The J/88 North American Championship Preview(Youngstown, NY)- Introduced just three years ago, the J/88 continues to gain passionate new owners across the world. Having just passed the century mark of boats built, those 100 owners are spread across four continents, racing in a combination of one-design events as well as making their mark in prestigious offshore handicap races. J/88s are winning in Hobart, Tasmania; winning Singlehanded Transpac’s; as well as ORC offshore events at Algarrobo, Chile. And, they continue to surpass all owner’s expectations racing offshore in the USA and all over Europe under various handicapping systems (ORR, ORC, IRC, & PHRF). Recently, J/88s won a famous overnight race on Lake Champlain in Vermont and two teams swept the top two spots on the podium in the incredibly challenging Chicago to Mackinac Race (20 hours of beating to windward in 15-32 kts of wind, 15 hours of light winds reaching, and 15 hours of moderate breezes two-sail reaching or under asym spinnaker)! Talk about versatility!
No matter what the regatta or offshore race, the J/88 has proven time and again that both women owner/skippers and all corinthian teams are capable of sailing against some of the world’s top offshore sailors and win! For more J/88 family speedster sailing information
Therefore, it is no surprise that fifteen J/88 teams are easily trailering their boats from across the eastern parts of the USA and Canada and participating in the second J/88 North American Championship, hosted by Youngstown YC in Youngstown, New York. The teams will be participating as part of the YYC’s famous CanAm Challenge, sailing on Lake Ontario.
Registered for this year’s event is a “who’s who” of top J/88 teams from the past three years, including past NA winners, past Key West Midwinters winners, Block Island Race Week winners, and Queens Cup winners. It will be an eye-opening event for many crews, particularly local teams facing the northeastern contingent that have been doing battle for at least five major events so far in 2017! The leading east coast crews, based on performances at the recent East Coast Championship in Block Island, should be Doug McKeige’s JAZZ, Mike Bruno’s WINGS, Iris Vogel’s DEVIATION and Doug Newhouse’ YONDER. From the Chicago area, visiting teams that have won various offshore events include Tod Patton’s BLONDIE 2, Andy Graff’s EXILE and Al Minella’s ALBONDINGAS. Two Canadian teams from the north side of Lake Ontario are participating, Jim Egloff’s TOUCH2PLAY and Ard Van Leeuwen’s JAUNTY J.
Defending their home turf and hoping to fend off the onslaught of the visiting teams on their home waters of Lake Ontario will be Laura Wyler’s HIJINKS, Richard Lohr’s NIGHT OWL, Tim Finkle’s SEAWEED, and Joe & Jeff Pawlowski’s EASY EIGHTS! The racing should be close, and fiercely fought over the championship series! For more J/88 North American Championship sailing information
LENDY Cowes Week Preview(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- Cowes Week is one of the United Kingdom's longest running and most successful sporting events and is a key highlight of the British sporting summer. It has been held in early August every year since 1826, except during the two world wars.
Traditionally, Cowes Week takes place after “Glorious Goodwood” (classic car stuff) and before the “Glorious Twelfth” (bird shooting stuff- grouse)- occasionally the traditional dates are changed to ensure optimum racing, most importantly, taking account of the ferocious tides of the Solent.
Around 8,000 competitors will participate this year, ranging from Olympic and world-class yachtsmen to weekend sailors. The spectacle that the racing provides, together with the vibrant festival atmosphere attracts over 100,000 visitors to Cowes during the event. The special events that take place all week are particularly noteworthy. Starting on Tuesday, ELEMIS Ladies Day celebrates the contribution and achievement of women in sailing and recognizes some of the major successes of women in the sport. Then, the end of week fireworks display on Friday is simply mind-blowing, and of course, the Royal Air Force “Red Arrows” acrobatic team are just awesome! Every supporting yacht club also hosts big fireworks parties with disco dancing well past midnight (Royal Yacht Squadron, Royal London YC, RORC, Island Sailing Club, & Cowes Corinthian YC)!For 2017, the Cowes Combined Clubs organization is delighted to welcome LENDY- The Property Platform- onboard as title sponsor of Cowes Week. As a result, the 2017 regatta is now known as “LENDY Cowes Week”.
As the J/stable of cruisers, racers, and one-designs have expanded over the course of time, J/owners have made Cowes Week a fixture on their summer schedule, with hundreds of J/sailors participating from across the spectrum of age and experience. There are three one-design classes (J/70s, J/80s, J/109s) and J/crews participating in IRC handicap classes.
The thirty-three J/70s, by far the largest modern keelboat class in the regatta, are sporting several luminaries in their ranks, plus women’s teams and youth teams! What must be noted is that Royal Yacht Squadron and Royal Thames YC combined have a dozen J/70s, many of which are entered with a variety of Corinthian youth and women’s crews. At the top of the leaderboard should be well-known crews like Patrick Liardet’s COSMIC, Andrew Barraclough’s JENGA 8, Simon Cavey’s JUST4PLAY, Tony Hanlon’s RAF SPITFIRE, and Jack Davies’ YETI Under 25 Youth Team. Notably, there are five women helms in the event- Vilija Velyvte & Sophie Sheldon’s AURORA, Kim Ridge’s NONE, Sarah Allan’s RTYC 743, Ali Hall’s SCEPTRE, and Anna Wilson’s SHIVER.With ten J/80s, the competition will always be close, particularly when racing up and down The Parade along the fabulous Cowes waterfront. Leading crews in the class will have just come off a brutally tough J/80 World Championship held just across the Solent at the Royal Southern YC in the Hamble. Those crews include Terence O’Neill’s AQUA J, Jon Powell’s BETTY, and Chris Body’s MOCKINGJAY.
The enormous eighteen boat J/109 class will always have laid-back, but ferocious competition- if there were ever a “Pimms class” amongst the J/cognoscenti, it is the J/109’s on the Solent. Having fun, fiercely, but kicking back after a long, hard day of racing on the royal waters of the Solent. In fact, one of the class leaders is appropriately named JYNNAN TONNYX- a family affair sailed by Owain Franks and Jean Lockett. Always near the top of the scorecard, they will be chased hard by pirate captains- the “Jack Sparrows” of the world- Roger Phillips’ DESIGNSTAR 2, Bob Stiles’ DIAMOND JEM, Simon Perry’s JIRAFFE, William King’s JOLLY JACK TAR, Chris Sharples & Rick Acland’s JUKEBOX, and Dave Richards’ JUMPING JELLYFISH.The eighteen-boat Sportsboat IRC class will be sporting five J/88s. They will be up against a smorgasbord of Cork 1720s and Farr 280s, amongst other “sportboat exotica” that can be found in the United Kingdom! Leading the charge will be David & Kirsty Apthorp’s J-DREAM, with classmates chasing them hard for class honors, such as Tim Tolcher’s RAGING BULL, Paul Ward’s notorious EAT SLEEP J REPEAT, Dirk & Dianne van Beek’s SABRIEL JR, and Paul Heys’ JENGA XXX.
In the world of handicap racing, the six J/111s are racing in IRC 1 Class along with a brilliantly sailed J/122E. They are up against an eclectic ensemble of various racer-cruisers. Past J/111 World Champion Martin Dent and crew on JELVIS are up against Chris Jones & Louise Makin’s JOURNEYMAKER II; the fast, furious, fun, crazy and great partiers on Paul & Marcon van Driel’s Netherlands team on SWEENY; Simon Bamford’s KESTEL; Tony Mack’s McFLY; and the Belgium crew on DJINN. Of note, the DJINN team is born from the ‘Just4sailing' sailing school in Belgium (www.just4sailing.be). The owner (Sebastien de Liedekerke) will participate in the Fastnet Race. However, before that, he lent his boat to a young female skipper- Frederique!The IRC 2 Class is another eclectic combination of boats. Essentially, a First 40 class that includes the J/120 PYR SUNSET (Andras Bakody) and the J/122 TEAM WHISKEY JACK, skippered by Nick Southward & John Scott. Would that not be a shocker to see the J/122 dominate the class?
Similarly, in the twenty-three boat IRC 3 CLASS, it is mostly Figaro 2’s and First 40.7s up against Adam Gosling’s new JPK 1080 YES! and also a new J/112E DAVANTI TYRES sailed by Charles Ivill and the J/11S SLEEPER 111 helmed by Jonty Layfield. Good Lord, Ladbrokes London would have a helluva time trying to handicap this class of pirates on the high seas! Good luck to all!
Yet another rough & tumble class are the twenty-three teams in IRC 4 class that includes J/105s, a J/109 and J/35. In the end, the most interesting crew are “newbies”- the J/105 REDEYE with Annapurna Racing from Wayzata YC, in Wayzata, Minnesota sailing on a charter with Pete Tyler as skipper. They will be up against a past RORC IRC Champion team, the J/35 OUTRAGEOUS sailed by Team Knight Builders from Ireland. Plus, a top Dutch crew on the J/109 JAI ALAI (a past RORC offshore winner) will be skippered by Alain Bornet and two other J/105s will be in the mix- Prof Roger Williams’ JOS OF HAMBLE and Art Freeman’s JAZZ II.
IRC 5 class looks to be a bit stacked towards J/sailors. Of the 25 entries, 14 are J/Boats! Take your pick. J/97s or J/92s! Well, depends on weather conditions. Reachy, white sails and shy kites- perhaps J/92’s. Windward/ leeward, J/97s will romp home in a clean sweep. Then again, if it’s nuking blowing dogs off chains kind’of stuff, all bets are off. Past “Ladies Day” award winner, Libby Greenhalgh, will be sailing with David on their J/92 J’RONIMO and will be a factor on the leaderboard due to their extremely intricate knowledge of Solent currents and winds. They will be chased hard by a cadre of 92/97 teams, such as Rob Salter’s J/92 JACKDAW, Rachel Hunt’s J/97 JUMBLESAIL 2, Nick Munday’s J/97 INDULJENCE, and Bob & Jon Baker’s JAYWALKER. In the “lambs getting tossed to wolves” category are Ed Holton’s J/110 SHADES OF BLUE and Chris Burbidge’s J/32 DOMAINE; nevertheless, in any white sails reachy stuff, watch out! It could be the lambs trampling the wolves!In truly the “lone wolf” category is Edmund Gatehouse’s J/24 JUPITER in the twenty-four boat IRC 6 Class. Incredibly, the only J/24 sailing in this year’s 40th anniversary of the J/24 in the world’s longest standing race week?? WOW! We all hope he can crush the onslaught of those Impala 28s! For more LENDY Cowes Week sailing information
HELLY HANSEN Marblehead NOOD Preview(Marblehead, MA)- A highlight of the summer sailing season in the New England sailing community has been the annual Marblehead NOOD Regatta, presented by Sailing World and HELLY HANSEN. The event is hosted by the triumvirate of Marblehead’s leading yacht clubs- Eastern, Boston, and Corinthian YC. Sailors are treated to a first-class event on the waters of the greater Boston Harbor that emanate from that historic place in American history- e.g. remember the “Tea Party” in 1776!? Yes, sailors were revolutionaries then, as they are now.
So, clearly Boston is cool. Especially, for sailing and doing it with friends. Growing rapidly in the northeast is the J/70 class! It is the largest class in the regatta and it includes several top crews that are practicing for both the Corinthian J/70 North Americans in Buzzards Bay two weekends later as well as the J/70 North Americans at American YC in October.
The thirty-boat J/70 class includes top crews like Oivind Lorentzen’s NINE, Doug Clark’s POLAR from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, Tom Bowen’s REACH AROUND, John Brim’s RIMETTE, Brian Keane’s SAVASANA, Bruno Pasquinelli’s STAMPEDE, and John & Molly Baxter’s TEAM VINEYARD VINES. The top Corinthian crews include Andrew & Melissa Fisher’s BUTTON FLY, Henry Brauer’s RASCAL, Frank McNamara’s CHINOOK, Sam Altreuter’s LEADFOOT, and Ted Johnson’s VITAMIN J.
The thirteen-boat J/105 class will always enjoy incredibly close racing. No one knows which team will be the next team to beat. Nevertheless, with so many new faces in the crowd, it would be safe to say that top contenders like Fred De Napoli’s ALLEGRO SEMPLICITA (past two-times winner) and Mark Masur’s TWO FEATHERS (a perennial contender from Fort Worth Boat Club in Texas) will be amongst the favorites! For more Marblehead NOOD sailing regatta information
CanAm Challenge Preview(Youngstown, NY)- This coming weekend, the Youngstown YC is looking forward to hosting yet another one of their famous CanAm Challenge Regattas for fleets of J/70s, J/22s, and PHRF handicap racing boats. A primary feature of the event is the annual “street hockey” challenge, too, between hand-picked mercenaries from the USA and Canada to take on each other in a knock-down, drag-em-out street hockey thrash in the Youngstown YC’s parking lot! It is not certain which is more popular for the sailors, the sailing on the water, or the party/ street hockey bash! For certain, the Canadians are enjoying their current lead over the Americans on the street hockey duel!
Out on the water, a strong contingent of J/70s are participating this year for their Lake Ontario Championship, the fleet of thirteen boats is looking forward to festivities both on and off the water. For starters, four Canadian teams are joining in on the fun, such as Richard Veale’s EL JEFE, Greg Berti’s LIBERTI, Rich Jones’ MAVERICK, and Scott Weakley’s REX. Crashing the party from Cleveland, OH is Tod Sackett’s FM. Hoping to keep the title “local” for both the hockey and sailing are teams like Peter Winkelstein’s EOWYN, John Newell’s JUNIOR, Scott Dinse’s MARGARITAVILLE, and Justin Hays & Ben Zahradnik’s REVEILLE.
The ten-boat J/22 class will have a number of refugees from the recent J/22 North Americans, including the winners- Chris Doyle’s THE JUG 4 1!! Also, lining up for some hot action will be Cory Sertl’s LUCY (a past Women’s Champion), Vic Snyder’s infamous crew on MO’MONEY, and Breck McFarlane’s FLUFFY.
In the PHRF handicap-racing world, the six-boat PHRF 1 Spin class has four J/Teams; the odds are good they will have a clean sweep! The boats include Ed Berkhout’s J/105 ALI KAT, John Reinhold’s J/124 FUTURES, and two J/35s- Paul-Angus Bark’s CRIME SCENE and Andrew Koolman’s LOYALIST.
In the PHRF 1 Non Spin class is Doug Clarke’s J/35C ROGUE WAVE and in PHRF 2 Spin is Rick Sherk’s J/24 BAD HABITS. For more CanAm Challenge Regatta sailing information
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
One of the highlights of the Scandinavian summer sailing season is the famous Bohusracet, a 170nm doublehanded race that sails through the 8,000 island Bohus Archipelago. Sailing in the event was a J/111 that proved yet again that it is a double-handed weapon in a wide variety of wind and weather conditions. Also racing offshore in the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s were a J/133, J/109, J/105 and J/120 in the Channel Race. Then, in the one-design arena, the German J/70 Sailing League Act IV took place in Travemunde, Germany on the southwestern parts of the Baltic Sea.Across the pond in the Americas, there were both classic offshore races and major one-design events. Out on the east coast, the Lake Champlain Overnight Race took place off Burlington, VT that included a J/88, J/111, J/122 and J/110. Then, just west of them on Lake Ontario, the J/22 North Americans were hosted at Buffalo YC in Buffalo, New York. Further west on the Great Lakes, the Bell’s Beer Bayview Mackinac Island Race completed by Tuesday, it started off Port Huron, MI and goes up Lake Huron, past Canada and up to the famous Mackinac Island. Also, taking place on the Great Lakes on Lake Ontario was the J/Fest Great Lakes at Ashbridges Bay YC on J/105s, J/27s, J/35s J/80s. Then, out west the J/70 Fiesta Cup Regatta was held at Santa Barbara YC.
Read on! The J/Community and Cruising section below has many entertaining stories and news about J/Sailors as well as cruising blogs about those who continue to enjoy the Caribbean and the South Pacific, staying warm while others are trying to stay warm up north. Check them out! More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page Below are the summaries.
Regatta & Show Schedules:
Jul 27-30- Marblehead NOOD Regatta- Marblehead, MAJul 28-30- CAN-AM Challenge- Youngstown, NY
Jul 28-30- J/88 North American Championship- Youngstown NY
Jul 29- Aug 5- Cowes Race Week- Cowes, Isle of Wight, England
Jul 29- J/FEST Annapolis- Annapolis, MD
Aug 3-5- J/70 Corinthian Nationals- South Dartmouth, MA
Aug 3-5- Buzzards Bay Regatta- South Dartmouth, MA
Aug 10-13- U.S. J/70 Youth Championship- Newport, RI
Aug 11- 40th Anniversary J/24 Round Island Race- Newport, RI
Aug 12-13- J/Fest New England Regatta- Newport, RI
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
Doyle Wins Close J/22 North Americans(Buffalo, NY)- The 2017 J/22 North American Championship was hosted from July 20th to 23rd at Buffalo YC in Buffalo, New York. Thirty-two teams sailed the event in a wide variety of sailing conditions. In the end, the racing was so close, it was determined by a tie-breaker at 27 pts each between Chris Doyle’s THE JUG 4 1 and Travis Odenbach’s HONEY BADGER! On count back, it was Doyle’s jubilant crew of Will Harris and Adam Burns that won the coveted title of 2017 J/22 North American Champions! Here is how it all went down over the three-day regatta.
Day OneFour races were completed on the opening day. Local Chris Doyle on THE JUG 41 posted a 2-1-4-5 for 12 points and the early advantage. On his heels was Travis Odenbach’s HONEY BADGER, just one point back. Jeff Todd’s HOT TODDY was in third place with 18 points.
It was a Doyle family reunion in the top 10 so far, with all four of them standing eighth or higher overall!! Brothers Chris, Kevin and Peter plus Kevin’s son Jacob are dominant, all as amateur helmsmen.
The Lake Erie winds were between 8-10 knots. Todd earned the opening victory, ahead of C. Doyle and Odenbach. The top three flopped places in race two, with C. Doyle taking first, Odenbach second and Todd third. Another of the Doyle’s entered in the regatta, Jacob Doyle, won the third contest in breeze at 10-12 knots and lumpy seas. Zeke Horowitz’s UNCLE FLUFFY placed second and Peter Doyle third. Horowitz claimed the day’s final battle with Odenbach in the silver spot and Terry Flynn’s TEJAS in the bronze.
Day TwoAfter seven races Odenbach had scraped his way to the top of the leaderboard. Following a bullet in Saturday’s first contest, HoneyBadger placed eighth in race six, becoming their discard. The Rochester-based helmsman rebounded for a third in race seven, leaving the team with 17 net points, heading into the last day of the event on Sunday. Doyle dropped to second place, tied on points at 19 with Todd’s HOT TODDY.
Out on the lake, the teams waited out an on-water postponement for a couple hours before starting in about 6 knots. Odenbach collected the win, with Dave McBrier’s VAMANOS/ HARDWARE CHIMP and Todd completing the top trio. The breeze increased slightly in the next contest, won by C. Doyle. Horowitz and Jake Doyle followed. Tim Finkle’s TOOTS closed the day with a victory, as winds slightly increased to 10 knots. Todd and Odenbach were second and third, respectively.
DAY 3 FINALEIn sports, coaches always say that every point matters. That was certainly the case for this year’s regatta! Doyle’s THE JUG 4 1 went into the ninth and final contest in third place, four points behind Odenbach’s HONEY BADGER. Doyle did his part by scoring a bullet, and paired with Odenbach’s fifth-place finish, the local boys (Doyle, Harris & Burns) took the Championship. Behind Doyle and Odenbach, it was Todd’s HOT TODDY that took 3rd place.
After Todd won race eight in winds around 6 knots, teams waited for breeze for about an hour.
“The nice Northwesterly came in, but sailing here for a few years, we thought it would go southwest,” summarized Burns. Their local knowledge paid dividends, especially in race nine. “The RC started the race at 275 degrees, and we just knew it would go back to the true 260 degrees it normally does. So, we started right near the pin. Travis was to windward of us, but we got lucky that he went after Jeff Todd, and we just sailed our race. This was not Chris Doyle weather,” joked Burns, referring to his skipper’s knack for excelling in heavier breeze!
The event included four teams in the Doyle family: Chris, brothers Kevin and Peter, plus Kevin’s son Jacob. All four placed in the top eight overall. Also competing was the current recipient of the US J/22 Class Association scholarship boat program from Jacksonville University, led by David Hein. They finished as high as second place in race eight, and ended 14th overall. Rounding out the top five were Mike Marshall’s BAD NEWS in 4th place and Horowitz’s UNCLE FLUFFY in 5th place. For more J/22 North American Championship sailing information
Record-setting Bayview MacJ/Teams Excel Across Five Divisions!
(Port Huron, MI)- Racing for the 93rd Bell’s Beer Bayview Mackinac Race concluded when the last team of 191 to complete the race finished on Monday, July 24. The celebrations, however, continued through Tuesday for more than 5,000 sailors, their family members and friends gathered on the grounds of Mackinac Island’s Grand Hotel for a prize giving and party that included live music and the awarding of special trophies as well as Larry Bell’s announcement of a two-year extension of title sponsorship for Bell’s Brewery.
After the start on Saturday, July 22, there were 123 teams competing on the 254 nautical-mile Cove Island course and 82 teams racing on the shorter 204 nm Shore Course. With rain and several storms to encounter, some boats retired, but for most, the race was extraordinarily fast and satisfying, even accounting for one record-breaking performance.
As one sailor noted, this was the fastest “Bayview Mac” they had ever logged, a Volvo 70 set a course record in 21 hours! "We were never off the breeze all the way to Cove Island. I can’t ever remember going upwind (for 140 miles) that long, or getting that wet. Saturday was torrential rain. After getting around Cove Island, it became a fun, fast downwind course. We ran into storms, but thankfully, you could see them coming. They really blasted us, so we took down the spinnaker. Then, the last 15 miles the wind died!”
First to finish in the J/fleet was the J/120 PROOF sailed by Mike Fozo & Robin Kendrick, completing the longer Cove Island course in just over 33 hours. As a result, PROOF won Class C (all J/120s) quite handily. Those crew members included Al McNally, Tom Vern, Sara Atkinson, Joshua Mankowski, Bill Miller, Steven Harthorn, Wally Cross, and Brad Restum. Taking 2nd place in class was Henry Mistele’s NIGHT MOVES, with crew of Nancy Kuspa, Steve Falcone, Tom Dawson, Jeff Mueller, Eric Petersen, Cynthia Ross, Kurt Hohn, John & Johnny Hughes, and Peter Siek. Rounding out the podium in 3rd place was Geoff Brieden & Jeff Clark’s SCOUT with crew of Tom Enders, Brian Francis, Matt Malley, Stephen Beskange, Kevin Lewand, Jerry Bresser, Greg Engels, Brian Wagner.
In Class D was a battle of the 35+ footers in the J/stable, with the J/105s winning on handicap, followed by a gaggle of J/111s and J/109s. The J/105 crews were tough, sweeping the top two spots and placing 3 of the top 4 in class! Winning was Mark DenUyl’s GOOD LOOKIN’ with crew of Brennan Churchill, Brock & Bryson DenUyl, Kevin Irland, John Anter, and Ron Churchill. Taking 2nd place was the Chicago to Mackinac Race winning crew- Mark Symonds’ PTERODACTYL, with crew of Robert Bailey, John Quinlan, Kevin Morin, Michael Morin, Thac Nguyen, and Duane Rose. Fourth in class was the J/105 WIND SHADOW sailed by skipper Jim Murphy with crew of Daniel Burleson, Dan Gidcumb, Lauri Ellias, Mike Hendrie and Ruth Barrett. Finally, rounding out the top five was Don Hudak’s J/111 CAPERS, with crew of Chad Atzemis, Eric Jackett, George Miller, Todd Imbler, Al Buescher, and Brian Epp.Class F saw Dick & Dan Synowiec’s J/33 SHENANIGAN take 6th place overall with crew of Chris McCardell, Rob & Ian Reimel, Jody Kjoller, and Brian Smith.
The Level 35 Class G had a record-setting eleven J/35s in the race. Not surprisingly, the winner was Bill Wildner’s J/35 MR BILL’s WILD RIDE! For this year’s race, Bill only had along a few crew, such as Colleen Wildner, Jim Kostoff, Tom Kopp, Mike Zanella, Kent Schwandt, John Jamieson, Rob Rabine, Tim Schley and Eric Westen- where do you put all those people on a J/35?? Taking third place was Ed & John Bayer’s J/35 FALCON (Ed became a Grand Ram- 50 years!). The FALCON crew included Brian Beaudet, Max Merget, Mike Welch, Mary Allen, Fred Blackmer, Ron Rossio, William Blackmer, and Mark Allen.
Finally, in the Class I- Cruising division, Gary Gonzalez’s J/42 DOS MAS won their class with relative ease! Their crew included Ilja Vreeken, Eric Messerly, Mark Pytell, Bill Bishop, Geoff Vernon, Brett Dodds,Henry & Charles Gonzalez, James Lieder, Lynn Pytell.
Sailing the shorter “Shore Course” that goes from the start and straight up the Michigan shoreline to Mackinac Island were two J/crews. In Class N, Don King’s classic J/30 CONUNDRUM took 4th place, with crew of Mark Elliot, Kevin Meiselbach, Tom Cadotte, Brian Hawkins, and Tyler Johnson. For more Bayview Mackinac Race sailing information
J/111 BLUR.SE Wins Bohusracet- World’s Largest Double-handed Race(Stockholm, Sweden)- Peter Gustafsson’s J/111 BLUR.SE sailed through the 8,000 island Bohus Archipelago in Sweden, taking on the best sailors in Scandinavia, to win the Bohusracet- reputed to be the world’s largest offshore double-handed race. Here is Peter’s report:
There are some sailing venues that are more magical than others, and some races that you really want to came back and do again and again. And even compared to some exotic places and iconic races, I think that Bohusracet tops my list.
Why? The recipe is easy:
1/3 Bohuslän. With over 8,000 islands, CNN Travel ranks this archipelago the seventh most beautiful natural wilderness area in the world. It’s easy to spend 5 weeks of vacation- or a lifetime - and never visit the same spot twice. And a race course that takes you through most of it in 24 hours is bound to have both beautiful scenery and navigational challenges.
1/3 Midsummer nights. When the sun sets at 10.30PM and rises at 04:00AM it's never really dark. And as the wind often drops, you tend to get close racing with other boats hunting for wind at 02:00AM. Unreal seeing the silhouettes of the crews whispering on the other boats.1/3 Intense racing (or just an adventure). With over 150 boats, a 170 nm course and seven checkpoints, it tends to be an intense fight for the serious racers. And with just 2 on board there’s not much time for food or sleep. Others do the race to test their limits and to share the experience with a significant other or one of the youngsters in the family.
We hadn’t been able to do the race for a few years. last year we did the ÅF Offshore Race (Around Gotland double handed) and the year before that we focused on Fastnet Race.
So now we were eager to get another chance. In the past we’ve won our class several times and finished second over all twice. But this year we might get lucky in the weather lottery - with 6 hours separating the small boats starting Friday morning and us, in the fastest class, starting at 3PM.
The forecasts were unanimous: a big low over south-east Sweden would render a fast race with a puffy 20-30 knots from NE pushing all the boats out from the start in Uddevalla to Marstrand and the rounding to go north Friday evening.
The big talk before start was to use downwind sails or not, but that proved to be a non-issue at the starting area as it was blowing a solid 30 knots gusting 50. Mmmm…We went with a full main and our shorthanded jib (a J3.5 with more shape and a reef) for the first short downwind leg, with plans for a deep reef after the first rounding. But we managed to keep it together by heading of in the gusts, easily doing 12-15 knots, and heading up in the lulls. This worked out nicely except for one occasions when we were supposed to go upwind for 500 meters to fetch a ”sprint prize” - not ideal in 52 knots of wind, but miraculously everything stayed in one piece. Others weren’t so lucky, and masts and sails were coming down all around.
So a great ”shakeout” with 150 nm to go. It couldn’t get worse?
And it didn’t. We extended the lead in our class, and after a few hours we managed to get the A5 up. Then managed to work through the downwind inventory before rounding the Hätteberget lighthouse with a healthy 15 minute lead on corrected before our main competitor, Norwegian "short-handed rock star” Elling Rishoff in a fine tuned First 40 Godevenner.
Close hauled, continuously changing between jib and J0 (big jib/small code set on a furler on the sprit) we sailed north into the sunset. As forecasted we we’re headed just north of Smögen, and the long beat towards Norway began. We were catching up with many of the smaller boats, and it was pretty magical passing just meters away in a serene archipelago.
We managed pretty OK, but we lost a few minutes here and there to First 40 Godevenner that had passed us just north of Smögen. On corrected time we were ok, but they seemed to have a slight advantage.
In the morning, the conditions became trickier. Several weather systems were fighting, and a NW breeze were filling in from the west. We got caught in the transition just before Strömstad and lost even more. Now we were 20 minutes behind on corrected, and couldn’t wait to get to the Tresteinerne lighthouse in Norway to get the chute up and go south again.We rounded in a light northerly but we stayed west and the new breeze filled in nicely. We tried to as hard as possible and hunt pressure when possible. We slowly caught up with Godevenner, keeping track on them both on AIS and on the rounding reports.
At some point we thought it was impossible to catch them, but at the last mark it became clear; we were just 1.5 minutes behind on corrected with 35 minutes to go… We went for it and took every shortcut we could find, and kept the big A2 up as long as humanly possible (did the best takedown of the season at the exactly the right moment).
And we managed to beat them by 30 seconds. After 23 hours and 40 minutes that was a huge relief.
The smaller boats had managed to get around the course without any upwind work, and were favored by more wind during the day Friday. So they dominated the over-all list.
I guess we'll have to come back and try again… Here’s a YouTube sailing video taken by Peter on BLUR.SE
For more J/111 BLUR.SE sailing information
Deutscher Touring YC Tops German J/70 Sailing League Act IV (Travemünde, Germany)- From the July 21st to 23rd, the 36 sailing clubs of the 1st and 2nd Sailing League all raced as part of the 128th Travemünder Woche. The weekend was punctuated by most light winds for all three days of sailing. However, it was one of the most exciting weekends in the league history: in the 1st league, the final outcome for the regatta came about on the last leg of the last race on Sunday afternoon!!
The Deutscher Touring Yacht Club (DTYC) with Julian Stückl, Sebastian Bühler, newcomer Dominik Müller and Marco Tarabochia secured the top spot on the victory podium. It was not an easy win for DTYC, the widely varying and changing conditions made it difficult for everyone on the race track. "With our bad starts on the last day of competition, we risked our lead unnecessarily," explained Julian Stückl. As the reigning German champion, the DTYC will also participate at the end of August at the Nord Stream Race (26 August to 7 September).
The Segel-und Motorboot Club Überlingen (Tino Mittelmeier, Jan Fritze, Alexander Gaiser, Frederik Schaal) from Lake Constance just barely missed the victory in Travemünde. In the end, the 3rd place in the last race was not enough for the SMC. At 48 points the DTYC secured the victory in Travemünde with more first place finishes. The South Germans had not come to Travemünde with high expectations. "But, with our favorite conditions with little wave and ten knot winds, we were able to achieve consistently good results and, thus, a top position," says skipper Tino Mittelmeier.After four out of six total events in the DSBL series, the SMCC is leading the overall ranking based on a tie-breaker at 17 pt each. Sitting in second is the DTYC after winning the Travemunde regatta. Sitting in third overall is Norddeutscher Regatta Verein with 22 points. Thanks for contributions from Julia Harrow and Sophie-Karolin Wehner. DSBL Travemunde Sunday sailing video Highlights Follow the German J/70 Sailing League on Facebook here For more Deutsche Segel Bundesliga sailing information
Challenging RORC Channel Race(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- The Royal Ocean Racing Club's Season's Points Championship continued this past weekend with the Channel Race. It was the 10th race of the series, and the last RORC offshore race before the 2017 Rolex Fastnet Race. For those teams vying for class honours for the championship, starting the Rolex Fastnet Race in pole position, is highly desirable, and with most of the RORC season now completed, favorites are emerging for the 2017 RORC Season's Points Championship, the world's largest participation offshore racing series.
Over 100 yachts entered the Channel Race, which featured a flexi-course starting and finishing in The Solent, lasting approximately 24 hours. In IRC 2 Class, Fournier & Migraine's French J/133 PINTIA were hoping to get to the top of the class with a good result in the Channel Race.
With 28 teams competing, IRC Four was the largest class in the Channel Race. Robert Nelson's British J/105 BIGFOOT was sitting just 10 points back in 2nd place for the season series going into the race.
In the end, it was a great outing for Fournier & Migraine's French J/133 Pintia, taking a second place in the race to elevate them into the overall series lead for the season. Sailing fast was Andy Theobald’s J/122 R&W, taking fourth place, just 3 minutes out of 3rd place!In the IRC 3 Class, the J/109 MOJO RISIN’ took 4th place, with Chris Burleigh’s’ J/109 JYBE TALKIN in 7th.
As a result of the Channel Race, J/crews are sitting in 4th to 7th place in the IRC Doublehanded series- Nick Martin’s J/105 DIABLO-J in 4th, Bob Nelson’s J/105 BIGFOOT in 5th, Chris Schram’s J/120 MAVERICK in 6th, and Jerry Freeman’s J/105 JULIETTE in 7th.
For the IRC 2 Class main series scenario, the J/133 PINTIA is leading and Theobald’s J/122 R&W has jumped up to 5th place. Plus, Schram’s J/120 MAVERICK is sitting in 8th place.
In the IRC 3 Class, Trevor Sainty’s J/109 JELENKO sits in 5th overall, followed by the J/109 MOJO RISIN’ in 6th, Nick Martin’s J/105 DIABLO-J in 7th, and Jerry Freeman’s J/105 JULIETTE in 10th. For more RORC Channel Race sailing information
J/88 Crushes Lake Champlain Overnight Race!(Burlington, VT)- Lake Champlain in northern Vermont is a spectacular body of water that goes for a million miles north and south and forms the border between upper New York state and the long, tall skinny state of Vermont. The sailing is awesome and the vistas of lush New England foliage and the mountainous valleys on either side can be breathtaking. It's truly one of those gems hidden in the American northeast that few in the sailing world ever enjoy to its fullest.
One of the bigger races on the Lake is the annual Lake Champlain Race - an overnight PHRF race that allows crew to race through the night usually finishing the next morning. Held annually since 1956, the 60-mile race challenges crews in unique ways. The light winds of midsummer require constant attention in order to keep pace with the fleet. Starting at sunset, the wind slows down and brings along the need for good night vision and the hope for a full moon or many stars. Sunrise is welcome and offers the first glimpse of where the rest of the fleet has settled. The race counts towards the Lake Champlain Championship Series, and all the series contenders turnout.
The 2017 race was blessed with fair winds and clear skies. The wind angles favored the asymmetrical boats and a variety of J/Boats came out on top, led by Dana Bolton and Mark Damico and crew on their J/88 ALCHEMY in 1st place, Kjell Dhalen and crew on his J/111 ODIN in 2nd place, Rupert Thouron and crew on his J/122 DUNDER in 3rd place, and Doug Merrill and crew on his J/110 MOOVIN’ in 4th place.
For more Lake Champlain Overnight Race sailing information
J/FEST Great Lakes Fun!(Toronto, ONT, Canada)- The inaugural Lake Ontario J/FEST regatta was held July 21st to 23rd at Ashbridges Bay YC, just west of downtown Toronto, sailing on the beautiful Lake Ontario. The regatta was host to one-design fleets of J/105s, J/27s, J/80s and PHRF offshore handicap racing.
With seventeen boats, the J/105 fleet was always going to be competitive. Winning was the current J/105 North American Champion, Terry McLaughlin & Rod Wilmer’s MANDATE. Taking 2nd was yet another J/105 NA’s winner, Jim Rathbun’s HEY JUDE. Third was Gavin Disney’s USUAL SUSPECTS. Rounding out the top five were Peter Hall’s JAMAICA ME CRAZY in 4th and Mike Mountford’s LIVE EDGE took 5th.
The J/27s had tight racing amongst the top five crews. In the end, Andrew Riem’s CURVED AIR won by just 3 pts over Andre Beese’s MESSING ABOUT. Settling for third was Bob Kelly’s LINE DRIVE with 12 pts. Fourth was Phil Jager’s FIVE J and fifth was Christian Greenfield’s MISS TRIXIE.
In the J/35s, it was Paul-Angus Bark’s CRIME SCENE that took the class title, followed by Paul Cavanaugh’s TOP GUN in 2nd, and Geoff Roulet’s JEANNIE in 3rd.
Finally, the J/80s were won by Hugh Mcgugan’s BREAKAWAY J, followed by Trudy Murphy’s FEISTY in 2nd and Gary Stephenson’s FLYER in third place. For more J/Fest Great Lakes sailing information
Raab’s SUGOI Wins J/70s @ Fiesta Cup Regatta(Santa Barbara, CA)- Over the past weekend, a baker’s dozen-plus J/70 had an extremely fun time sailing Santa Barbara YC’s Fiesta Cup. As has been the case, when the breezes fill in after a glassy morning, the westerly flow begins to favor going right into the beach and inside the kelp beds. However, setting the race course further south minimizes that basic strategy, it still has an impact on the curving breeze further offshore. As a result, the SBYC PRO managed to fire off five races for the fleet, permitting one race to be dropped in the overall scoreline.
In the end, it was Chris Raab’s Newport Harbor YC team on SUGOI that handily won the regatta, scoring just 1sts and 2nds in his scoreline to win with 5 pts net! Similarly, trading some places in races was Jeff Janov’s MINOR THREAT crew from California YC that took second with a tally of 1-3-1-2-8 for 7 pts net. Rounding out the podium was the “local rock star”, Pat Toole’s famous 3 BIG DOGS crew from Santa Barbara YC with a record of 5-2-6-7-2 for 15 pts net.
The balance of the top five included Sarah Wyman’s NUNUHUNU from Dana Point YC in 4th and Steve Hendricks’ MONKEY HOUSE from Santa Barbara Sailing Club in 5th place. For more J/70 Fiesta Cup sailing information
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* Bob Mampe, owner of the new J/122E GOTTA WANTA, sailed an amazing Chicago to Mackinac Race and won their class going away. Here is Bob’s account of their experience in this year’s wild and woolly Mac Race:“I’m just getting back into sailing after a hiatus of nearly 21 years. I've always dreamed of owning a plumb-bowed performance boat. I searched the internet and studied the numbers and came across the J/122. Unfortunately, Mitch Padnos snatched up the only available one in the USA at the time. Fortunately, for me, I was ready when the new J/122 E came out.
Over next couple of years I've had the good fortune to have some J/Boat smart guys around me like Tom Babel "well known in the J racing " He's a member of GTYC and good friend. We worked putting a group out of the yacht club and in a couple of years we're doing quite well.
Getting to the Mac Race, it was everything one could ask for. Starting with light winds, then a nice build to a full gale and an 18 hour beat to Pt Betsie and the Manitous, then chasing cats paws going to Greys Reef! The great thing about the J/122E is that it does all of them well. You just need to know which buttons to push.
Our crew was under the tutelage of Tom Babel, a great offshore sailor, and they were ready!
We worked our way out of the start with the Code Zero and, as the wind built, we debated A1.5 or A2 spinnakers, ultimately we went with the A2 and never looked back, the symmetrical chutes were no match. As we're getting close to midnight Tom was on the helm and we saw the weather to the west we knew it would hit soon! So, we got the J3 heavy weather jib on deck ready to go. We also discussed “letter-boxing” the kite and untied the knots in tack and sheets. We didn't get the lazy sheet over the boom but we got a hold with several people when all hands on deck was called out. The take down went with out incident when we were hit with 40+ knots. Tom was on the helm at the time and let out a Hee Haa and we were going 15 knots boatspeed “bare-headed” under full main alone!Things clocked around to the north fairly quickly and the slug-fest began. J3 first reef in the main beating into 20 to 25 knots no problem. Tacking back in forth under the lee of Leelanau Peninsula closer to shore was nicer than heading west. The boat is an up wind killer as well as it reaches.
The next was the best to come. Light to no wind! Jim Elvart nephew in law had the cat paw / tumble weed debate all the way through to Greys Reef with Tom. It's about wind trying to re connect to the water. Jimmy is the master, and I thought I was good. The competition started to catch us but the artful debate an incredible bottom "They didn't have a chance"The J/122E is absolutely deadly in light air. About 40 gibes latter with the A 1.5 The Mighty Crew of the Gotta Wanta did a horizon shot on the rest of the fleet.
I am blessed with a great bunch of friends an incredible all-weather boat. Thanks to my amazing crew- Mark Clark, Tom Babel, Mike Burns, Karen Nemecek, Jim Elvart, Andrew Berg, Eric Geiser, and Scott Zimmerman!”
* “Babes Who Hustle”: Stephanie Roble from East Troy, Wisconsin. “Babes Who Hustle” is an online community for working women to connect and empower one another across all industries, professions, backgrounds and locations. Their aim is to inspire, celebrate and share an inside look into the day-to-day musings of babes who hustle around the world.In this profile, they pointed their aim toward Stephanie Roble, top ranked US women’s match racer, professional sailor, and aspiring Olympic athlete. Steph grew up in East Troy, WI and learned how to sail in Optimists at her local club on Lake Beulah- the Lake Beulah Sailing Club. After graduating from the local high school with her long-time friend Annie Haeger (recent Team USA 470 women’s team Olympian in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), Steph went off to Old Dominion College and immersed herself in college sailing, becoming a three-time College All-American. Since then, she has spent a lot of time match-racing the women’s world circuit, often on J/22s or J/80s and for the past four years has been a tactician on leading J/70s at various National and North American events. Here is her interview with BWH:
What Babes you admire and why?
There are so many babes I admire! Anyone who is physically and mentally strong, has big goals, works hard and is passionate and gracious, is a babe I admire. Some of my favorites are Lindsey Vonn (Alpine Ski Racer) Dawn Riley (Sailor), and Katrin Davidsdotter (CrossFit Athlete).
How do you spend your free time?
When I find it, I love to cook and try new recipes, travel and explore new parts of town, bike ride, kiteboard, do yoga in the park, and hang out with my friends, family and boyfriend.
Go-to coffee order?
I cut out coffee for nearly three months and only drink it on the mornings when I’m extra tired. Being in Miami, though, I do love a Cuban coffee or a cortadito!
If you could have coffee with anyone in the world, who would it be?Vince Lombardi. The guy is a legend. I would love to hear his advice, stories and thoughts.
If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you be?
There are so many places I want to go. I would really love to road trip around New Zealand, ride the hot air balloons in Cappadocia, Turkey, and adventure in the Galapagos Islands.
What’s one thing you wish you knew more about?
Weather and meteorology. I think they’re fascinating and such important tools to have as a sailor.
What’s something not many people know about you?
I used to be on the pom squad back in high school. It definitely brought out my girly side, but I loved the hard work to perfect something and then perform in front of people.
Tell us about your hustle, what are you doing now?
I am currently training to qualify our country and my team (myself and Maggie Shea) to compete in the Olympics and win a medal in the 49erFX Skiff Sailing Class for Team USA. In addition to Olympic sailing, I race professionally and do some coaching.
What does your typical workday look like?
A typical training day means waking up at 6:30, meditating and journaling. I usually do a 10 minute run with good music, come back and stretch, eat breakfast and food prep for the day, or I eat and food prep first and then go do a workout at a gym – it just depends on the location.
Sometimes we review from the day before or hit any topics we want to talk about before sailing. Then we head to the boat park, rig the boat/do boatwork, eat lunch, launch, sail for 2-4 hours, de-rig the boat, debrief, eat dinner, check emails, and then go to sleep around 10-11.
When and how did you get into Sailing? How soon did you know you’d want to pursue the sport professionally?
I started sailing when I was 5 years-old on Lake Beulah, the lake that I grew up on in Wisconsin. At first I didn’t like it because it was quite intimidating being in a boat on your own and trying to understand something you can’t see – the wind! However, I soon realized it was a fun way to spend time with friends and then discovered competing and winning, which kept me in the game.
What draws you to sailing and keeps you inspired to stay in the industry?I absolutely love being on the water. Every tack, gybe, start, upwind beat is different. You have to be constantly adapting to what’s going on around you. I love the teamwork aspect of it and the challenge of constantly learning. I also love the feeling of being free on the water. Just you, your boat, your crew, the water and the wind.
How many working days do you spend on the water vs. traveling, coaching, etc.?
This year I will spend about 240 days sailing, another 20-40 days traveling, and some rest and family days built-in there somewhere.
How do you manage to coordinate event dates, regattas, and coaching opportunities?
It takes a lot of coordination between me and my crew. We have to balance adding in work, family, spouses, rest, and time at home to build strength. Sometimes the schedule works out perfectly, other times it doesn’t, and one or both of us has to make sacrifices to work toward the ultimate goal.
Similarly, do you have any advice for Babes who travel a lot for work?
Figure out what makes you feel at home on the road. I am super shameless with the amount of stuff I travel with. I bring all my resistance bands, heating pad, foam roller, pillow, blender, cooking knives, extra backpack, reusable bags, etc. Whatever it is that makes your day-to-day life easier, bring it. Also, being loyal to an airline helps with certain perks, like free bags and upgrades.
How would you say being a woman has affected your professional experience?
I try not to think of it as being a female in a man’s world. I’ve been pushing hard against the guys since I was little, so I have no problem being on the playing field. You have to respect yourself, understand your limits, be a good teammate and be professional at all times.
I don’t give the guys any room to disrespect me and I think that makes them respect me more. I’m not afraid to say “no” or “I can’t,” although I will try my damn best to make it happen. Yes, it’s harder as a woman to go to the bathroom or maintain your hair when you’re out on the water, but that’s about it in my mind!
What is the gender ratio like in the sailing world? Do you see it evolving?
It depends on what kind of sailing we’re talking about. The Olympic sailing scene is quite equal, including a mixed-gender event. In professional sailing, female participation is quite low, and there are times when I’m the only woman on the course.
In the Volvo Ocean Race, it’s evolving, since there are crew limit rules that favor bringing women on board. However, the America’s Cup, aka the pinnacle of our sport, didn’t have a single female aboard any of the boats. There has definitely been an overall recognition lately that women aren’t on the scene as much as they should be, and there are a ton of women pushing for more women to get into the sport.
What do you think needs to happen to introduce more women to the professional realm of the sport?
I think there needs to be a push from both men and women. Men need to understand that women who have the desire and work ethic are completely capable of many of the jobs men do on the boat. And for the ladies, it is all about believing in yourself, working hard, and gaining respect. You have to create your own opportunities – they won’t come to you.
What are some common misconceptions about your job(s)?
The first that comes to mind is that a lot of people think I row! It’s funny because they always say it with their arms going in a circle… like rowing. I would say a big misconception is that sailing isn’t a real sport. Most people visualize cruising. Sailing a 49erFX requires extreme athleticism, especially from the crew. Imagine doing a CrossFit workout with an unstable platform underneath you while trying to make decisions about the wind and the boats around you. That’s sailing.
How do you stay in physical shape for your work? What kind of routine and/or diet does that entail?
Right now, we’re just trying to sail as much as possible and are trying to get “boat fit.” The boat is pretty intense, and after four hours of training, we’re toasted. Long term, we are working with a strength coach (Mike Kuschner with Opex,) who has a super holistic approach. He bases the workouts off of our schedule and when we can build strength, versus when we are tapering versus peaking in competition. He monitors diet, sleep, mental strength and physical strength. Right now, we are focusing on equalizing my strength side to side, endurance muscles (long workouts!) and quickness in my feet. My diet is paleo-inspired but sometimes on the road you don’t have a ton of options, so a big thing is just eating before you’re hungry. We are trying to gain weight!
What’s your favorite thing about your job? Least favorite?
I love the challenge of the sport. Every day is different on the water. Some days you nail it, and some days the conditions make your head spin. While I try not to think of the negatives, I would say a hard part of the job is all of the travel. I feel lucky if I get to be at home for a few days each month, or see my boyfriend for a few days after weeks of being apart.
What would you say is your biggest strength as a sailor?
I would say it’s my desire to succeed. I will do whatever it takes – besides cheating or harming someone – to make success happen. I will make the necessary sacrifices, research, changes, et cetera, to reach a goal.
What would you say is the skill you most need to improve?
I need to work on calming down mentally when something goes wrong. I’m a perfectionist, and little mistakes really annoy me. I tend to get mad at myself when I screw up, and it’s distracting. My crew and I have talked about it a lot, and are working on different methods to change it. I feel lucky to have my crew’s support and understanding.
What is your advice for younger sailors who want to pursue it as a future career?
Jump on any opportunities you can, whether it’s Wednesday night racing, the opportunity to umpire, match race or coach. The more you expand your sailing knowledge and experience, the better you’ll be. Take time to remember why you are doing what you are doing. Is it because you like winning or because you like being around friends? Set yourself up to succeed based on why you are doing it.
What event or regatta do you aspire to win/participate in?
Winning a medal at the Olympics is something I wake up thinking about and go to sleep thinking about. It is on my mind constantly and I will work until I get it.
Are you involved with any other community organizations or side projects?
I am quite passionate about reducing human impact on oceans and lakes. Not a day goes by when sailing where I don’t see trash in the water. I want to spread awareness of what we can do as sailors to prevent this from happening and how we can help fix the problem. I am an ambassador for 11th Hour Racing and we are collaborating to come up with solutions.
What does success look like to you?
Being a well respected teammate and competitor, keeping consistent emotions, trusting the process, and producing consistent results.
What helps you wind down and manage stress?
Every morning my coach sends me some questions that I journal about and then do some meditation and stretching. This helps me start each day on a positive note. At night, I love to read and listen to a podcast.
What are some notable (funny, embarrassing, intense) experiences you’ve had on the job?
Our wipeout stories are always good. We were in Holland in May and made our first medal race series (the top 10 race for overall places on a super short and confined race course). It was pretty windy and we were just sending it. On a spinnaker set, I somehow came unclipped from the trapeze wire and just started dragging behind the boat; still steering the boat no problem, but holding on and couldn’t pull myself back in. My crew finally pulled me in, and it took me a minute to reset and figure out where I was and what had happened!
Career and/or life advice for other babes?
Be confident in what you want and tell yourself you’re going to get it. Always ask questions. Don’t be scared to try something new. Don’t be scared to lose. Never make the same mistake twice. Make mini goals and become better everyday. Fight hard and remember it’s not over until it’s over. Take time to reflect on your skills, performance and attitude.
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“It’s truly out of a postcard, with the clop, clop, clop of horses everywhere, no cars, the fudge, the cannons going off…it’s a place turned back in time,” said Thomas. “It’s no wonder Bayview Mac racers who get there Sunday night and Monday morning want to stay through to the awards party on Tuesday and then head back on Wednesday. It’s a great challenge followed by a great festival.”
National Weather Service. The image shows the center of the low passing over southern Lake Huron and its counterclockwise wind field (red arrows have been added for clarity). Check out the dramatic differences in wind direction based on low's quadrants along with the very weak winds associated with the low's center (1.7 knots). As mentioned above, modest differences in the timing and low's track across Lake Huron will have a dramatic impact on the wind forecast; and to adopt the correct strategy to play the wind field as it moves over the lake and switches from N/NE to SE/SW and around the clock, FAST, to W/NW! 
Sailing the shorter “Shore Course” that goes from the start and straight up the Michigan shoreline to Mackinac Island are two J/crews. In Class K is the J/34 IOR KNEE DEEP sailed fast and smart by Brett & Katie Langolf from Lake Erie- hoping to add another class win! Then, in Class N is another famous J/classic, Donald King’s J/30 CONUNDRUM. For 
A frontal passage hit the fleet at midnight on Saturday, just hours into the race, producing a rare “dry front” that looked menacing as it came over the water but had no rain over Lake Michigan, but was pummeling the shoreline with rain, hail, and thousands of lightning bolts racing across the sky, thunder echoing over the water to remind everyone that Nature was King! As the front passed over the fleet, a blast front of 35-50 knot winds flew across the water that no one could see, other than the fact that boats just hundreds of yards away from you would suddenly flip over into a wild broach with spinnakers flailing away and, in many cases, simply blowing up into a thousand pieces of nylon! Look at the 
next wave. To say it was unpleasant experience would be an understatement. By the time the fleet reached the famous first turning point at Point Betsie about 163nm up the track, about a third of the fleet had dropped out for various reasons- equipment damage, boat damage, sail damage, or simply human damage (people got sick or hurt and physically could not take it any longer). 
Here is the report from J/111 class winner, Marty Roesch’s VELOCITY: “This was an interesting race because the navigation and strategy seemed like they were more obvious than in the past two Mac races I've done. We were looking at SE winds at the start that were forecast to slowly build and clock to the SW before a gusty front would come through with NW winds and possible storms, followed by strong northerly winds with big waves on Sunday, then light shifty winds under a passing high pressure system on Monday. So the plan was to stay left of rhumb until the front came in and then get across the lake, then inside at the Manitous and then see what we had to do to get across the finish on Monday.
When I woke a couple hours later, we were in pounding conditions close-hauled and heading up the coast of Michigan between Big and Little Sable Points. We could see a few other J/111's around us and we spent pretty much all day on Monday dealing with mild seasickness among several crew members, trying to stay upright in 20-25 knot northerly winds and 6-10 foot waves, and chasing boats. We spent a lot of time crossing and being crossed by Utah on Monday, which was alternately good and bad for morale. These were some of the roughest conditions that I've sailed in for the amount of time we were in them and it was very challenging for the whole team. We did a great job staying in contact with the leading contingent of 111's and staying in the game that day.
A mile or so past the bridge the winds started to go light on us again and it looked like the other two boats had connected with some breeze on the south side of the Straights of Mackinac so we decided to cover. As we came out of our covering gybe, I looked over my shoulder and saw No Surprise maybe 6-8 boat lengths back! After 282nm and just 7nm left to go, we were within seconds of each other and we still had a lot of battling to do. With me on the wheel and Chris Teixeira trimming the kite, Derrick Reig and James Allsop managing the tactical picture, we got back to work and managed to extend on both them and Rowdy, finally gybing away for the finish after about an hour of dueling in the last 3 miles. 
Here is the first-hand account of why TOA managed to do what they did by two of the crew- Richie & Lori Stearns (the J/Boats dealer in Chicago):
"What a fantastic race day," commented Simone Ferrarese, the skipper of CV Bari, "I am excited to have qualified our Club and won the stage! Now, we prepare for the Crotone Finals. These races have challenged us a great deal: the format and wind from the ground made the races very difficult, but extremely enjoyable! And, thanks to the boats, these beautiful J70s that are a great fit for these conditions and for this kind of racing!"
On the other hand, the other spots on the podium were fiercely contested. On Saturday night, after 28 races, six clubs from second to seventh place had just a three-point spread between them! In second place, the winner of last year, the Regattaclub Bodensee, was one point in front of Bordee de Tribord- La Neuveville. Behind them, followed the Yachtclub Bielersee, the Zürcher Yachtclub, the Société Nautique Rolloise and the Regattaclub Oberhofen, the leader of the league's intermediate standings.
Fleet 19 was happy to welcome Paul Cayard back to the J/70 fleet almost 10 months after sailing with one of Italy’s top Italian J/70 Teams Calvi Network at the J/70 Worlds in San Francisco last fall. If you may recall, Cayard is a Whitbread Around the World winner, Star World Champion and America’s Cup helmsman sailing on Chris Kostanecki’s JENNIFER. Cayard will continue to sail with Fleet 19s Team JENNIFER in the J/70 Worlds in Sardinia and they found the PCCs to be a great tune up for their newly formed Worlds team. Team JENNIFER came in third overall at the PCCs.
Several Corinthian teams sailed the PCCs including Tracy Usher's Team CHRISTINE ROBIN. Despite some epic and memorable tacking duels up the City Front with the top teams, they managed to land 5th overall just one point out of 4th place and were the first Corinthian team.
