St Thomas Regatta Preview(Cowpet Bay, St Thomas, USVI)- The St. Thomas International Regatta (STIR) weekend in the U.S. Virgin Islands is a high point for many sailors around the world. Known as the "Crown Jewel of the Caribbean”, it represents an opportunity to shake off the winter dust in preparation for a hard summer's racing. For others, it is a chance to mix sailing and racing with a family vacation in one of the Caribbean's favorite locations. Whatever the reason, the warm clear waters, beautiful surroundings and excellent competition draw you back year after year.
This is the 41st year the St. Thomas Yacht Club (STYC) has hosted the event and it runs from March 28th to 30th. This year features not only competitive sailing but some new parties and a first-ever golf challenge to expand the regatta into a sailing festival with something for everyone.
Regatta director, Bill Canfield, commented, “This year we are bringing back our Saturday night party at Yacht Haven Grande hosted by Captain Morgan with the music by local favorite Spectrum Band. Like all events this is open to the public. We are also introducing two new events, a Wednesday golf tournament at Mahogany Run and then a Pub Crawl in Red Hook the same night. Great racing, parties and music. Our slogan remains ‘We love it here!’"
Excitement on the high seas starts Friday with a fleet of over 70 yachts from the Caribbean, America, Europe and from as far away as Russia and Australia. The first day is the classic “Charlotte Amalie Harbor Race” day. You can watch from the waterfront as the fleet sails into the harbor and then starts on a second race back to the island’s east end. Back on shore, the Jump-Up Party kicks off from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. at STYC. The Becca Darling Band plays from 3-6 p.m., with the rhythms of Cool Sessions brass taking over from 7-11 p.m.Race action continues on Saturday March 29. In the afternoon, there’s music by Sol at STYC from 2:30-5:30 p.m. Then, a new STIR tradition kicks-off with the Captain Morgan Yacht Haven Grande Party from 6:30-11 p.m. Listen to Spectrum Band on stage, while dining and imbibing at nearby restaurants and bars.
Sailors launch off on the last day of regatta competition Sunday March 30. Up for grabs is who will take their place on the podium. Music by Full Circle greets the fleet from 2:30-5:30 p.m. The Regatta Awards Ceremony starts at 6:30 p.m. on the STYC beach, followed by the Final Fling party with Ah We Band playing from 7-11 p.m.
Keeping that demanding social schedule in mind, there’s plenty of sailing to do around the fabled islands race courses laid out by the St Thomas YC PRO. As one might expect, a number of good J/Teams are participating including some past class and overall winners in the 69 boat fleet (39 are of J vintage- about 57% of the total). Topping the list is Rick Wesslund’s Miami, FL team sailing the newly famous J/122 EL OCASO (recent “Most Worthy Performance” winner at St Maarten Heineken Regatta) in what can only be described as an eclectic fleet of boats in CSA Racing I. Rick’s team will be facing everything from little M32s to large Swan 53s and even a TP52! Crazy, challenging days are ahead for them depending on the race course!
CSA Racing II sees the classic J/39 CRYSTAL sailed by Jerome O’Neill and his Puerto Rican team from Ponce Yacht & Fishing Club. If CSA I was an eclectic fleet, then this one matches it for sure with a Santa Cruz 70 sailing alongside a Morris 48 and a slew of “cruisey” 40 footers.
CSA Racing III may easily qualify as the most fun and demanding class in the fleet, with 6 of 10 boats being J’s ranging from the J/24 to J/105s. Top boat in her division and a past overall winner is Robert Armstrong’s J/100 BAD GIRL sailing with a crew of high school students from St Croix USVI. Two well-sailed J/105s will be in the hunt, Jonathan Lipuscek’s DARK STAR from San Juan, Puerto Rico and Jordan Mindich’s SOLSTICE from Huntington, NY. Paul Davis’s local team from St Thomas YC are sailing the J/27 MAGNIFICENT 7 and they will be chased around the course by the J/80 SUN BUM II skippered by Angel Ayala from Carolina, Puerto Rico and also the J/24 COLIBRI led by Francisco Figueroa from San Juan.CSA Non-Spinnaker will also be dominated by J/Teams, with 4 of 10 boats competing for class honors. Topping the list is the custom J/120 JAGUAR sailed by Ben Jelic from St Maarten. They, too, are faced with having to top past class winners like Tom Mullen’s SHAMROCK VII from Campton, NH and Stanford Joines’s J/36 PALADIN from Kings Hill, USVI. Rounding out this fleet of J’s is Jean Braure’s J/24 BRAVISSIMO III hailing from St Thomas.
In the TOT Division (time-on-time), the J/70 MINI-CACHONDO will be sailing with Jose Teixidor and his San Juan team against yet another eclectic fleet of boats- from BOTOX BARBIE (a Hunter 54) to GUILT TRIPP (a Tripp 26) and KASTOR POLUX (a Moorings 4300 cruiser). Finally, a healthy fleet of fourteen IC 24s (modded J/24s) are sailing, the largest class in the regatta. Notable teams include TEAM LINE HONORS led Taylor Canfield from St Thomas YC, current US Sailings #1 ranked Open Match Race sailor; Marco Teixidor from San Juan helming CACHONDO; and Colin Rathbun from Road Town, BVI sailing TORTOLA EXPRESS. Sailing Photo Credits- Ingrid Abery. For more St Thomas Regatta sailing information- http://www.stthomasinternationalregatta.com Or, Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/rolexregatta
Quantum J/70 Winter Series- Act III Preview(Tampa, FL)- This coming weekend, the third and final act of the popular 2014 Quantum J/70 Winter Series takes place on Tampa Bay, hosted by the “sailingest yacht club in the south”- Davis Island YC. From March 28th to 30th, the grand finale for forty-one J/70s determines not only the regatta winner, but the winner of the “whole enchilada”— the Overall Southeast Series Champion (plus J/70 World’s qualifying spots- 2 Open, 2 Corinthian).
For the past two regattas (one in January and the other in February), it’s clear the fleet has experienced a combination of crazy weather and different teams showing up to challenge regatta leaders. The series leader (both “Open” and “Corinthian”) going into the weekend is local hotshot Rob Britts sailing HOT MESS from Davis Island YC with a total of 106 pts. However, the HOT MESS team’s position is tenuous at best if you recognize who’s sitting just behind them. The top four boats are just separated by 9 pts. Two points back is Mark Ploch’s SUGAR DADDY from American YC with 110 pts total, third is Jud & Cindy Smith sailing AFRICA from Eastern YC with 112 pts and fourth is Rob Butler/ Martie Kullman sailing TOUCH2PLAY with 115 pts. Fifth is the Werner/ Barnash team on SUPERFECTA from Rochester YC standing on 128 pts. There is no question a premium will be placed on sailing fast, smart and consistently to simply hang with the leaders. Expect to see the top four take the proverbial roller-coaster ride this weekend as the series championship is on the line.
With two Corinthian qualifying spots on the line, there’s a notable increase in this division going into the final regatta. In fact, the fleet is split nearly 50/50 between the Open’s (21 boats) and Corinthian’s (19 boats). There have been much improved performances by some of the Corinthian teams over the past few regattas, particularly if you take into account those teams that have also sailed the Midwinters in Key West, St Petersburg NOODs and Bacardi Miami Sailing Week. Britts’s HOT MESS team is clearly leading the pack, but it’s encouraging to see John Brim’s RIMETTE crew from Fisher’s Island YC moving up the ladder along with Noel Clinard’s LOONATICTU and Blake Kimbrough’s NOSTALGIA from Fishing Bay YC.New boats joining the ranks in the Open fleet are Tom Londrigan on POLARIS, Dan Cheresh on EXTREME and current J/22 World Champion Al Terhune sailing DAZZLER from Annapolis YC. Perhaps the big question for the weekend is, will Joel Ronning’s crew on CATAPULT from Wayzata YC in Minnesota continue their winning ways (having just won San Diego NOOD last weekend)? Or, will Henry Brauer’s SCAMP team, Mark Ploch’s SUGAR DADDY gang, Jud & Cindy Smith’s AFRICA crew or Al Terhune’s freshly-minted DAZZLER group hop atop the podium as regatta winners?
Perhaps the biggest challenge for all sailors on Tampa Bay this weekend will again be a less than favorable weather forecast. With yet another “El Nino”-driven low pressure system driving across the southeastern U.S., the Friday/ Saturday forecast for thunderstorms and southerly winds of 10-20 kts may pose issues. But, Sunday at least looks promising with winds veering behind the front into the northwesterly quadrants with 8-15 kts winds. Hopefully, the fleet gets in a full complement of races to complete what has been a fun series for the teams that have participated all winter. For more Quantum J/70 Winter Series sailing information
BVI Spring Regatta PreviewWarm Racing- Cool Parties- Hot Music
(Tortola, BVI)- The BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival, the regatta known for “warm water and hot racing”, is now upping the ante with its “cool parties”. Join them April 3rd to 6th in the Regatta Village and dance in the sands of the beach at Nanny Cay to the sounds of different music genres melding with the warm breezes and the swaying palms. Join hundreds of local sailors, family and friends as you relax after a day of world-class racing around the green islands of the BVI. Reward yourself with an ice-cold Corona or toast a successful maneuver with a frosty flute of Veuve Clicquot as you watch the sun sink into the turquoise waters.
The fun starts with a Mount Gay Welcome Party on Thursday evening. Before the band begins, an Aerial Performer will dance above the sands as Aragorn’s Fireballs light the night sky. Then the strains of music from Final Faze will fill the village.
Friday, after a full day of some of the best racing in the Caribbean, the boats will be welcomed back to Nanny Cay by the steel pan band, Shooting Stars. That should get everyone into the Caribbean groove and start their night under the stars. Absolut will present the Singing Chef, Al Broderick, and the Last Resort Band.
Saturday will be another perfect race day. The evening will commence with the always-popular swimwear fashion show. This will showcase the designs of Kristin Frazer, born and raised on the beautiful island of Tortola. Her “Trèfle” brand celebrates the beauty of a global culture and shows luxury swimwear for men, women and children. Then spend the night with internationally acclaimed artist, Quito and the Edge known as the “heart and soul of the BVI” and enjoy Quito’s unique spin on reggae music.Sunday wraps up the racing and allows participants to celebrate after three days of fun, but competitive sailing. The Moko Jumbies will dance and play with the young (and young at heart), as visitors and participants gather for the award ceremony. The sailors will enjoy the final night entertainment by Showtime presented by Heineken. Join the Heineken Team as they provide special activities under the Heineken tent in the village.
With all this, and more, going on, why would you want to be anywhere else? Go to Nanny Cay and enjoy the warm water, hot racing and cool parties! Can’t imagine why anyone experiencing one of the coldest winters on record in the northern hemisphere would rather be driving a boat than a desk at this moment!
The 43rd edition of “the BVI” has a truly international cast participating in the fleet of 87 yachts. There are competitors from all over the world including: Australia, Antigua, Canada, Curacao, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Monaco, Puerto Rico, Russia, St.Lucia, St.Maarten, Switzerland, USA and the US Virgin Islands.
Uniquely, the BVI Spring Regatta race course takes place in the Atlantic Ocean, the Sir Francis Drake Channel and the Caribbean Sea. “The regatta is really spoiled for choices when it comes to course design,” commented Bob Phillips, Chairman of the BVI Spring Regatta. “We can provide short sharp windward leeward for one-design and race tracks for performance cruisers and production yachts. The BVI Spring Regatta really can provide racing that suits just about anybody, all in an outstanding location.”Joining the fleet are ten J’s covering the spectrum of the fleets, many of whom will have seen great sailing (and practice) at the previous St Thomas Regatta. The CSA Spinnaker Racing class has 5 J’s in a fleet of 18 boats. Leading the charge should be Rick Wesslund’s J/122 EL OCASO, followed by Steve McManus J/120 SUNSET CHILD (ex- El OCASO), Jordan Mindich’s J/105 SOLSTICE, Robert Armstrong’s J/100 BAD GIRL and Paul Davis’s J/27 MAGNIFICENT 7. How they all stack up on a handicap basis will be an interesting story in contrasts based on the type of courses and wind/ sea conditions.
The CSA Performance Cruising sees 4 J’s in a fleet of 11. Joining Stanford Joines’s J/36 PALADIN from St Croix, USVI and Tom Mullen’s J/95 SHAMROCK VII from the St Thomas Regatta will be Cynthia & Eduardo Ross-Luaces’s J/30 J.DOE from Miami, FL and Henry Van Melle’s J/46 JENT from Breskens, The Netherlands.
Finally, the CSA Jib & Main (white sails) division has the custom J/120 JAGUAR with Ben Jelic from St Maarten as the sole J in an eighteen boat fleet. For more BVI Spring Regatta sailing information
New York Corporate Sailing League Open House(New York, NY)- The Corporate Sailing League in New York Harbor is entering its fourth season, offering a unique format for busy professionals to enjoy the harbor for recreation. Sailing in front of the Statue of Liberty and the skyline of Manhattan, corporate teams will again gather this season on Thursday for some fun and spirited races.
For anyone interested in forming a team at their company, there is an Open House on April 3 from 6 to 9 p.m. sponsored by Mount Gay Rum. Representatives from the eight current teams will narrate a slide show of the program. A question and answer session will follow. Find out how sailors got their teams started. To receive an invitation to the Open House, send an email to mike@myc.org with your name and company.Corporate teams race on J/24 sailboats provided by Manhattan Yacht Club. The club keeps a fleet of two dozen identical J/24s at North Cove. The fleet is equipped with a mains, genoas and jibs. Teams provide their own corporate spinnakers. If you need help getting your team up to speed, the club can connect you with volunteer skippers and crew.
Perhaps the highlight of the New York City Corporate Sailing League is the “Honorable William Wall,” the floating clubhouse in the harbor. While teams compete adjacent to the clubhouse, co-workers, clients and friends come out to watch the action. Spectators ride out to the clubhouse on a launch and can order drinks while cheering for your team as you sail by. Please contact Michael Fortenbaugh at mike@myc.org or 212-786-3323 and http://www.myc.org
King Harbor Race Week Preview(King Harbor, CA)- From March 28th to 30th, Los Angeles are sailors will be kicking off their sailing season with competitive racing in King Harbor. It’s fun filled regatta that features not only on-the-water racing but excellent post-race hospitality with live music. If you’ve never been to KHYC, try it some time, they really do know how to entertain sailors (hint- imagine the fun times sailors have had after the Santa Barbara to King Harbor Race!). And, for those sailors that need a “refresher” on sailing off this spectacular point that protrudes far into Los Angeles Bay, don't hesitate to ask any Ullman Sails representative (regatta sponsors) about Ullman Strategy & Recipe notes for "How to Win in King Harbor".
There are a nice mix of local and visiting teams sailing in the regatta. In PHRF A class, the J/111 JATO sailed by the team of Bill Webster and Mike Moorhead from host KHYC is hoping to get the season going with a good performance. They will be faced with having to hold off a strong challenge from a top J/109 that sails the SoCal regatta circuit, Alice Leahey’s GRACE O’MALLEY from California YC.PHRF B division sees a mix of J/70s and J/80s vying for class honors. Craig Tallman from host KHYC is sailing his J/70 JAYA against the famous DFZ from San Diego YC- led by Alex Kownacki and Cole Jenkins. Past winner Curt Johnson from California YC is skippering the J/80 AVET against Dave Angers’s MISS DEMEANOR. In short, two interesting duels are shaping up for this weekend’s regatta at King Harbor, both with near sisterships in size and speeds— J/111 vs J/109 and the 70s vs 80s! Should be fun sailing for all.
For more King Harbor Race Week sailing information
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
Now that spring has officially sprung, the world of sailing seems to accelerate at alarming rates worldwide. It doesn’t matter where anyone happens to be, with spring events in the northern parts and late summer/ fall events taking place in southern parts, the world of sailing activity is exploding everywhere.Starting in Europe, the sailors are emerging from a tough winter and are getting onto the water to get ready for major events coming up soon— like next week! The J/80s in the Netherlands completed their winter long series called the Grevelingen Cup. Their colleagues in France have just completed their final leg of training on their J/80s in La Trinite sur Mer, France in preparation for next week’s SPI Ouest France in La Trinite. Also taking place were preparations for many teams sailing the hugely expanded Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga, the famous sailing league pioneered last year with J/70s. One of the host clubs, Hamburg Segel-club was having training sessions on the beautiful Alster Lake with their J/22s. In the meantime, several J teams had a successful weekend sailing on the Solent in the Warsash Spring Series. One-design fleets of J/70s, J/80s, J/109s, J/111s are racing the two month long weekend series.
Leaping over to the far, far side “of the pond”, we find the J/24s just completing their North American Championship in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The J/24 teams were treated to insanely gorgeous sailing conditions all week on Bahia de Banderas. Moving north along the Pacific Coast, we find that several intrepid J sailors tackled the newly reintroduced Double-handed Farallones Race with several good performances. Lastly, the gang up north in Seattle, WA sailed the classic spring race- the Three Tree Point Race.
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:
Mar 16- Apr 27- Warsash Spring Series- Warsash, EnglandMar 28-30- Quantum J/70 Winter Series- Davis Island YC- Tampa, FL
Apr 5-6- J/Fest San Francisco- St Francis YC- San Francisco, CA
Apr 10-13- Charleston Race Week (22, 24, 70, 80, PHRF)- Charleston, SC
Apr 17-21- SPI OUEST Regatta- La Trinite-sur-Mer, France
Apr 26-May 3- J/22 World Championship- Deneysville, South Africa
May 2-4- Annapolis NOOD Regatta- Annapolis YC- Annapolis, MD
May 16-18- J/22 North Americans- Annapolis YC- Annapolis, MD
May 16-18- Seattle NOOD Regatta- Seattle, WA
May 24-26- Swiftsure Race- Royal Victoria YC- Victoria, BC, Canada
May 27- Jun 9- Delta Lloyd North Sea Week- Scheveningen, Netherlands
May 28- Jun 1- J/22 Europeans- Cameret-sur-Mer, France
May 29-Jun 2- Italian J/24 Nationals- Tirano, Italy
May 30- Susan Hood Trophy Race- Mississauga, ONT, Canada
May 31- Delta Ditch Run- Stockton Sailing Club- Stockton, CA
Jun 6-8- Chicago NOOD Regatta- Chicago YC- Chicago, IL
Jun 6-9 Norseewoche- Heligoland, Germany
Jun 9-15- Normandy Sailing Week- Le Havre, France
Jun 13-22- Cleveland Race Week- Cleveland, OH
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
Ingham Crowned J/24 N.A. ChampionSailors Enjoy Spectacular Mexico Sailing Conditions
(Riviera Nayarit, Mexico) – The Riviera Nayarit greeted competitors with stunning sailing conditions for the thirty-seven teams from Brazil, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Monaco, Peru, Sweden and the United States. For the entire event, the sailors enjoyed clear skies and warm sea-breezes starting off around 6-8 knots and steadily building to 12-14 with gusts to 16 kts— all 150% class genoa weather all week. Incredibly, it was one of those near postcard-perfect regattas many sailors dream about, perhaps the epitome of the Mexican “siesta fiesta” approach to life— wake up late, breakfast at 10am, go sailing at 12pm as the light sea breeze builds, enjoy a few laps around the cans with friends and foe, sail back in for amazing post-race libations and even more stunning evening parties under the stars. As they say, “lather, rinse, repeat”! Bahia de Banderas can, indeed, deliver some remarkable experiences.
Enjoying it all more than most and soaking it all in was Mike Ingham’s newly-minted 2014 J/24 North American Championship crew on DIGGER- Tim Healy, Enrique Pirez-Cirera, Marianne Schoke and Max Holzer. It was a masterful performance for them, posting an impressive scoreline of 1-2-3-1-4-1-1-1 for only 14 pts. Behind the big winners, the second through fourth positions were separated by only two points and it all came down, literally, to how they finished the last race. Surviving the wrestling match by grabbing a 4th in the last race, American Tony Parker’s BANGOR PACKET from Annapolis, MD finished second with 31 points. Ian Ilsley’s JOBBIT crew from Monte Carlo, Monaco took a 3rd in the finale to secure third with 32 pts. Coming up short of the podium was Mauricio Santa Cruz’s BRUSCHETTA of Brazil; they’re 8th race DSQ dramatically affected their chances for an “easy silver”, instead taking 2nd in the last race to settle for fourth with 33 pts.
Rounding out the top five was an excellent performance by the German team, JJ-ONE sailed by Jeronimo Landauer. The top Mexican team was Ken Porter’s COMEX team, taking sixth overall. Top Peruvian team was Jimena Gavino Barbieri skippering JITANA into seventh. The Italian team, led by Giovanni Campi on ALEBRIJE, finished twelfth, sailing well and much improved from their last outing to Mexico a few years back. The Swedish team’s appropriately named boat- FOR FUN- took 19th under the able leadership of their rockstar skipper Andreas Olovsson.As for the winners, Ingham is no stranger to sailing in the Riviera Nayarit, having raced three Copa Mexico’s as well at the 2007 J/24 World Championship. “When this regatta was announced, I didn’t have to look at my calendar. No matter what else was on it, I wouldn’t miss this,” Ingham said. He noted that although he has personally sailed with each of his teammates, the entire crew had never raced together before this event. He praised the conditions, saying, “I’ve probably sailed 60 days in Mexico, and we’ve never missed a day of racing, and I’ve never worn a spray top. I love the 1:00 p.m. starts, with the thermal every day!!” Sailing photo credits- Jen Edney For more J/24 North Americans sailing information: http://j24mex.com/nac2014_copamexico
Wet & Woolly Warsash II(Warsash, England)- To say there was a distinct turnabout in conditions for the second spring series race would be an understatement for the intrepid teams that gathered together to go sailing on the capricious Solent. From the “shorts & shades” balmy weather of a week ago, “wellies, woollies & slickers” were the chosen armour on a chilly weekend that brought a mixture of sunshine and heavy rain or hail showers and a strong breeze. Inevitably this took its toll on boats, equipment and sailors but the race officers set tight challenging courses keeping all the crews busy – and warm. To the course setters’ delight, this week the wind remained constant allowing true beats and runs for all classes throughout the morning.
Given a forecast north-westerly of 13-20 kts with gusts to 26 kts and just two hours after low water at the starts, the Black Group committee boat took up station at North Ryde Middle buoy. IRC1 and 2 were given a 16 mile course with 11 marks, alternating long and short legs. Although many starts were close, with jostling on the line, they were all clear. Tidal tactics were important crossing the main channel between Peel Bank and South Ryde Middle. The sun appeared from time to time but so did the lively squalls accompanied by rain and hail.
In IRC 1 class, after nearly three hours’ racing, the J/111 J-DREAM sailed by David and Kirsty Apthorp finished 26 seconds ahead of sistership JITTERBUG sailed by Cornel Riklin. Notably, this tight finish was produced after JITTERBUG had paused to stand by an MOB situation where JITTERBUG, quite rightly, requested redress from the RC/ Protest committee. With seven J/111s vying for position, the standings are getting interesting already. JITTERBUG is leading the class with a 1-2 for 3 pts and J-DREAM has now jumped into second position with a 4-1 for 5 pts. The biggest gainer week over week was Will Naylor’s crew on BRITISH SOLDIER, taking a 7-4 for 11 pts.
There was a full turnout of entries in the J/109 class although again two boats failed to finish. Paul Griffiths’s JAGERBOMB again performed well to chalk up a second win followed by David McLeman’s OFFBEAT. Third on the day was Dave Mcgough’s JUST SO. As a result of this weekend’s performance, it looks like the JAGERBOMB crew have the “magic dust”, sailing fast and staying out of trouble in the corners. Chasing them hard for the series is OFFBEAT with a 3-2 for 5 pts, now lying in second overall. Just behind in third is Marcus Wilson’s RED ARROW team with a steady 4-5 for 9 pts.In IRC 3 division, Nick and Adam Munday’s J/97 INDULJENCE continue to lead their class by just one point after posting 1-4 scores for 5 pts. And, in IRC 4 class, David Greenhalgh’s J/92 J’RONIMO is sailing a consistent series with finishes of 3-4 for a series total of 7 pts, just 4 pts out of first.
On the White Group sportsboat division for J/70 and J/80 the wind built from 14 to 20 knots in the half hour before Race 1. Competitors stayed well back from the line, helped by the first of the flood tide. All the same they were too close for comfort from the committee boat which weighted the anchor chain down and laid an inner distance mark. At times during the squalls visibility dropped considerably so that the committee boat lost sight of the windward mark at one point. At the latter part of the morning the wind dropped equally suddenly from 26 to 9 knots, making it all quite challenging.
At the J/70 start Boats.com (Ian Atkins) impeded JOSEPH’S COAT (Marie-Claude Heys) and so took a two-turn penalty but nonetheless went on to win this and the remaining two races. DJANGO (Malcolm and Tristan Jaques) took second in Race 1 and then Joseph’s Coat took seconds in Races 2 and 3. The top three boats are quite close in the series standings, separated by only two points! Simon Cavey’s JUST4PLAY still leads with a 1-1-1-5-3-3 scoreline for 14 pts. Tied for second at 16 pts each are DJANGO with a 2-2-2-2-4-4 tally and JOSEPH’s COAT with 3-3-3-3-2-2 in six races.
The J/80 BOYSTEROUS had spinnaker trouble right at the final turn of Race 1 and was swept down towards Lee-on-Solent in a broach, gallantly struggling with sheets wrapped around the rigging for several long minutes before making it back to the committee boat to finish fifth. Another J/80 JASMINE decided to call it a day having completed Race 1. BETTY (Jon Powell) gained a hat trick of wins despite being over the line and needing to return in Race 3. At this stage, BETTY has surged to a 5 pts lead with 5-2-1-1-1-1 scores for 11 pts total. Behind them, it’s a jumble with teams trading places back and forth race-by-race. Mike Lewis’s JESTER is currently second with 3-4-2-3-2-2 for 16 pts and Patrick Liardet’s AQUA-J is lying third with 2-3-3-2-4-3 for 17 pts.After a tiring but exhilarating morning competitors were pleased to swap stories in the Warsash Sailing Club bar later where Jonathan Broad from Brooks Macdonald presented champagne to the weekly class winners. The Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series returns on 30th March with a reminder for competitors that British Summer Time starts that day too. Thanks for contribution from Louay Habib.
For more Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series sailing information
J/80 JOIE DE VIVRE Wins Grevelingen Cup(Grevelingen, Netherlands)- This past Sunday saw the last four races of the Grevelingen Cup Winter Series, an event that spans 20 races in all starting in late fall of 2013. In the end, Laura Vroon’s JOIE DE VIVRE team were declared the overall Grevelingen Cup Champions.
The last weekend produced some very tight racing amongst the top boats. Coen van Veen’s NJOY sailed spectacularly, claiming three bullets to take over second place in the series standings. Bernard Holsboer’s JUUL was very close to them in the standings and came out on the last weekend with “knives drawn” hoping to catch them. However, the plan backfired after having contact with JACARE in one race and in another they suffered an OCS false start— as a result their chances for second overall evaporated quickly. JACARE didn’t exactly have their best season, a combination of lack of height and boat speed meant there was nothing on board they could do to overcome this problem.
What was typical of the whole series was that the boats in the middle of the standings sailed very closely together. A single error in the "boat-handling " resulted directly into losses in the standings. The level of competition continues to rise within the class in the Netherlands. In the end, it was difficult to overcome JOIE DE VIVRE’s speed, good boat-handling and smart sailing— congratulations to Laura Vroon’s team on JOIE DE VIVRE! For more J/80 Grevelingen Cup sailing information
In the meantime, their Spanish J/80 friends down south were sailing the III Circuito J80 Sotogrande. Where’s that one might ask? Sotogrande is the largest privately owned residential development in Andalusia. Originally a gated community, it is located in the municipality of San Roque, Cádiz, Spain along the famous Costa del Sol. The J/80s had a beautiful weekend doing some practice racing and training. Here’s the sailing video on their J/80s
J’s Cruise “Three Tree Point” Race
(Seattle, WA)- Sailing Instruction 8.2 – the phrase of the day for the final race of Corinthian Yacht Club of Seattle’s Center Sound Series, the Three Tree Point race. High pressure set up over the region Friday and “Following the old rule of thumb,” says Northwest Yachting’s Expert Weather Guru Bruce Hedrick, “the first day that the ridge of high pressure starts to build over the Northwest is the day you will have the best breeze from the north….then every day after, the breeze drops and… In other words it looks pretty much like light and variable breeze” for the race.
Turnout dropped for the final race in the series, bringing 49 boats out to the line Saturday morning in the light southwesterly breeze. SI 8.2 – the S flag was up, the course was on the reader board and as the starts began rolling off the line you began to see who had read the SI’s, who had enough coffee, and who was paying attention. “Fun challenging day on the water,” says Ballard Sails’ Joe Grieser. “Interesting to see what boats read the sailing instructions and which ones didn't.”
As the keeners sailed off towards West Point and the first mark in the now shortened course – Duwamish Head, a good third of the fleet sailed off to Bainbridge. One could argue they were heading west for breeze, a possible wind shift from the NW or some current relief away from the Duwamish wash and the fairly substantial ebbing tide. One could argue maybe one or two of these boats was doing just that, but as Kirk Utter, sailing aboard Terremoto explains “we were sailing to Three Tree Point! We had no idea the shortened course was being used until we got to about Restoration Point. Once we saw the early starters rounding the day marker we reached across, lost a few places with the extra distance but in the end didn’t do that bad.”The keeners that read the SI’s and noticed the S flag and course sign worked their way up around West Point trying desperately to avoid the ebbing current in their light South Easterly breeze. Eventually becalmed under Magnolia the keener fleet was left drifting while the winds still pushed the boats south along the Western side of the sound. Then, finally, a light westerly filled in along Magnolia and as the western boats lost their breeze the keeners were back in the game sailing off towards the Duwamish Head day marker under genoa and spinnakers.
Then it was time for the puff chasing, spotty beat back around West Point and off to Meadow Point, the second mark in the shortened course. The trick became keeping the boat moving towards the strongest small zephyrs while finding the strong ebbing current lane as it combines with the Duwamish wash and most importantly avoid running aground in the mud flats off of Magnolia!Once around West Point boats played the line between current and wind, still a Northwesterly without the standard lift along the Shilshole breakwater. Boats were finally able to sail in along Shilshole about halfway up the breakwater and a few tacks later they found themselves rounding Meadow Point with the beautiful sounds of the finish blasts as the RC shortened the course again at the second mark in the course. The nimble and light Farr 30’s lead the charge along the breakwater and across the finish line while the big IRC monster trucks worked up their transoms, finishing just minutes behind them.
All in all a fun spring series. The IRC class saw the J/160 JAM owned by John McPhail take second overall. Division 3 was sailed away with by the J/120 TIME BANDIT, owned by Bob Brunius. Stuart Burnell’s J/109 TANTIVY easily took the day in Division 5. Correcting almost 12 minutes in front of the J/35 TAHLEQUAH. The battle of the J/105’s in Division 6 was once again won by Erik Kristen and crew aboard #114 JUBILEE finishing less than a minute in front of Jerry Diercks #272 DELIRIUM. Division 7 was dominated by the always fun and loud J/29 BEER & NOW. Finally Division 8, a hotly contested and competitive class, was won by Hood River Yacht Club’s Andy Mack and crew aboard their J/27 TRUE NORTH. Thanks for contribution from Ben Braden @ SailNorthwest.com and Sailing photo credits- Jen Edney in Seattle, WA.
J/Teams Win Doublehanded Farallones(San Francisco, CA)- A number of J/Teams sailed this years Doublehanded Farallones Race and performed quite well, with two boats winning their divisions- a J/111 and a J/105! Here’s the report from Erik Simonson’s Pressure-drop.us blog:
“With the the 35th edition of the B.A.M.A. hosted Doublehanded Farallones race we kick off the 2014 offshore season. Run since 1978, the DH Farallones followed the SSS's Singlehanded Farallones by a year, providing an opportunity for those who like company, just not too much of it, when venturing out to the rock-pile.
It has been BAMA's contribution to the sailing community, and has for all intents and purposes, been dominated in number by monohulls. In it's prime, 1984, the Doublehanded Farallones attracted 144 competitors but has seen numbers decline after the economic bubble burst, removing numerous sailors from the affordability of owning and maintaining a seaworthy vessels, increasing costs and safety equipment required. This year's 53 boats is five boats smaller than in the two previous years which each saw 58 attendees. That's still plenty, and keeps the volunteers working the race deck, the internets and positions up high in the Marin Headlands and Lands end monitoring and ready to relay communications in event of an emergency.
With an 0800 1st gun at the GGYC the Race Committee saw goose eggs on the wind-o-meter and went into postponement. Despite what some of the models predicted, the breeze was a no show for the most part, hoping for better conditions made sense. The ebb had maxed at 0730 and if the RC was to get the 35th running going, it was imperative to get the boats out before the tide reversed. At 0845 the Multis got their gun and it was a light air luff-a-thon to get out to favorable current, and at least get swept out the gate if you could not sail out. By about 0920 the 1st Tri's passed under the Bridge, ghosting along would be a generous description. 15 minutes or so passed before the largest monohull hull, California Condor would eek out in similar conditions.About 1000 a slight southwesterly began to fill, aiding boats in the bay more than those who had exited earlier. What we saw then was a condensing of the fleets, and the light sportboats and ULDB's taking advantage of the conditions. According to some sailors, things actually looked good from Bonita with 10-12 knots showing, but by the time they reached the light bucket, it was down to 5-6 knots, and died shortly thereafter. The boats which were able to get in range of the Islands benefited the most.
Sergei Podshivalov was sailing his J-105 JAVELIN in the DH Farallones for the 1st time, was one such benefactor, and as a result sailed to a corrected time victory in PHRF 4. Here are some of Sergei’s observations:“It was my first time going to Farallones, so I was intent to make it even we had to finish at midnight. Had plenty of food on board to prevent the crew mutiny.
We did few timed drifts before the start, concluded that the StYC breakwaters would be a good a place to be at 5 min warning. Had anchor ready, but didn't have to use it, were maybe 5 boat length away from the line at the gun. Better be safe than sorry :-)
Luckily it was enough breeze to clear the South Tower, eventually the pressure has built up and once we were 5 miles out of the gate the wind veered such so we were fetching the islands.
The happiness didn't last that long. The wind dropped to 4 kts or less, we just stopped and drifted north west with the current. Even jellyfish of which was plenty around was moving faster than us. Need to learn how to make J/105 moving in the light wind. Saw some other boats around making knot or so.
At 2:45 the wind built up again, to reasonable 8 kts and we started to move. Half an hour late we had to crack off to fetch the mark. Too bad too much distance was lost due to this northerly drift and inability to make the boat to move.
We rounded the islands at happy hour, wind blowing 16 -18 kts at 5 pm, then immediately jibed and set the kite (their course looked something like this).Apparently this wind angle was very favorable to J/105, we were able to beeline to the Golden Gate on a very hot reach, rounding up every so often, but still moving at about 10-12 kts boat-speed. Other boats either kept going with the jib, or carrying the kite but leaving the mark to windward.
Once we reached Point Bonita at 8:15, the wind started to die down to 6-8 kts and was almost behind us. Eventually we had to heat up and then jibe. Close to the bridge the wind increased to 18 kts we rounded up right by the South Tower, but fortunately missed it!
As soon as we went past the Golden Gate the wind calmed again, so we went inshore jibing back and forth to avoid the ebb. We soon crossed the finish line and opened a well-earned cold beer!”
In addition to Sergei and his team-mate Randall Landaiche’s fantastic performance, the J/111 SYMMETRY sailed by Howard Turner and Jay Crum took Class 3 honors, too. Both boats won were considered to be the most competitive divisions in the race, proof again that the asymmetric spinnaker J’s like the J/111 and J/105 make for superior offshore performance in double-handed events! Sailing photo credits- Erik Simonson- Pressure-drop.us For more Double-handed Farallones sailing information
French J/80 Training- Part IV
(La Trinite sur Mer, France)- The dozen J/80s that participated in the latest sail-training weekend off La Trinite were in for a real treat. Coaching the teams all weekend were Eric Brezellec, multiple winner of the J/80 Coupe de France and Aymeric Belloir, winner of the last Mini-Transat and Figaro Solo— two very impressive and knowledgeable sailors!
Even better, Mother Nature provided great sport for the sailors. How about beautiful partly sunny days with winds of 15-27 kts on Saturday and 20-30 kts on Sunday! The conditions were perfect for surfing and planing all over the courses and many people learned how to sail much faster in conditions the Spanish J/80 teams have become so famous for in the past.On Sunday, the teams focused a lot on boat-handling and boat speed, then had three short races to apply their newfound skills and knowledge. In fact, towards the end of the day, the winds kept getting stronger and even forced a sportboat regatta on the Bay of Quiberon to cancel and return to port. Nevertheless, several J/80s kept sailing!
The level of competition in the French J/80 class continues to rise with the arrival of several champions from other classes. The expectation is the level of competition improves enough for another good showing for French teams not just in SPI Ouest coming up next weekend, but ultimately in the 2014 J/80 World Championship that is taking place in Annapolis, MD USA.
Top honors for the weekend goes, again, to Matthew Solomon sailing EV CATASCOOL with a 1-2-2 score for 5 pts! Just behind was Telesto’s ECOLE NAVALE with a 2-3-4 for 9 pts in second place and in third was local Trinitain sailor Yannick Tabarly with a 3-4-3 for 10 pts. Rounding out the top five were Morgan Lagravière on SAFRAN in 4th and Jerome Croyère on RUBAN VERT in 5th. Thanks for the report from Arnaud Walter- from Arno Skipper / Sport Boat Regatta. For more J/80 sail training information
J/22 Germany- Training for Segel-Bundesliga(Hamburg, Germany)- With beautiful, almost summery weather, the Hamburg Segel Club trained for the upcoming Segel-Bundesliga on the club's J/22s. If you recall, the H.S.C was one of the hosts for the 2013 version of the Segel-Bundesliga sailed on J/70s on the Alster lake. The H.S.C. will again be hosting the season-ending regatta from October 31st to November 2nd on the lake.
The H.S.C. is taking their preparations seriously this year and have had two of their teams practicing on courses similar to what was used in last year’s Bundesliga. Both teams have focused a lot on short-course training. Fast maneuvers were practiced to learn how to take advantage of the opponent and place them in positions that are difficult to escape from.
According to the coaches, the training has gone well and have been very focused but fun. Helping on the course and performing “jury duty” are Thorsten Mocker and Svenja Hünsch. The two teams are the following:
- Team JOHANN- Max Gurgel (skipper), Daniel Zenker (bow), Thorben Strube (cockpit)
- Team JETTE- Anke Scheuermann (skipper), Bernadette Zipfel (cockpit), Lamberto Cesari (jib), Gabi Feldberg (bow)
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* J/24s sailing in the middle of the Arizona desert at Arizona YC? A place renowned for armadillos, rattlesnakes, tumbleweed that can knock a car over and gigantic scorpions that, if stepped on, happily sting you to death?! Nevertheless, right there on Lake Pleasant, just a short hop from Phoenix, Arizona are several J’s sailing on the beautiful lake ringed by magnificent mountains. It’s a fun, active group of J/24s, J/27s and J/80s. We recently got an amusing update from the captain of MERMAID RESCUE, a famous J/24 down in those parts sailed by Victor Felice and many happy friends. According to Victor, “yes, there is such a thing as the “Arizona Yacht Club”. Yes, we do race– a lot, and in incredibly diverse (and sometimes adverse) conditions. The only constant is the weather is always great!
I race my J/24 MERMAID RESCUE and there are two others here. There are also three J/80s– two always race. And, there’s a well-sailed J/27.I know we are not San Francisco, Monte Carlo or the BVI, but considering we are in a desert, the quality of our racing can be quite impressive.
MERMAID RESCUE in particular is known as being “the boat to be on” if you want to race, learn how to race or have an amazingly good time on the lake.”
When we asked Victor how the boat got its name MERMAID RESCUE, he said, “Ah yes.. the name. A couple of years ago at Club Med in the Turks & Caicos, my best friend and I were trolling the beach on a Hobie F18 looking for 'hot chicks n stuff'. Sadly all we found were older tourists (that should’ve kept their clothes on!); and not attractive at all. I said "this is terrible, lets sail out to the reef and rescue some mermaids.” A few months later, I told my friend I was buying a boat. He said no, you are not - I said yes I am (ad nauseaum). In the end a deal was done and I bought the J/24 in San Francisco and it was called GRAY JAY. We felt a name change was in order. So, the last time we had sailed, we were rescuing mermaids- so to speak. And that's how she got her new name (and the graphics of course!).
Maybe it is my impeccable sailing skills, or the 'attractive' image on the side of the boat, but just say "J/24" at Lake Pleasant and the reply always is "Oh! Mermaid Rescue!" Works for me! All the best from Phoenix, Victor.” For more J/24 MERMAID RESUCE info, photos, videos Other J/Boats on the Lake can be seen here.
* A “photo-drone” was recently seen following the J/105 fleet in last weekend’s St Francis YC Spring One-Design Regatta. It turns out Beto Lopez (of Moon Cricket Films) was flying his aerial quadcopter DJ-1 Phantom 2 Custom with GoPro on-board and captured some very cool perspectives on the fleet racing down the waterfront. Check out this cool sailing video hereAs you can see in the close up of JAM SESSION #434, it shows the main halyard is way, way over-trimmed and it’s over the top black band!! Oh dear.
According to Beto, “I was flying out to 2,000 feet from shore to follow along the racing boats of San Francisco Bay from the Marina Green. I was in 98% FPV (first person view) mode- using “heads-up” type goggles. In the end you can see me when I take the FPV goggles off while the quadcopter is landing. I can actually fly FPV 100% from take-off to landing.More videos coming soon. Surfing, skate boarding, fog shots in San Francisco, beaches, sunsets, cross country road trips etc. Hundreds of hours of aerial footage I still need to edit.” You can see more of Beto’s work here.
* J/88 training sail off The Netherlands— just recently, Wessel van der Wef was incredibly excited to go sailing their new J/88. Said Wessel, “our first little regatta, first part of the day we trained some, doing boat-handling and tested the upwind speed. Then we had some training regatta together with J/92s. Finally, we where at first at the upper mark, and down wind much faster, but that is as it should be.What we learned- still a lot to learn, we need to be faster on the boat and learn all the boat-handling and get used to each other on the J/88, and get used to the J/88 itself!” Check out some of the J/88 sailing videos below.
First Day Sail off Drimmelen
J/88 Sail-Training video
J/Boats Benelux Presents J/88 sailing video
* J/Sailors Jim Cunningham and J/HQ’s own Bryn Bachman managed to capture the Etchells 22 US National title recently off Miami, FL (seen here leading off the starting line in bow #38). Forty-seven teams competed in the 2014 Etchells U.S. National Championship on March 21-23, hosted by Coral Reef Yacht Club in Miami, FL. After completing six races over the first two days, Jim Cunningham with crew Jeff Madrigali, Mark Ivey, and Bryn Bachman held a four point lead over Glenn Burton with crew Bruce Nelson and Jon Easley. On the final day, suitable winds failed to arrive and the series results were final. In third was Don Jesberg with crew Scott Mason and Ed Wright. Sailing photo credit- John Payne.J/Cruising Community
J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers. Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.
* Jim & Heather Wilson just completed a circumnavigation of our "blue planet Earth" in June 2013 on their J/42 CEOL MOR. Said Jim, "The odyssey of CEOL MOR is over, for now. We completed our circumnavigation on our J/42 when we crossed our outbound track in Britannia Bay, Mustique. We were, however, still 2,000 nautical miles from home. So we continued on through the Windwards, the Leewards, and then through the British Virgin Islands. After a farewell 'Painkiller' at the Soggy Dollar, and a last meal at Foxy’s, we made the 1,275 nautical mile passage to the Chesapeake and completed our port-to-port circumnavigation when we arrived in Annapolis on June 28, 2013. We had been away 1,334 days, completed 259 days of ocean passages, and sailed 30,349 nautical miles (34,925 statute miles). Read more about their adventures in their well-documented blog here: http://www.svceolmor.com/SVCeolMor/Welcome.html
* J/160 AVATAR headed for the Caribbean, again! We LOVE these updates from our cruising J sailors that continue to criss-cross the Seven Seas. This one comes from Alan Fougere, sailing his beloved J/160 AVATAR. Alan sent us an email update commenting on their passage south this winter, "In mid-December AVATAR completed her sixth transit to her winter Caribbean home, Grand Cruz Bay, St. John, USVI (seen above) from her home port in Quissett (Falmouth), MA. A crew of three, Captain Alan (e.g. me), Crew Pablo Brissett and Mark Conroy, covered the 1,500 nm trip in in her best time to date- 7 Days 5 Hours, averaging 8.7 kts, that's about 208 nm per day! Amazing passage it was! Rainbow at right far offshore was some of the amazing phenomenon we experienced on this fast offshore passage.AVATAR will participate in the BVI Sailing Festival/Regatta again in 2013, where last year she won the Nanny Key Cup Cruising Class race around the Island of Virgin Gorda. Here are some photos for you to share with the J/Community at-large. Enjoy!"
Best, Alan Fougere/ AVATAR
* Bill & Judy Stellin recently had an interview about cruising on their J/42 in the Wall St Journal called "Retiring on the Open Sea". The Wall St Journal asked Bill to reply to dozens of questions that flooded into the WSJ's Editor desks. Here's the update:Retiring on the Sea: Answering Readers' Questions
Advice about selecting a boat, ocean crossings, itineraries and safety
The article in our WSJ Online December retirement report about eight years spent sailing the Mediterranean— "Retiring to the Open Sea"— prompted many questions and comments from readers. We asked William Stellin, who wrote the story, to answer some of the most common queries.WSJ- "What kind and make of boat did you use? Looking back, would you have picked a different boat?"
Bill- "In 1995-96, J/Boats of Newport, RI, came out with a new cruiser/racer model, the J/42. We bought hull No. 6 of this popular 42-foot sailboat and named it JAYWALKER. This was our fourth boat since beginning sailing in 1975.
Although long-distance cruising wasn't what we had in mind when we purchased JAYWALKER, it soon became apparent it had the ability to carry us easily and safely anywhere we wanted to go. Because the boat is light, it sails well in light winds, which means very little motoring is necessary.
People often ask (and argue) about what boat is best for cruising. Any boat that is strong, safe, fast, comfortable and easily handled by two people should fit the bill. One thing for sure, fast is fun—and important when trying to avoid bad weather."
READ MORE ABOUT BILL'S INSIGHTFUL COMMENTARY AND THOUGHTS ON WSJ ONLINE HERE
* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand. Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/
* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.
* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between. Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins?? Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).- Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun). Read about their latest adventures as they've gotten to New Zealand- "Avante Cruises the Pacific".
- Eric and Jenn on the J/160 MANDALAY also sailed the Pacific archipelago, read more on their blog at http://www.sailmandalay.com. Eric and Jenn are J/World alumni took MANDALAY up and down the West Coast (Mexico, CA), then to the South Pacific and New Zealand. MANDALAY is back in San Francisco now, and in the J/World fleet--she is available for skippered charters, private instruction, and corporate/executive groups.
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So kids can learn more about “Jaws”, you can have the kiddies enjoy the “Live Shark Experience”! Sharks have captured our imagination for thousands of years, stirring the fears and fascination of ocean sailors, researchers and scientists. Their legacy has long been misunderstood, learn more about them, touch them, talk to them, feed them at the Shark Tank!
For adult’s culinary experience, they’re offering a “Craft Beer Garden”- for tasting the very best in Texas “craft beers” each day at the Show with the purchase of a “tasting token”.
The 32nd edition of the biennial San Diego to Vallarta International Yacht Race started off Shelter Island, with Class 3 and 4 leaving on Friday (Mar. 14) and Class 1, 2, and Multihull departing on Saturday (Mar. 15). Both days provided summer-like conditions for the sailors to begin their 1000nm southerly slide toward beautiful Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Tom Siebel’s MOD 70 trimaran set a new course record in what amounted to moderate breezes all the way down the track, finishing is just 2 days 8 hours.
Team HAMACHI crossed the line at dusk on Wednesday, finishing at 18:02:12 PDT. Hamachi had a great run Wednesday, avoiding the wind holes that held up much of the fleet closer to Cabo and put themselves in a great position to win the upcoming MEXORC Regatta being sailed on Bahia de Banderas.
The other excellent performance of the regatta was the Argentina Sailing Team that took the silver medal. The Mendieta Argentine team led by Pancho Van Avermaete (and crew Rafael De Martis & Geronimo Van Avermaete), had been leading the regatta for awhile, but lost the lead in the last two races. The Argentine’s record was 5-2-1-2-4-2-1-1-5-5, discarding a 5th, for 23 pts net.
* J/92s sailing off Portofino, Italy! We recently got a nice note from Marco Cohen, owner of the J/92s DAJENU that is based in Portofino. Said Marco, “Ciao from Portofino! My lovely J/92s lives in one of the most beautiful ports on Earth! 
* Best wishes and our empathies to Hans Fogh’s family and relatives. Hans was a wonderful person, a great sailor and a long-time friend of the “J/Family” (seen here sailing a J/70 in Royal Canadian YC "beer can" race). Here’s a note from his sons (Morten Fogh & Thomas Fogh): “Our father passed away on Friday, March 14 in the early evening peacefully. It's been a painful loss for our family, but we have received so many correspondences from all corners of the globe, which we appreciate very much. It's great to know that our father touched so many people in such positive ways.”
Hans came to Canada with the encouragement and support of long-time friend, Paul Henderson, who managed to lever Hans’ former career as a gardener to become a sailmaker. Hans went on to build one of the most successful sail lofts in the world under the Elvstrom, Fogh and North banners. His involvement in the development of the original Laser sail and the subsequent Laser Radial sail are only the beginning of his many well-known accomplishments in the sport.
* Eight Bells: Steve Black, founder of the Caribbean 1500 rally, long-time friend of the J/Family (he and Bob J sailed a J/35 together to win the New England Solo/ Twin Offshore Race one year), died March 17, 2014 following a long personal battle against cancer. He was 71 years of age.
Black also undertook volunteer tasks such as founding the Lake Michigan Single-handed Society, where he ran the races and conducted seminars to educate interested sailors. This led to the end of his 15-year publishing career and a three-year stint as executive director of the US Sailing in Newport, Rhode Island.
However, his biggest legacy will be the Caribbean 1500 Cruising Rally, which first set sail in 1990, with a fleet of 50 cruising boats sailing from Newport, Rhode Island and Norfolk, Virginia to Virgin Gorda, in the British Virgin Islands.