(Tampa, Florida)- Will Welles continues his six-month hot streak, adding
the 2015 J/24 Midwinter Championship to his trophy case, which also
holds the 2014 J/24 US National Championship and 2014 J/24 World
Championship. Racing COUGAR with Chris Morgan, Monica Morgan, Jeff
Linton and Erik Rexford, Welles totaled 25 points in eight races with a
scoreline that included four bullets. 
Welles credited Chris Morgan for putting the crew together and using his local
boat. “I’d been looking forward to sailing with this team, and it just
all fit together.” He commended the race committee for completing eight
races in the first two days. “The Bay has lake-like conditions. It’s
very shifty racing. There’s nothing better than the people, the club and
the grounds at Davis Island Yacht Club. It all makes this spot a gem.”
This is Welles first J/24 Midwinter Championship victory, and he noted that he’s especially excited to be the first recipient of the new Midwinters perpetual trophy in honor of Lambert Lai. Lai, USJCA President for the last two years, passed away on December 30, 2014. Lai and Welles worked closely together. In fact, Welles is now the current USJCA President.
Twenty-seven teams from across the United States and Canada participated in the event hosted by Davis Island Yacht Club. The three-day event got in two solid days of racing to start with Sunday’s finale canceled due to glass-out conditions.
Welles
started out at the top of the leaderboard on the first day or racing.
His scores of 1-2-1-12 gave them a 12 pt lead over Travis Odenbach’s
HONEY BADGER. Welles seemed to enjoy the beautiful, but chilly and
sunny sailing conditions that followed record low temperatures recorded
earlier that morning in Tampa. Winds were light and shifty between 8 to
10 kts. In the day’s first contest, Welles took line honors, with Odenbach in second and Christopher Stone’s VELOCIDAD in third. Welles and Odenbach reversed their top two positions in the next battle, while Robby Brown made his way into the top three. Welles took another bullet in the third race, trailed by Brian and Kat Malone on SUPERNATURAL FISHSLAPPER and Dan Busch’s BUSCHWACKER. In race four, some new names emerged at the top: David Ogden/John Mollicone’s BUCKAROO, Bob Kinsman’s DOGFISH and John Poulson’s LONG SHOT.
On Saturday, another four races were sailed in just about perfect sailing conditions on Tampa Bay. Under sunny skies and temperatures that warmed into the 70s, winds began around 6-8 knots, but picked up to 10-15 with a light chop, before falling off in late afternoon.
Welles’
COUGAR took just a two-point advantage into the final day of
competition, following a 7-1-1-16 (dropping the 16). Robby Brown’s
USA799 was knocking on the door in second place with 27 points to
Welles’ 25. John Mollicone and David Ogden’s BUCKAROO stood in third
place with 37 points.Patricio Sly’s MUY MUY opened the day with a victory (although took a 20% penalty), trailed by Brown and Carter White’s SEA BAGS Sailing Team. Welles returned to the top of the pack in Saturday’s second bout, while Mollicone/Ogden placed second and Brown third. White and Travis Odenbach’s HONEY BADGER followed Welles’ second bullet in race seven. Daniel Borrer on JESUS LIZARD INC ended the day on a positive note, with Brown and Mollicone/Ogden rounding out the top three.
And, so that is how it all ended Sunday afternoon. Welles continuing his extraordinary streak of the last three major J/24 events on American shores. Second was local hero Robby Brown followed by David Odgen/ John Mollicone on BUCKAROO (with friend Tim Healy aboard) in third overall. The balance of the top five included Carter White’s SEA BAGS Sailing Team in fourth and Travis Odenbach’s HONEY BADGER in fifth. Sailing photo credits- Chris Howell/ J/24 Class.org/ Facebook For more J/24 Midwinters sailing information
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