J/88 JUNIPER Wins New Zealand Offshore Series

(Auckland, New Zealand)- From New Zealand's stunning Waitemata Harbour in Auckland comes some great news, the new J/88 JUNIPER takes the 1st prize in the Club Marine Wednesday night offshore series in the C Light Division on General Handicap! The series is organized by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (RNZYS), home of the America’s Cup. The series started in October and ran two weeks on Wednesday night until ending in March. This was the first racing season for the new J/88 JUNIPER that was launched in July of 2018.

“The news is more impressive than first meets the eye,” said Ray Entwistle of Yachtspot (J/Boats Australia and NZ). “The owner- Lode Missiaen- is new to the area only having moved to New Zealand just 18 months ago.  For him, it’s a new area to learn, a new boat to master, putting a new crew together, and compete against some very well established competitive crews and boats that are well-versed in the harbour’s local conditions.”

The sailing conditions in the Hauraki gulf are challenging; with winds going from light to very strong (up to 30 knots), sometimes in a single race, tidal streams with local currents (local knowledge!), large and frequent wind shifts during the race, and mostly flat water, but choppy at times.

The J/88 took the varied conditions in her stride. JUNIPER is equipped with the five standard J/88 class sails: one main and two jibs (3Di Raw North Sails), an A2 Runner and A3 Reacher. The courses of the races are random-leg harbour courses, not windward-leeward courses, which is a challenge on close reaching legs where they cannot use the gennaker.  Nevertheless, with good trim, JUNIPER performed exceptionally well; often sailing as fast as some of the larger and lighter boats in the fleet with bigger sail wardrobes. They tuned the rig over the season to meet local conditions, especially on the windier days.

“We are having a great time here sailing in the beautiful Hauraki Gulf,” says skipper Lode Missiaen. “I wish to thank the RNZYS for organizing the club series, our competitors for pushing us, and, of course, my crew for the great dedication and teamwork.  Newcomer JUNIPER has certainly gotten some attention in Auckland, and we can only hope that more J/88 boats will join us soon in this beautiful part of the world.”  For more J/88 offshore speedster sailing information Add to Flipboard Magazine.

Creating that buzz for after racing

( San Diego, CA)- Regattas offer us that occasional test of skill, with the most skilled enjoying the sweet taste of the front of the fleet, and the trophy winners gaining the extra boost of ego nourishment. There are the haves, and the have nots.

But the best regattas offer more than just racing. They deliver that inviting atmosphere onshore where competitors can tell lies about the day and otherwise enjoy a social environment. It is where we come together, away from the pecking order.

For the second year running, Charleston Race Week (April 13-15) has organized entertainment after racing on Saturday in the hopes of filling that time slot from docking to dinner. The vision last year was to gather up some of the notable skippers, put them on J/22s, and have some races within sight of the cocktail gripping crowd and allow the heckling to ensue. The Pro-Am J/22 Regatta was born.

Apparently, it worked well enough that it is on again this year, with America’s Cup winning skipper Ed Baird doing play-by-play and the races live streamed on a Jumbotron in the Regatta Village. Not unlike a baseball game, where cups are filled and bladders emptied between innings, spectating will require strategy during this series of short races.

New this year is how each boat will have two high school aged crew, providing them valued exposure to the approach of seasoned sailors, or at least learn how cuss words contribute to competitiveness. Also onboard will be a student from the College of Charleston to ensure these “expert” sailors don’t screw up the school’s boats.

For the skippers, it’s an opportunity to give back to the sport, but with the risk that racing with a pick-up team, in an unfamiliar boat, could lead to poor finishes and reputation scars. Nobody wants to get last, which was the fate of Allan Terhune in 2017.

For someone who has notched up eleven continental championships (in the Lightning, Flying Scot and Thistle Classes) and was crowned the 2013 J/22 World Champion, getting DFL for Allan was unfamiliar territory.

But he’s returning to make amends in 2018, and he just needs to beat one person to pass on the baton. In his way will be Rolex Yachtsman of the Year Steve Benjamin, US Sailing President Bruce Burton, Rio 2016 Olympian Paris Henken, multiple World Champion Steve Hunt, J/Boat expert Travis Odenbach, the king of Gill North America David Pritchard, and defending champion Christophe Killian from the College of Charleston sailing team.

And one more… me.

The event did not award Allan with his rightfully earned perpetual, so I am going to source a memento for the last placed skipper this year…just in case.  Thanks for this contribution from Craig Leweck/ Scuttlebutt News. Add to Flipboard Magazine.

Terry Hutchinson- America's Cup Perspective

(Newport, RI)- Terry Hutchinson has accrued a track record of being a winner. He gets involved in big-time keelboat racing programs and makes them better. However, the basis for what he does today is deeply rooted in extremely tough one-design racing at a world-class level.

After sailing FJ’s and 420’s in college and became a College Sailor of the Year, Terry competed in J/24s for a long time, ultimately winning the J/24 World Championship.  Like other J/24 World Champions, such as his colleague Ken Read at North Sails (now its President), Terry also capitalized on his know-how on what it takes to win and proceeded to help Quantum Sails Racing program, first in one-designs, then later in big boats.

It is now through his work as tactician for Hap Fauth’s Maxi72 Bella Mente and Doug DeVos’s TP52 Quantum Racing that Terry has brought these two successful owners together, alongside New York Yacht Club, to challenge for the 36th America’s Cup. Here Terry discusses this new campaign.

CL: Let’s start with some background.
TH: It’s an incredible opportunity in front of us. I’m incredibly mindful of the history and the tradition that the New York Yacht Club has for the event, and so from the team side, it’s an honor to be a part of New York’s effort in this 36th America’s Cup.

This campaign probably started five years ago with Doug, and three years ago with Hap, as our sailing relationships have evolved over that period of time. When it became obvious that Team New Zealand was going to win, and after having discussions with them and their Challenger of Record where they indicated what they were going to do with the boat, it seemed like an opportunity to at least sit down and discuss if this was a challenge we wanted to take on.

The more myself, and Doug, and Hap talked about it, the more it became apparent how our goals were aligned in what we wanted to do, what we wanted the team to look like, and if we’re fortunate enough to be successful partnering with New York, to make the next match another step towards what we feel is represented in the sport. To get to this point has been about six month’s worth of work and it’s just on the front side of a lot more.

But I think when I look at our team and where we’re at, we have a lot of great sailing infrastructure already in place, and that component of the program has been operating at a reasonably high level for just over the better part of five years.

So under Hap’s and Doug’s leadership, they’re helping us get the business infrastructure in place and I think Hap summed it up best when he said, “Being successful in the America’s Cup is as much of a sailing venture, as it is a business venture,” and so it’s going to take an absolute team effort from all of us to be successful.

CL: Any particular vision for the team?
TH: For starters, we have two great principals. We have Doug and Hap. Then we have a third partner with the New York Yacht Club. But we are going to need to continue to find commercial and private funding to help support this challenge. Additionally, an important point to make is how this is going to be a US team. It’s a US flag team.

When you travel and you race the 52s or the 72s, you realize there is a massive gap in sailors from my generation, or slightly behind, to people in their early twenties. So as a team, we want to return the America’s Cup back to the base of our sport and garner support in that manner. In all of our minds, we want to represent the United States in the manner we feel is appropriate and do it through hard work and good results on the race course.

Is the team going to be 100% American? Probably not, but again, it’s going to be born and bred here. The way the Protocol is written right now, the sailing team must be comprised of 20% nationals and 80% have to be residents. I’m expecting the residency clause to be a pretty difficult to achieve by bringing in outsiders, so our goal is to have a team that is US based and using and developing sailors in our country.

When you talk about winning and then defending in the grand scheme of things, if we’re successful enough on the water this is time around, the goal would be to have developed a team of younger sailors that can then defend it. If you think about it in the big picture world, if it’s a nine-year cycle, I will have probably aged out of it by then. And that’s why we have to do a good enough job developing the younger generation.

That’ll likely be a combination of American sailors and international sailors, but as the skipper of the team and as an American, my feelings and thoughts are in this is going to be an American team. Is every single person going to be an American citizen? Probably not, but we’re going to definitely wave the flag proudly.

CL: Any details at this time about team members?
TH: It’s a bit too soon for specifics but I will say that my role is team skipper and not helm…. though in the America’s Cup you never say never. If you break down the timeline, and start working backwards from when the actual match, there’s not a lot of sailing time in the boat itself. But there’s some great young American sailors right now pursuing various avenues, so there’s a lot of talent that we have to go and cultivate and see who is going to be the right fit for this campaign.

It’s pretty simple when the underlying agenda is winning, which it is, and then doing it in a manner that’s going to make us all proud. When you work backwards from there then the cream will rise to the top. We just have to make sure that we then have a structure in place that allows us to pick the best sailors and execute on the day.

CL: What do we know about the boat?
TH: In all the discussions that we’ve had with the defender, we have a sense of the direction but it’s premature to know the full scope as there are a lot of variables that need to get addressed. The challenge for the organizers is how they want to make sure they have a great event that has participation and that brings people to New Zealand, and that brings the event back to where the base of the sport feels like it should be. Within all that the America’s Cup needs to maintain its position as the pinnacle of the sport.

So this is a tricky challenge. They want participants, they need to control the costs so it doesn’t become a ridiculous arm’s race, yet it needs to be the pinnacle of our sport. Having been in the loop of the conversations and email exchanges with Grant Dalton, I see clearly how he’s in a tough spot. While he’s in a great spot because he just won the thing, but he has got a great responsibility as well. I know they’re not taking any of it lightly.

CL: What have been some of the lessons you’ve learned in the past that are now directing you out of the blocks?
TH: With regard to the game itself, you can make extremely complicated, so lesson number one is to seek simplicity and focus on the priorities which is to design a fast boat and race it well with good people. If you keep those principles you can make it an easier game.

Significant to keeping it simple is getting the right people for the job. As I’ve evolved in my sailing, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to be tactician for some really great teams, and what you learn in those experiences in how vital it is to have the right people for the jobs ashore and on the water. So we will be focused on bringing together those people.

One of the strengths for Bella Mente and Quantum Racing programs is to have great teams from bow to stern, where everybody works hard and respects the process that’s in place. We have a great system sailing where we evaluate our performance each day and we critique it and we go back out and we do the same thing the next day. We look forward to continuing this approach with this new campaign.

When the club announced this challenge, Hap made mention to how the event would now embody “a more traditional style of yacht and the windward-leeward courses with which the vast majority of racing sailors are intimately familiar…” Does this infer the America’s Cup got off track with the previous few additions?

I wouldn’t say it went off track. In fact, I’d say there was some great things as a show. The last America’s Cup, as a visual spectator, was pretty darn impressive. The organization did a really good job of producing a broadcast product that was pretty exciting to watch.

However, I’m not sure it’s the vision I would’ve followed but that’s not really my position to say because we weren’t in their situation. They followed what they thought was a correct vision to take sailing to a different part of the sport. And that’s what they did. Team New Zealand has won it now and as competitors we follow their vision.

Four years from now, if we’re fortunate enough to be the defender, our vision will likely be a variation of several of the recent America’s Cup. But without question, the vision going forward is to do what we can to broaden our sport.”  Thanks to Scuttlebutt Sailing Newsletter for this contribution.

Marion to Bermuda Race Preview

(Marion, MA)- On Friday June 9, 2017, the 40th Anniversary Marion to Bermuda Race will start in Buzzards Bay off Marion, Massachusetts, and finish off St. David’s Head, Bermuda.  Joining all the madness in Bermuda that includes thousands at the America’s Cup plus all the sailors participating in the Bermuda One-Two Race!!  Hosting the event are Beverly Yacht Club, Blue Water Sailing Club and the Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club.

Since its inception in 1977, the Marion Bermuda Race has been a Corinthian event, and yachts are accepted by invitation. The spirit of the race is that all yachts and crew are participating for the joy and pleasure of sailing, competition, and the camaraderie that accompanies such an offshore event. The race provides an opportunity for cruising yachts and amateur crews to participate in an ocean race and a rendezvous in Bermuda. It encourages the development of blue water sailing skills on seaworthy yachts that can be handled safely offshore with limited crew. Prizes are awarded in various categories with a bonus for celestially navigated yachts.

There are two J/teams participating in the fleet of fifty boats; the J/44 BALLYHOO skippered by Wes McMichael from Marion, MA and the J/47 TENACIOUS sailed by Barrett & Barry Levenson from Marion, MA. For more Marion to Bermuda Race sailing information Add to Flipboard Magazine.

J/Sailors Leading America’s Cup!?

(Hamilton, Bermuda)- What do Ben Ainslie and Jimmie Spithill have in common?  Both have sailed various J/Boats over time.  Ben has raced J/80s and J/109s in the United Kingdom on the Solent (off Cowes) as well as down in Plymouth.  Jimmie moved to San Diego, CA after the last America’s Cup in San Francisco to settle down with his wife and friends.  In that process, Jimmie bought Dennis Conner’s J/105 #3 and renamed it “17”, Jimmie’s lucky number for all his sailboats.

In Fukuoka, Japan, Land Rover BAR, the British challenge headed by Olympic legend Ben Ainslie– won the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series with a first place finish at the final event in Japan. Ainslie’s team sailed extremely well to secure the overall title with a race to spare.

ORACLE TEAM USA and skipper Jimmy Spithill pushed hard, finishing ahead of BAR in the first race of the day, but Ainslie was able to post a 4, 2, 3 scoreline, and into the overall series win.

“This has been a goal for us for the whole season and for this event,” said Ainslie. “The guys have done an incredible job,” Ainslie said from the water following the second race of the day. For us as a new team it sends out a strong message for all our supporters that we can do it.”

For the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series Fukuoka, it came down to a tiebreak with Land Rover BAR clawing into a tie with Artemis Racing in the final contest, and taking the regatta by virtue of a better result in the last race.

However, with attention shifting to Bermuda and the America’s Cup racing next year, the focus was on the overall title and bonus points it confers.

By taking first place on the overall Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series leaderboard, Land Rover BAR has collected two bonus points to carry forward into next year’s Louis Vuitton America’s Cup Qualifiers in Bermuda. With a second place finish on the overall leaderboard, ORACLE TEAM USA secured one bonus point for the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup Qualifiers next year.

Sir Ben commented on the weekend's racing, “It’s been an incredible day of racing and for our team, Land Rover BAR, to come out on top here in Fukuoka, Japan in the final race of the series, and to win the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series, that was our goal and to achieve that is special for us. We are a completely new team, two and a half years ago we were a blank sheet back in Portsmouth in the UK and now, for our designers, our shore team and everyone back in the UK, it’s a real boost, so now we set our sights on Bermuda for the America’s Cup.

“Looking at this weekend, I think for all of us it’s what we love, when it gets aggressive. We had really good battles with Jimmy and with Emirates Team New Zealand and to go into that final race with the overall series sewn up, we were trying to get that bonus point off ORACLE TEAM USA and make life hard for them, but to their credit they did a good job of recovering.

“So, now we go ahead to next year. It is going to be neck and neck and I can see it being incredibly tight. I think the bonus points are going to be a factor next year. They’re 20% of the points on offer in the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup Qualifiers so it’s definitely worth having them, but also, for a new organization like ours, we need to show that we can perform at the highest level, for our own team, or our partners and our supporters, to show them all that we have a team with the capability of winning the America’s Cup, and I think we’ve shown that.

“I think this series has showcased just how tight it’s going to be in Bermuda next year. The level of competition and the skillsets of the sailors have been phenomenal, and now we move into our own race boats, our own designs, and I think that’s going to be fascinating for all the fans to see.”  For more America’s Cup sailing information

Sailing Champion Ed Baird Coaching @ Key West

(Key West, FL)- Ed Baird, past J/24 World Champion and America’s Cup Champion, was in Key West Race Week this past week providing participants some perspectives on their race course performance that day.

At 58, Ed Baird’s list of accomplishments began pre-internet, so you have to be of a certain age to know how long he has been dominant in the sport. Ed remains at the pointy end of performance, and this week he is sharing his observations during a nightly ‘show and tell’ at Key West Race Week. It was well-received and very informative for many boats.  Here Ed explained his mission:

“Quantum Sails and Harken asked me to do a daily debrief for the three race courses at the event. Each day we select a course, and I am joined by photographer Keith Brash who brings along an assortment of drones and cameras. Together we try to gather as much interesting footage as possible, and then edit segments that we can share each night with people from those courses.

With the visual presentation, I can provide my observations which hopefully provides the sailors with helpful information. We try to look at the whole course and find things that we think everyone can learn from. This might involve looking at one particular boat and noting their sail trim or pointing out how certain boat handling techniques are impacting performance. With the drone, we can capture starting line situations that are hard for the competitors to otherwise recognize.

It is all very educational, even for me. Sailing is really a lot of fun at Key West and I hope that through these group discussion that people can enjoy the event even more.”

J/Dreaming Some Days- Ken Read, Jim Spithill, Ben Ainslie, Sam Davies Have, too!

(Hamilton, Bermuda)-  So, what is the common denominator between these four world-renowned sailors-- Ken Read, Jimmie Spithill, Ben Ainslie, Samantha Davies (L-to-R)??  Sailing J/Boats, of course.  Specifically, J/24s, J/80s, J/105s, J/109s— at match-racing, team-racing, fleet racing on national, continental and World Championship levels.  The four sailors were assembled together thanks to the Royal Yacht Squadron's Bicentenary Regatta held on the Solent.

As many of you know, Ken won six J/24 World Championship titles, amongst many others.  Ben has raced Ken in J/24 modders down at Bitter End Yacht Club in the British Virgin Islands- in that “Ben & Ken Show” a few decades ago, Ben won (I think). Nevertheless, after winning a few Olympic Gold Medals in Finns, Ben has also been on the Solent sailing J/80s and J/109s of various ilk with friends as well as supporting sponsors.

Then, when Ken was winning J/24 Worlds, little Jimmie Spithill was in diapers growing up in Australia sailing circles and rumor has it that he also had some J/24 sailing under his belt with some of the locals (changing diapers, too!).  But, perhaps more importantly, now that Jimmie is grown up (according to friends), married and living in San Diego with his wife and kid(s), he bought Dennis Conner’s J/105 #3 (Lowell North’s old J/105 before D.C. got it), renamed it lucky number “17”, and keeps it at San Diego YC (he’s now a newbie member there)!  “17” was also sailing as part of the J/105 Masters Championship and may be there again this year!

Finally, “Sam” Davies is certainly no shrinking violet, even amongst this talented crowd.  She, too, has had quite a bit of experience sailing J/80s, J/109s and what not on the Solent as part of her experiences growing up racing in the United Kingdom.

Just goes to show that Ben, Ken, Jim, Sam got someplace with some determination.  So, you can start somewhere, someplace and someday become something somewhere else!?!  Play your cards right, kids, and you, too, can be somebody, somewhere, famous, sailing or otherwise!!

J/Sailors Leading the Charge off Nantucket.

(Great Harbor, Nantucket)- It’s all about “Competition, Contribution, Camaraderie!” It’s the quintessential New England summer scene: a fleet of classic yachts parade past a picturesque lighthouse en route to the race course, their American ensigns streaming in the stiff breeze.

On August 14th and 15th, a handsome pack of IOD sloops will slice through the waters of Nantucket Sound, in the capable hands of accomplished skippers and crew, each under the sage direction of a world-famous tactician.

This is the 10th installment of the IOD Celebrity Invitational, a unique regatta that pairs 14 visiting and local teams with 14 of America’s top sailing talent as tacticians. The two-day event is a signature feature of Nantucket Race Week, a weeklong celebration of sailing for all ages that benefits Nantucket Community Sailing (NCS), the non-profit that promotes the island’s maritime tradition by making sailing accessible and affordable to all.

The Nantucket International One Design Fleet Association provides its fleet of 15 identically matched fiberglass sloops, and many local sailors to stage the racing. One boat is reserved as a spare.

“The IOD’s are not a new design, but perfect for Nantucket conditions. They are all very even in speed and provide a wonderful test of sailing ability,” says Tom Whidden, a veteran and longstanding supporter of the Celebrity Invitational. In the past he has brought his vast experience – including multiple America’s Cup campaigns – to Nantucket as a celebrity tactician. This year he serves as the IOD Celebrity Invitational’s Honorary Chair. “This will continue to be one of my favorite regattas.”

The roster of tacticians reads like a Who’s Who of sailing, representing America’s Cup Hall of Famers, World Champions in multiple classes, medaled Olympians, collegiate All-Americans, and more than a few sail makers.  NOTE- Literally ALL tacticians have J/Boats experience at the local, regional, national, continental or world-levels on their C.V.!!  Here is the cast of characters frequenting downtown Nantucket this weekend:

Josh Adams (three time collegiate All-American), Jim Allsopp (Star World Champion), Peter
Bromby (four Olympic Star campaigns), Robbie Doyle (twice Sears Cup winner), Dave Franzel (Sonar World Champion), Phil Garland (twice winning navigator in Fastnet Races), John MacCausland (Star World Champion), Mark Reynolds (four Olympics, three medals), Dawn Riley (four America’s Cup campaigns, 1992 win), Jud Smith (Rolex Yachtsman of the Year), Mike Toppa (six America’s Cup campaigns, two wins), Dave Ullman (470, J/24 and Melges World Champion), Will Welles (J/24 National Champion), and Jon Wright (five America’s Cup campaigns, three wins).

“What’s really impressive to me is the commitment of the celebrities to come and, for many, to return multiple times for the honor of helping out NCS in its primary mission of teaching people to sail,” says event co-organizer Bill Druckemiller. “The number of America’s Cup, World Championships, Olympic medals is really astounding, and they give their time cheerfully.”

The philanthropic sentiment doesn’t seem to deter the competitive spirit. “The racing is close and there is a lot of it. Believe me, it isn’t easy. I have never won the regatta because the competition is really tough,” says Whidden.

An impressive line-up of skippers further validates the event’s “Celebrity” title. Entrants include Gary Jobson (America’s Cup-winning tactician), who will also serve as Honorary Chair of Nantucket Race Week 2014 and Heather Gregg-Earl (J/70 North American Champion in 2013).  For more Nantucket Race Week

Victoria's Secret J/24 Foiler!?

(Sandringham, Victoria, Australia)- Yes, you can say the Australian's are getting a bit punch-drunk about having a new Australian AC35 America's Cup Challenge from Hamilton Island YC.  Says one of the J/24 crews at Sandringham YC:

"We are on the trail of something big at Sandy. With the approaching summer season rapidly coming at us here in Melbourne, we believe testing with the new J/24 foiler has been going on over the winter. The skipper is reported as saying that they have been able to get the boat foiling once they get surfing on a wave and can sometimes keep it on the foils long enough to get onto the next wave and doing that they have been able to actually skip forward overtaking the wave crests. ‘The AC is safe for the moment’ is the joke going about down on the hardstand but there are some very serious faces around this project where the foils remain covered away in a padlocked cover to keep prying eyes out (shades of Ben Lexcen). The skipper went on to say that “where we have made real gains though, is reaching, traditionally the J has been a very poor reaching boat due to it’s short waterline length, now we are blasting along like a skiff”. Apparently the lead in the keel keeps the boat much steadier than a foiling moth or Laser when it is up on the foils. The normal righting moment of the lead keel would tend to confirm this. Tests continue on foiling upwind which although reported has not been verified by anyone reliable yet. The only picture released so far is a rather poor quality shot showing the boat up on its foils whilst surfing a wave off Sandringham YC. We note that the name has been airbrushed off the hull to mask that actual test boat and the sail number has been blocked out. More when we can break through the security surrounding this amazing breakthrough."

Top J Sailors Lead Farr 40 Worlds!?

(Newport, RI)- Farr 40 Worlds a.k.a. J/Worlds!? Really?! You betcha. Look who's tactician on many of the leading boats-- most are J/Boats one-design racing alumni (J/22, J/24, J/70, J/80, J/105) or J/24 World Champions.  Fifteen crews from eight countries are ready to fight for the title of Rolex Farr 40 World Champions.  The roll call for tacticians alone in this fleet is pretty impressive, including eleven known champion J sailors like Terry Hutchinson (BARKING MAD), Bill Hardesty (FLASH GORDON), Chris Larson (PLENTY), Morgan Reeser (CHARISMA), Matt Ciesicki (FLOJITO Y COOPERANDO, Max Skelly (ENDORPHIN), Ross McDonald (ASTERISK-UNO), Jens Christiansen (NANOQ), Peter Holmberg (STRUNTJE LIGHT), Erik Shampain (WHITE KNIGHT) and Gavin Brady (TRANSFUSION-- of note, Gavin's been sailing a J/70 in Martha's Vineyard all summer).

America’s Cup veteran and J/24 World Champion, Terry Hutchinson, commented about the closeness and tight one-design racing experience: “(Timing and teamwork) are directly related to each other. The better communicated the timing, the better the teamwork. If you are off, it’s amazing the impact it has on the overall performance of the boat. If the start is off by two or three seconds, the impact on the race is massive. I give a timing countdown to each maneuver because it’s so critical for everyone to start the job at the right time. Pretty much everything on the boat requires ultimate precision.”  We wish them all well, it will certainly be a case of the smartest (or luckiest) with the least mistakes will survive to tell the tale!

Sailing intervew- John Kostecki- J/24 America's Cup sailor

(San Francisco, CA)- Diverse experiences like sailing J/24s and Sunfish made John Kostecki a better sailor (yet another, "what does a J/24 World Champion do for a career later in life", kind of story).  Marin Magazine in San Francisco Bay area recently had a chance to catch up with John in between sailing that monster AC72 foiling catamaran named, simply, ORACLE:

"American John Kostecki has made a career as a professional sailor, and can now be found as tactician for America's Cup defender Oracle Team USA. His trail to the top began on San Francisco Bay, with a notable marker in 1982 when both the J/24 World Championship and Sunfish World Championship were held on his home waters.

As an eighteen year old, John won the Sunfish title and came close to winning the J/24 title, too (editor's note- losing to John Kolius and later won the Sydney, Australia J/24 Worlds). John considers his diverse background as an important element of his success today, and would recommend it to children interested in the sport of sailing...

"Most importantly, have fun and enjoy it! There are so many classes out there, so find the one you love. I loved sailing from a young age, so I looked for as many opportunities as I could to get out on the water. I raced both dinghies and keelboats and learned every role on the boat. I'd go keelboat racing with my dad and his friends, then sailing in a junior program. I always tried to hang out with the older kids because they had so much more experience and I learned from them. I didn't focus on being the skipper, but rather on getting as many experiences as I could get..."    For more on the Marin magazine John Kostecki sailing interview

J/Sailors in America's Cup World Sailing Series

(San Francisco, CA) - America's Cup sailors participating in this week's ACWS 2013 Season Opener in San Francisco Bay are again having to put up with a strong contingent of past and current J/Sailors tossing a monkey-wrench into the works.  Starting with recent Gold Medal Olympian Ben Ainslie, he's on "training wheels" this week and progressing rapidly- having done well on the Match Race front and learning the ropes in the fleet racing-- a combination of dinghy and keelboat (J/109 & J/24/ IC24) experience have contributed to his open-minded approach to success.  Giving Ben and others a run for the money are J/24 World Champion Terry Hutchinson directing the Team ARTEMIS program along with other J/Alumni on other teams-- perhaps the Spanish sometime soon (Iker Martinez and friends from J/80 World in Spain?).  Then, don't forget John Kostecki, past J/24 World Champion as well calling the shots for Jimmie Spithill-- a formidable combo to go against in John's "backyard" (a.k.a. San Francisco Bay!).

Dennis Conner Sailing J/105 NA's

(San Diego, CA)- Dennis Conner has been having fun in his "post-America's Cup" life.  Who can blame him, he should be having fun.  After a remarkable record of winning the AC with his own program in 1979-1980 with the FREEDOM-ENTERPRISE campaign, losing it the subsequent time around in 1983 with the LIBERTY-FREEDOM campaign, then winning it back in the 1987 Fremantle Doctor campaign with that fast "submarine" called STARS & STRIPES, "DC" has more than anyone left everything on the matt, so to speak, in his efforts to grow (and win) the America's Cup.

Recently, DC has been having a blast sailing a light-air 60 footer offshore, the latest STARS & STRIPES.  And, he's been having a lot of fun taking a classic yacht off the Great Lakes, the 102 year old FAME, into various classic yacht events for some more relaxed sailing in SoCal.  Recently, DC sailed FAME to a 1st to finish and 1st overall in the McNish Classic Yacht Regatta at Pacific Corinthian YC of Oxnard, California.

As if DC didn't have enough boats to sail from his "garage", which includes at least two nicely prepared Etchells 22s, DC recently decided to jump into some local J/105 sailing with some of his friends.  Following in the foot-steps of one of his childhood heroes, DC bought Lowell North's old J/105 #3 called PHOLLY.  DC hopes to sail in the SoCal J/105 Champs and the J/105 Championships this October in San Diego, hosted by his local club- San Diego YC.  Plus, it looks like DC may also be sailing against long-time friends and competitor, Buddy Melges from Zenda, Wisconsin in the J/105 Masters Regatta later in November!  Should be fun to see the old masters dueling it out amongst one another for bragging rights at the SDYC bar!  Plus, as the recent US Sailing America's Best Sailor winner, it will be more than amusing to see a number of the finalists enjoying camaraderie at the local sailor's watering hole.

J/24 Sailors Dominate Americas Cup Match

(Newport, RI)- In the America's Cup World Series Newport sailed on the AC 45 cats, it was past J/24 World Champion Terry Hutchinson that won the Match-Racing Series overall. Congratulations to Terry and crew on Team ARTEMIS for winning what amounted to the prologue to the America's Cup Match Race that will take place on the monster AC 72 catamarans with their towering 125 foot tall wing sails on San Francisco Bay in the summer of 2013.  If you're the type that slows down to look at car accidents, this may be THE sailing event for all you rubber-neckers! Flying bodies, broken boats, equipment and sails may be the norm if these 72 ft cats have to sail in 20-30 kts nuking out on the Bay.  For more America's Cup World Series sailing information

Hutchinson Sailing ACWS Newport

(Newport, RI)- America's Cup World Series Newport competition gets underway Thursday. This will be the fifth and final event of the five part series. Having won the match racing in both Naples and Venice, ARTEMIS leads this element of the series and is third in the overall standings. Following on from five full days of training, past J/24 World Champion skipper Terry Hutchinson (USA) and the crew onboard ARTEMIS are looking forward to four days of racing against the seven other teams competing in the event.

"We feel fast on the open course, but we need to start well. That is key. All the things that you can control, you have to control," said Terry. "Competition, Mother Nature and the current are going to be the biggest variables in performance here. The boats are so fast, that you are punished if you don’t do things properly.  It’s great to have the America’s Cup back in the US and briefly in Newport. It is the premier spot to come and be supported by the people. Newport is the Cup’s home away from home and so far it hasn’t disappointed. We’ve had a lot of people out here spectating. There’s a good vibe."  For more America's Cup World Series sailing information

America's Cup World Series Celebration

(Newport, RI)- Governor and Mrs Lincoln Chaffee and the ACWS Host Committee invite you to join them for a celebration of the ACWS Newport event on June 8th, 6:00 PM at Fort Adams- North Lawn.  It will be a fun, festive affair. Enjoy lots of hors d'oeuvres, cocktails and live entertainment. You can buy America's Cup sailing celebration tickets here.

The World Series races are being held in locations around the globe; Newport's race will be the final stop before next year's America's Cup in San Francisco. Newport last hosted an America's Cup event decades ago-- back in 1983.  The upcoming ACWS regatta at Fort Adams State Park features top international sailors competing in 45 foot all carbon catamarans with massive wing-masts.

As many of you probably know, many of the top America's Cup teams feature skippers, tacticians, team managers that have sailed J/22s and J/24s and won numerous World Championships over time.  Included in that group are John Kostecki (tactician on ORACLE), Terry Hutchinson (skipper on ARTEMIS) and Francesco di'Angeles (manager of PRADA).  Plus, looking out for both the AC and Golden Gate YC's interests is Vice Commodore Tom Ehman (top J/24 sailor for years in the hot, local J/24 fleet in Newport!).

The event is scheduled for June 23 to July 1 and will include four days of exciting racing right between Ft Adams and Jamestown's Fort Wetherill across the Bay-- it promises to be extremely tight, thrill-a-minute racing. Skippers will be playing "rope-a-dope" as they challenge each other for maximum gains on every turn at NASCAR closing speeds!  For more ACWS sailing information.

J/24 Italian America's Cup Sailing

(Naples, Italy)- In keeping with the influence of Italy on the sailing world, it's somewhat coincidental that SAILING WORLD's recent "50th Celebration" article from past J/24 World Champion and College Sailor of the Year Terry Hutchinson- "Recover from a bad start"- was published recently.  As Terry said, "Patience is a virtue when it comes to recovering from a bad start."  In it, Terry Hutchinson explains how to get in the clear after a bad start: "You know you've had a bad start when you can't execute the game plan determined before the race. Two critical things must happen if you wish to recover: the helmsman has to sail the boat as fast as possible while in dirty air, and you need to decide where to go to get clean air."  Here's the article- http://www.sailingworld.com/experts/recover-from-a-bad-start

But, what to do after a "bad spill"?  Don't have that answer yet!  Take a look at this problem Terry recently encountered while racing an AC45 in the America's Cup World Series off Naples, Italy--

http://www.americascup.com/en/Latest/Gallery/2012/4/AC-World-Series---Race-Day-One---News/

What's the coincidence here??  Terry's up against LUNA ROSSA that has Francesco De'Angelis as a principal part of their racing/management program.  LUNA ROSSA recently won the fleet racing, appropriately enough, in Naples, Italy in the same waters that Francesco won his 1987 J/24 World Championship off the famous island of Capri!  Small world, eh?

J Sailors- Winning & Surviving on World Stage

* Win Some, Lose Some.  Tough week for "los amigos y hermanos de J/24s".  For starters, kindred J/24 spirits in Argentina were winning the J/24 Worlds.  But, their mentors and heroes were suffering interminable bad breaks.  For one, Ken Read's Volvo 70 PUMA Mar Mastro suffered the worst fate anyone of us could imagine, watching their super high-tech Scott Ferguson/ Hall Spars custom special carbon uber-rig simply fall over the side in three pieces in just 20+ knot winds in a long period 10-12 foot swell about 3 pm UTC off Brazil, about 700 nm from nowhere on Monday, November 21st.  What gives?  Maybe a symptom of the massive forces/ acceleration experienced in the first 48 hours of the race?  Certainly the conditions back then were bad enough to knock two of their competitors out of contention already (Abu Dhabi and Team Sanya).  Nevertheless, they're still "Thankful" for surviving to date.  Also, still surviving (and leading) are Iker Martinez on TELEFONICA, the ETNZ CAMPER boys and the French Connection on-board Franck Camas's team on GROUPAMA.

* A world apart and surviving in a tactical way was Terry Hutchinson on ARTEMIS RACING.  Sailing strongly in the America's Cup World Series on the AC45 cats in the racing leading up to the final days, Terry's team were handily in the top four.  But a shift here, a hole there and in the blink of an eye (e.g. 30 seconds) their hopes were dashed from competing for the finals.  Next up?  First race in 2012 is in Italy followed by Newport in late June!  Should be quite a sight to see these 45 foot cats flying around Narragansett Bay at light speeds between Castle Hill Light and the Newport Bridge!  Maybe some wise guy named Larry will show up with an AC72 foot version and show it off, too!?  Now, that would be very, very cool.

America's Cup World Series- Terry Hutchinson interview

* AC34 San Diego- last week we featured the J/120 sailors John Laun and Chuck Nichols who created SEA San Diego and are principally responsible for seeing the AC34 World Series event being held there this coming weekend.  Now for the actors themselves.  While friends from the J/24 and J/80 one-design world are "sending it" in the Volvo Ocean Race in their ocean-going greyhounds, namely Ken Read on PUMA and Iker Martinez on TELEFONICA, their "bicycle" buddies blasting around short-track racing avoiding brick walls and one another every ten seconds is none other than Terry Hutchinson and buddies on ARTEMIS RACING.  What's a J/24 World Champion to do after learning what it takes to play on a world stage-- fly around in wing-sailed catamarans, of course!  Cool stuff.  The real racing gets underway Wednesday and look to see Terry and the boys on ARTEMIS RACING amongst the leaders in this tough fleet of new-born cat fanatics.   Terry Hutchinson sailing interview/ preview.

J/120 Sailors Run America's Cup San Diego!

* How did the America's Cup AC45 Circus land in San Diego?  Well, a bunch of J/120 sailors got together and said it had to be done!  In a few short days, the America's Cup returns to San Diego, the Auld Mug's home from 1987 to 1995, when Team New Zealand and Black Magic snatched it away in a dominating performance. But this time around the action won't happen out at sea, out of mind of all but the most hardcore sailing fans. "Stadium sailing" is coming to San Diego, promising enough thrills, chills, and spills to entice a whole new generation of fans.

John Laun, lifelong sailboat  racer and owner of the San Diego Yacht Club-based J/120 CAPER, watched the America's Cup making its "victory tour" around San Diego in 2010 and knew the city still had the interest and the ability to run a Cup regatta. He and Chuck Nichols, owner of the J/120 CC RIDER, former SDYC commodore and 1995 AC President, formed Sailing Events Association (SEA) San Diego to make that goal a reality. On the eve of the America's Cup World Series in San Diego, Laun talked to CupInfo about the steps they took to secure the regatta, lessons learned, and what it will take for the event to be a success in his view:

"We formed the Sailing Events Association San Diego to pursue America's Cup regattas," explained Laun. "It was clear early on that if we could demonstrate our capabilities and showcase San Diego -- our team, our environment, our stadium sailing concept -- that it would promote ourselves as a viable venue."

Step one was to host an event to demonstrate to the America's Cup Event Authority (ACEA) that SEA was capable of staging a major regatta inside San Diego Bay, including providing facilities for teams on the downtown piers, spectator viewing options on and around the race course, on-the-water race management, and plenty of waterfront entertainment. Enter the RC44 class; for their first event SEA signed the international one-design fleet for a west coast stop. The regatta in March 2011 featured the top RC44 teams from around the world, with names familiar to America's Cup fans, such as Russell Coutts, Paul Cayard, Cameron Appleton, and Paolo Cian.

"We wanted to host a spectator event that people could enjoy, something that would energize the San Diego community around sailing. It was our first event and it was exactly on spec for what we wanted -- spectator-friendly and exciting. We had a meeting with the ACEA the night of the trophy presentation and were up in San Francisco the next week and it was a done deal."  For more SEA San Diego America's Cup sailing information