Showing posts with label worlds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label worlds. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

J/Newsletter- October 16th, 2019

J/Sailing News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

This past week saw the completion of a major milestone for sailing in Asia. The Qingdao International Sailing Centre in Qingdao, China hosted the second annual Asian J/80 Championship for a fleet of seventeen J/80s from across Asia (China, Russia, India, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Malaysia).

Over in Europe, there was more J/80 activity. The J/80 Copa de Espana was sailed off La Coruna, Spain, hosted by Real Club Náutico de La Coruña for a fleet of twenty boats. Then, north of them, the Hamble Winter Series continued its second weekend of racing off Hamble, England; racing was taking place on the Solent and Southampton Water.

Over in the Americas, the famous fall race sailed in western Long Island Sound took place last weekend; the Stratford Shoal “Gearbuster” Race. Indian Harbor YC hosted the event, a 46.0nm “sprint” from Greenwich, CT to Stratford Shoal and return for a fleet of PHRF and PHRF Doublehanded teams. J/Crews virtually swept every podium in classes they sailed- J/111, J/122, J/92, J/105, J/27s, J/88s, and so on. Simultaneously, the Storm Trysail Club’s Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta was a “de facto” J/Fest, with fully 82% of the boats participating being J’s from the 88s up to 44s. Larchmont Yacht Club hosted the event for one-design classes for J/105s, J/109s, and J/44s and PHRF Classes that included J/111s, J/122s, J/92s, and so on.
 

J/109 sailing the Solent 
Windier Part II @ Hamble Winter Series
(Hamble, England)- The famous Hamble Winter Series has started on the Solent and Southampton Water, hosted by the Hamble Sailing Club. The classes include IRC handicap as well as one-design fleets of J/70s in southern United Kingdom. This past weekend marked the second weekend of sailing in somewhat exciting, epic sailing conditions.

The forecast for Sunday the 13th October did not look great on Saturday night, but PRO Kathy Smalley, decided to go out and have a look on Sunday morning. As the start time approached, a strong squall swept through the area. Many competitors decided to call it a day and retire to the local pubs for an extended Sunday brunch/ lunch.
J/88 sailing Hamble Winter Series
Of the 28 teams that decided to venture out, 16 sailed the course, two retired and 10 were DNS. The PRO set a beat to Delloit Buoy, followed by a reach to keep the early starters away from those still beating. One-sided beats to maintain separation were also the call of the day, along with short downwind legs and a short fetch to the finish. The smaller boats did a short leg to QXI while big boats went over to Prince Consort.

Some boats go particularly well downwind when there is a bit breeze around. The J/88 is such a beast. Even IRC 3 Class leader, Simon Perry’s J/109 JIRAFFE, had to concede the following. "We were quicker upwind,” said Simon. “But, the J/88 TIGRIS just shot past us downwind!" Bar-talk later confirmed that 21 knots had been seen on the J/88 TIGRIS’ speedometer. JIRAFFE managed to hang on to second, but the next two were the J/88's, Richard Cooper’s JONGLEUR and Dirk van Beek’s SABRIEL JR. As a result, Perry’s JIRAFFE leads with a 1-1-2 for 4 pts, followed by Howe’s TIGRIS with a 6-3-1 for 10 pts. Sitting in third is Mike & Susie Yates’ J/109 JAGO with a 4-2-DNC for 19 pts.

Next week sees race weekend 3 of the HYS Hamble Winter Series, Week 2 of the Hamble Big Boat Championship and the final weekend of the Hamble One-Design Championships. Sailing photo credits- Paul Wyeth/PwPictures.com. For more Hamble Winter Series sailing information.
 

J/80s sailing off Spain 
GARATU Crowned J/80 Copa de Espana Champion
(Coruna, Spain)- Twenty J/80 teams from across the Spanish peninsula were competing in their annual J/80 Copa de Espana this past weekend in Coruna, Spain. Hosting the event was the Real Club Náutico de La Coruña. In the end, the fleet was treated to two great days of sailing, with Alvaro Ruiz de Larramendi’s team on GARATU from Hondarribia taking the overall title in a come-from-behind victory. Here is how the regatta went down over the course of three days.

Day 1- Late seabreeze
On the first day, the RNC La Coruna PRO managed to run three crisp races for the fleet, with tight racing and hard-fought action characterizing the day. When the smoke cleared amongst the very talented fleet, it was Vigués Javier de la Gándara’s OKOFEN leading the fleet.

It was a full day on Coruña waters. The wind was slow to develop, which caused a postponement of one hour. At 1530 hours, the PRO gave the signal for the first start of the day with winds of 5 knots from the northwest, which would gradually grow to 10 kts by the last evening race.

In the first race, the Cantabrian Peru Múgica skippered HATUEY to first over a closely fought race with OKOFEN. Third was Alvaro Ruiz’s GARATU, with Miguel Fernández’s MOURA in fourth and the DECOEXA girls team in fifth place.

Gándara’s OKOFEN won the second race, surprising Moura, and third went to the Cantabrians of Múgica. On the third and last race of the day GARATU won, ahead of OKOFEN and HATUEY. Gándara went to the showers with a two-point advantage over the Santander team and four points over the Basques.

Amongst the women’s teams, leading was DECOEXA, second was PHOENIX BIRD led by Leticia Gandarias del Marítimo del Abra de Getxo. Then, sitting in third was SIEMENS GAMESA from Getxo with Lourdes Bilbao on the helm and fourth were the young girls from Club Nautica La Coruña with Raquel García as skipper.
J/80s sailing off Spain
Day 2- Gorgeous day sailing
On Saturday, the day began in the estuary of La Coruña with winds of 10 knots from the south that gradually strengthened to a nice 15 kts breeze during the afternoon. Again, the PRO managed to run three more races for the anxious racers.

In the first race of the day, it was a strong “mano-a-mano” battle between the top three boats. In the end, victory went to Ruiz’s GARATU, followed by Gandara’s OKOFEN and Fernández’s MOURA. Happily, finishing fourth behind these champions were the women’s team on DECOEXA, skippered by Olatz Muñoz.

There was more breeze for the second race, which jumbled the standings only a little bit. This time, winning the windward-leeward two-times around was OKOFEN, followed by GARATU and DECOEXA (they surprised themselves in this race!).

For the last race of the day, with even more breeze gusting up to 18 kts, victory went to Ruiz’s GARATU, followed by Gandara’s OKOFEN in second and Ricardo Diaz-Munio’s MATRAKO in third.  Fourth again were the girls on DECOEXA.

As a result of the days racing, both GARATU and OKOFEN were tied at eight points each, so everything was on the table for the last and final race on Sunday. The same was true for the final position on the podium, with HATUEY and MORUA were tied on eighteen points each as well. Munoz’s women’s team on DECOEXA, from the Royal Nautical Club of San Sebastian, were just three points off the bronze position; easily within reach of the podium with a good race on Sunday.
J/80 sailing off Spain
Day 3- A glass-out
The morning dawned on Sunday with a spectacular sunrise over a perfect reflection of the beautiful  shoreline; the “glass-out” over the estuary was gorgeous, but not a good sign for sailing. After harbor postponement, the PRO canceled all racing for the day due to the total absence of wind.

As a result, Ruiz’s GARATU won in a tie-breaker countback over Gandara’s OKOFEN. Similarly, the final step on the podium was taken by Mugica’s HATUEY on countback over Fernandez’s MOURA, who had to settle for fourth place. The women’s crew on DECOEXSA finished in fifth position and was also crowned the J/80 Copa de Espana Women’s Champions.

The balance of the podium in the Women’s division saw Leticia Gandarias’ AVE FENIX team from Maritime of the Abra vizcaíno take the silver and Lourdes Bilbao’s SIEMENS-GAMESA from the same club take the bronze.

In the Youth Division, winning was Esteban Martínez de la Colina’s SINGING BOY. Taking the silver was Raquel García’s PUNTA HERMINIA and rounding out the podium with the bronze was Julio Fernández’s LA GALERA from the host Real Club Náutico de La Coruña.  For more J/80 Copa de Espana sailing information
 

J/80 sailing off Qingdao, China 
SAILING IN Wins 2nd Asian J/80 Championships
(Qingdao, China)- The second annual Asian J/80 Championship took place in Qingdao, China, famous for its award-winning Tsingtao Beer first created by German immigrants in 1903. Hosting was the Qingdao International Sailing Centre in what were the fabulous facilities for the 2008 Summer Olympics.
J/80 sailing off China
From October 11th to 13th, seventeen teams from across Asia (China, Russia, India, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Malaysia) all competed for the honor and title of being crowned 2019 Asian J/80 Champion; it serves as the “de facto” Asian keelboat championship as the J/80 is by far the largest one-design keelboat class in the region.
J/80 Asia winners
After winning the first race and taking a total of five 1sts in eleven races, Jimmy Johnstone’s SAILING IN Team from China won the regatta by a significant nine-point margin to be crowned the 2019 Asian J/80 Champion. Taking the silver was the TA ORIENT Team from Taiwan with four 1sts in their scoreline to end with 34 pts net.  Hanging on to take the bronze on the podium was the WUHAN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION from China with 56 pts net. The balance of the top five was determined on a tie-breaker at 60 pts each, with the Indian team from ROYAL MADRAS INDIA taking fourth place on countback over the Chinese DAIIANN MARITIME UNIVERSITY.  For more Asian J/80 Championship sailing information
 

J crews J sliders celebrating 
Epic Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta For J/Crews
(Larchmont, NY)- Initially established in the early 1970’s by “The Corinthians” that ran the regatta until 1999, the collegiate offshore regatta was then picked up by Storm Trysail Club. The invitational regatta is held annually out of Larchmont Yacht Club, who is a co-organizer of the event, in addition to the Storm Trysail Club and Foundation.

For the 2019 edition, the STC Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta was hosted by LYC from October 12th to 13th for forty-eight college teams from across the country and Europe. Of those 48-boats donated by owner/sponsors, fully thirty-nine of them were J/Boats owners (81% of the fleet). In short, it is a J/Boats College Offshore Regatta due to the amazing generosity and passion for sailing from J/Boats owners.
J/109 college sailors
The dozen-boat J/105 class was won by the U.S. Naval Academy team sailing on CONUNDRUM, skippered by Nick Walden with crew of Luke Gillcrist, Sam Hall, Jack King, Zach Medeiros, and Eddie Rankin. Second was Boston University sailing RAVEN, skippered by Stanley Schreyer with crew of Collin Alexander, Jim Collins, Liam Dwyer, Emily Garrard, Matt Hamelsky, and Teo Waalberg. Third place went to Stevens Institute of Technology sailing MAGIC, skippered by Matt Roleke with crew of Aidan McEnroe, Townsend Morey, Mack Totman, Jesse Stevenson, and Alex Wiggins.

The nine-boat J/109 class had close-racing amongst the top five teams. Winning was Jacksonville College on GUARDIAN J, skippered by Telmo Basterra with crew of Sam Baker, Telmo Basterra, Grace Benzal, Logan Brickhouse, Ian Hunter, Jarret Monroe, and Stephen Streater. Second was University of Rhode Island sailing EMOTICON, skippered by Cecilia Schneider with crew of Parker Colantuono, Peter Gunn, AJ Kozaritz, Aidan Naughton, Ryan Palardy, and Chris Pearson. Third place on a tie-breaker was the Virginia Tech University team sailing ZIG ZAG skippered by Linda Lovelace with crew of Gustav Berner, Jack Carroll, Allie Champion, Oscare Johansson, Jackson Livanec, and Reid Shanabrook.
J/crews at college regatta
In the J/44 Class, winning the James Bishop Memorial Trophy was the U.S. Naval Academy on MAXINE. Their team was comprised of skipper Hayden Kuzemchak with crew of Kaitlyn Boyle, Brett Eckert, Tim Forman, Zach Krause, Matt Malone, Kevin Navarro, and Phillip Smith.  Second was US Merchant Marine Academy on VAMP, with Ken Luczynski as skipper. Then, rounding out the podium was the Maine Maritime Academy on BREAKAWAY with Taylor Martin on the wheel.
J/88 sailing college regatta
Winning the PHRF Medium Class was the Fordham University Team sailing the J/124 TENEBRAE, with skipper Tucker Hersam with crew of Matt Alfano, Will Dumke, Eddie Harrison, Sam Johnson, Porter Kavle, Declan Lombard, and Scott McKenzie. Third went to Michigan State University sailing the J/112E REVIVER, skippered by Connor Baker with crew of Tim Dickey, Adeline Grootendorst, Brenna Hover, Corinne Nedeau, Charlie Parker, Teddy Prokop, Eva Rossell, Ella Wynsma, and Murphy Wynsma.
J/105s sailing off Long Island Sound
Then ten-boat PHRF Small Class was dominated by all J/Teams.  It was a formidable fleet with equally phenomenal competition. The top six boats all finished, essentially, in a massive tie-breaker. The podium was determined on a FOUR-WAY tiebreaker at eight points each! LOL! And fifth was determined on a two-way tiebreaker at nine pts each! Hokey Smokes Bullwinkle, I’m confuzzzed! Winning was Yale University on the J/100 BLACKCOMB with a 7-1 tally for 8 pts, skippered by Emery Wallace with crew of Jacob Asher, Chris Chaumont, Liv Mosnoi, Martin Tipton, and Adam Wolnikowski. Second was University of Toledo on the J/88 YONDER with 1-7 scores for 8 pts, skippered by Ethan Taylor with crew of Brandon Austin, Kaitlin Conner, and Eric Lynch. Third was University of Maryland sailing the J/88 OH JEE with a 6-2 record, skippered by Cole Daitch with crew of Mike Bisson, Chuck Cannon, Natalie Jones, Madelie Mulligan, and Rachel Prucnal.
J/44 one design class
Thanks to all the J/Boat owners and sailors that made this regatta possible. Lots of fun was had by all by the 400+ college sailors!  For STC Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta scores  For more STC Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta sailing information
 

J/109 sailing offshore 
J/Teams Sweep Stratford Shoal Gearbuster Race
(Greenwich, CT)- Hosted by the Indian Harbor Yacht Club, 2019 marked the 64th edition of this classic 46.0nm race. Run annually, the Saturday of Columbus Day weekend, competitors typically race to Stratford Shoal and back. The nickname "Gearbuster" attests to the usually boisterous weather sailors enjoy in October on Western Long Island Sound. The racing includes fully crewed and double-handed divisions, plus a shorter 19.0nm course for non-spinnaker divisions.

Twenty J/Teams (35.0%) participated in a field of fifty-seven offshore boats in all classes. In virtually every division that had a J/Crew sailing, they either won, podiumed, or swept the podium.

STRATFORD SHOAL RACE
Starting with PHRF 1 Doublehanded Class, J/Crews swept this podium handily. Winning was Barry Purcell’s J/27 LUCIDA by ten minutes corrected over Josh Burack’s J/105 PEREGRINA. Third just SIX seconds astray was Sara & Josh Reisberg’s J/120 ABILYN! That was close racing after 46 nautical miles!

The PHRF 2 Class of eleven boats was won by Bill & Jackie Baxter’s J/111 FIREBALL. Third was Andrew Clark’s J/122 ZIG ZAG. Fifth place went to Steven Levy’s J/121 EAGLE and sixth was Abhijeet Lee’s J/111 VARUNA.

The eleven-boat PHRF 3 Class saw Ken & Drew Hall’s J/88 NEVERMORE taking second place, while Paul Kueffner’s J/36 ECLIPSE placed fourth.

Winning the seven-boat PHRF 4 Class was John Cutting’s J/92 EASY RED. Then, in the six-boat PHRF +1 Class, winning was Arthur Hanlon’s J/112E DAUNTLESS, with David Cielusniak’s J/122 J-CURVE taking the silver.

EATONS NECK RACE
In the shorter Eaton’s Neck Race, taking second in PHRF 6 Class was Jim Reichel’s J/105 SCAPEGOAT, while Jim Farrell’s J/35 SAPPHIRE placed fifth.

In the PHRF 7 Non-spinnaker division, taking second was David Kaplan & Ray Gustin’s J/92 REDLINE. Sixth was the original classic J/24 one-design- the SILVER FOX, skippered by Jasjeet Sood.  For Gearbuster results, please see here   For more “Gearbuster” Stratford Shoal Race sailing information
 

Regatta & Show Schedules:

Oct 5- Dec 1- Hamble Winter Series- Hamble, England
Oct 17-20- J/88 North American Championship- Rye, New York
Oct 18-20- J/105 Masters Regatta- San Diego, CA
Oct 19-26- J/24 World Championship- Coconut Grove, FL
Oct 19- Rolex Middle Sea Race- Gzira, Malta
Oct 25-27- J/24 East Coast Championship- Annapolis, MD
Oct 25-27- J/Fest Southwest- Lakewood, TX
Oct 25-27- J/105 Lipton Cup Regatta- San Diego, CA
Nov 1-4- French J/80 Championship- La Rochelle, France

For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.

j/24s sailing offshore 
41st J/24 World Championship Preview
(Coconut Grove, FL)- Forty-two years after the first J/24 was built in Rod Johnstone’s garage, the Class will attract 81 boats from 20 countries to Miami, Florida for the 2019 J/24 World Championship. Sponsored by Bacardi Rum, the combined efforts of the US and International J/24 Class Associations, Coral Reef Yacht Club, Shake-a-Leg Miami and Twelve USA will present five days of racing on the spectacular Biscayne Bay from October 22-26. Participating in the event will be five J/24 World Champion helmsmen, plus countless Continental and National Champions. The nations represented include Argentina, Australia, Barbados, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Great Britain, Grenada, Hungary, Jamaica, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, Sweden, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United States. The 2019 edition will be the 41st World Championship for the enduring Class. A complete list of all J/24 World Champions can be found here.
J/24s sailing off Miami, FL
Jeff Johnstone, President of J/Boats, said, “The J/24 Class is thriving in 2019 for the same reasons it took the world by storm 40+ years ago. It’s all about people. Great racing in the world’s best sailing venues is one thing, but making life-long friends along the way, that’s priceless.” J/Boats and the US J/24 Class Association will launch the Championship by sponsoring Monday’s Opening Ceremony. The festive atmosphere will include classic memorabilia, a photo slideshow, flag bearers from each country, live music and food/beverages.

Will Welles, reigning J/24 World Champion, said, “The J/24 Class is alive and strong! I don’t think the racing has ever been closer. The boat is so refined these days, with everyone knowing the tricks; it’s great one-design racing.”

Nancy Zangerle, IJCA Chair, said, “The 2019 World Championship will be a celebration and culmination of 42 years of J/24 Class history. It is a testament to how one man’s idea has grown into a worldwide family of sailors. The International J/24 Class continues to attract new sailors with affordable boats, great competition and adherence to strong Class Rules that really provide a level playing field on the water. The J/24 Class has sustained its popularity with the enthusiasm of so many racers and J/24 alumni who keep coming back to the premier Class events, year after year. This year’s World Championship will see crews from age 16 to 70. While I’m looking forward to five days of exciting racing, the World Championship is as much a reunion with so many J/24 family and friends.”

Complete J/24 World Championship results and details may be found here.  For more J/24 World Championship sailing information
 

J/122 Linea Rossa sailing Rolex Middle Sea Race 
40th Rolex Middle Sea Race Preview
(Gzira, Malta)- The 40th Edition of the Rolex Middle Sea Race, hosted by the Royal Malta Yacht Club, is ready to start a fleet of around 115 boats for this year’s race. 

Commodore Godwin Zammit had this to say, “The club is really pleased to once again be welcoming such a large fleet. It will comprise the traditional mix of professional and Corinthian crews, some experiencing the race for the first time and others returning to better previous results or just enjoy the adventure.”
J/111 Blur.se sailing offshore
Although the 2019 fleet is slightly lower than last year’s record of 130 boats, the range of yachts competing will ensure the race is as exciting as ever. “Crews will be looking forward to the challenging conditions typical in this area of the Mediterranean at this time of year,” said Commodore Zammit. “At some point, it is likely tough weather will test the skills and determination of all competitors.” 

Some 23 nations will be participating in the race, according to Commodore Zammit with entries from as far afield as Australia and Argentina. Italy is the most represented with 22 yachts.
sailing Rolex Middle Sea Race offshore
Royal Malta YC Principal Race Officer and Race Committee Chairman, Peter Dimech, outlined the forthcoming event programme. “We kick off on Wednesday, with the Coastal Race, starting and finishing in Marsamxett Harbour, and a good dress rehearsal before the main event,” Dimech advised. “The Coastal Race is a perfect opportunity for international and local crews to give their boats a final shakedown before Saturday. The current weather forecast suggests the most likely course will be up to Comino and back.”  

Dimech added that there are a number of social events for crews, including the Owners’ Reception on Wednesday evening, which incorporates the Coastal Race Prize Giving and is co-hosted by Yachting Malta; the famous Crew Party on Thursday and, on Friday morning, a Question & Answer session featuring a number of participants. On Friday evening, Race & Weather Briefing takes place at the Grand Hotel Excelsior.  

Turning to Saturday’s October 19th departure of the Rolex Middle Sea Race from Grand Harbour, Dimech confirmed there will be seven starts, with the first class, the Multihulls, starting at 1100 CEST. The remaining groups will follow at 10-minute intervals, with the guns of the Saluting Battery marking each start. Proceedings will be coordinated between the Royal Malta Yacht Club, Transport Malta and the Armed Forces of Malta. 
J/109 youth Malta team
“It is one of the best, most dramatic race starts in the offshore racing world,” remarked Dimech. “Grand Harbour is blessed with a vast number of accessible viewing points both high up and low down. The crowd can feel really close to the yachts without the need be on the water. We are expecting a huge number of spectators.”  

There are nine J/Teams participating in the event across four classes. In the IRC Doublehanded is the J/109 2HARD (Martin Hartl from Austria) and the J/122 LINEA ROSSA (Onur Tok from Istanbul, Turkey).  The IRC 4 Class/ ORC 4 Class includes the J/121 JACKHAMMER (Andrew Hall from the United Kingdom).
J/109 Chestress sailing offshore
The IRC 5 Class includes a very famous offshore ocean racer from Scandinavia, the J/111 BLUR.SE owned and skippered by Peter Gustafsson from Sweden. Also, participating in this class is Tok’s J/122 LINEA ROSSA.

The IRC 6 Class might as well be classified as a “J/109 Class” as a quartet will be lining up on the starting line on Saturday. Those teams include Leonardo Petti’s CHESTRESS from Italy, the Jarhead Young Sailors Malta from the host nation Malta sailing on JYS JAN, Martin Hartl’s 2HARD from Austria, and more Jarhead Young Sailors from Malta on JYS JARHEAD.  For more Rolex Middle Sea Race sailing information
 

J/105 Masters Regatta Preview
(San Diego, CA)– One of San Diego Yacht Club’s most prized regattas returns to South San Diego Bay October 18-20, 2019: The International Masters Regatta (IMR). An invited, legendary group of eleven Master sailors from around the country come for a three-day battle in a rotation of J/105s.

The title of the event originates from the rule that participating skippers must be over the age of 60. For those on the cusp, the International Masters Regatta can be seen as a rite of passage after their long, hard-working sailing careers. This year, the entry list features some of the most accomplished sailors in the sport, some returning to the competition from previous years. Returning skippers from 2018 include David Gould, Tad Lacey, William Petersen and Andy Roy.

The list of competitors includes; Mary Brigden Snow, Scott Harris, David Gould, Gary Jobson, Tad Lacey, Scott Mason, William Petersen, Andy Roy, Chuck Sinks, Terry Timm, and the founder of the event- Don Trask.

The winner of the 2018 IMR was Dave Perry. Following closely behind were returning skippers Andy Roy (2nd) and William Peterson (3rd)– back to claim their name on the trophy. Roy plans on coming back with the same crew, which seems like the right decision based on his results.

“We have the same crew as last year, all old sailing buddies from Toronto. Of particular note is our main trimmer, Scott “Scooter” Collinson. We’ve done many miles on the water together including: America's Cup trials, Admiral's Cup, Canada's Cup, multiple Farr 30 Worlds, and a host of other regattas. Also on the crew is David Jarvis- former Volvo Ocean Race crew. Fraser Howell, Rob Emery and Andrew Van Nostrand have raced competitively for many years and are all very good sailors,” Roy explained.

New to the Masters Regatta are skippers Terry Timm, Chuck Sinks, Scott Mason, Scott Harris, and Mary Brigden Snow (the only female skipper in the regatta).

Timm expresses his excitement in anticipation of the Masters, “Sailing has been my passion ever since being exposed to the sport on an E-Scow on Torch Lake in Northern Michigan while attending Camp Hayo Went Ha. The thrill of leaving port sailing to the starting line or cruising in the Caribbean never ceases. Being invited to sail in the SDYC International Masters Regatta is very special and much appreciated. Many of my best friends are San Diego sailors that get to enjoy a world class sailing venue every day of the year.”

The International Masters Regatta, while known for its competitive sailing, is also known for its fun atmosphere and camaraderie. Regatta Chair Tim Fuller talks about the event. “The camaraderie between the skippers and crews is really fun that weekend. The overall sailing ability out on the course is always impressive and the races are always very close.”

“One of the best traditions of the weekend is the post-race social Roast on Saturday night. The skippers introduce their crews and needle around with the other teams. It’s high-spirited and fun to be a part of,” said Fuller.

Anyone interested in watching the races can find them in San Diego Bay. The schedule of events for the sailors begins on Friday with breakfast, followed with racing and a dockside social in the evening. After Saturday racing, there will be a regatta banquet for participants and after racing on Sunday, the awards will be presented.

In 2013, the perpetual trophy for the International Masters Regatta was gifted and dedicated by Malin and Roberta Burnham at the regatta banquet. The trophy is a beautiful original art piece created by Don Freedman of Nantucket Island and features a nautical inspired clock detailed with ships’ instruments.

Thank you to our local J/105 owners for lending their boats to make the International Masters Regatta and the Sir Thomas Lipton Cup Challenge happen.  For more J/105 Masters Regatta sailing information
 

J/Community
What friends, alumni, and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
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* A Family Affair- the J/122e JUNO- 2019 Performance 40 Champion

Christopher Daniel's J/122e JUNO won the 2019 Performance 40 Class Series.  “Chris and the Juno team are exactly what the Performance 40 Class is all about,” commented Performance 40 Class founder Dave Swete. “Juno is a corinthian boat with a core crew of the Daniel family mixed with young, and especially women sailors. The team has improved as a crew year on year and the atmosphere on board is just fantastic. After racing the Performance 40 Class love to get together for a drink in the yacht club bar, which is fundamental part of the spirit of Juno and the whole class.”

Daniel has been racing Juno for five years with a young crew of family and friends, including three siblings all in their twenties.

“When the kids were younger I drove to them to the extremities of the country to attend various dinghy regattas, and now all three of them are crewing for me, which is great, sailing as a family makes it more fulfilling. Juno normally sails with at least four girls on board and half of the crew is under 25. When we started racing Juno, the network for potential crew was thrown very wide and slowly over the years that has resulted in a pool of about 15 sailors to make up our racing crew of 10. We all go sailing for fun because we enjoy it, and that is definitely an ethos we have on board. This keeps the team together, as does improving our ability and results. Having a young crew gives a great energy on board but we run a quiet boat, to me a leader shouting at his crew is a sign that the skipper has lost control. Everybody is encouraged to give their feedback at the end of the race and every opinion is respected.”

The Performance 40 Championship is all inshore racing but Juno has also enjoyed success racing offshore, making the class podium for the 2019 RORC Myth of Malham and a strong performance in the Rolex Fastnet Race rounded off a successful offshore season, and Christopher Daniel has big offshore plans for the future.

“We targeted winning the P40 Championships at the beginning of the season,” commented Daniel. “It was a tall order given the strength and depth of the competition and our position last year. We set about it with some structured training sessions from Dave Swete, a largely consistent crew and a programme of reflection and improvement. We ended up winning three of the events, but still only managed to win by half a point owing to Cobra’s consistency and the strength of the rest of the fleet, and if you look down the finish times, most races were won by just a few seconds. Juno is a very capable offshore boat and the added performance means that you can get from A to B quickly, as well as in comfort,” said Daniel.


The funny thing is we originally bought Juno to race and cruise, and although my wife Lucy is very supportive, and we couldn't do it without her, Lucy prefers sailing in the Caribbean and the Med, and we have plans to take the boat to Malta and Antigua for the Rolex Middle Sea Race and the RORC Caribbean 600. We have a real focus on the Rolex Fastnet Race for 2021. Juno is a very capable offshore boat and the added performance means that you can get from A to B quickly, as well as in comfort. We have charted boats abroad before but it is difficult to find a boat as good as Juno, and when you come to sell a boat like the J/122e it is attractive to both the racing and cruising market.

Racing Juno with the family and our friends is a wonderful experience, and I can't thank Paul Heys enough who sold us the boat and was always helpful and supportive. Sadly Paul is no longer with us, but all of our success on the race course is dedicated to him.”

The J/122e Juno was purchased at the Southampton Boat Show from Key Yachting, the exclusive agent & distributor for J/Boats in the United Kingdom. The new offshore-capable performance yacht in the J/Boats range is the J/99, which has been nominated for the 2019 European Yacht of the Year, the 2019 British Yachting Awards Performance Yacht of the Year, the Sailing World Boat of the Year- Performance Racer-Cruiser, and the Cruising World Boat of the Year- Performance Cruiser.  For more information about the J/Boats range.

* What is a Performance 40?
A “Performance 40” is a Cruiser/Racer around 40ft and defined by the specified limitations, which utilizes information from her IRC Certificate:
  • IRC Band 1.075-1.150
  • LH 11.15m-14.1m
  • DLR 125-205
  • Max Draft 2.70m
Also known as a P40, the intention is for this to be a mostly ‘Corinthian’ Class, where family and friends get a taste of Grand Prix style Racing.

For reference, a First 40 is at the bottom of the band and an XP44 is at the top of the band. This includes, but is not limited to; J111s, J122s, J133s, J121s, IMX40s, Grand Soleil 43s, Arcona 41s, JND 39s, Corby 41s, Mills 39s, Matt 12s, Farr 40s, King 40s, Azuree 46s, etc.

Popular in Great Britain, a six-regatta inshore series garnered a lot of interest, with Chris Daniel’s J/122e Juno winning the 2019 edition.

“Chris and the Juno team are exactly what the Performance 40 Class is all about,” commented Performance 40 Class founder Dave Swete. “Juno is a Corinthian boat with a core crew of the Daniel family mixed with young, and especially women sailors.

“The team has improved as a crew year on year and the atmosphere on board is just fantastic. After racing the Performance 40 Class love to get together for a drink in the yacht club bar, which is fundamental part of the spirit of Juno and the whole class.”  For more Performance 40 class information

* J/80 Singlehanded Challenge Launches in China
The dream of sailing a singlehanded boat across the China Sea started back in 2015. “Hualian”, as he is known, dreamed of sailing a J/80 sailboat specially equipped to handle the challenges of sailing offshore for 1,600 nm (about 3,000 km). No one has done it before and, in China, such challenges are seen in the same light as other famous Chinese climbers getting to the top of the world’s tallest mountain- Mount Everest at 29,029 feet tall.

Hualian’s first two attempts in 2019 were not completed. In the first attempt, he exclaims, “I experienced 30 knots sustained winds and very low temperature of minus 5 degrees (that’s very cold with wind chill!). I hang up the fishing net, so to speak, and I give up, as the conditions were getting dangerous. The second attempt was just before the late fall. However, because I experienced failure of my main power generation and navigation equipment, I had to stop sailing before the end of the first 24 hours. So, sadly and unfortunately, I had to give up, again.

After more than a year of preparation, Hualian plans to start again from Qingdao at around 10:00 am on October 16, 2019, driving the his J/80 WHITE WAVE all the way south to the beautiful island of Sanya (China’s version of America’s Hawaii).

The challenge is strictly in accordance with the standards of Solo and Non-stop in the international maritime industry. During this period, he will not stop at any port and will not accept any material help from the outside world. There will be no replenishment and no security team will follow. Hualian will be alone on the 1,600 nm (about 3,000 km) voyage, avoiding the ubiquitous fishing nets and the busy ships on the Chinese sea, while managing himself and the ships at all times.

Because it is difficult and dangerous, this level of challenge has not been completed in China, and it is worth exploring and making progress.

Singlehanded sailing does not stop at the China Sea! Follow the J/80 WHITE WAVE as part of championing the Extreme Challenge Environmental Protection project.  Follow the J/80 WHITE WAVE on YB Tracking here 24x7 on his 1,600 nm voyage
Add to Flipboard Magazine.

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

J/Newsletter- September 20th, 2017

J/70 Sailing Champions LeagueWho Will be Europe’s "Best Sailing Club“ 2017?
(Hamburg, Germany/ Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Italy)- This weekend the best sailing clubs from all over Europe will gather together for the finale of the SAILING Champions League in Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Italy. For three days, 32 clubs will battle for the title “Best Sailing Club” in front of the fantastic scenery of the hosting club, the YC Costa Smeralda (yes, the same club that just hosted two major regattas in a row- Maxi 72/ Maxi-yacht Worlds and the AUDI J/70 Worlds)!

A maximum of 48 races will be sailed in fleet-race-mode on eight one-design J/70 boats on the northeastern coast of Sardinia. First practice-races on Wednesday will help the teams to get familiar with the sailing area before the races will take place Friday to Sunday. The weather forecast promises light winds with summer-time temperatures of 22 degrees Celsius.

Audi J/70 Sailing Champions LeagueThe favorites are the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein (NRV) from Hamburg who won Act 1 in St. Petersburg, the Segelclub Mattsee (SCM) from Austria, winner of Act 2 in St. Moritz, and certainly the Deutsche Touring YC (DTYC) from Bavaria. The defending champions from 2016 just participated successfully in the Nord Stream Race and are placed at the top of the German Sailing Bundesliga.

Among the participants are further top-class teams like Cape Crow YC, Swedish Champions and winner of the Nord Stream Race 2017, the Royal Norwegian YC, winner of the SAILING Champions League in 2015 and the famous YC Costa Smeralda.

As the technological partner of the SAILING Champions League, SAP will provide spectators worldwide with a professional livestream. Races will be commentated and explained for everyone by sailing experts and sailing reporters. All races will be broadcast live via the internet Saturday and Sunday from 12:00 pm CEST. Results and live stream can be found here 

J/105 sailing American YC Fall SeriesAmerican YC Fall Series Preview
(Rye, NY)- Starting this weekend, the American YC will be hosting the first of its two-weekend Fall Series Regatta for a range of IRC/PHRF handicap classes as well as one-design classes for J/70s, J/88s, J/105s, J/109s and J/44s.

For the J/70s, it will represent the first of three-plus weekends of sailing that lead into the J/70 North American Championship hosted by American YC.  In the fourteen-boat fleet for the AYC series will be notable teams such as Scott & Alex Furnary’s ANY COLOUR, Dan Goldberg’s BAZINGA, Andrew & Melissa Fisher’s BUTTON FLY, Carrie & Ed Austin’s CHINOOK and Mike Zupon’s LOKI.

The J/88s have a robust turnout of nine boats, many of whom have been class leaders in the past two years on the 88 class circuit.  Incredibly, virtually all teams have posted at least a podium finish in a J/88 related event over the past 24 months.  Handicapping this event would be as effective as posting odds for the next 7.0 earthquake on the San Andreas fault- e.g. it’s not happening anytime soon!  Those crews participating include Iris Vogel’s DEVIATION, Kevin Marks’ VELOCITY, Doug Newhouse’s YONDER, Al Minella’s ALBONDIGAS, Ken & Drew Hall’s NEVERMORE, John Pearson’s RED SKY, Elizabeth Barry’s ESCAPE, Doug McKeige’s JAZZ, and Mike Bruno’s WINGS.

The thirteen-boat J/105 class features last year’s winners- the dynamic duo of Bruce Stone and Nicole Breault on the mighty GOOD TRADE. Chasing them hard will be American YC’s Junior Big Boat Team on YOUNG AMERICAN, Duncan Hennes & Za/Lib Jelliffe on ARETE, Paul Beaudin’s LOU LOU, and Richie Palmer’s TOLO.

The octet of J/109s includes the usual suspects of top teams from this past summer, such as Carl Olsson’s MORNING GLORY, John Greifzu’s GROWTH SPURT, Bill Rogers’ BIG BOAT, and Jonathan Rechtshaffer’s EMOTICON.

With seven J/44s on the line, things will always be close amongst the evenly matched boats all sporting identical class-supplied sails.  As a result, “who’s on first” is always a great discussion, as it all comes down to which crews are dialed into the conditions for the day (or weekend).  Like other J/classes, the 44’s have most teams taking a “win-place-show” in some event in the past year or so.  Such teams include Len Sitar’s VAMP, the US Coast Guard Academy’s GLORY, Don & Dick Rave’s RESOLUTE, Jim Bishop’s GOLD DIGGER, and Bill Ketcham’s MAXINE.

In PHRF 1 class, two veteran J/111 campaigners will be fighting hard for class supremacy- David & Maryellen Tortorello’s PARTNERSHIP and Paul Strauch’s ANDIAMO.  They will be challenged by Bill Ingraham’s J/124 TENEBRAE and Neil Hindle’s J/145 MUSKOKA.

The ten-boat strong PHRF 2 class will see Aleksandr Tichter’s J/29 AKULA dueling with Jason Viseltear’s J/80 UPSETTER for class honors.

Finally, the Leukemia Cup Navigators Course has two J/crews on the race track, including John & Corinne Forster’s J/92 SALTIRE and Jim Wilson’s J/100 LIBERTY.  For more American YC Fall Series sailing information

J/Sailing News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

The world’s largest ever sportboat regatta took place this past week.  Building upon its extraordinary growth and popularity over the past four years, the remarkable ascent of the J/70 class worldwide continues unabated.  With 175 boats registered to sail the AUDI J/70 Worlds in Porto Cervo, Sardinia, hosted by the eponymous YC Costa Smeralda, the sailors were looking forward to fantastic sailing in the playground of the rich and famous in Europe.  They were not disappointed, with a stunning conclusion on the final day of racing.

Meanwhile, in northern Europe, unaffected by the mistral conditions be-deviling the AUDI J/70 Worlds in Sardinia, the Danish J/70 Sailing League held their league finale in Skovshoved, Denmark on the Baltic Sea.

Over in the Americas, the famous Rolex Big Boat Series took place on San Francisco Bay, hosted by St Francis YC, in typically epic Bay sailing conditions for one-design fleets of J/70s, J/105s, J/120s and both PHRF and ORR handicap classes.

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 pag  Below are the summaries.

Regatta & Show Schedules:

Sep 15-23- J/24 World Championship- Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Sep 22-24- J/FEST San Diego- San Diego, CA
Sep 22-24- J/80 Atlantic Telegramme Regatta- Lorient, France
Sep 23-24- American YC Fall Series I- Rye, NY
Sep 24- Oct 1- J/24 European Championship- Lake Balaton, Hungary
Sep 30- Oct 1- J/70 East Coast Championship- Deltaville, VA
Sep 30- Oct 1- American YC Fall Series II- Rye, NY
Sep 30- Oct 1- Cleveland 216 Regatta- Cleveland, OH
Oct 7-8- Storm Trysail Intercollegiate Big Boat- Larchmont, NY
Oct 9-15- J/70 North American Championship- Rye, NY
Oct 13-15- J/80 Crouesty Cup- Crouesty, France

For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.

J/70 Peter Duncan Relative Obscurity- World ChampionsUSA’s Duncan Crowned AUDI J/70 World Champion!
Italy’s Noe' Tops Corinthians Division
(Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Italy)- In more ways than one, the 2017 edition of the AUDI J/70 World Championship, hosted by YC Costa Smeralda in Porto Cervo, will go down in history as one of the most memorable.  For starters, it was the largest fleet of sportboats ever assembled for a World Championship- 163 boats ultimately sailed, with 175 boats initially registered from 24 nations.  Then, over three days of measurement, seven boats were rejected and another six boats simply disappeared and withdrew from the regatta.  As the teaYCCS deck- 60+ knots!ms started to practice on Sunday, it was evident the forecasted “mistral” was going to be much stronger than expected; by Sunday evening winds were a steady 20-30 kts, gusting to 40 kts from the West.  The mistral was the central theme for the next three days, blowing out Monday’s practice race with 62 kts in the harbor and 85 kts in the Straits of Bonifacio (between the southern cape of Corsica and the northern points of Sardinia), then steady 30 to 45 kts for what was supposed to be qualifying races on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Overcoming a wide-variety of challenging weather conditions for the next three days was none other than the American team led by Peter Duncan on RELATIVE OBSCURITY.  Peter’s crew of Jud Smith, Willem van Waay and Victor Diaz de Leon, simply showed their transom to the fleet more often than not for the six races sailed, compiling an amazing record of 3-1-1-2-1-3 for 8 pts net to easily win Peter’s first J/70 World Championship.

Corinthians winner- Giancfranco Noe- WhitehawkAnother impressive performance was the Corinthians Division winner- Italy’s Gianfranco Noe sailing WHITE HAWK, sailing with his son- Emmanuele and crew of Giuliano Chiandrussi, and Samuele Semi.  Their scorecard of 22-2-3-13-14-16 not only earned an easy Corinthians win, but also placed them 10th overall in the Open division!

Day 3- Thursday
After three days of mistral, the fleet was quite anxious to go sailing. After the mandatory 0930 hrs skipper’s briefing run by the PRO Mark Foster from Corpus Christi YC in Texas, the teams briskly walked down to their boats and headed out of the gorgeous Porto Cervo harbor into the big seas and big breezes that lay in wait offshore under spectacular sunny blue skies with torn cotton clouds racing across the horizon.  It was a magnificent start for the fleet.  A total of six races were run in 15-22 kts from the remnants of the westerly flowing mistral.  More often than not, the left hand side of the course was better than the right, due to the known geographical shift that would often show up in the top one-third of the race course.

J/70s sailing off Porto Cervo, SardiniaAfter the one-day, three-race qualifying series, Peter Duncan’s RELATIVE OBSCURITY led with a 3-1-1 tally for 5 pts; followed in second place by Claudia Rossi’s Italian team on PETITE TERRIBLE #AUDI with a 1-4-1 scoreline for 6 pts; and yet another Italian team, Franco Solerio’s L’ELAGAIN, sitting in third place with a 2-2-7 for 11 pts.

The top Corinthians Division leaders were Noe’s WHITEHAWK with a 22-2-3 record for 27 pts in first place; Follin Robin’s GIVE ME FIVE from France with an 8-29-14 for 41 pts in second; and Luis Bugallo’s MARNATURA from Spain with a 23-20-11 for 54 pts in third position.

J/70 Worlds starting line off Porto Cervo, SardiniaDay 4- Friday
On Friday, the regatta moved up a gear, as the fleets were split into Gold and Silver Fleets. The early morning westerly Mistral wind, unexpectedly piped up to over 20 knots before the start of racing.  However, by the end of the day, a southerly wind caused the second race to be abandoned, and racing was shortly called to a halt. Four races had now been held, offically constituting a series, with one day to go.

Following on their amazing performance on the first day of racing, Duncan’s RELATIVE OBSCURITY crew grew their lead to 10 pts by scoring a 2nd in the only race of the day.  Meanwhile, Rossi’s PETITE TERRIBLE #AUDI team scored a 9th to drop into third place.  Leapfrogging her into second place by taking a 4th in the race was the Spanish FERMAX team, skippered by Gustavo Martinez Doreste.

Audi J/70 Worlds - Porto Cervo, Sardinia- YC Costa SmeraldaMeanwhile, Noe’s WHITE HAWK continued to lead the Corinthians Division, followed by the Mexican Ignacio Perez skippering ADRENALINE in second place and Bugallo’s MARNATURA in third.

In the Silver fleet, it was Norway’s Eivind Astrup that was leading on NORWEGIAN STEAM and the Silver Corinthians leader was Alessandro Zampori’s NOBERASCO DAS from Italy.

The top three for Friday’s Gold Fleet race was all American; Peter Cunningham's POWER PLAY won in shifty conditions with an enormous lead of well over a minute. Despite not getting a great start, Cunningham's team, with Argentinian Lucas Calabrese calling tactics, came back to cross the finish line in first position. Duncan's RELATIVE OBSCURITY was second, scoring their fourth podium in the regatta and Brian Keane's SAVASANA made it a 1-2-3 for the American teams.

"We still had the Mistral wind today, but it was much lighter,” commented Relative Obscurity's Jud Smith. "We thought the right would pay and it did, we rounded the top mark in second. In all my years, I have never been in a keelboat fleet this big. However, now we are in a fleet of about 80 boats, that is similar to last year's Worlds in San Francisco. I guess the popularity is down to the fact that the J/70 is a great boat, and it suits people of different sizes, gender, and ages, and its great to see a lot of young people at the regatta!”

J/70s flying down reach at J/70 Worlds- Porto Cervo, SardiniaDay 5- Epic Saturday Finale
With numerous General Recalls, a Black Flag in play, and a full on foam-up, the Worlds had a thrilling climax to remember for years to come. With sparkling sunshine, a significant sea state, and a warm westerly breeze, piping up to a ballistic 30 knots, the world's largest championship sportsboat fleet enjoyed a fantastic finale.

After a stunning performance, scoring podium finishes in every race, including three race wins, the runaway winner of the regatta was America’s Peter Duncan on RELATIVE OBSCURITY. Another American team, Brian Keane's SAVASANA (with crew of Stu McNay, Tom Barrows, Ron Weed) scored a second in the final race, moving up to runner-up for the championship. Italian Luca Domenici on NOTARO TEAM (with crew of Diego Negri, Stefano Orlandi, Piero Vigo) moved up to third place after posting a BFD-5 in the last two races!  After posting a 9-BFD, Claudia Rossi's attempt to become the first lady helm to win the title was ended, her PETITE TERRIBLE #AUDI team settling for 4th place just 4 pts back from 3rd.  Then, only 1 pt behind her in 5th place was another Italian crew, Mauro Roversi’s JCURVE.

The Corinthians Division was easily won by Noe’s WHITE HAWK.  Second, was Bugallo’s MARNATURA and third was Follin’s GIVE ME FIVE.

The overall winner of the Silver Fleet and also the Silver Corinthians winner was Zampori’s NOBERASCO DAS from Italy. They were followed in second place by Stefano Roberti’s PICCININA from YC Monaco in Monte Carlo and in third place was Russia’s Dmitry Shunin from Moscow, Russia sailing GOLDEN WING. Rounding out the top five were Michael Grau’s German crew on PAINT IT BLACK in 4th and Horacio & Nicolas Carabelli’s Brazilian team on URUBU taking 5th place.

In the Silver Corinthians Division, taking second place was America’s Henry Brauer sailing RASCAL from Eastern YC in Marblehead, MA (host of the 2018 J/70 World Championship).  Third place went to Pawel Tarnowski’s APOTEX team from Poland.

Peter Duncan- J/70 World Champion"Awesome! Top of the world,” exclaimed Peter Duncan dockside at the YC Costa Smeralda. "It is a great feeling, I have sailed with some great guys, we had a great event, and everything seemed to go our way, it was just one of those weeks. It is hard to put into words how I feel like now, but this was just exceptional. This fleet has some really great talent, and the organizers, and the yacht club have done such an amazing job. Most of all I want to credit the crew, Victor, Jud, Willem, they have been just fantastic."

Runner-up was Savasana (USA) Brian Keane. "We chartered the J/70, so we are really pleased to have come second in the championship. I have been racing in the class since the beginning, and now that we have fleets racing J/70s all over the world, the standard is just amazing, and so is this regatta. A world record keelboat fleet in superb surroundings."

Claudia Rossi- Top Women Helm- Helen Johnstone TrophyTop team for the host club, YC Costa Smeralda, and first team with a Lady Helm (winning the Helen C Johnstone Memorial Trophy), was Petite Terrible (ITA) Claudia Rossi. "Peter Duncan is a worthy World Champion, his team sailed the best this week. Our fourth position is better than fifth in the last World Championship, so maybe I will not win for three years,” laughed Claudia. "However, I will be in Marblehead for the 2018 J/70 World Championship!”

The Closing Ceremony and Awards for the Audi J/70 World Championship was held at the Piazza Azzurra. YCCS Commodore, Riccardo Bonadeo, spoke about the event before presenting prizes to the winners.

"Congratulations to all of the winners at the Audi J/70 World Championship. This is a special year for the YCCS, as we are celebrating our 50th anniversary, over the years we have hosted many world championships. However, this is the largest world championship fleet hosted by the Club in all of those years. It has been a pleasure and an honor to welcome over 160 teams from 25 different countries, to enjoy the fantastic sailing grounds of the Costa Smeralda, and the Clubhouse at the YCCS. I would like to thank Audi the Title sponsor of this event, and our partner for a long time, which supports us in so many of these new challenges. I also want to thank the J/70 International and Italian Classes, the owners, their crews, the Race Committee, the International Jury and all the YCCS staff. We hope that all of the competitors will come and race again with the Club in the very near future."

The 2018 J/70 World Championship will be hosted by the Eastern Yacht Club, Marblehead, Massachusetts USA from 22nd to 29th September 2018.  Follow the AUDI J/70 Worlds on Facebook here

AUDI J/70 Worlds Summary video
https://www.facebook.com/j70italianclass/videos/380396249045985/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJQu7MRHXAY
Day 3- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yge147XOAc
Day 4- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUtBzYxpaHw
Day 5- Finale- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJQu7MRHXAY

Facebook Video interviews of J/70 Worlds winners here:
Champion Peter Duncan- https://www.facebook.com/J70Class/videos/877195112432176/
Corinthian winner- Gianfranco Noe- https://www.facebook.com/j70italianclass/videos/379790799106530/
1st Woman helm- Claudia Rossi- https://www.facebook.com/j70italianclass/videos/379761999109410/
2nd Woman helm- Lera Kovalenko- https://www.facebook.com/j70italianclass/videos/380363419049268/
3rd Woman helm- Hannah Mills- https://www.facebook.com/j70italianclass/videos/379791925773084/

Video Highlights
Final race of Gold- https://www.facebook.com/Sail22Racing/videos/10155701957289868/
Final race of Silver- https://www.facebook.com/Sail22Racing/videos/10155701943399868/

Sponsor- Quantum Sails
Time-lapse video- https://www.facebook.com/QuantumSails/videos/10155164917292098/
Day 5 Gold fleet- https://www.facebook.com/QuantumSails/videos/10155170974467098/

Sailing photo credits- Pierrick Contin, Max Ranchi & Kurt Arrigo  For more AUDI J/70 World Championship sailing information

Vanity Fair- Claudia RossiClaudia Rossi- J/70 sailor extraordinaireClaudia Rossi- VANITY FAIR Girl Sailing Amongst Giants!
Rossi Led Many Top Women Teams Sailing the Worlds
(Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Italy)- No question, for a 25 year old girl growing up in Italy, Claudia Rossi has earned her fair share of accolades "sailing amongst the giants" of the sport- not just in Europe, but also worldwide.

This month's Italian VANITY FAIR edition not only features Angelina Jolie on the cover, but also features Claudia as a woman that can compete on the world stage, a supremely talented sailor forging new levels of competition for women in sailing around the world.  She proved it, yet again, sailling her PETITE TERRIBLE #AUDI into 4th place overall and was top women helm.

Russian woman skipper- Valerya KovalenkoSimilarly, the second women helm at the J/70 Worlds was the 2017 Monaco Winter Series Champion, the top Russian women skipper- Valerya Kovalenko from Moscow, Russia.  Her team on ARTTUBE is often at the top of the Russian J/70 Sailing League and will, again, be sailing the Monaco Winter Series starting in mid-December 2017; a five regatta series that ends with the Primo Cup Credit Suisse at YC Monaco in March 2018.

British woman Olympic Gold Medallist- Hannah MillsAt the J/70 Worlds were several all-womens teams, too.  One was the United Kingdom's Hannah Mills, an Olympic 470 Gold Medallist, sailing with five other women on her team, including Suzy Russell and Hanna Peters.  Hannah was third woman helm at the AUDI J/70 Worlds.

The Dutch all-women's crew was part of the "She Sails" team that have been competing all summer, including the J/70 Europeans sailed on the Solent and hosted by Royal Southern YC in Hamble, England. The crew on WATERLAND MONNICKENDAM included Rikst Dijkstra, Sanno Crum, Fettje Osinga, Milah WoutersGerman women's J/70 team- Lady Like, and Nova Huppess from Amterdam, The Netherlands.

Then, there was an all-women's team from Germany that had been sailing on Lake Constance and were participants all year long in the Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga that saw racing all over Germany, from the south to the north- Travemunda, Kiel, Lake Constance, Alster Lake in Hamburg, and so forth.  The "YC Langenargen Team" team sailed LADY LIKE, skippered by Anica Rimmele with crew of Lina & Rosanna Schnetz (sisters), Carla Rau, and Anne Winkelhausen.

J/105s sailing Rolex Big Boat SeriesEpic Rolex Big Boat Series!
(San Francisco, CA)- Burgees fluttered and spectra halyards slapped against carbon-fiber and aluminum masts on 89 highly tuned race boats assembled at the St. Francis Yacht Club for the 53rd edition of the Rolex Big Boat Series (September 13-17, 2017). The event is the West Coast’s premier regatta and one of the international sailing circuit’s most celebrated and anticipated Grand Prix events. There was a crackle of excitement in the late summer air as crews completed their final pre-race preparations for the four-day regatta.

The StFYC Race Committee split the impressive entry list into eleven classes consisting of six one-design fleets (11 J/70s, 24 J/105s, five J/120s, Farr 40s, Express 37s and Pac52s), three ORR fleets (nine ORR-A entrants, nine ORR-B boats and five ORR-C entrants), a six-strong PHRF sportboat class and a multihull class.  Here is how it all went down over the course of the four days.

J/111s sailing Rolex Big Boat SeriesDay One- Thursday
While it’s tough to win a high-level regatta on Day One of racing, it’s possible to lose the series right away, especially in a highly competitive fleet racing on a challenging body of water.

Throughout the two races, all 89 teams battled for strong leaderboard positions to set themselves up for the rest of the week’s racing. Fortunately, the Bay played nicely, at least at first, delivering five-to-eight-knot winds at the Treasure Island starting area. By the start of the second race, however, the breeze had built to a solid 20-plus knots, with a strong flood tide, as the sun marched west.

J/105s sailing San Francisco BayDay Two- Friday
Good wind is almost never in short supply on San Francisco Bay during the Rolex Big Boat Series, and day two of racing was no exception, even if it required a one-hour shore-side postponement to allow the breeze to build. But, once the starting signals began sounding, the air pressure gathered with the steepening seas, delivering what the 89 registrants came here for: full-on San Francisco Bay conditions that tested each team’s boathandling skills and endurance levels during two races stretching into the late afternoon. And, while the wind speed kept ratcheting upwards as the day progressed, so too did racecourse competition levels, especially given the fact there are no discarded races at the Rolex Big Boat Series, meaning that everyone is sailing for keeps.

“Unlike short-course windward-leeward racing, the Rolex Big Boat Series uses longer courses that cover diverse parts of the Bay, which makes it possible to make significant navigational gains or losses—where a good move can reap large dividends or an error can prevent you from being able to dig back in by catching a shift,” said Bruce Stone, co-skipper of the J/105 ARBITRAGE (USA 116). “As a no throw-out regatta, you can’t take fliers or make large mistakes, but good straight-line boat speed is rewarded on the long legs, and any of the top boats who had a bad start will generally be able to make their way back at least to the middle of the pack and can still win the regatta.”

After four races, Chris & Phil Perkins’ GOOD TIMIN’ was topping the J/105 leaderboard, followed by Phillip Laby’s GODOT and Adam Spiegel’s JAM SESSION.

J/120 sailing Rolex Big Boat SeriesSkipper David Halliwill and his PEREGRINE team won the past three editions of the J/120 class at Rolex Big Boat Series, and after four races the StFYC-flagged team is again topping the leaderboard, followed by Barry Lewis’s CHANCE and Stephen Madeira’s MISTER MAGOO. “The crew is mostly small boat and dinghy sailors that have been sailing together for decades in large competitive fleets,” said Halliwill of his talented crew.

As for the gravity that keeps drawing the PEREGRINE crew back to this regatta each year, Halliwill echoed the entire regatta’s sentiment: “The high level of competition, the big-breeze and strong-current racing conditions, the camaraderie, and the StFYC and their volunteers—they consistently deliver the best experience in the world.” And, added the skipper with a fine collection of Rolex Big Boat Series trophy hardware, “Winning is fun.” Amen!

J/88 sailing Rolex Big Boat SeriesDay Three- Saturday
When it comes to natural sailing amphitheaters, San Francisco Bay is virtually impossible to beat. Not only does the Bay present great geographical features for sailors to race around, but the late-September winds have a reputation for greeting each day with relatively calm velocities that climb into the high-teens to mid-20s as the racing unfurls. Best of all, the breeze hits a high note during the final finishes of each day, delivering a postcard-perfect experience for the crowds gathered on StFYC’s Race Deck. Day three of this exciting, every-race-counts regatta was no exception.

“We started with a moderate breeze that filled in as the day progressed, allowing us to get off two great races that challenged crews sailing ability as well as endurance, especially later in the afternoon,” said Jenn Lancaster, StFYC’s Race Director. “After six races, the leaders are consolidating their positions going into tomorrow, which is their final chance to improve their standings."

The ORR-B class is comprised of nine boats that range in vintage from a pair of J/44s (including Paul Stemler’s PATRIOT), to five J/111s, including Peter Wagner’s SKELETON KEY, which was fresh off of winning the 2017 J/111 World Championships. ORR-B began their day on the Treasure Island starting area on a long windward-leeward twice-around affair that included a final kite run along the city front as a San Francisco Fire Department fireboat arched its four water cannons high into the midday sky.

J/111 sailing San Francisco BayThe ORR-B class’s second race unfurled on the Alcatraz starting area on a course that brought the fleet out and under the Golden Gate Bridge for a taste of classic northern California sailboat racing. After six completed races, Doug and Jack Jorgensen’s J/111 PICOSA was sitting in 2nd place with Peter Wagner’s SKELETON KEY in third.

The crews aboard the 11-strong J/70 fleet also spent their day keeping their core temperatures warm as the building winds tested their foul-weather gear and their boathandling skills. “Geoff McDonald and I own the boat together, and we’ve been sailing together since 1991 when we were both on the Stanford sailing team,” said Scott Sellers, co-skipper of the J/70 1FA. As for the boat’s somewhat odd moniker, Sellers was circumspect: “That’s a secret among the crew,” he said. “I’ve had a series of boats with donkey-related names, including Swamp Donkey, Donkey Jack and Tres Burritos, and this one is no exception.”

After six races, Chris Snow and John Brigden’s Cool Story Bro. (USA 369) was in first place, followed by Sellers’s 1FA in second and Pat Toole’s 3 BIG DOGS from Santa Barbara, CA in third position.

J/105s sailing Rolex Big Boat Series- St Francis YCDay Four- Sunday Finale
While the first three days featured long-course windward-leeward racing, the final day of racing sent competitors on the infamous “Bay Tour” courses with a finishing line directly in front of the StFYC clubhouse, providing onshore spectators a fine view of this year’s warhorses as they paraded past the Club’s stunning Race Deck.

One-design sailing has always been a core component of the St Francis YC’s Rolex Big Boat Series, and this year the Commodore’s Cup— awarded to the winner of the regatta’s largest one-design class— went to brothers Chris and Phil Perkins and their J/105 GOOD TIMIN’.  They were followed by Adam Spiegel’s JAM SESSION in second place.  Then, third and fourth place were determined by a tie-breaker at 34 pts each, with Bruce Stone and Nicole Breault’s ARBITRAGE beating Jeff Littfin’s MOJO on count-back.  Fifth place went to Phil Laby’s GODOT.

J/70s sailing San Francisco BayScott Sellers and his 1FA crew won the 11-boat J/70 class, followed by Chris Snow and John Brigden’s COOL STORY BRO, and Pat Toole’s 3 BIG DOGS in third place.

David Halliwill and his PEREGRINE crew put in a strong showing to win the J/120 class with five 1sts and two 2nd to win by a large margin.  They were followed by Barry Lewis’s CHANCE in second and Stephen Madeira’s MISTER MAGOO in third. Impressively, this was Halliwill’s fourth straight J/120 class win at the Rolex Big Boat Series.

The ORR-A Class was dominated by big boats. However, the two smallest boats in the class- J/125’s- faired well considering the circumstances. Taking 4th was Viggo Torbensen’s TIMESHAVER and 6th was Richard Ferris’ AUGUST ICE from Lake Tahoe, NV.

In ORR-B Class, Doug and Jack Jorgensen’s J/111 PICOSA (USA 120) took 2nd place, with Peter Wagner’s J/111 SKELETON KEY taking 4th, Dick Swanson’s J/111 BAD DOG in 5th, Jack Clapper’s J/44 PHANTOM in 6th, Gorkem Ozcelebi’s J/111 DOUBLE DIGIT in 7th and Paul Stemler’s J/44 PATRIO in 8th.

Getting better each race, Marc McMorris’s team on the J/88 M-SQUARED nearly pulled off the silver in the PHRF Sportboat Division, settling for third on the podium.  Gary Panariello’s J/88 COURAGEOUS finished in 5th overall.
Sailing photo credits- Rolex / Daniel Forster  Chris Ray   Tom Walker   Kara Hugglestone/ SAILCouture     Leslie Richter- Rockskipper.com   Sharon Green/ Ultimate Sailing   For more Rolex Big Boat Series sailing information

J/70s sailing Danish J/70 Sailing LeagueFrederikshavn SC Two-Peats Danish J/70 Sailing League!
(Skovshoved, Denmark)- The grand finale for the 2017 Danish J/70 Sailing League took place from September 15th to 17th at Skovshoved, Denmark. In the end, it was the Frederikshavn SC that was declared Denmark's best sailing club for the second consecutive year! Despite pressure going into the final event, the North Jutland team managed to keep the competitors away, as the year's sailing league ended Sunday in Skovshoved.

The regatta had its tense and anxious moments for the Frederikshavn Sejklub team.  After twelve races in Skovshoved, they had a solid lead over KDY in the overall standings.  However, in the thirteenth flight, Frederikshavn scored a 6th place (last in their race) that threatened to drop them lower in the standings for the regatta, and thus the series lead.  It was tight racing for 3rd through 8th place in the event, with just four points separating all of them!

J/70 Danish Sailing League winnersIn the penultimate race, both KDY’s skipper Henrik Jensen and Frederikshavn’s skipper Kris Houmann were racing in the same flight, with KDY taking 2nd and Frederikshavn 3rd— keeping them in the lead.  Then, in the last race, KDY started their flight first and posted a 4th place, effectively handing the overall series lead on a silver platter to Frederikshavn.  As a result, the Frederikshavn team could cheer on the dock before they even went out to sail the last race of the regatta.

"We had a race where we finished last today. That put us in a bad mood and added a lot of pressure. But, we tried to focus on finding things that we know we can do right.  And, as we have shown at the other competitions this season, we managed to pull it off," explained Søren Steen, about the crucial moments on Sunday, where the title defense was suddenly endangered.

Frederikshavn could "endure" seventh place at the competition and still win the Danish J/70 League overall. In the end, the team finished sixth, enough for the Championship title with a score card of 1-2-2-6 for 11 pts over the four regattas (Struer, Brejning, Aarhus, Skovshoved).

"It was a lot of joy and redemption for us. We knew well before the competition and that it was only us who could lose the title on the race track. It was exciting, but eventually we did it,” said Captain Kris Houmann of Frederikshavn Sejklub.

Danish J/70 Sailing League winnersFrederikshavn Sejklub Chairman- Helmuth Melsen- was pleased to see their team take home the championship trophy to Frederikshavn, where it has adorned the wall of the clubhouse for the last year.

"It is indescribable and wonderful for our club to have this great crew. They are a fantastic four- a lucky four-leaf clover! Since we won the title the first time a year ago, the club has received a lot of local attention in the press, which we did not experience before.  We hope to get a league match to Frederikshavn in 2018. So, winning the Sailing League has really meant a lot for our club," said a proud Mr Melsen.

KDY secured this year's Danish Sailing League silver. KDY's crew in Skovshoved consisted of Niels Gramkow, Thomas Hartvig, Henning Lambertsen and Skipper Henrik Jensen.  KDY also finished second in the league debut in 2014.

That same year in 2014, Kerteminde Sailing Club took the bronze. This year, again, Kerteminde took the bronze with their well-matched top crew- Thomas Møhl, Magnus Jung Johansen, Yann le Helleix and Skipper Jørgen Mohr Ernst.

For Hellerup Sailing Club, 2017 was the club's weakest performance in the league so far. Without podium placements at any of the first three competitions, they were determined to redeem themselves in the final league event.  And, that they did! In Skovshoved, Hellerup was in the front all the way from beginning to end.  They won 8 of 15 races and ran the table completely in the last four races!  Q.E.D.!!  Hellerup's team in Skovshoved was Peter Wibroe, Jonas Hviid-Nielsen, Kristian Kvid Sørensen, and skipper Trine Abrahamsen.  Camilla Hylleberg Photography   For more Danish J/70 Sailing League information

J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
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Caribbean Offshore Racing circuit* Caribbean Regattas Support- Help Them Recover-
Go Sailing!

Said SEAHORSE’s publisher/ editor, Andrew Hurst (a J/80 owner in Lymington, UK)- “We’ve managed to remain in close touch with our friends in the Caribbean Sailing Association throughout their recent and dreadful experiences – offering by comparison minuscule but still sincere support wherever it can be of any use whatsoever.

We were thrilled– and surprised– by the inspiring stated ambition to run their scheduled regattas for the coming 2018 Caribbean season. We at Seahorse will be digging deep and stretching ourselves a little thin, but we are committing now to having people at all the events we possibly can and we very much encourage the entire sailing community to do the same.

Nikki Beach party- Voiles de St BarthThe Caribbean regatta circuit plays a huge role in supporting the local economies of many of the islands that were just ravaged by Hurricane Irma (and, lately Maria)– islands and communities that have been incredibly welcoming to us all in the past.

Now it’s our turn. As racing sailors, if ever you had an interest in visiting or revisiting a Caribbean Regatta then early 2018 is the best– and most public spirited– opportunity (hopefully) any of us will have in our lifetimes.

St Barth, Gustavia, CaribbeanThe following article (which was written pre-Irma) maps out the CSA’s key events – we urge you to commit to one or more today, notify the organisers of your intention to take part and support wonderful communities that are at this moment working desperately hard to provide their families with something approaching normal living in the most adverse and dispiriting of conditions.”

Caribbean Regattas on track for 2018
The Caribbean Sailing Association announced its five-year Winter Series International Race Calendar with events starting as early as November and the CSA website lists many additional events. Most of our member nations from the islands affected by the passing of Hurricane Irma have checked in and confirmed that planning continues for the coming season and we are confident that regattas and sailing events will proceed without interruption, even in the most severely affected islands. CSA members and friends are working together with those islands to assist in the recovery process.

J/88 sailing Voiles de St Barth regattaWant to help? You can make donations and send aid for those in need (see below), but one of the most helpful things you can do is proceed with your plans to visit our shores, participate in our regattas and recommend to your friends and peers that they do the same. Don’t delay until next season. Tourism is the life blood of Caribbean economies and they need your continued support to ensure they recover and those hit hardest bounce back quickly.

President of the Caribbean Sailing Association, Kathy Lammers, encourages you to proceed with your plans for the coming season: “Our hearts go out to our friends, neighbors and colleagues who have been severely impacted by Hurricane Irma (and Maria) and we wish you a full and speedy recovery. The CSA is confident that our regattas and events will go on so please proceed with your plans to visit us this season and submit your online entries early. The sun still shines, the water is still warm and the ever-present trade winds won’t let you down.”
https://www.seahorsemagazine.com/current-issue/112-content/september-2017/535-the-2018-grand-caribbean-tour

Caribbean 2018 Regatta Circuit
https://caribbean-sailing.com/caribbean-regattas-on-track-for-2018/
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