(Sydney, Australia)- Six local J/70s came together for the first time to
make the largest one-design fleet in the Australian Sports Boats
Association (ASBA) National Championships Regatta!! That is remarkable!!
Who knew the American sportsboat phenomenon would enjoy so many happy
new owners Down Under!Held on the stunning Sydney Harbour and hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club Australia (CYCA), famous for their Rolex Sydney-Hobart race (hosted just 12 days before), the ASBA Nationals consisted of a four day, ten-race event with near-perfect weather conditions. The J/70 crews elected to sail to strict J/70 class rules.
The first day was a series of 3x W/L courses with the wind starting at 12 kts and increasing to 20 kts for the last race. JEDI reveled in the windier conditions to bring home three bullets with Ray and Jill Carless sailing JUNIOR coming a close 2nd. Steve and Sue Brady, one of the newer entrants to the J/70 fleet, slotting in a well-earned 3rd.
The
following day was the passage race taking the fleet on a course from
Darling Point upwind to North Harbour near Manly, with runs back to Rose
Bay around Shark Island. Sydney really turned on the weather again with
more sunshine and over 20 kts of wind for the start, then building
throughout the race. The fleet beat up the western shore taking
advantage of the tide and a little relief from the chop.The breeze was really solid on the beat all the way across the Heads, where the Harbour meets the Pacific Ocean, up to Manly for the final run home to Shark Island. Top speeds and wipeouts prevailed with the start boat reporting a few Vipers down and other boats with broken rigs and rudders and broken spirits and egos— not the case with the J/70 sailors!!
The next race was shortened, as the breeze was still building at over 25 kts, gusting 31 kts with the J/70s recording over 16 kts for a great ride planing down the harbour and no breakages. JEDI once again proving her experience onboard in the heavy winds, scoring a 1st in the J/70s class and 4th overall with a consistent JUNIOR gaining.
Friday, race 5 and lighter winds, JUNIOR was hot on the heels of JEDI and pipping Tim Ryan’s JAMES and Steve & Sue Brady in YKNOT. In race 6, Tim Ryan’s aptly named boat JAMES, carrying sail number 007 and a license to thrill, put the pressure on, pushing JEDI all the way only 18 seconds behind, with GRASSHOPPER UNIT hitting the podium in 3rd place, JUNIOR and YKNOT only 3 seconds behind for a nail-biting finish- all J/70s finishing very closely.
Race 7, YKNOT on pace again and JUNIOR 3rd, the boat-handling of all the J/70s crews improving with every start, tack and gybe.
Saturday and the final 3x W/L races, lighter winds again and plenty of sunshine for race 8. JUNIOR strikes back, winning the race and takes JEDI to 2nd place with GRASSHOPPER UNIT storming into 3rd place, all the J/70s finish within 45 seconds of each other as the racing intensifies. Race 9, “the force” returns to JEDI but she is pushed to the limit by JAMES, who is only 16 seconds behind. GRASSHOPPER UNIT and JUNIOR tie for third just 3 seconds behind JAMES with all the J/70s finishing yet again within 47 seconds of each other. Final race 10 and JAMES once again challenges JEDI, only 3 seconds behind followed by YKNOT, GRASSHOPPER UNIT, and JUNIOR who got caught the wrong side of a ferry on the final run! Bummer, eh?!
For the series, JEDI headed the J/70s, followed by JUNIOR and YKNOT. JEDI also scored a 3rd overall in Division 2 against the other sportboats.
Sandra Entwistle sailing on JEDI was also awarded the inaugural “Fastest Female” trophy for the quickest overall boat in the whole series to have a female crew on board.
However, the biggest win of this regatta was the fact the J/70s enjoyed close class racing. The crews all commenting how the boats were so closely matched, the camaraderie on and off the water, the common sense class rules, the fact most of the J/70s were crewed by family members, and every J/70 had one or more female crew on board!
Come and join the J/70 class as it expands in Australia; with 2 more boats on the way for the Sydney area and the beginnings of fleets in Perth and Melbourne. It’s easy to see why the J/70 class is growing “Down Under.”
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