Video Highlights for 2015 29er World Championship.

Day 4
Zhik 29er World Championships 2015 Day 4 from Fleye Aerial Film & Photography on Vimeo.
Day 3
Zhik 29er World Championships 2015 Day 3 from Fleye Aerial Film & Photography on Vimeo.
Day 2
Zhik 29er World Championships 2015 Day 2 from Fleye Aerial Film & Photography on Vimeo.
Day 1
Zhik 29er World Championships 2015 Day 1 from Fleye Aerial Film & Photography on Vimeo.

Day 3 Video Highlights - 2015 Laser North American Championship

View complete results Here

Day 2 Video Highlights - Laser North American Championship at SailNC

Day 1 Video Highlights - Laser North American Championship at Sail NC

Lakewood Yacht Club’s J-Fest Southwest Regatta

Lakewood Yacht Club’s annual J-Fest Southwest Regatta began on Saturday, November 2 under Northerly winds in the 20-25 knot range producing the usual big chop. Sunday’s 16-20 made for somewhat better conditions for the 59 J-Boats registered. 

The largest class was the J/24s with 13 - Bryan Dyer’s RumLine came out on top with 13 points, followed by Stuart Lindow’s Tropical Aggression with 17 points and Bill Worsham’s Happy Dance with 19 points.

The J/70s were the second largest class with 12 - the Pasquinelli/Wilson team on Stampede came out on top with 10 points, followed by Chris Lewis' GB with 18 points and Scott Spurlin's JBoats Southwest with 21 points. Six races were held.

The 8 J/105s on the line survived with only minor damage to sails and hardware. Saturday saw Bee Bednar's Stinger hold on to first place with Matt Arno's Blue Flash in second and Uzi Ozeri's Infinity in third. Sunday's 16-20s made for somewhat better conditions but resulted in a reversal of fortunes for the top three boats. Infinity came out on top with Blue Flash in Second and Stinger in third. Six points separated the top five finishers.

The J/80 and J/22 classes were both represented by 7 boats.  For the J/80s, the GC/Quantum Races team of Terry Flynn and David Whelan came out on top with 10 points followed by Luke McAllum's Parson's Project with 18 points, Kurt VanderWall's Hendrix with 19 points and Forbes Durdin's Mojito with 20 points. Kurt VanderWall also won the regatta's Road Warrior award for bringing his boat down from Colorado's Dillon Yacht Club.

The J/22 Class was dominated by Casey Lambert's Blackburn Marine Racing with 6 points, followed by Dov Kivlovitz with 13 points, and Chris Morlan's Tilt with 17 points. 

There were two PHRF Classes for the Symetrical and Asymetrical Spinnakers.  The 5 boat PHRF (Sym) Class was dominated by Chris Alk's on the J/27 Footloose with 5 bullets.  Followed by Glenn Stromme's Press to + MECO J/29 FROB with 12 Points.

While in the 7 boat PHRF (Asym) fleet, Kevin Hayes and Mike McGaugh's J/92 finished first with 11 points, followed by Albrecht Goethe's J/109 Hamburg with 16.5 points, and the maiden outing for Rod Johnstone's J/88, It's a Thrill with 19 points.

Once again, Lakewood Yacht Club hosted a spectacular event complete with a "Ragin Cajun" shrimp boil dinner on Saturday night and a raffle that included J/World tuition, Torqueedo outboard, and a Velocitek Speed Puck. 

Event website with complete results are here

Cressy Trophy SAISA Eliminations

Forty eight high school sailors travelled to Florida Yacht Club in Jacksonville, FL, from across the Southeast to compete to qualify for the Cressy Trophy finals.  They enjoyed highly competitive sailing, great food and a great venue.  The Jacksonville University Sailing Team served as the official host and head coach, Jon Faudree, was both an on-the-water judge and provided on-shore coaching and guidance for the young sailors.  

The weekend opened with practice on Friday in a strong Southeasterly sea breeze on the St Johns river.  This was the only time the sailors were able to hike extensively. The remainder of the weekend was marked by challenging conditions in light and oscillating breeze with varying pressure.  James Pulsford battled it out with Erik Weis in the eight boat full rig fleet.  Over 15 races they traded races back and forth until Pulsford won the last race and the regatta.  Both St Thomas Aquinas sailors, along with Patrick Shanahan from Shorecrest Prep qualified to go to the finals in Newport later this year.

In the radial fleet two young ladies took advantage of the light winds to post consistent finishes and take the top two spots convincingly.  Louisa Nordstron, Pine View High School, and Hannah Steadman, Shorecrest Prep, beat up on the boys over the course of 13 races.  Consistency, and avoiding fouling and being over early were keys to success at this qualifying regatta.  The third qualifier, Nick Baird, Shorecres Prep, overcame an OCS, to finish third.  

All six qualifiers, along with the rest of the fleet, demonstrated a high level of sailing all weekend. 

Results

Edgartown Yacht Club's Race Weekend Offers Something for Everyone

This Year's Edgartown Yacht Clubs Race Weekend combined a Big Boat Buoy Races on July 18-19 for 25 yachts followed by the annual 'Round The Island Race with  62 competitors. 
Big Boat Buoy Race Results Here
'Round-The-Island Results Here
Read the full  Sail-World Regatta Report Here

Classic Double Damned

The Hood River Yacht Club welcomed 21 sailors from three states to the seventh annual “Double Damned" race from Cascade Locks to the Dalles, Oregon. We are looking forward to another epic race next year!  Results here, and full regatta report online at Pressure-Drop.US here. 

2013 Laser Atlantic Coast Championship

(June 10, 2013) – 117 Lasers were at Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club on Long Beach Island, New Jersey, for the 2013 Laser Atlantic Coast Championship. Clay Johnson, defending champion in the Standard rig, put up a string of all top 10 finishes in the 57-boat fleet to win again over Nick Valenty (2nd) and Bryant Wood (3rd).  In the 48-boat Radial fleet it was Liam McCarthy, Jeffrey Glosenger and Gram Kilvert. The 12-boat 4.7 fleet was won by Elizabeth Hansen followed by Emily Wright and Margaret MacCormack. Full results


Reprinted from Sailing Scuttlebutt Sailing News

Hot Fun In The Summer Time Ends With Cold Dash Of Reality

Stockton, CA (June 10, 2013) – The annual Delta Ditch Run was hotter then hell in some stretches with just enough wind to keep things moving east in in other places and with a good push at the end for the high raters. First place on corrected time was Navasana (Ventura YC), skippered by David Paudler finishing in 07:42:58; in second was Misbehavin in PHRF4 (South Beach YC) skippered by Brian Green in 07:48:41; and third went to Moore 24 Eclipse (Richmond YC), skippered by Bill Erkelens in 07:55:32.

Jonny Goldsberry became the first to sail the 67 nm Delta Ditch Run from Richmond to Stockton on the Foiling Moth, unofficially, starting with the faster Cat Class, Division G. Goldsberry finished sandwiched between Charles Froeb’s Hobie 18 Chaos and Control, and Andy Costello’s LS 32′ Lightspeed in and unofficial time of 5:54:32. Although not a legally sanctioned contender under the Ditch Run rules, Jonny was supported by his dad in a chase boat, and seeks to get a full moth fleet next year, officially recognized or not…

But all the joy and fun which the race and party provided to hundreds of sailors was tempered following Saturday night’s celebrations at the Stockton Yacht Club (SYC), as news spread that the body of a sailor and SCC member – Nolan “Noe” Goodman, was recovered late Sunday.

Goodman passed away Saturday night or early Sunday morning, apparently falling overboard or off the dock in the wee hours next to his parents boat at the Stockton Sailing Clubs marina. He was spending the night on the vessel and only after he failed to show up in the morning did a frantic search ensue with speculation that he might have hopped on a boat headed back to the Richmond Yacht Club. Unable to locate him, the family filed a missing person report, and the unthinkable thought that he might have fallen overboard became a reality. The Stockton Police came to the Club and request the assistance of the Stockton Fire Department’s Dive team, which located Noe’s expired body 10′ from the family’s boat in 10-15 feet of murky water. Full report


Reprinted from Sailing Scuttlebutt

Terhune Dazzles J/22 Midwinters

(Tampa, FL)-  Allan Terhune of Arnold, MD helmed DAZZLER to the lead on the first day of the J/22 Midwinter Championship in Tampa, Florida and never looked back. Ideal conditions greeted competitors from fifteen teams at Davis Island Yacht Club on the first day, with breezes in the 5-15 kts range under sunny skies and temperatures in the low 70s. From their the weather hung in there, despite one cloudy day.

Terhune's DAZZLER dominated the competition to win by fourteen points. Racing with Allan were Katie Terhune, Jeff Linton and Louise Neuberger. Terhune dropped his lowest score of only four and kept a line of 3,1,1,1,1,1,2 for just ten points in the eight race series. He was quick to praise the host Davis Island Yacht Club, saying "We couldn’t have had a better three days of sailing—warm, good breeze, challenging and fun!"

Chris Doyle of Kenmore, NY finished in second place with 24 points, and Casey Lambert of Seabrook, TX came in third with 28 points. The Maryland-based DAZZLER led from day one in the 15-boat fleet, and Terhune voiced that it was "unfortunate for anyone who missed this fun regatta. The Race Committee was great, and the social events were all fun." The J/22 Class is gearing up for its 30th anniversary with their J/22 World Championship this October in Newport, RI.

Terhune was happy to start off his year in such an exciting manner. "We were able to work on our team work and tuning, and start off the season right,' Terhune said. 'We’ve started our road to Worlds!"

In the final day of racing on Saturday, winds averaged around 14 knots in race eight, and then increased to a sustained 28 so race nine was abandoned. Terry Flynn’s TEJAS won the day’s only contest, trailed by Terhune and Doyle.

The top five were 1st Allan Terhune (10 points), 2nd Chris Doyle (24), 3rd Casey Lambert (28), 4th Terry Flynn (30) and 5th Chris Wientjes (36). The J/22 Class extends its appreciation to Davis Island Yacht Club and its volunteers, including PRO Mike Dawson and Regatta Chair Trista Snook. Complete results are available at J22 Midwinters.

(reposted from http://j22news.blogspot.com/)

J/22 Southwest Circuit - Lake Canyon Yacht Club

The J/22 Southwest District launched the 2012 season with the first stop of their 7 race circuit March 24-25 at Canyon Lake Texas. The event also marked an innovative change in format for the LCYC circuit stop. In an effort to build the fleet, the district decided to break the event into two separate events - Rather than two days of races for circuit standings, this year's event was one day circuit regatta of two to four races, and a one day skill and fleet building event.

Saturday's conditions were light and shifty, however Bubba Horner and his Race Committee managed to get two races completed before the winds totally died out.

Sunday's event paired the top skippers from Saturday with the skippers from the back of the pack to work on trim and boat handling skills in an effort to raise the bar for the entire fleet.

As second place finisher and District Governor, Brant Koepke put it, "The next time the team I sailed with on Sunday have a question at a regatta, they will feel confident to walk up and talk to me about what is going on with their boat."

Full Results

The Border Run 2012

Press Release March 13th 2012 - “An amazing sight!” Those were the words that both spectators and a thousand racing sailors were saying as organizers of the 2012 Border Run started over 200 boats all at the same time in one single start off the Balboa pier at 11:30 am Saturday morning March 10th.

“We went to great lengths to create five lines in one, for three courses, almost one mile long, to make for a safe, efficient and exciting starting line for our Border Run racers” said John Marshall, Commodore of SSYC, the organizing authority for the event.

“SSYC did an incredible job in starting the huge fleet in a way that has not been done before on the West Coast. It was spectacular to watch two hundred boats hit the line all at the same time.” said Bob Long, co-founder of the event.

“The start had my heart pounding as we found our spot on the line” said Randy Reynolds sailing his 33 foot catamaran CAT ATTACK II. “What a thrill to be sailing with 200 boats at one time and knowing how you stack up to your competition without a rolling start. The crew was smiling from ear to ear and the adrenalin was pumping as we watched all the boats sail off the line. It really was an amazing sight.”

After the exciting start, the wind challenged sailors as the south wind stayed on the bow making the race an upwind battle for all three courses until the wind died to a whisper once the sun went down. On the Short and Long Course to San Diego only half the fleet finished with the other half enjoying the full moon and flat seas as they motored to the party at Silver Gate Yacht Club, this years venue for the San Diego trophy party.

John MacLaurin’s 70 foot Pendragon VI was the fastest on the Long Course finishing after 10pm on Saturday with Phillip Infelise’s Mile High Club finishing just after 3am Sunday morning on the Short Course. On the 14-mile Sprint Course, hosted by DPYC, the fastest elapsed time boat was Greg Ketterman in a Hobie Adventure trimaran.

The Big Winners for 2012 are:

Long Course - Newport to Coronado del Norte to San Diego

ORR Overall John MacLaurin Pendragon 6 16:31:39
WC 70 ORR Andy Rasdal Valkyrie 17:06:02
WC 70 PHRF Andy Rasdal Valkrie 16:32:43
PHRF Overall John MacLaurin Pendragon 6 15:12:33
J120 Class Mike Hatch J Almighty 20:37:42
Farr 40 Class Gordon Leon Foil 21:55:57
Best Elapsed Time John MacLaurin Pendragon 6 11:29:36

Short Course - Newport to San Diego

PHRF Overall Phillip Infelise Mile High Klub 14:01:00
XS Multihull Terry Wepsic Razzle Dazzle 20:53:40
XS Monohull Michael ReYe Cocktail 19:38:19
CRUZ Class Chad Downey Elixir 17:09:45
Best Elapsed James Wert Twister 14:22:28
Cal 40 Class Jerry Finnegan Celebrity 20:59:42

Sprint Course - Newport to Dana Point

Best Elapsed Greg Ketterman Gamma 3:18:52

For Full Results, photos and videos of the 2012 Border Run go to www.TheBorderRun.org


Overview of The Border Run International Sailing Event

With 223 boats entered in this years 2012 Border Run, it seems the Southern California yachting scene may have a new favorite sailing event. The Border Run, that begins in Newport and heads to Dana Point (the Sprint course), or to San Diego (the Short course) or San Diego via the Coronado del Norte Island (the 90 mile Long Course), has provided So Cal sailors with a viable race that satisfies appetites for long-distance racing.

The annual race is in its fourth year and has grown to over 200 boats since it’s inception in 2009. What started as a response to one of the founders being excluded from the Newport to Ensenada has become an event whose tag line is “where everyone’s invited”.

“It’s funny how things work out,” said co-founder Randy Reynolds. “It gave us the opportunity to put together an event with new elements and components we thought the racing community would want. We’re delighted with the progress of the event and in the end have a good relationship with the Newport to Ensenada organization.”

Reynolds believes one of the key reasons why the event has become so popular in such a relatively short time is the fluidity in which they approach each year’s contest. While some yacht races are steeped in rigid traditions and formulas, the Border Run continues to experiment with ideas that they believe respond to the changing nature of the sport itself.

This year they employed a single start concept. Most races begin a rolling class-by-class start, but in an effort to make this particular start more fun and exciting, organizers had the entire fleet begin at the same time.

“We’re looking to find ways that make the event special,” said co-founder Bob Long. “We’ve offered multiple course options, a European style start, a special course to challenge dinghy sailors and we’re always looking for unique elements for the parties.”

Reynolds and Long are also visibly proud when they speak of the charity aspect of the event. Last year the Border Run raised money for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society and this year competitors raised over $19,000 for both LLS and local charity City2 Sea that provides free education in the ocean sciences and an introduction to sailing to at-risk children.

“I have to say, being a part of something that not only allows for a great time for those involved, but also raises awareness and money for these charities is really a great feeling,” Long said.

The 2012 Border Run is sponsored by Ullman Sails and outfitted by Pirates Lair. The Border Run team, consists of XS Racing of Huntington Beach, South Shore Yacht Club of Newport Beach (the Organizing Authority) and Dana Point Yacht Club of Dana Point. For more information go to www.theborderrun.org or call 800-366-8584. For first hand video of the racing check out over 40 videos of the start and live racing currently still going on at:

Border Run TV

Chris Doyle Wins J/22 Midwinter Championship

Chris Doyle of Kenmore, NY won the J/22 Midwinter Championship in a tie-breaker over local Terry Flynn.  The two teams battled during all four races on Sunday, both ending the regatta with 12 points.  Doyle, sailing with Will Harris and Jason Suitor, won the championship thanks to two bullets on day one.  Travis Odenbach rounds out the top three with 18 points. The weather was glorious on Galveston Bay on Sunday. The sun returned, and breezes started around 5-7 knots, increasing to 10-15 as it moved right. In the day's first race, Flynn earned the top spot, followed by Allan Terhune and Doyle. Travis Odenbach won Sunday's second race, as Terhune lodged another second and Nick Turney came in third.  Eric Faust took honors in the next race, trailed by Flynn and Chad Wilson.  Terhune won the closing race, with Flynn and Doyle behind. The top five: Chris Doyle (12 points), Terry Flynn (12), Travis Odenbach (18), Allan Terhune (23), Scott Young (29). Thirty-five teams competed in the event, under the guidance of PRO Jack Yoes.  Thank you to the Houston Yacht for hosting the J/22 Class.  Visit www.j22mw.com for complete results.

J/105 Midwinter Championship

Local Bill Zartler raced Solaris to a dominant victory at the J/105 Midwinter Championship in Seabrook, TX. Finishing with just 10 points over seven races, the team won five of the races, and scored a second and third in the others. 

Solaris won Sunday's only race, as a storm forced an end to the regatta in the late morning. The top four overall were comprised of local sailors, with Bill Lakenmacher on Radiance in the runner-up position (21 points), Uzi Ozeri on Inifinity in third (29 points) and Alan Bates on Zippity in fourth (34 points). Following Zartler, Bates's Zippity came in second in Sunday's race, trailed by Lakenmacher's Radiance. Twelve teams competed in the annual event, held for the first time at the Lakewood Yacht Club in Seabrook, TX. Competitors enjoyed favorable breeze throughout the championship and multiple social opportunities on shore for the fleet to interact. The J/105 Class would like to thank the Lakewood Yacht Club for hosting, and Dwight Bengtson and his Race Committee for their excellent race management. Visit www.j105mw.com for complete results.

Melges 24 Worlds Corinthian at Corpus Christi Yacht Club

The final day of the 2011 Melges 24 World Championship in Corpus Christi, Texas saw the regatta come to a close with some thrilling racing action out on the water. A third place in the first race of the day for reigning world champion Lorenzo Bressani on ITA 817 Uka Uka Racing, was enough to see him retain the title he won in Tallinn, Estonia last year, with a race to spare. Despite not sailing the final race, Bressani's overall winning margin was still a massive 23 points - a real indication of just how comprehensively the Italian has dominated this regatta.

A solid second and a fourth today for Brian Porter on USA 749 Full Throttle was good enough for him to secure second overall. Porter, who started the series with an uncharacteristically poor first day, fought his way up to second during the week with a determined and consistent performance.

The battle between Alec Cutler on BER 655 hedgehog and Nathan Wilmot on IRL 607 Embarr, for the final podium place really went down to the wire. Lying in fourth place, 7 points behind Cutler going into the final day, Wilmot gave himself the best possible chance of a place on the podium by winning the penultimate race of the championship. Cutler finished that race back in seventh, meaning that he held a tenuous single point lead over Wilmot going into the final race. The final race scrap between these two was a real classic, with Cutler leading the fleet for most of the race and Wilmot having to fight his way back from eighth place at the first windward mark. On the final run Cutler initially looked to have done enough to win the race and claim third overall, however in the last third of the leg everything changed at the front, with Cutler appearing to fall out of the best pressure and allowing a pack of four boats to overtake. Kristen Lane on USA 812 Brick House 812 was furthest right boat and perfectly positioned to capitalise on the new breeze. She came through to take her second race win of the week, ahead of Eivind Melleby on NOR 804 in second. Behind them Wilmot, Porter and Cutler all approached the finish line abreast, with Wilmot diving down at the last second to take third by what looked like just the width of his bowsprit block, from Porter in fourth and Cutler in fifth. Wilmot's last-ditch efforts elevated him to third overall in the regatta, with a disappointed Cutler having to settle for fourth, just 1 point behind. Kristen Lane's final race win, earned her fifth overall, 3 points adrift of Cutler.

As reigning World Champions, Bressani and the Uka Uka Racing crew went into this regatta as the firm favourites, a mantle they more than lived up to during the championship. Their performance this week has been nothing short of remarkable, winning six out of the twelve races and never finishing below sixth in any of the races they sailed. Tactically astute throughout the series, they started well in virtually every race and both upwind and downwind they always appeared to hold a speed advantage over their competitors. Bressani's victory this week is his third in the Melges 24 Class, an achievement also matched by both team owner Lorenzo Santini and tactician Jonathan McKee. Trimmer Federico Michetti goes one better, now with a record breaking four Melges 24 World Championship wins to his name. Not to be outdone by his crewmates bowman Fabio Gridellie is now a double Melges 24 World Champion.

In the all amateur Corinthian Division, Eiichiro Hamazaki on JPN 783 closed out an comprehensive victory with two more race wins to secure the 2011 Corinthian Melges 24 World Championship title by a margin of 17 points over second placed Christof Wieland on GER 635 Unsponsored. Scot Holmgren on USA 674 Rosebud took third place on count back, having tied on points with fourth placed August Hernandez on USA 533 High Voltage.

Our final Pusser's Painkiller Wipeout Of The Day Award, sponsored by our wonderful long standing sponsor Pusser's Rum, goes to Warkwick Rookly and the Australian crew of Bandit for their hooking of the weather mark in the final race of the series. Happy fishing boys! Huge thanks to Pusser's Rum, represented here this week by the fabulous Jamie Jackson, for all the great Pusser's Painkillers and for making this very entertaining award possible. All our winners have greatly appreciated their Pusser's prizes and the press team have had huge fun selecting the winners!

The final day of the championship also saw the announcement of the winners of the cash prize in the Velocitek $1000 Speed Challenge for the fastest speed achieved by a boat using a Velocitek device on Friday. With both David O'Reilly on USA 700 ARDOR/C.R.E.A.M. and Bora Gulari on USA 820 New England Ropes/West Marine recording maximum 10 second average speeds of 16.9 knots, the competition went to tie break, with O'Reilly winning out by virtue of a maximum recorded top speed of 17.6 knots, compared to Gulari's 17.5 knots.

On behalf of all the competitors at the 2011 Melges 24 World Championships in Corpus Christi, Texas, the International Melges 24 Class Association would like to thank the Corpus Christi Yacht Club, Corpus Christi Marina, City of Corpus Christi, and the State of Texas, for their most generous Texan hospitality and all of their hard work in making this year's World Championship such a success. We would also like to recognise the contribution of the many individual sponsors of the championship whose support has been invaluable.

Reprinted from melges.com, May 24, 2011.

2011 Melges 24 World Championship Pre-Regatta at Corpus Christi Yacht Club

The concluding day of the Pre-Worlds Regatta at the 2011 Melges 24 World Championship in Corpus Christi, Texas, saw an unexpected return to the breezier conditions with which the venue is more synonymous, with the final two races being completed in 15 - 18 knots.

A 6,2 scoreline today for overnight leader Eivind Melleby on NOR 804 Full Medal Jacket, was enough to seal an overall win in the Pre Worlds Regatta. Melleby finished the two day series tied on points with second placed Lorenzo Bressani on ITA 817 Uka Uka Racing, who chalked up a win in the first race today before finishing fourth in the second race. A seventh and a sixth score today saw Nathan Wilmot at the helm of IRL 607 Embarr take the final Pre-Worlds podium position. The winning Corinthian, all amateur team was USA 15 Abordage owned and helmed by Erwan Le Gall from San Francisco.

The Melges 24 World Championship will take place at the Corpus Christi Yacht Club from May 11 to 21.
With racing in the main World Championship series scheduled to start in the morning, most teams spent the afternoon after racing today on boat preparation, final sail selection and planning for the week of racing ahead.

Soling Olympian and America's Cup sailor Espen Stokkeland, tactician aboard Full Medal Jacket, said that the Norwegian team were looking forward to the coming week. 'There are so many great teams here this week. The racing is going to be intense, with all of the top guys battling it out against each other. We expect the racing to be really close. It's going to be great.'

470 Olympic Gold Medalist Nathan Wilmot seemed content with his team's preparation in the lead up to the championship. 'This is my first Melges 24 regatta. It's been interesting so far. I think I need to learn to stay behind the line a bit more as we have managed two recalls in three races. The boats are great though - great fun to sail and close racing, a pretty similar style to the 470, other than you also have a backstay to deal with. All in all the Melges 24 experience has been really nice and we are looking forward to the week'.

AUDI helmsman Ricardo Simoneschi (ITA) appeared confident and relaxed on the eve of the main championship. 'As a team we are happy with the job we have done up to now. In terms of the venue, I think it is a very interesting place. We were told that the winds were generally very strong and quite steady here, but in the last few days we have already seen a variety of conditions and some quite big windshifts. So I think there will be plenty of tactical options and the racing will actually be quite open.' Simoneschi also noted that the steep chop which prevails in Corpus Christi presented it's own challenges. 'For sure the wave patterns here make life very challenging for the helmsman upwind in particular. It is very easy to let the boat slow down and you have to do lots of work with the mainsheet and the tuning of the boat to counter this.'

With so many strong teams competing, there is little doubt that this year's championship will be one of the most closely fought ever, and picking a clear favourite at this point is virtually impossible. The general consensus amongst the competitors at this evening's Opening Ceremony held at the Corpus Christi Yacht Club, was that consistency, starting ability and downwind speed were likely to be the key factors in determining the overall winner. There was also a general anticipation of some spectacular sailing ahead when the inevitable classic big breeze Corpus Christi conditions make an appearance.

J-22 Circuit #3/ Leukemia Cup Regatta

This weekend was the lake wide Leukemia Cup Regatta, hosted by the Dallas Corinthian Yacht Club. It is an annual regatta that raises money for the fight against leukemia.

After a week of the weather people telling us about the expected 20-30 mile and hour winds, we were all a little apprehensive about getting out there. It was windy early in the morning, but by the time we started, it was blowing about 3 mph. As it turned out, it became a beautiful day.

There were a total of 56 boats registered for the races. We were all broken up into 2 courses, with the Vanguard 15s and the Butterflys in the north end of the lake near CSC, and the Flying Scotts, Corinthians and miscellaneous in the south end of the lake.

Saturday was really busy for our group with the committee holding 8, maybe 9 races. I lost count. Many were short, too short, races. One of those races took only 7 minutes.

The Butterfly entrants were Amber, Frank, Sandy, Burton, Luigi, Brad and Shawn. Tom and Bruce were part of the race committee in the rescue boat.

On Sunday the weather had really changed. It was 70 degrees at 7:30 AM, and the wind was just ok. About 30 minutes later, it had changed to the north, started blowing at least 20, with a gust to 40. It rained and the temp was suddenly 52 degrees. When the committee blew the horn to signal that there would be no racing, a big cheer went up from the crowd.

Frank won the first place prize in the Butterflys, with Burton second and Sandy third. Congrats to them.

It was a very active and fun event.

Reprinted from Fleet20.blogspot.com, May 9, 2011

2011 Houston Yacht Club Offshore Race

The Houston Yacht Club's Offshore Race, previously known as the Freeport Triangle, was defined by a 100+ nm triangle course anchored by the Buccaneer Platform (180 degrees), the Freeport Texas Outer Sea Buoy (267 degrees) and the Galveston South 5A jetty marker (45 degrees). The unusually small spinnaker fleet consisted of a King 40 (Hot Ticker), a 1D35 (Tres Hombres), an Express 37 (Milleniumm Express), a J/109 (Surprise), a J/105 (Stinger) and a Catalina 36 (Island Time). Both the Catalina and the J/109 were forced to withdraw due to rig problems. Wind forecast was for 15-20 knots out of the South building to 25+ after midnight, but a more accurate prediction would have called for ESE winds ranging from 12-30+ knots. The start at the Galveston Channel 11 marker came off exactly as predicted at 13:00 with the J/105 hitting the line first about two boat lengths ahead of the 1D35. Stinger rounded the 5A marker first on her way to the Buccaneer platform and held her own with the 1D 35 for several hours. At approximately 7:30, she rounded Buccaneer in third (25 minutes behind the lead boat) and hoisted her 110 sq mt spinnaker in a surprising 12 knots of breeze. Running toward Freeport the wind began to build (20+) providing ample power for 13-14 knot surfs with steady 10-12 knot runs. The Freeport Outer Buoy saw Stinger within view of at least one of the lead boats and in good position to take over first in PHRF. After a beautiful douse in 23 knots of breeze, she rounded the mark with a excessively large 155% genoa on the furler. Unfortunately this sail was far too powerful for the 24+ knot breeze. Great crew work produced an almost perfect douse followed by a very fast head sail change. The 40 mile fetch back to 5A saw speeds in excess of 9 knots with gusts to 31 knots. For most of this fetch, the winds averaged 24 knots. After rounding 5A, Stinger finished under main and jib at 03:19:28 to take first place in the regatta. While the seas were rough and the spray was very wet, the awesome crew work made the win possible. The 24 nm run back up the Houston Ship Channel was done under main alone with a following 3+ knot current and average speeds between 8 and 9 knots.

Reprinted from J105.org Class News, 3-May-2011.

Loe Real Sets Border Run Long Course Record

NEWPORT BEACH -- 230 skippers and crews competed in the third annual Border Run April 9, racing everything from 90-foot catamarans to dinghies -- with many donating to a worthy cause at the same time.

Early morning hail on race day worried race co-founder Randy Reynolds. But by dawn, the sun and a decent amount of wind both made their presence known.
“A lot of hardy sailors showed up -- and we had 6 knots of wind at the start and up to 15 during the race,” Reynolds said.

Of the race’s 233 registered boats, 34 crews raised more than $50,000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS).

“Imagine what we could do in the future for this charity if everyone helped with the fundraising,” Reynolds said. “We’re really going to push that in the future.”

Three courses starting in Newport Harbor offered racing for boaters of every experience level, Reynolds said. The 91-mile International Long Course around Los Coronados islands finished outside San Diego Bay; the 70-mile Short Course took boaters from Newport Beach to San Diego; and the new 14-mile Sprint Course took small boat skippers from Newport Beach to Dana Point.

H.L. (Loe) Enloe’s 60-foot trimaran Loe Real set a new Long Course record, finishing in 7 hours, 48 minutes, 52 seconds elapsed time -- topping Mike Maloney’s R33 record of 7 hours, 57 minutes, 2 seconds set in 2009.

William Gibbs’ Afterburner finished the Short Course first with an overall elapsed time of 6 hours, 11 minutes, 37 seconds -- but was unable to beat the 2009 record of 6 hours, 7 minutes, 36 seconds set by Reynolds’ Cat Attack.

The fastest Sprint Course overall time was 2 hours, 21 seconds, by David Martin in his Hobie Cat 18, Sueno Majado.

“The 14-mile Sprint Course has a bright future, judging by those involved,” Reynolds said. “We had windsurfers and paddleboards, Weta trimarans, lasers, dinghies, catamarans, monohulls and multihulls.”

Reynolds said feedback was positive, and everyone involved seemed to have a good time. He was pleased to see participation from boaters near and far -- including Maryland and Canada.

The race was presented by XS Racing and assisted by several yacht clubs, including South Shore YC as the organizing authority, Southwestern YC as host of the trophy party and Dana West YC as host of the Sprint Course after-party. Reynolds expressed gratitude to the many sponsors and has high hopes for the future.

“Next year we hope to get more kids out there in the sprint course,” Reynolds said, going along with the Border Run’s “all-inclusive” philosophy.

Long Course top finishers include:

West Coast 70 PHRF
1st: Holua, Brack Duker, California YC; 2nd: OEX, Peter Tong, Long Beach YC; 3rd: Condor, Lindy Thomas, San Diego YC.

PHRF Light AA
1st: Medicine Man, Robert Lane, Long Beach YC; 2nd: Pendragon VI, John MacLaurin, California YC; 3rd: Katana, Laura Schlessinger, Santa Barbara YC.

Short Course top finishers include:
XS Light A
1st: Cat Attack II, Randy Reynolds, Lido Island YC; 2nd: http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifHoku Lani, Mickey Ryan, San Diego YC; 3rd: Afterburner, William Gibbs, Pierpont Bay YC.

PHRF Light A
1st: Dare, Kettenhofen, Balboa YC; 2nd: Heartbeat, Charles Brewer, Newport Harbor YC; 3rd: CoolManCool2!, Ken Johnson, American Legion YC.

Sprint Course top finishers include:
XS Mono
1st: Holder, James Conner, Oceanside YC; 2nd: Pendragon, Howard Lewis, Dana Point YC; 3rd: Bolero, Rich Fischbeck, Balboa YC.

For full results, go to regattanetwork.com and click on “results archive.”

Reprinted from the Log California's Boating and Fishing News.
By: Heidi Kulicke Thursday, April 14, 2011 11:44:00 AM
Last updated: Thursday, April 14, 2011 11:44:00 AM