otherwise, we were 1 min 05 secs from winning overall. Last year, we also won our class and missed the overall victory by 2 mins, so we'll soon be there!
I had the pleasure of helming the boat at a speed of 14-16 knots on flat water for about an hour, attaining 17 several times and a peak speed of 18.5 knots, with 7 guys sitting on the transom. The pressure was such that the cover of the spinnaker sheet melted! As a result we lost control, ended up on the roof and destroyed the sail. A new one was hoisted but the lesson is clear: Under a load like this, the drum has to be watered in order to cool down the sheet. (Ed's note- holy COW that's a lot of HEAT to melt a spinnaker sheet like that-- fair warning to all of us to "grind hard but stay cool"!!). Here is the link.
"We love our boat and we sail our J/133 always as fast as we can. The link below is the results of the main fall event in Norway, the "Hollender" regatta with 330 entries. The distance is 50 nm. I think you will like our class result (1st out of 33 boats) and you will note that we have reasonably good boats behind us. Otherwise, we were 1 min 05 secs from winning overall. Last year, we also won our class and missed the overall victory by 2 mins, so we'll soon be there!
I had the pleasure of helming the boat at a speed of 14-16 knots on flat water for about an hour, attaining 17 several times and a peak speed of 18.5 knots, with 7 guys sitting on the transom. The pressure was such that the cover of the spinnaker sheet melted! As a result we lost control, ended up on the roof and destroyed the sail. A new one was hoisted but the lesson is clear: Under a load like this, the drum has to be watered in order to cool down the sheet. (Ed's note- holy COW that's a lot of HEAT to melt a spinnaker sheet like that-- fair warning to all of us to "grind hard but stay cool"!!). Here is the link.
GARMIN Autumn Championships in England
J/80 and J/109s Tangle For Solent Bragging Rights
(Hamble, So'ton, England- Oct 10-11)- This past weekend saw the J/80s and J/109s race for their Autumn Championships.
The ten boat J/109 One-Design class again saw class leaders David and Kirsty Apthorp on J-DREAM cruise to a first overall with a 3-1-3-1-1 set of finishes. Guy Knight's team aboard BETH jumped into second overall on the podium with a 4-2-1-4-5 record. And, in third was Adam Wright and Martin Miller racing VELVET ELLIS/ JOUSTER into third with finishes of 5-7-2-2-2.
For the eleven boat J/80 class, it looked like the top three from the weekend before agreed to flip-flop their positions! Thor Askeland proved that his team on ELLE SAPELLE was only warming up from the weekend before and walked off with the J/80 Autumn Championships with a 2-8-1-2-5-1-1 score sheet. Hanging in there as he'd done the week before was Ian Atkins (yea, that Boats.com guy) racing none other than BOATS.COM into second on the podium with a 3-6-5-1-4-3-2 record. John Cooper racing O!! couldn't seem to get a consistent series off but nevertheless managed to avoid too many disastrous decisions on the race track and while starting off with a bullet, rode the roller-coaster to a 1-10-6-4-1-2-5 tally. Full results click here. Regatta Photos by Paul Wyeth.
(Hamble, So'ton, England- Oct 10-11)- This past weekend saw the J/80s and J/109s race for their Autumn Championships.
The ten boat J/109 One-Design class again saw class leaders David and Kirsty Apthorp on J-DREAM cruise to a first overall with a 3-1-3-1-1 set of finishes. Guy Knight's team aboard BETH jumped into second overall on the podium with a 4-2-1-4-5 record. And, in third was Adam Wright and Martin Miller racing VELVET ELLIS/ JOUSTER into third with finishes of 5-7-2-2-2.
For the eleven boat J/80 class, it looked like the top three from the weekend before agreed to flip-flop their positions! Thor Askeland proved that his team on ELLE SAPELLE was only warming up from the weekend before and walked off with the J/80 Autumn Championships with a 2-8-1-2-5-1-1 score sheet. Hanging in there as he'd done the week before was Ian Atkins (yea, that Boats.com guy) racing none other than BOATS.COM into second on the podium with a 3-6-5-1-4-3-2 record. John Cooper racing O!! couldn't seem to get a consistent series off but nevertheless managed to avoid too many disastrous decisions on the race track and while starting off with a bullet, rode the roller-coaster to a 1-10-6-4-1-2-5 tally. Full results click here. Regatta Photos by Paul Wyeth.
Garmin Hamble Winter Series
J/109s, J/105s and J/80s Rocking the Solent
(Hamble, So'ton, England- Oct 3-4)- October 3rd and 4th was the opening weekend of the annual Hamble River Sailing Club's Winter Series, sponsored by Garmin. On Saturday a strong but steady 250 degree wind produced exciting conditions for the first day of the Hamble Big Boat Series. With a few broken halyards, some crew injuries, and a collision between two yachts, the IRC fleet dwindled from seven starters to three by the third race. Demanding conditions perhaps, but spinnakers were flown throughout as the gusts topped 30 knots.
In the fifteen boat J/109 One-Design class, it appears that David and Kirsty Apthorps J-DREAM continues their winning ways in the J/109 class, leading the pack with a 1-1-1 over Luca Rubinellis's ARIA that has a 2-3-3. In third are Richard and Valerie Griffith sailing OUTRAJEOUS with a 5-2-7 over the two weekends.
The six boat J/105 One-Design class has tight competition with Paul Griffiths in FAY-J just hanging onto the lead by the hair on his chinny-chin-chin by one point (with 2-1-2 finishes) over Simon Curwen in the well-campaigned, hard-charging VOADOR with a 1-2-3 on the board. Lying third for now is Chris Jones JOURNEYMAKER 5 with a 3-4-4.
The seven boat J/80 One-Design class has two perennial class leaders pulling no punches and going at it hammer and tong over six races to date. John Cooper racing O!! with a 2-2-1-1-2-4 record is holding off Mr. BOATS.COM EUROPE Managing Director, Ian Atkins, racing none other than the appropriately named BOATS.COM (who knew?) with a 4-1-4-3-3-2 tally. Not far off the pace in third is Thor Askeland aboard ELLE SAPELLE also showing strong improvement over the two weekends with a 5-4-5-4-1-1 score card.
Full results click here. Photos by Paul Wyeth.
(Hamble, So'ton, England- Oct 3-4)- October 3rd and 4th was the opening weekend of the annual Hamble River Sailing Club's Winter Series, sponsored by Garmin. On Saturday a strong but steady 250 degree wind produced exciting conditions for the first day of the Hamble Big Boat Series. With a few broken halyards, some crew injuries, and a collision between two yachts, the IRC fleet dwindled from seven starters to three by the third race. Demanding conditions perhaps, but spinnakers were flown throughout as the gusts topped 30 knots.
In the fifteen boat J/109 One-Design class, it appears that David and Kirsty Apthorps J-DREAM continues their winning ways in the J/109 class, leading the pack with a 1-1-1 over Luca Rubinellis's ARIA that has a 2-3-3. In third are Richard and Valerie Griffith sailing OUTRAJEOUS with a 5-2-7 over the two weekends.
The six boat J/105 One-Design class has tight competition with Paul Griffiths in FAY-J just hanging onto the lead by the hair on his chinny-chin-chin by one point (with 2-1-2 finishes) over Simon Curwen in the well-campaigned, hard-charging VOADOR with a 1-2-3 on the board. Lying third for now is Chris Jones JOURNEYMAKER 5 with a 3-4-4.
The seven boat J/80 One-Design class has two perennial class leaders pulling no punches and going at it hammer and tong over six races to date. John Cooper racing O!! with a 2-2-1-1-2-4 record is holding off Mr. BOATS.COM EUROPE Managing Director, Ian Atkins, racing none other than the appropriately named BOATS.COM (who knew?) with a 4-1-4-3-3-2 tally. Not far off the pace in third is Thor Askeland aboard ELLE SAPELLE also showing strong improvement over the two weekends with a 5-4-5-4-1-1 score card.
Full results click here. Photos by Paul Wyeth.
ROLEX International Women's Keelboat Championships
Tunnicliffe and Team Capture First Title
(Rochester, New York- October 7-10, 2009)- Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.) and her team of Molly O'Bryan Vandemoer (Redwood City, Calif.), Liz Bower (Rochester, N.Y.) and Debbie Capozzi (Bayport, N.Y.) won US SAILING's 2009 Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship. At the gala Rolex Awards ceremony held at the Rochester Yacht Club, Tunnicliffe and her team were awarded US SAILING's perpetual Bengt Julin Trophy and a Rolex Oyster Perpetual Stainless Steel & Gold Datejust presented by Jaimie Carlsen of Rolex Watch U.S.A.
"We're very excited," said Tunnicliffe, Olympic Gold Medalist and a member of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics, moments after returning the dock. "We wanted to win this event for a while and finally we've done it. We're super psyched!" Both Vandemoer and Capozzi also are members of US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics.
After yesterday's disappointing day off from racing, due to lack of suitable wind conditions, the fleet was anxious to get out onto the Lake Ontario race course. With only one day of racing and three races completed, Tunnicliffe lead the 35-boat fleet with a narrow two-point margin over Jennifer Provan (Toronto, Ontario, CAN). The final standings would come down to today, the final day schedule for racing. The RYC Race Committee, lead by Principal Race Officer Hank Stuart, took advantage of today's spectacular conditions - 15-18 knots of wind - and held three races.
"We were really happy about our first day," continued Tunnicliffe, 2008 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year. "None of us have fleet raced for at least two months, and we are all a bit rusty in our fleet race tactics. Once we got a chance to get our heads around the tactics, we got locked in and dialed in, and we did really, really well."
Her team's five-race score line was 3-6-1-1-1 and with an unbeatable margin they decided not to participate in the final race. "It's one of those big decisions, do you race or do you not? We felt we wanted to stay out of everyone's way. We knew it was close for second (place), so thought we would stay out of the way and not influence anything."
The final race, with 10-12 knots of wind, was won by Nicole Breault (Old Lyme, Conn.) with Amanda Taselaar (Scarsdale, N.Y.) in second and Carol Cronin (Jamestown, R.I.) in third.
"It was so nice to have good breeze," said Breault. "The wave action made the shifty-ness really about boat speed, and we finally started to click as a team. It felt really good and the day was great. We wish there were a couple more days of racing, but that's the way it goes."
Second overall was Cory Sertl, who counts this regatta as her 11th (including two wins in 1985 and 2001). She clearly relished having the regatta on her home waters at her home club. "It was really fun sailing and great to be out there," said Sertl, a two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year. Her 'Team Lucy' included Annemarie Cook, Jane Mastrandrea and Amy Moran. Sertl's and Moran's daughters, Katja and Merritt, sailed together with the world renowned founder of TeamOne Newport, Martha Parker ("Princess Martha"), on the bow to keep them out of trouble and headed generally in the right direction.. They finished 13th overall. "They did just fine," continued a beaming Sertl. "They were really fast today off the starting line and held it for a really long time. Their speed was awesome today."
For Cronin, who won the regatta in 1991 as crew, her overall third place finish is satisfying. According to Cronin, who marks this regatta as her ninth, her results were starting to look like a terrible trend. "I won this event in 1999," she said. "I was second in 2001, third in '03, fourth in '05, and that was my goal, to break the curse.
"We had a great day today," continued Cronin of her 'Team Spidey,' Kim Couranz, Margaret Podich and Kate Fears. "We worked really well together, and I thought it was a challenging day of sailing because the waves were ahead of the breeze." Three teams finished the regatta tied on points - Cronin, Dominique Provoyeur (Cape Town, South Africa) and Jennifer Provan. A count back system, detailed in the sailing instructions, was used to break the tie, putting Provoyeur into fourth and Provan in fifth.
"We can't really be too disappointed," said Provoyeur, who has competed in this regatta four times. "The fourth is our best result yet, but obviously when you are so close you think what could have gone better. I woke up this morning a little anxious for the final day of racing and knowing there was a bit on. There was breeze and we were in a position close to first. We tried to take the attitude that we want to go sailboat racing, but the wind was up and the swell was bigger than what we had had. We tried to start well and see what would happen, really one race at a time." Provoyeur sailed with Louise Meek, Tiffany Baring-Gould and Saskia Butcher.
Rounding out the top 10 teams: Jennifer Provan (CAN) in fifth, Marieke Poulie (Maarssen, NED) in sixth, Amanda Taselaar (Scarsdale, N.Y.) in seventh, Breault in eighth, JoAnn Fisher (Annapolis, Md.) in ninth and Kaitlin Storck (Huntington, N.Y.).
Until this regatta, Tunnicliffe had held the record as the youngest competitor, having set the mark as a 14-year-old skipper in 1997. At that time, she confided that one day she would win the regatta. "I always thought it would be cool to do really well one day," she said. "This is my fifth time sailing the regatta, my fourth time skippering it. We were getting to the point that we need to get up there sometime soon. I'm happy we sailed really well together and did so well. I have a fabulous crew. Debbie, Molly and Liz sailed together a few times before, and the chemistry has worked perfectly. It makes my life so easy on the race course and they make me look really good."
For more information- where fans around the world can go to view photos from official event photographer Dan Nerney. Daily highlights videos produced by Tucker and crew from T2P.tv
(Rochester, New York- October 7-10, 2009)- Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.) and her team of Molly O'Bryan Vandemoer (Redwood City, Calif.), Liz Bower (Rochester, N.Y.) and Debbie Capozzi (Bayport, N.Y.) won US SAILING's 2009 Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship. At the gala Rolex Awards ceremony held at the Rochester Yacht Club, Tunnicliffe and her team were awarded US SAILING's perpetual Bengt Julin Trophy and a Rolex Oyster Perpetual Stainless Steel & Gold Datejust presented by Jaimie Carlsen of Rolex Watch U.S.A.
"We're very excited," said Tunnicliffe, Olympic Gold Medalist and a member of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics, moments after returning the dock. "We wanted to win this event for a while and finally we've done it. We're super psyched!" Both Vandemoer and Capozzi also are members of US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics.
After yesterday's disappointing day off from racing, due to lack of suitable wind conditions, the fleet was anxious to get out onto the Lake Ontario race course. With only one day of racing and three races completed, Tunnicliffe lead the 35-boat fleet with a narrow two-point margin over Jennifer Provan (Toronto, Ontario, CAN). The final standings would come down to today, the final day schedule for racing. The RYC Race Committee, lead by Principal Race Officer Hank Stuart, took advantage of today's spectacular conditions - 15-18 knots of wind - and held three races.
"We were really happy about our first day," continued Tunnicliffe, 2008 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year. "None of us have fleet raced for at least two months, and we are all a bit rusty in our fleet race tactics. Once we got a chance to get our heads around the tactics, we got locked in and dialed in, and we did really, really well."
Her team's five-race score line was 3-6-1-1-1 and with an unbeatable margin they decided not to participate in the final race. "It's one of those big decisions, do you race or do you not? We felt we wanted to stay out of everyone's way. We knew it was close for second (place), so thought we would stay out of the way and not influence anything."
The final race, with 10-12 knots of wind, was won by Nicole Breault (Old Lyme, Conn.) with Amanda Taselaar (Scarsdale, N.Y.) in second and Carol Cronin (Jamestown, R.I.) in third.
"It was so nice to have good breeze," said Breault. "The wave action made the shifty-ness really about boat speed, and we finally started to click as a team. It felt really good and the day was great. We wish there were a couple more days of racing, but that's the way it goes."
Second overall was Cory Sertl, who counts this regatta as her 11th (including two wins in 1985 and 2001). She clearly relished having the regatta on her home waters at her home club. "It was really fun sailing and great to be out there," said Sertl, a two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year. Her 'Team Lucy' included Annemarie Cook, Jane Mastrandrea and Amy Moran. Sertl's and Moran's daughters, Katja and Merritt, sailed together with the world renowned founder of TeamOne Newport, Martha Parker ("Princess Martha"), on the bow to keep them out of trouble and headed generally in the right direction.. They finished 13th overall. "They did just fine," continued a beaming Sertl. "They were really fast today off the starting line and held it for a really long time. Their speed was awesome today."
For Cronin, who won the regatta in 1991 as crew, her overall third place finish is satisfying. According to Cronin, who marks this regatta as her ninth, her results were starting to look like a terrible trend. "I won this event in 1999," she said. "I was second in 2001, third in '03, fourth in '05, and that was my goal, to break the curse.
"We had a great day today," continued Cronin of her 'Team Spidey,' Kim Couranz, Margaret Podich and Kate Fears. "We worked really well together, and I thought it was a challenging day of sailing because the waves were ahead of the breeze." Three teams finished the regatta tied on points - Cronin, Dominique Provoyeur (Cape Town, South Africa) and Jennifer Provan. A count back system, detailed in the sailing instructions, was used to break the tie, putting Provoyeur into fourth and Provan in fifth.
"We can't really be too disappointed," said Provoyeur, who has competed in this regatta four times. "The fourth is our best result yet, but obviously when you are so close you think what could have gone better. I woke up this morning a little anxious for the final day of racing and knowing there was a bit on. There was breeze and we were in a position close to first. We tried to take the attitude that we want to go sailboat racing, but the wind was up and the swell was bigger than what we had had. We tried to start well and see what would happen, really one race at a time." Provoyeur sailed with Louise Meek, Tiffany Baring-Gould and Saskia Butcher.
Rounding out the top 10 teams: Jennifer Provan (CAN) in fifth, Marieke Poulie (Maarssen, NED) in sixth, Amanda Taselaar (Scarsdale, N.Y.) in seventh, Breault in eighth, JoAnn Fisher (Annapolis, Md.) in ninth and Kaitlin Storck (Huntington, N.Y.).
Until this regatta, Tunnicliffe had held the record as the youngest competitor, having set the mark as a 14-year-old skipper in 1997. At that time, she confided that one day she would win the regatta. "I always thought it would be cool to do really well one day," she said. "This is my fifth time sailing the regatta, my fourth time skippering it. We were getting to the point that we need to get up there sometime soon. I'm happy we sailed really well together and did so well. I have a fabulous crew. Debbie, Molly and Liz sailed together a few times before, and the chemistry has worked perfectly. It makes my life so easy on the race course and they make me look really good."
For more information- where fans around the world can go to view photos from official event photographer Dan Nerney. Daily highlights videos produced by Tucker and crew from T2P.tv
US SAILING’S 2009 ROLEX Next Step Program
Twenty Five New Junior Women Sailors Graduate!
(Rochester, NY- October 4) – This past weekend, 25 young women sailors traveled to the Rochester Yacht Club to take place in the Next Step to Rolex Program. The young women, ranging in age from 14-17 and representing junior programs from across
the U.S. and as far away as Hawaii, were selected to participate in the once-of-a-lifetime keelboat clinic, the core outreach program of US SAILING’s Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship. Organized by 1988 U.S. Olympian and two-time
winner of the Rolex IWKC Cory Sertl (Rochester), the weekend featured all-day clinics with the focus on making the transition from dinghies to keelboats.
“The girls really came with a lot of experience in different kinds of boats,” said Sertl, noting that the caliber of sailors participating was more advanced than when she first coached the program, in 2001. “They picked things up quickly and we got more accomplished than we ever thought we would.”
In addition to Sertl, a two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, coaches included Sertl’s Rolex IWKC crew Amy Moran, along with 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist and US SAILING’s 2008 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.), Justin DaMore, RYC’s sailing director Jon Faudree and RYC’s junior sailing director Liz Bower.
The program utilized International J/22s, the same keelboat used in the Rolex IWKC, with four sailors on each accompanied by a coach. The weekend centered around teamwork, communication and the skills essential to racing keelboats. Easily identified by their bright buoy-yellow caps, with the Rolex IWKC logo and ‘2009 Next Step to Rolex’ embroidered on the back, the young women concluded their learning experience with a video debrief by coach Faudree, who followed the J/22s throughout the
two days. For comparison, he showed the same maneuvers executed by Tunnicliffe and team on a J/22. The enthusiastic group noted the significant difference in style and boat handling.
“We talked about doing a mini regatta at the conclusion,” said Sertl, “but we didn’t want to risk having the boats damaged before regatta. For most of the girls, their time-on-distance wasn’t as good because they’re new to these boats. They were all together, learning to sail in a non-competitive atmosphere. They’re always in a competitive environment when they’re racing, so they were comforted by the fact they didn’t have to race.
Three of RYC Next Step to Rolex Program participants will get to take what they’ve learned straight to the race course this week when they make their debut as a team in the Rolex IWKC. Merritt Moran, Katja Sertl and Julie Wiesner will team up with veteran bow person Martha Parker (Newport, R.I.) for racing this Wednesday through Saturday.
The Next Step to Rolex Program was established in 1997 to expose and mentor juniors interested in taking the “next step” toward advanced women’s sailing. Since its creation as a complementary component of the Rolex IWKC, the Next Step to Rolex Program has served as an inspiration for hundreds of young women from across the U.S. and abroad.
For more information about the 2009 Next Step to Rolex Program, contact Cory Sertl at corysertl@gmail.com or the Rochester Yacht Club at 585-342-5511.
(Rochester, NY- October 4) – This past weekend, 25 young women sailors traveled to the Rochester Yacht Club to take place in the Next Step to Rolex Program. The young women, ranging in age from 14-17 and representing junior programs from across
the U.S. and as far away as Hawaii, were selected to participate in the once-of-a-lifetime keelboat clinic, the core outreach program of US SAILING’s Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship. Organized by 1988 U.S. Olympian and two-time
winner of the Rolex IWKC Cory Sertl (Rochester), the weekend featured all-day clinics with the focus on making the transition from dinghies to keelboats.
“The girls really came with a lot of experience in different kinds of boats,” said Sertl, noting that the caliber of sailors participating was more advanced than when she first coached the program, in 2001. “They picked things up quickly and we got more accomplished than we ever thought we would.”
In addition to Sertl, a two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, coaches included Sertl’s Rolex IWKC crew Amy Moran, along with 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist and US SAILING’s 2008 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.), Justin DaMore, RYC’s sailing director Jon Faudree and RYC’s junior sailing director Liz Bower.
The program utilized International J/22s, the same keelboat used in the Rolex IWKC, with four sailors on each accompanied by a coach. The weekend centered around teamwork, communication and the skills essential to racing keelboats. Easily identified by their bright buoy-yellow caps, with the Rolex IWKC logo and ‘2009 Next Step to Rolex’ embroidered on the back, the young women concluded their learning experience with a video debrief by coach Faudree, who followed the J/22s throughout the
two days. For comparison, he showed the same maneuvers executed by Tunnicliffe and team on a J/22. The enthusiastic group noted the significant difference in style and boat handling.
“We talked about doing a mini regatta at the conclusion,” said Sertl, “but we didn’t want to risk having the boats damaged before regatta. For most of the girls, their time-on-distance wasn’t as good because they’re new to these boats. They were all together, learning to sail in a non-competitive atmosphere. They’re always in a competitive environment when they’re racing, so they were comforted by the fact they didn’t have to race.
Three of RYC Next Step to Rolex Program participants will get to take what they’ve learned straight to the race course this week when they make their debut as a team in the Rolex IWKC. Merritt Moran, Katja Sertl and Julie Wiesner will team up with veteran bow person Martha Parker (Newport, R.I.) for racing this Wednesday through Saturday.
The Next Step to Rolex Program was established in 1997 to expose and mentor juniors interested in taking the “next step” toward advanced women’s sailing. Since its creation as a complementary component of the Rolex IWKC, the Next Step to Rolex Program has served as an inspiration for hundreds of young women from across the U.S. and abroad.
For more information about the 2009 Next Step to Rolex Program, contact Cory Sertl at corysertl@gmail.com or the Rochester Yacht Club at 585-342-5511.
ROLEX Women's Keelboat Championship
Top Women's Teams Face Off This Week
(Rochester, NY- October 6) - This year's US SAILING's Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship has 35 teams representing five countries (Canada, Great Britain, Netherlands, South Africa, United States) and 15 U.S. states gathered together at host Rochester Yacht Club (RYC). Off the mouth of the Genesee River on Lake Ontario, four days of racing will take place, Oct. 7-10, under the leadership of Principal Race Officer Hank Stuart and the RYC Race Committee. The biennial regatta, celebrating its 13th anniversary of offering women of all abilities the opportunity for top-level competition, features evening social activities and culminates with the traditional Rolex gala and awards presentation where the Bengt Julin Trophy and a Rolex timepiece will be awarded to the winning boat's skipper.
The second place team at the 2007 Rolex IWKC was lead by RYC's team skippered by Cory Sertl, who has competed in the regatta 10 times, winning twice - as crew for Betsy Alison in the inaugural event in Newport in 1985 and as skipper in 2001 in Annapolis, Md. A 1988 Olympian and two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, Sertl kept her 2007 team together and set her sights on this year's title. Together with crew Amy Moran, Annemarie Cook and Jane Mastrandrea, they will be focused not only on doing well in the regatta but also on one other team in particular, the team that two of their daughters are part of. Moran's daughter Merritt, a RYC sail instructor and high school sailor will helm an entry including two high school sailors, Sertl's daughter Katja, and Julie Wiesner, with top-level bow person Martha Parker and 10-year-old Bridget Lawless, the youngest skipper in the history of the event, rounding out the five-person team.
Follow the 2009 Rolex IWKC. For regatta photos.
(Rochester, NY- October 6) - This year's US SAILING's Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship has 35 teams representing five countries (Canada, Great Britain, Netherlands, South Africa, United States) and 15 U.S. states gathered together at host Rochester Yacht Club (RYC). Off the mouth of the Genesee River on Lake Ontario, four days of racing will take place, Oct. 7-10, under the leadership of Principal Race Officer Hank Stuart and the RYC Race Committee. The biennial regatta, celebrating its 13th anniversary of offering women of all abilities the opportunity for top-level competition, features evening social activities and culminates with the traditional Rolex gala and awards presentation where the Bengt Julin Trophy and a Rolex timepiece will be awarded to the winning boat's skipper.
The second place team at the 2007 Rolex IWKC was lead by RYC's team skippered by Cory Sertl, who has competed in the regatta 10 times, winning twice - as crew for Betsy Alison in the inaugural event in Newport in 1985 and as skipper in 2001 in Annapolis, Md. A 1988 Olympian and two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, Sertl kept her 2007 team together and set her sights on this year's title. Together with crew Amy Moran, Annemarie Cook and Jane Mastrandrea, they will be focused not only on doing well in the regatta but also on one other team in particular, the team that two of their daughters are part of. Moran's daughter Merritt, a RYC sail instructor and high school sailor will helm an entry including two high school sailors, Sertl's daughter Katja, and Julie Wiesner, with top-level bow person Martha Parker and 10-year-old Bridget Lawless, the youngest skipper in the history of the event, rounding out the five-person team.
Follow the 2009 Rolex IWKC. For regatta photos.
J/105 Wins Wilson Trophy
Harteck's REPEAT OFFENDER Smokes Fleet
(Santa Barbara, October 4th)- A number of brave souls ventured forth into the incredibly capricious Santa Barbara Channel this past weekend in what might be described as "nuclear conditions". With a forecast of 20-30 knots, gusting higher, a small band or hardy souls ventured forth and survived. Could it be that some of our more intrepid J/Boats owners were included in that elite (or crazy) group?? Perhaps so.
Larry Harteck from Santa Barbara Yacht Club sailed his J/105 REPEAT OFFENDER to first place in the twenty mile race. It was a ten mile beat around the westernmost oil platform off Santa Barbara Chnanel with a long run home. As Larry reported, "We did the 10 mile run in about 45 minutes which included 3 jibes, one of which resulted in a knockdown. Wind peaked at about 30 knots and we hit a top speed of 20.4 knots. We were going about 18.5 when this photo was taken. This was a PHRF event with only 5 boats finishing. We finished 1st overall, 2nd was Dr. Laura's J/125 Warrior and 3rd was a Santa Cruz 52."
(Santa Barbara, October 4th)- A number of brave souls ventured forth into the incredibly capricious Santa Barbara Channel this past weekend in what might be described as "nuclear conditions". With a forecast of 20-30 knots, gusting higher, a small band or hardy souls ventured forth and survived. Could it be that some of our more intrepid J/Boats owners were included in that elite (or crazy) group?? Perhaps so.
Larry Harteck from Santa Barbara Yacht Club sailed his J/105 REPEAT OFFENDER to first place in the twenty mile race. It was a ten mile beat around the westernmost oil platform off Santa Barbara Chnanel with a long run home. As Larry reported, "We did the 10 mile run in about 45 minutes which included 3 jibes, one of which resulted in a knockdown. Wind peaked at about 30 knots and we hit a top speed of 20.4 knots. We were going about 18.5 when this photo was taken. This was a PHRF event with only 5 boats finishing. We finished 1st overall, 2nd was Dr. Laura's J/125 Warrior and 3rd was a Santa Cruz 52."
J/22 North Americans
Flip Wins Showdown at OK Corral!
Heath, TX (September 30, 2009) - Phil "Flip" Wehrheim, of Rochester, NY, scored bullets in three of four races to rule day one at the Genesta J/22 North American Championship at Rush Creek Yacht Club. Sailing with Max Skelley and Greg Koski, Wehrheim controlled the other 36 teams, and finished the first day with just 8 points. They held their lead by only by one point heading into the final day of racing. Scott Young of Austin, TX placed in the top three in each of Thursday’s races, including a first in the last race of the day. With one throw-out coming into play, Wehrheim’s team sat with 15 points to Young’s 16 going into Sunday. With seven races completed, Terry Flynn held the third-place position with 21 points, and Kelson Elam followed him with 25 points. Elam won Thursday’s first race, and Wehrheim won the middle race. Competitors saw a wide range of weather on Lake Ray Hubbard, including rain to start and sun to finish. Most of the day, winds blew between 8-12 knots, building to 18 in the final race.
However, Sunday became anti-climactic for the leaders because all racing was canceled due to no wind! Competitors were postponed on shore until early Sunday afternoon. An attempt to complete at least one race proved unsuccessful, as the light winds never settled, and teams were sent back to shore. The top 10 were: Flip Wehrheim (15 points), Scott Young (16), Terry Flynn (21), Kelson Elam (25), Chris Doyle and Eric Faust (tied at 33), Rob Johnston (35), Dave Kerr and Marvin Beckmann (tied at 56) and Max Scott (58).
The J/22 Class and the competitors wish to thank Genesta as the title sponsor, Rush Creek Yacht Club, PRO Mike Anderson and the entire race committee. For more regatta info.
Heath, TX (September 30, 2009) - Phil "Flip" Wehrheim, of Rochester, NY, scored bullets in three of four races to rule day one at the Genesta J/22 North American Championship at Rush Creek Yacht Club. Sailing with Max Skelley and Greg Koski, Wehrheim controlled the other 36 teams, and finished the first day with just 8 points. They held their lead by only by one point heading into the final day of racing. Scott Young of Austin, TX placed in the top three in each of Thursday’s races, including a first in the last race of the day. With one throw-out coming into play, Wehrheim’s team sat with 15 points to Young’s 16 going into Sunday. With seven races completed, Terry Flynn held the third-place position with 21 points, and Kelson Elam followed him with 25 points. Elam won Thursday’s first race, and Wehrheim won the middle race. Competitors saw a wide range of weather on Lake Ray Hubbard, including rain to start and sun to finish. Most of the day, winds blew between 8-12 knots, building to 18 in the final race.
However, Sunday became anti-climactic for the leaders because all racing was canceled due to no wind! Competitors were postponed on shore until early Sunday afternoon. An attempt to complete at least one race proved unsuccessful, as the light winds never settled, and teams were sent back to shore. The top 10 were: Flip Wehrheim (15 points), Scott Young (16), Terry Flynn (21), Kelson Elam (25), Chris Doyle and Eric Faust (tied at 33), Rob Johnston (35), Dave Kerr and Marvin Beckmann (tied at 56) and Max Scott (58).
The J/22 Class and the competitors wish to thank Genesta as the title sponsor, Rush Creek Yacht Club, PRO Mike Anderson and the entire race committee. For more regatta info.
J/122s Dominate Voile de St. Tropez
LANCE J and MADE IN LOVE Take 1-3
(St. Tropez, France- October 2-4)- Saturday was the last, but certainly the most exciting, day of racing in the 2009 edition of Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez. Navigators had a tough time on the water as the winds were incredibly shifty and the water choppy, leading to lots of action both inside and outside the Gulf once the classics and modern boats had started and all the spectator boats were on the race course. The wind picked up remarkably outside the Gulf on the Classic Course and stayed steady in force, although unpredictable in direction, at about 10-20 knots.
The J/122 LANCE J won their IRC class amongst a grand prix collection of teams from around the French offshore racing circuit. Pierre Duchein and team did a nice job to win and were followed by the J/122 MADE IN LOVE in third place overall, led by Jean Marie Patier with two leading French women sailors amongst their crew- Catherine Chabaud as skipper and world renowned Christine Briand as tactician.
Photo credits by Gullain Gernier. Full results click here.
(St. Tropez, France- October 2-4)- Saturday was the last, but certainly the most exciting, day of racing in the 2009 edition of Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez. Navigators had a tough time on the water as the winds were incredibly shifty and the water choppy, leading to lots of action both inside and outside the Gulf once the classics and modern boats had started and all the spectator boats were on the race course. The wind picked up remarkably outside the Gulf on the Classic Course and stayed steady in force, although unpredictable in direction, at about 10-20 knots.
The J/122 LANCE J won their IRC class amongst a grand prix collection of teams from around the French offshore racing circuit. Pierre Duchein and team did a nice job to win and were followed by the J/122 MADE IN LOVE in third place overall, led by Jean Marie Patier with two leading French women sailors amongst their crew- Catherine Chabaud as skipper and world renowned Christine Briand as tactician.
Photo credits by Gullain Gernier. Full results click here.
J/30 North Americans Celebrate 30th Anniversary
Team FUZZY WUZZY Smothers Them All
(Cedar Point YC/ Westport, CT- October 2nd-4th)- Bengt Johansson, representing Raritan Yacht Club in NJ, sailed his FUZZY WUZZY to a second consecutive J-30 North American Championship. With all firsts and seconds in the five-race, 15-boat series, FUZZY WUZZY bested five-time champion Scott Tonguis' ZEPHYR team from New Orleans, and local aces John McArthur in SMILES and 1994 champion Carl Sherter in FAT CITY, and Steve Buzbee sailing BLUE MEANY, also out of Raritan.
Friday dawned with temps in the 30s, and a light southeasterly. By race time the temperature was straining to get to 60, and the breeze oscillated, with a rightward trend, at about 5-7 knots. ZEPHYR (sailing in borrowed boat BLEU BAYOU) led from start to finish, seeking to reclaim their trophy last won in 2006. FUZZY WUZZY was a close second, ahead of SMILES.
By the start of the second race, the ebb tide was ripping down Long Island Sound, across the building southerly wind. FUZZY WUZZY claimed the top spot, leading ZEPHYR and BLUE MEANIE as Principal Race Officer Eric Robbins (Tampa, FL) and his 12-person team stepped the four-leg course down-tide, changing at each mark.
The fleet motor-sailed back to the original starting area for the third race, with the wind now blowing 12-14k. As the tide slowed, FUZZY WUZZY romped to another victory, well ahead of FAT CITY and ZEPHYR.
Saturday was warmer but still overcast. After a short postponement, the breeze settled in from the south, and the fleet raced another six-mile, four-leg course. This contest belonged to SMILES, holding off FUZZY WUZZY and ZEPHYR in the final run to the finish. The fifth race of the series saw the top four boats FUZZY WUZZY, ZEPHYR, SMILES and FAT CITY finish the race in the order of their final standings. Although another race was attempted, the wind faded before the starting signal, and the fleet raced in ahead of a building storm.
All enjoyed a most excellent lobster banquet, as Regatta Chairman John McArthur handed out trophies to the first five boats in each race. The forecast for Sunday was discouraging. All morning Sunday a race committee boat sat out on Long Island Sound, but could find no breeze stronger than 2.5k, so the fleet stayed ashore. After three horns at 1245, beautiful half-hull trophies were awarded to the top five boats. FUZZY WUZZY also repeated as Top Amateur boat. Next year the Championship will be held in Marblehead, MA.
For more regatta info. Event photos PHOTOBOAT.
(Cedar Point YC/ Westport, CT- October 2nd-4th)- Bengt Johansson, representing Raritan Yacht Club in NJ, sailed his FUZZY WUZZY to a second consecutive J-30 North American Championship. With all firsts and seconds in the five-race, 15-boat series, FUZZY WUZZY bested five-time champion Scott Tonguis' ZEPHYR team from New Orleans, and local aces John McArthur in SMILES and 1994 champion Carl Sherter in FAT CITY, and Steve Buzbee sailing BLUE MEANY, also out of Raritan.
Friday dawned with temps in the 30s, and a light southeasterly. By race time the temperature was straining to get to 60, and the breeze oscillated, with a rightward trend, at about 5-7 knots. ZEPHYR (sailing in borrowed boat BLEU BAYOU) led from start to finish, seeking to reclaim their trophy last won in 2006. FUZZY WUZZY was a close second, ahead of SMILES.
By the start of the second race, the ebb tide was ripping down Long Island Sound, across the building southerly wind. FUZZY WUZZY claimed the top spot, leading ZEPHYR and BLUE MEANIE as Principal Race Officer Eric Robbins (Tampa, FL) and his 12-person team stepped the four-leg course down-tide, changing at each mark.
The fleet motor-sailed back to the original starting area for the third race, with the wind now blowing 12-14k. As the tide slowed, FUZZY WUZZY romped to another victory, well ahead of FAT CITY and ZEPHYR.
Saturday was warmer but still overcast. After a short postponement, the breeze settled in from the south, and the fleet raced another six-mile, four-leg course. This contest belonged to SMILES, holding off FUZZY WUZZY and ZEPHYR in the final run to the finish. The fifth race of the series saw the top four boats FUZZY WUZZY, ZEPHYR, SMILES and FAT CITY finish the race in the order of their final standings. Although another race was attempted, the wind faded before the starting signal, and the fleet raced in ahead of a building storm.
All enjoyed a most excellent lobster banquet, as Regatta Chairman John McArthur handed out trophies to the first five boats in each race. The forecast for Sunday was discouraging. All morning Sunday a race committee boat sat out on Long Island Sound, but could find no breeze stronger than 2.5k, so the fleet stayed ashore. After three horns at 1245, beautiful half-hull trophies were awarded to the top five boats. FUZZY WUZZY also repeated as Top Amateur boat. Next year the Championship will be held in Marblehead, MA.
For more regatta info. Event photos PHOTOBOAT.
J/24 Northeast Regional Championships
To the Winner Goes the Spoils
(Marblehead, MA- Sept 26-27)- SPOILSPORT, skippered by Stuart Challoner, bested 16 other boats to win the 2009 J-24 Northeast Regional Championship hosted by the Corinthian Yacht Club and J24 Fleet 28 of Marblehead, Massachusetts.
On the first day, strong northwest winds of 18 to 25 knots and choppy seas provided for challenging and fun conditions for a talented group of racers. Three races were held on Saturday with 1.2 mile windward/leeward legs. The first two races were four leg races with downwind finishes and the final race was a five leg race with an upwind finish. SPOILSPORT dominated the day with two seconds and a first. Wind shifts and current were very difficult to see on the water but obviously these folks saw something and made the upper right of the course work every time. Other notable competitors were Mike Ingham sailing a new Italian boat who finished the day with two firsts and a sixth and Will Welles sailing PARALOC who finished third on the day.
On Sunday, the fleet saw completely different conditions with a southwest wind of 6 to 12 knots with flat seas. Two five leg races were run in slightly shifty conditions from a west southwest breeze to a southerly sea breeze. Will Welles and team won the day impressively with a first and a third. In the second race they were over early and banged the left corner and perfectly picked up a 15 degree left shift to get back into the race. SPOILSPORT however sailed very conservatively, making sure to keep close to their competition, and posted a fourth and a second place to win the regatta.
The team of AL, skippered by Carter White and Mark Klein, having not place exceptionally well after the first day, dug themselves out of the cellar by posting a fifth and a first to finish fourth overall. Mike Ingham and team dropped to third after getting caught out to the right one too many times on Sunday.
(Marblehead, MA- Sept 26-27)- SPOILSPORT, skippered by Stuart Challoner, bested 16 other boats to win the 2009 J-24 Northeast Regional Championship hosted by the Corinthian Yacht Club and J24 Fleet 28 of Marblehead, Massachusetts.
On the first day, strong northwest winds of 18 to 25 knots and choppy seas provided for challenging and fun conditions for a talented group of racers. Three races were held on Saturday with 1.2 mile windward/leeward legs. The first two races were four leg races with downwind finishes and the final race was a five leg race with an upwind finish. SPOILSPORT dominated the day with two seconds and a first. Wind shifts and current were very difficult to see on the water but obviously these folks saw something and made the upper right of the course work every time. Other notable competitors were Mike Ingham sailing a new Italian boat who finished the day with two firsts and a sixth and Will Welles sailing PARALOC who finished third on the day.
On Sunday, the fleet saw completely different conditions with a southwest wind of 6 to 12 knots with flat seas. Two five leg races were run in slightly shifty conditions from a west southwest breeze to a southerly sea breeze. Will Welles and team won the day impressively with a first and a third. In the second race they were over early and banged the left corner and perfectly picked up a 15 degree left shift to get back into the race. SPOILSPORT however sailed very conservatively, making sure to keep close to their competition, and posted a fourth and a second place to win the regatta.
The team of AL, skippered by Carter White and Mark Klein, having not place exceptionally well after the first day, dug themselves out of the cellar by posting a fifth and a first to finish fourth overall. Mike Ingham and team dropped to third after getting caught out to the right one too many times on Sunday.
Huge J Fleet Sailed SW NOOD Regatta Houston
Being HAPPY Pays Big Time
(Houston, TX- Sept. 26-27)- Sixty nine boats showed up for this year's edition of the SW NOOD in Houston, Texas. Showing up in force and demonstrating with their feet the great fun, camraderie and joy of sailing their boats were forty J owners (nearly 60% of the fleet!). But, how much fun would they have drifting around the buoys in Galveston Bay? A few comments like "it ain't ever happen here before" were a familiar refrain when the fleet looked out over the mill pond known as the Bay. Despite the less than satisfactory winds, the RC did a great job of getting off six races and the fleet, as usual, loved the on-shore festivities.
In the thirteen boat strong J/24 Texas World Championships (just kidding), it was clear that being HAPPY was key. Bob Harden, the winner on MR HAPPY, has been sailing the J/24 for more than 30 years. He's learned quite a bit about the boat in those three decades. Of course, one of the most important lessons is, never get too confident. With one race remaining in the Sperry Top-Sider Houston NOOD Regatta to win the J/24 class, Harden's veteran team from Austin, Texas, on MR HAPPY was in second, one point behind Corey Harding's HAPPY DANCE (who also had the tie break). Boat names aside, one boat wasn't going to be so pleased with the outcome of the final race.
Harden won the start, and then did his best to keep at least one boat in between him and Harding to ensure the class win. His come-from-behind victory also earned him overall regatta honors for the final NOOD regatta of the 2009 season, a prize that comes with a Suunto Elementum Ventus watch and a Sunsail charter boat for the 2009 NOOD Caribbean Rendezvous in the British Virgin Island in November. The finalists for the overall winner, who also received Suunto watches, included Yandell Rogers in the J/80 class. Harden's crew on Mr. Happy included: Mike LeFebvre, trim; Tom Lappin, compass,
Eric Nelson, head cheerleader; Jay Sacco, bow. -- see Stu Streuli's interview on Sailing World:
http://www.sailingworld.com/nood-regattas/houston-tx/2009-sperry-top-sider-houston-nood-coverage-1000075680.html
As for the other classes, they too had a light air affair like the J/24s. The seven boat J/22 class went down to the wire for the two leaders, Chris Wilke on BLEW BY YOU and Ruthie Lambert on OUT OF SIGHT. Wilke managed to win the last race and win the J/22 class by one point, with Lambert in second. Third a few more points back was Richard Voyles on MUST GO FASTER-- hmm, an appropriate name when faced with daunting competition named BLEW BY YOU or simply OUT OF SIGHT!
In the fourteen boat J/80 class, Yandell Rogers showed them all how it's done by taking four firsts in six races to win with a total of sixteen points-- his one bad race, a ninth place, putting a blemish on a near perfect record. Al Poindexter's ANDALE was second and Bruno Pasquinelli racing TI'AMO in third.
The J/105s had a nice turnout of six boats with Bill Zartier's SOLARIS pulling out all the stops in the last two races- getting a 1-1 to win the J/105 class over Malcolm Bremer's BABE. Third a ways back was JB Bednar's STINGER.
For more info: http://www.sailingworld.com/nood-regattas
(Houston, TX- Sept. 26-27)- Sixty nine boats showed up for this year's edition of the SW NOOD in Houston, Texas. Showing up in force and demonstrating with their feet the great fun, camraderie and joy of sailing their boats were forty J owners (nearly 60% of the fleet!). But, how much fun would they have drifting around the buoys in Galveston Bay? A few comments like "it ain't ever happen here before" were a familiar refrain when the fleet looked out over the mill pond known as the Bay. Despite the less than satisfactory winds, the RC did a great job of getting off six races and the fleet, as usual, loved the on-shore festivities.
In the thirteen boat strong J/24 Texas World Championships (just kidding), it was clear that being HAPPY was key. Bob Harden, the winner on MR HAPPY, has been sailing the J/24 for more than 30 years. He's learned quite a bit about the boat in those three decades. Of course, one of the most important lessons is, never get too confident. With one race remaining in the Sperry Top-Sider Houston NOOD Regatta to win the J/24 class, Harden's veteran team from Austin, Texas, on MR HAPPY was in second, one point behind Corey Harding's HAPPY DANCE (who also had the tie break). Boat names aside, one boat wasn't going to be so pleased with the outcome of the final race.
Harden won the start, and then did his best to keep at least one boat in between him and Harding to ensure the class win. His come-from-behind victory also earned him overall regatta honors for the final NOOD regatta of the 2009 season, a prize that comes with a Suunto Elementum Ventus watch and a Sunsail charter boat for the 2009 NOOD Caribbean Rendezvous in the British Virgin Island in November. The finalists for the overall winner, who also received Suunto watches, included Yandell Rogers in the J/80 class. Harden's crew on Mr. Happy included: Mike LeFebvre, trim; Tom Lappin, compass,
Eric Nelson, head cheerleader; Jay Sacco, bow. -- see Stu Streuli's interview on Sailing World:
http://www.sailingworld.com/nood-regattas/houston-tx/2009-sperry-top-sider-houston-nood-coverage-1000075680.html
As for the other classes, they too had a light air affair like the J/24s. The seven boat J/22 class went down to the wire for the two leaders, Chris Wilke on BLEW BY YOU and Ruthie Lambert on OUT OF SIGHT. Wilke managed to win the last race and win the J/22 class by one point, with Lambert in second. Third a few more points back was Richard Voyles on MUST GO FASTER-- hmm, an appropriate name when faced with daunting competition named BLEW BY YOU or simply OUT OF SIGHT!
In the fourteen boat J/80 class, Yandell Rogers showed them all how it's done by taking four firsts in six races to win with a total of sixteen points-- his one bad race, a ninth place, putting a blemish on a near perfect record. Al Poindexter's ANDALE was second and Bruno Pasquinelli racing TI'AMO in third.
The J/105s had a nice turnout of six boats with Bill Zartier's SOLARIS pulling out all the stops in the last two races- getting a 1-1 to win the J/105 class over Malcolm Bremer's BABE. Third a ways back was JB Bednar's STINGER.
For more info: http://www.sailingworld.com/nood-regattas
J/22 Northeast Regional Championship
Doyle's MO'MONEY Cashes In!
(Lake George Club- Sept. 26-27)- As has been the case for a number of years, the Lake George Club have been incredibly gracious hosts at a remarkably beautiful venue- Lake George in upstate New York. Heck, how can you beat sailing on fresh water, nice breeze, spectacular mountain scenery and early fall foliage? This year's regatta, away from the beaten path for sure, attracted more boats (thirty five) than either the J/22 Midwinter or J22 East Coast Championship this year. So, J/22 one design sailing is alive and well in upstate New York.
Showing that he' s not lost his touch at all racing J/22s was Kevin Doyle and his merry bandits (Vic and Aaron Snyder) aboard MO'MONEY. They sailed a nice regatta to overcome any last minute challenges from Mark Sertl's MONEY FOR NOTHING. Third overall was Tom Sitzmann's LOYAL 9, followed in fourth by Jon Hoffer's NUTHA'SHIFF and Peter Doyle's FROSTY.
For more info:
http://www.thelakegeorgeclub.com/ActiveSeasonFolders/sailing/race-results/current-year.asp
(Lake George Club- Sept. 26-27)- As has been the case for a number of years, the Lake George Club have been incredibly gracious hosts at a remarkably beautiful venue- Lake George in upstate New York. Heck, how can you beat sailing on fresh water, nice breeze, spectacular mountain scenery and early fall foliage? This year's regatta, away from the beaten path for sure, attracted more boats (thirty five) than either the J/22 Midwinter or J22 East Coast Championship this year. So, J/22 one design sailing is alive and well in upstate New York.
Showing that he' s not lost his touch at all racing J/22s was Kevin Doyle and his merry bandits (Vic and Aaron Snyder) aboard MO'MONEY. They sailed a nice regatta to overcome any last minute challenges from Mark Sertl's MONEY FOR NOTHING. Third overall was Tom Sitzmann's LOYAL 9, followed in fourth by Jon Hoffer's NUTHA'SHIFF and Peter Doyle's FROSTY.
For more info:
http://www.thelakegeorgeclub.com/ActiveSeasonFolders/sailing/race-results/current-year.asp
J/24 Nationals Go Big on the Bay
Snow's BOGUS Takes the Big Show
(San Francisco- Sept. 26-27)- Chris Snow and his team onboard BOGUS from San Diego, CA dominated the three day J/24 U.S. Nationals held last weekend on San Francisco Bay. Snow and his crew of Andrew Kerr, Adam Bennet, Chuck Allen and John Fracisco won 6 of 9 races amid the 20 boat fleet to build a final winning margin of 21 points over Mark Hillman of Annapolis, MD, with Pat Toole from Santa Barbara, CA in third. The winner of the Western Regionals, Keith Whittemore, sailed a very consistent series other than having to eat two 11ths, which damaged his chances for a top three finish.
For more info: http://www.sfyc.org/files/09j24results.pdf
(San Francisco- Sept. 26-27)- Chris Snow and his team onboard BOGUS from San Diego, CA dominated the three day J/24 U.S. Nationals held last weekend on San Francisco Bay. Snow and his crew of Andrew Kerr, Adam Bennet, Chuck Allen and John Fracisco won 6 of 9 races amid the 20 boat fleet to build a final winning margin of 21 points over Mark Hillman of Annapolis, MD, with Pat Toole from Santa Barbara, CA in third. The winner of the Western Regionals, Keith Whittemore, sailed a very consistent series other than having to eat two 11ths, which damaged his chances for a top three finish.
For more info: http://www.sfyc.org/files/09j24results.pdf
American Yacht Club Fall Series 2009
J/122 CATAPULT Wins IRC40 Class!
(Rye, New York- Sept 19-20 and 26-27)- The RC for American Yacht Club did an admirable job, as always, of conducting solid racing in a wide variety of conditions over the two weekends for their eponymous fall classic. Seemingly, and increasingly so over the years, this event has become a "de facto" J/Fest East-- as there were so many J's participating in the regatta it looked like a J Regatta with a bunch of spectators sailing around in other boats! Of the ninety-seven boats participating in ten classes, fifty-four J's were represented in four one-design and two handicap (IRC/ PHRF) classes- over 56% of the fleet!
For the first weekend, the J/122s essentially "practiced" hard for their upcoming East Coast Championship raced this past weekend. The eleven boat J/122 class was quite competitive, but Stephen Funary's PATRIOT walked off with a win followed by Mike Bruno's/ Tom Boyle's/ Jim Callahan's WINGS in second. David and Mary-Ellen Tortorello sailed their J/122 PARTNERSHIP well to finish third.
The seven boat J/44 One-Design class was won by Jim Bishop's GOLD DIGGER over Don and Rick Rave's RESOLUTE on a tie-breaker. Incredibly, both had nearly identical records, so the tie-breaker went to who had most seconds!! Wow! Just off the pace but hanging tough against these two was Bill Ketcham's MAXINE.
The five boat J/109 class saw a virtual three-way tie going into the last race with the entire regatta for the top three spots depending on the outcome of the finishes. After the dust settled, again it was Rick Lyall's STORM just winning by one point over Adrian Begley's MAD DOGS & ENGLISHMEN. MAD DOGS themselves won on a tie-breaker based on most firsts over Al Minella's RELENTLESS! That was tight racing for the top three players in the J/109 class.
The biggest fleet of the regatta, the twenty-three boat strong J/105 class, had some tough gringo's fighting it out for top honors. All season long, Joerg Esdorn and Duncan Hennes KINCSEM has been dueling it out with Damian Emery's ECLIPSE and Bruce Stone and Scott DeWeese's POWER PLAY for the podium finishes at four events this summer. POWER PLAY started with a 5-4-12 to torpedo any change of wining the regatta. KINCSEM sailed a strong, consistent series to win, followed by ECLIPSE in second and POWERPLAY in third.
In the IRC40 class, Marc Glimcher's J/122 CATAPULT won on a tie-breaker followed by Tom Carroll's J/133 SIREN SONG from New York, NY finishing in third place. Ron Richman's J/133 ANTIDOTE sailed well to get fifth and George Petrides' J/120 AVRA finished sixth.
In the IRC35 class, Merlin Suggs from King's Point sailed their J/35 HYPNOS to a fourth overall.
In PHRF5, John and Tony Esposito, racing their venerable J/29 HUSTLER, again demonstrated to non-believers that a strong war-horse like their J/29 is, indeed, very competitive over the course of time. The Esposito's followed their domination and supremacy at ROLEX Block Island Race Week to also win their PHRF division, finishing with a strong 3-1-2-1-1-2-2.
For more info:
http://www.americanyc.com/
(Rye, New York- Sept 19-20 and 26-27)- The RC for American Yacht Club did an admirable job, as always, of conducting solid racing in a wide variety of conditions over the two weekends for their eponymous fall classic. Seemingly, and increasingly so over the years, this event has become a "de facto" J/Fest East-- as there were so many J's participating in the regatta it looked like a J Regatta with a bunch of spectators sailing around in other boats! Of the ninety-seven boats participating in ten classes, fifty-four J's were represented in four one-design and two handicap (IRC/ PHRF) classes- over 56% of the fleet!
For the first weekend, the J/122s essentially "practiced" hard for their upcoming East Coast Championship raced this past weekend. The eleven boat J/122 class was quite competitive, but Stephen Funary's PATRIOT walked off with a win followed by Mike Bruno's/ Tom Boyle's/ Jim Callahan's WINGS in second. David and Mary-Ellen Tortorello sailed their J/122 PARTNERSHIP well to finish third.
The seven boat J/44 One-Design class was won by Jim Bishop's GOLD DIGGER over Don and Rick Rave's RESOLUTE on a tie-breaker. Incredibly, both had nearly identical records, so the tie-breaker went to who had most seconds!! Wow! Just off the pace but hanging tough against these two was Bill Ketcham's MAXINE.
The five boat J/109 class saw a virtual three-way tie going into the last race with the entire regatta for the top three spots depending on the outcome of the finishes. After the dust settled, again it was Rick Lyall's STORM just winning by one point over Adrian Begley's MAD DOGS & ENGLISHMEN. MAD DOGS themselves won on a tie-breaker based on most firsts over Al Minella's RELENTLESS! That was tight racing for the top three players in the J/109 class.
The biggest fleet of the regatta, the twenty-three boat strong J/105 class, had some tough gringo's fighting it out for top honors. All season long, Joerg Esdorn and Duncan Hennes KINCSEM has been dueling it out with Damian Emery's ECLIPSE and Bruce Stone and Scott DeWeese's POWER PLAY for the podium finishes at four events this summer. POWER PLAY started with a 5-4-12 to torpedo any change of wining the regatta. KINCSEM sailed a strong, consistent series to win, followed by ECLIPSE in second and POWERPLAY in third.
In the IRC40 class, Marc Glimcher's J/122 CATAPULT won on a tie-breaker followed by Tom Carroll's J/133 SIREN SONG from New York, NY finishing in third place. Ron Richman's J/133 ANTIDOTE sailed well to get fifth and George Petrides' J/120 AVRA finished sixth.
In the IRC35 class, Merlin Suggs from King's Point sailed their J/35 HYPNOS to a fourth overall.
In PHRF5, John and Tony Esposito, racing their venerable J/29 HUSTLER, again demonstrated to non-believers that a strong war-horse like their J/29 is, indeed, very competitive over the course of time. The Esposito's followed their domination and supremacy at ROLEX Block Island Race Week to also win their PHRF division, finishing with a strong 3-1-2-1-1-2-2.
For more info:
http://www.americanyc.com/
J/Fest West 2009 Run By The Crews
CC RIDER Cruises off into the Sunset
(San Diego, CA- Sept. 26-27)- May the best cooks win, or so it seemed for the crews participating in this year's J/Fest West in San Diego. This year’s theme was all about the crew. So Saturday night all the skippers donned chef’s hats and aprons, tended bar, flipped burgers and waited the tables. A great time was had by all.
Forty-two J's sailing one-design in J/120s, J/109s, J/105s and J/80s participated in this year's J/Festival on the waters off fabled Point Loma, San Diego. As this time of year it's hard not for the Weather Gods to cooperate and deliver less than stellar conditions. As one might expect, the "brochure conditions" were good enough to get in five races over the two days.
In the ten boat J/120 class Chuck Nichols crew aboard CC RIDER sailed an extremely consistent series to win their division by five points, counting a third as their worst race and winning tow of five races. Second was John Laun's CAPER with a 1-1-2 but fell off the clifff relative to Chuck's crew when they picked up two fifths in the first and third races. Third on the podium was Jed Olenick sailing DOCTOR NO (remember the TV show?? Awesome, eccentric time traveler, wasn't he??).
The nineteen boat J/105 class was the largest class in the event (as seems to be the case nationwide in most major events)! DC won (yea, not THAT one) with his wife Sharon and crew aboard...Dennis and Sharon Case are perennial favorites whenever they put together the full court press and pull out all the stops to put on their best efforts-- their efforts did not go unrewarded, getting first place by six points over Bennet Greenwald's PERSEVERANCE. JAVELIN was only one point back and the crew aboard Doug and Pam Werner's boat wished they could have bought back their 6-5 combo in races 3 and 4!
The nine boat J/80 class was a closely fought battle between Bob and Nick Caldwell's SLEEKIT and Curt Johnson's AVET. At the conclusion of racing, SLEEKIT won by two points based on the ability to win the last race while AVET could just manage a third. Mark Hunter's IN-APPROPRIATE was eight points back in third overall.
The J/109 teams, while having just four boats in their fleet, more than made up for their relatively low attendance with the rollicking good times they had ashore. Nevertheless, no one could take away from Tom Brott's ELECTRA winning every race. Great job guys...next time not only will the skipper be the cook/bartender, but the whole crew!! Perhaps that will slow them down, eh? John Shulze's LINSTAR was second and Jim Vickers was third with JOYRIDE.
Craig Leweck from Scuttlebutt had an enlightening and fun interview with Jeff Brown, leader of J/Boats efforts on the West Coast and creator of the J/Fest events on the West Coast. Please read more of the interview here:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/09/0928/
(San Diego, CA- Sept. 26-27)- May the best cooks win, or so it seemed for the crews participating in this year's J/Fest West in San Diego. This year’s theme was all about the crew. So Saturday night all the skippers donned chef’s hats and aprons, tended bar, flipped burgers and waited the tables. A great time was had by all.
Forty-two J's sailing one-design in J/120s, J/109s, J/105s and J/80s participated in this year's J/Festival on the waters off fabled Point Loma, San Diego. As this time of year it's hard not for the Weather Gods to cooperate and deliver less than stellar conditions. As one might expect, the "brochure conditions" were good enough to get in five races over the two days.
In the ten boat J/120 class Chuck Nichols crew aboard CC RIDER sailed an extremely consistent series to win their division by five points, counting a third as their worst race and winning tow of five races. Second was John Laun's CAPER with a 1-1-2 but fell off the clifff relative to Chuck's crew when they picked up two fifths in the first and third races. Third on the podium was Jed Olenick sailing DOCTOR NO (remember the TV show?? Awesome, eccentric time traveler, wasn't he??).
The nineteen boat J/105 class was the largest class in the event (as seems to be the case nationwide in most major events)! DC won (yea, not THAT one) with his wife Sharon and crew aboard...Dennis and Sharon Case are perennial favorites whenever they put together the full court press and pull out all the stops to put on their best efforts-- their efforts did not go unrewarded, getting first place by six points over Bennet Greenwald's PERSEVERANCE. JAVELIN was only one point back and the crew aboard Doug and Pam Werner's boat wished they could have bought back their 6-5 combo in races 3 and 4!
The nine boat J/80 class was a closely fought battle between Bob and Nick Caldwell's SLEEKIT and Curt Johnson's AVET. At the conclusion of racing, SLEEKIT won by two points based on the ability to win the last race while AVET could just manage a third. Mark Hunter's IN-APPROPRIATE was eight points back in third overall.
The J/109 teams, while having just four boats in their fleet, more than made up for their relatively low attendance with the rollicking good times they had ashore. Nevertheless, no one could take away from Tom Brott's ELECTRA winning every race. Great job guys...next time not only will the skipper be the cook/bartender, but the whole crew!! Perhaps that will slow them down, eh? John Shulze's LINSTAR was second and Jim Vickers was third with JOYRIDE.
Craig Leweck from Scuttlebutt had an enlightening and fun interview with Jeff Brown, leader of J/Boats efforts on the West Coast and creator of the J/Fest events on the West Coast. Please read more of the interview here:
http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/news/09/0928/
J/122 East Coast Championship
CHRISTOPHER DRAGON Wins a Cliff-hanger
(Rye, New York- Sept. 26-27)- The nine J/122s competing for the East Coast Championship on the second weekend of the AYC Fall series saw extremely close and very competitive sailing. In addition to some of the local fleet favorites on Western Long Island Sound, some boats came as far as Annapolis- PLUM CRAZY and FLYING JENNY VI- to mix it up with the New York/ Connecticut crowd. This regatta was the culmination of the summer sailing season for the J/122 class- with strong one design showings at the Rolex NYYC Regatta in Newport, Rolex Block Island Race Week and the Larchmont NOODS.
In keeping with the close racing amongst these remarkably evenly matched boats, it was a wild finish to the J/122 East Coast Championships after the dust cleared. The weekend was tough on everyone- tacticians, crews and crew work in general, putting a premium on starts, course positioning, good execution and good mark roundings. Coming out of the fog of war in the last race was Weiss's CHRISTOPHER DRAGON, just beating their erstwhile competitors to be crowned the 2009 East Coast Champion. It was a strong finish for them after a somewhat dismal start in the first two races. CHRISTOPHER DRAGON won by one point over Skibo's PLUM CRAZY II, the last race determined the outcome of who ultimately beat who for the championship. Had these two flip-flopped their finish positions of 3-4, respectively, PLUM CRAZY would've won on a tie-breaker with most firsts! Askew's FLYING JENNY VI ultimately did end up in a tie-breaker for second with PLUM CRAZY, despite winning the last race, and got the short end of that stick to finish third overall. Showing steady improvement over their summer of sailing was David Murphy aboard their Einstein-inspired namesake, PUGWASH. Murphy and crew managed to win a race and get two more podium finishes to ultimately end up fourth; an eighth in the last race skewering any chances of their finishing in the top three. Perhaps they've earned the "Most Improved" Award for the 2009 summer season!
For more info:
http://www.americanyc.com/
(Rye, New York- Sept. 26-27)- The nine J/122s competing for the East Coast Championship on the second weekend of the AYC Fall series saw extremely close and very competitive sailing. In addition to some of the local fleet favorites on Western Long Island Sound, some boats came as far as Annapolis- PLUM CRAZY and FLYING JENNY VI- to mix it up with the New York/ Connecticut crowd. This regatta was the culmination of the summer sailing season for the J/122 class- with strong one design showings at the Rolex NYYC Regatta in Newport, Rolex Block Island Race Week and the Larchmont NOODS.
In keeping with the close racing amongst these remarkably evenly matched boats, it was a wild finish to the J/122 East Coast Championships after the dust cleared. The weekend was tough on everyone- tacticians, crews and crew work in general, putting a premium on starts, course positioning, good execution and good mark roundings. Coming out of the fog of war in the last race was Weiss's CHRISTOPHER DRAGON, just beating their erstwhile competitors to be crowned the 2009 East Coast Champion. It was a strong finish for them after a somewhat dismal start in the first two races. CHRISTOPHER DRAGON won by one point over Skibo's PLUM CRAZY II, the last race determined the outcome of who ultimately beat who for the championship. Had these two flip-flopped their finish positions of 3-4, respectively, PLUM CRAZY would've won on a tie-breaker with most firsts! Askew's FLYING JENNY VI ultimately did end up in a tie-breaker for second with PLUM CRAZY, despite winning the last race, and got the short end of that stick to finish third overall. Showing steady improvement over their summer of sailing was David Murphy aboard their Einstein-inspired namesake, PUGWASH. Murphy and crew managed to win a race and get two more podium finishes to ultimately end up fourth; an eighth in the last race skewering any chances of their finishing in the top three. Perhaps they've earned the "Most Improved" Award for the 2009 summer season!
For more info:
http://www.americanyc.com/
J/80 Atlantic Coasts- France
Team ATLANTIS- Lawrence Sambron Wins.
(Lorient, France- Sept 19-20)- Twenty-one teams gathered in Lorient this past weekend to race the "Atlantic Telegram" regatta, emblematic of the J/80 French Atlantic Coast Championships.
Under very light winds and somewhat unstable weather conditions, the ATLANTIS Team skippered by Lawrence Sambron with the crew of Jean-Yves Jaffrezic, Pierre-Yves Tinel and Stephane Guilbaud won the regatta. The ATLANTIS team was closely followed by Sylvain Pellissier and Dominic Vittet racing their J/80 VOILERIE ALL PURPOSE. The J/80 from La Trinité, AXELLE, raced by Damien J Zucconi finished third on the podium. JACUZZI from Breton was fourth and Gilles Drouet from Cherbourg was fifth.
This regatta was good practice and an indicator of which teams will be contenders for the upcoming French J/80 Nationals which will be sailed in Cherbourg, France from November 8 to 11. After the French J/80 Nationals, the J/80 French Class will announce the winners of the hotly contested J/Cup in France for the J/80 Class--- so far, everything is still in play for the top spots for many of the crews.
Lawrence Sambron commenting on his win had this to say about his team and the event: "It was the first time we had come to the Atlantic Coast and raced on the Bay of Biscay. We were seduced by the awesome racing, the beautiful waters and the warm welcome on this site. On the water, we started well on Friday and we continued our momentum. Jean-Yves Jaffrezic tactics were excellent in conditions that were not obviously clear for most crews this particular Sunday. We got a good result and this is good preparation for the J/80 French Nationals to be held in Cherbourg in November. The
outlook is positive so far!"
For more info.
http://www.cnlorient.org/photo/classements/ATG2009/J802.htm
(Lorient, France- Sept 19-20)- Twenty-one teams gathered in Lorient this past weekend to race the "Atlantic Telegram" regatta, emblematic of the J/80 French Atlantic Coast Championships.
Under very light winds and somewhat unstable weather conditions, the ATLANTIS Team skippered by Lawrence Sambron with the crew of Jean-Yves Jaffrezic, Pierre-Yves Tinel and Stephane Guilbaud won the regatta. The ATLANTIS team was closely followed by Sylvain Pellissier and Dominic Vittet racing their J/80 VOILERIE ALL PURPOSE. The J/80 from La Trinité, AXELLE, raced by Damien J Zucconi finished third on the podium. JACUZZI from Breton was fourth and Gilles Drouet from Cherbourg was fifth.
This regatta was good practice and an indicator of which teams will be contenders for the upcoming French J/80 Nationals which will be sailed in Cherbourg, France from November 8 to 11. After the French J/80 Nationals, the J/80 French Class will announce the winners of the hotly contested J/Cup in France for the J/80 Class--- so far, everything is still in play for the top spots for many of the crews.
Lawrence Sambron commenting on his win had this to say about his team and the event: "It was the first time we had come to the Atlantic Coast and raced on the Bay of Biscay. We were seduced by the awesome racing, the beautiful waters and the warm welcome on this site. On the water, we started well on Friday and we continued our momentum. Jean-Yves Jaffrezic tactics were excellent in conditions that were not obviously clear for most crews this particular Sunday. We got a good result and this is good preparation for the J/80 French Nationals to be held in Cherbourg in November. The
outlook is positive so far!"
For more info.
http://www.cnlorient.org/photo/classements/ATG2009/J802.htm
J/24 Western Regionals
Whittemore's TUNDRA ROSE Wins!
(Berkeley, CA- Sept. 19-20)- The 2009 J/24 Western Regional Championship was held on the waters of San Francisco Bay this last weekend. It was hosted by the Berkeley Yacht Club ,who delivered great racing and exceptional hospitality! As we know, the Bay Area is considered one of the most popular sailing venues in the country and once again proved that that premise is true.
BYC held a practice race on the evening of Friday, which allowed the out-of-town teams to get oriented to the local conditions prior to the Western Regionals kicking-off.
The Western Regional Championship was planned as the "feeder" event for the J/24 US National Championships being held this weekend at San Francisco Yacht Club. The Western Regionals were comprised of seven relatively short course races which were sailed by seventeen teams from as far away as Annapolis, MD, Seattle, Washington and Dana Point. The racing took place on the “Berkeley Circle” and the PRO was Jeff Zarwell of RegattaPro. Conditions on Saturday went from eight to sixteen knots and on Sunday the wind range was even greater. The fleet raced in five knots in the first race and ended up racing in twenty-two knots in the seventh race of the series.
Keith Whittemore sailing his TUNDRA ROSE from Seattle bested Mark Hillman aboard his J/24 WIP from Annapolis, MD. The racing was very close and competitive as TUNDRA ROSE, SMALL FLYING PATIO FURNITURE and TREMENDOUS SLOUCH all nailed bullets (first places)! TUNDRA ROSE themselves knocked off four bullets, Tremendous Slouch two and Small Flying Patio Furniture took the last one. Look for these three teams to again have a good showing this coming weekend for the J/24 US Nationals.
(Berkeley, CA- Sept. 19-20)- The 2009 J/24 Western Regional Championship was held on the waters of San Francisco Bay this last weekend. It was hosted by the Berkeley Yacht Club ,who delivered great racing and exceptional hospitality! As we know, the Bay Area is considered one of the most popular sailing venues in the country and once again proved that that premise is true.
BYC held a practice race on the evening of Friday, which allowed the out-of-town teams to get oriented to the local conditions prior to the Western Regionals kicking-off.
The Western Regional Championship was planned as the "feeder" event for the J/24 US National Championships being held this weekend at San Francisco Yacht Club. The Western Regionals were comprised of seven relatively short course races which were sailed by seventeen teams from as far away as Annapolis, MD, Seattle, Washington and Dana Point. The racing took place on the “Berkeley Circle” and the PRO was Jeff Zarwell of RegattaPro. Conditions on Saturday went from eight to sixteen knots and on Sunday the wind range was even greater. The fleet raced in five knots in the first race and ended up racing in twenty-two knots in the seventh race of the series.
Keith Whittemore sailing his TUNDRA ROSE from Seattle bested Mark Hillman aboard his J/24 WIP from Annapolis, MD. The racing was very close and competitive as TUNDRA ROSE, SMALL FLYING PATIO FURNITURE and TREMENDOUS SLOUCH all nailed bullets (first places)! TUNDRA ROSE themselves knocked off four bullets, Tremendous Slouch two and Small Flying Patio Furniture took the last one. Look for these three teams to again have a good showing this coming weekend for the J/24 US Nationals.
J/80 Central Optica Trophy Series- Spain
J/80 ECC VIVIENDAS Winning
(Santander, Spain- Sept 19-20)- The Federation Cantabra de Vela is hosting the Central Optica Trophy series for the twenty-one boat J/80 fleet, racing on the spectacular setting of Santander Bay, sight of this year's record 133 boat J/80 World Championships. The leader of this fall series classic is the J/80 team of BANCAJA raced by Javier Lopez-Vazquez.
The Santander J/80 class raced the second of three parts of their series this weekend under very gusty west wind conditions, with ginormous changes of strength and direction that allowed two long races with three-times around windward-leeward legs. The tidal currents helped some of the racers, like BANCAJA and ECC VIVIENDAS, ride favorable currents up inside the Santander Bay to the Moors. The two races were won by the ECC VIVIENDAS team of Pichu Torcida and his skipper Pablo Arrarte. Second for the weekend was BANCAJA raced by Javier López-Vázquez and his skipper Alvaro Mazarrasa, strengthening their overall series lead. MAQUECHE sailed by Alfonso Pascual ended up finishing third for the weekend. After sailing well on the first weekend, NEXTEL's Ignacio Camino had a relatively poor showing to lose the lead after the first weekend.
Currently, the standings for the series after six races and one discard is Jose Lopez-Vazquez's team on BANCAJA by just two points over Ignacio Camino's NEXTEL and Pichu Torcida's team on ECC VIVIENDAS. Next weekend completes the series for the Central Optica Trophy where tough competition is sure to breakout amongst these top three teams who collectively have a sizable lead (by ten points) over the rest of the fleet.
(Santander, Spain- Sept 19-20)- The Federation Cantabra de Vela is hosting the Central Optica Trophy series for the twenty-one boat J/80 fleet, racing on the spectacular setting of Santander Bay, sight of this year's record 133 boat J/80 World Championships. The leader of this fall series classic is the J/80 team of BANCAJA raced by Javier Lopez-Vazquez.
The Santander J/80 class raced the second of three parts of their series this weekend under very gusty west wind conditions, with ginormous changes of strength and direction that allowed two long races with three-times around windward-leeward legs. The tidal currents helped some of the racers, like BANCAJA and ECC VIVIENDAS, ride favorable currents up inside the Santander Bay to the Moors. The two races were won by the ECC VIVIENDAS team of Pichu Torcida and his skipper Pablo Arrarte. Second for the weekend was BANCAJA raced by Javier López-Vázquez and his skipper Alvaro Mazarrasa, strengthening their overall series lead. MAQUECHE sailed by Alfonso Pascual ended up finishing third for the weekend. After sailing well on the first weekend, NEXTEL's Ignacio Camino had a relatively poor showing to lose the lead after the first weekend.
Currently, the standings for the series after six races and one discard is Jose Lopez-Vazquez's team on BANCAJA by just two points over Ignacio Camino's NEXTEL and Pichu Torcida's team on ECC VIVIENDAS. Next weekend completes the series for the Central Optica Trophy where tough competition is sure to breakout amongst these top three teams who collectively have a sizable lead (by ten points) over the rest of the fleet.
J/80 Autumn Trophy Series- Spain
Bilbao Squalls Make For Exciting Racing
(Bilbao, Spain- Sept 19-20)- It was a clear victory for Jose Azqueta in the first test of the Autumn Trophy Series for J/80s racing off Bilbao. It was also the J/80s first racing since the long summer break. The weather conditions were harsh but fun since it blew 15 to 25 knots large seas on top of a huge ground swell. These conditions made it challenging upwind but the crews were showered with salt spray from monstrous bow waves as the teams had fun planning wildly downwind on the big seas and swells.
The start was rather uneven as it was highly favored to the Race Committee boat and there was not much room on the line. So whomever won the Race Committee boat end enjoyed a ginormous advantage over their competitors. The boats that had strong starts - Mandovi and Montarto - held their lead up the first leg. However, because of a strong right shift, they ended up second and third at the weather mark behind Azqueta's team; Bizkaia rounded fourth. After a wild planing downwind leg, Mandovi dropped back to fourth.
A strong squall of rain and wind buffeted the fleet with Azqueta lengthening their lead over Montarto and Bizkaia- that's how the first weekend ended up for the Autumn Trophy Series. The Race Committee canceled the second race because the squally conditions had deteriorated to the point where the ability to race safely around the course would be difficult for most teams.
(Bilbao, Spain- Sept 19-20)- It was a clear victory for Jose Azqueta in the first test of the Autumn Trophy Series for J/80s racing off Bilbao. It was also the J/80s first racing since the long summer break. The weather conditions were harsh but fun since it blew 15 to 25 knots large seas on top of a huge ground swell. These conditions made it challenging upwind but the crews were showered with salt spray from monstrous bow waves as the teams had fun planning wildly downwind on the big seas and swells.
The start was rather uneven as it was highly favored to the Race Committee boat and there was not much room on the line. So whomever won the Race Committee boat end enjoyed a ginormous advantage over their competitors. The boats that had strong starts - Mandovi and Montarto - held their lead up the first leg. However, because of a strong right shift, they ended up second and third at the weather mark behind Azqueta's team; Bizkaia rounded fourth. After a wild planing downwind leg, Mandovi dropped back to fourth.
A strong squall of rain and wind buffeted the fleet with Azqueta lengthening their lead over Montarto and Bizkaia- that's how the first weekend ended up for the Autumn Trophy Series. The Race Committee canceled the second race because the squally conditions had deteriorated to the point where the ability to race safely around the course would be difficult for most teams.
J/80 Dynamant Cup- Sundelin/Kallstrom Winners
(Sweden- Sept. 21)- There were fifteen J/80s participating in this year's Autumn Cups and Dynamant Cups in Sweden. The competition was very even between the top boats ENG 386 and ENG 562 in first and second, respectively. And the battle for third place was also a very even battle between bla MK PRODUCTS, HEAVY DUTY and DOG. Great prizes are promised to all of the top three in the overall rankings. First prize was a voucher with a total value of 6000 Kroner from the main sponsor Dynamant and second prize is a set of fine sailing shoes from SLAM.
The traditional Autumn Cup organized by KSSS took place in non-traditional winds. Autumn storms lost some of their strength, thank goodness and the fleet was treated to beautiful sailing on the archipelago in 17 degree C temperatures, clear blue skies and a southwest breeze of 2-4 m/s.
The host club KSSS was quite ambitious and planned eight races. However, they managed to still get in five races thanks to an alert and quick race committee crew. Sundelin / Kallstrom did what they could to snatch the top honors by taking home the regatta. But their competitor Rosenberg finished up nicely with a second place. The American Tom Whitmore who showed good form, despite a very bad first race to finish third. It was extremely even between 4, 5, 6, and 7 spots with only one point separating these four boats. You will find all the results on the KSSS site.
http://www.ksss.se
The traditional Autumn Cup organized by KSSS took place in non-traditional winds. Autumn storms lost some of their strength, thank goodness and the fleet was treated to beautiful sailing on the archipelago in 17 degree C temperatures, clear blue skies and a southwest breeze of 2-4 m/s.
The host club KSSS was quite ambitious and planned eight races. However, they managed to still get in five races thanks to an alert and quick race committee crew. Sundelin / Kallstrom did what they could to snatch the top honors by taking home the regatta. But their competitor Rosenberg finished up nicely with a second place. The American Tom Whitmore who showed good form, despite a very bad first race to finish third. It was extremely even between 4, 5, 6, and 7 spots with only one point separating these four boats. You will find all the results on the KSSS site.
http://www.ksss.se
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Announcing the NEW J/111 Speedster!
(Annapolis, MD- October 8th)- J/Boats announces today a new 36' sportboat design planned for 2010 introduction. The J/111 is a sleek, modern one-design, with a large daysailing cockpit, easy-to-handle sail plan and 6' headroom below for comfortable weekending.
“The J/111 is all about more speed, fewer crew and more fun,” says J/Boats President, Jeff Johnstone. “The low wetted-surface hull, high-aspect, non-overlapping sail plan, and low VCG bulb keel combine to provide tremendous acceleration in light air plus high righting moment for good upwind performance in a breeze. The masthead asymmetric spinnaker set off a retractable carbon sprit will deliver planing speeds in moderate breezes."
Jeff and Alan will be at the Annapolis Boatshow and can speak to you in more details about this exciting new J! For more info contact J/Boats now- Phone- +1-401-846-8410 or Email- info@jboats.com. Please see picture above or click here to read more about it!
“The J/111 is all about more speed, fewer crew and more fun,” says J/Boats President, Jeff Johnstone. “The low wetted-surface hull, high-aspect, non-overlapping sail plan, and low VCG bulb keel combine to provide tremendous acceleration in light air plus high righting moment for good upwind performance in a breeze. The masthead asymmetric spinnaker set off a retractable carbon sprit will deliver planing speeds in moderate breezes."
Jeff and Alan will be at the Annapolis Boatshow and can speak to you in more details about this exciting new J! For more info contact J/Boats now- Phone- +1-401-846-8410 or Email- info@jboats.com. Please see picture above or click here to read more about it!