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J/24 2007 News J/24 Program Overview || J/24 News || J/24 FAQs || Tuning Guide || Contact J/24 Experts || Order
See also:2006 Regatta Reports |2005 Regatta Reports | 2004 Reports | 2003 Reports | 2002/2001 Reports
J/24 Sails
This past weekend (September 8-9) the Portland Yacht Club and Fleet 43 hosted their 22nd annual Downeast Regatta in Portland, ME. Sailed on Casco Bay this was once again a first-class event, serving also as the State and District 1 Championship. 29 J24's competed in four races over two days in some extremely challenging conditions. WInds shifted across 90 degrees between races on Saturday and went from solid 10-15 knots down to barely moving. Sunday was just as crazy, with prevailing wind directions from almost 180 degress in the other direction with steady drizzle and much cooler temperatures ruling the day. Thanks to the ring of islands the chop was limited to 2-3 feet at most, but currents are strong in the area so at times just a few boat lengths to one side or another could dramatically change boat speed between competitors.
Onboard 'On the Beach' we were fortunate to have pulled together a lot of improvements on our boat this year (had our keel worked on and a new mast this spring), and had all our 'regulars' on board for this, one of our favorite events. We've been coming to this regatta since 2001, and the friendly atmosphere, fantastic lobster clambake and great racing make it a must for us every September. To cap it all off, we took delivery from Will Welles a full set of new sails (Newport spinnaker, genoa and main) the week before. After shaking them out Thursday night in Newport at our usual Fleet 50 race we packed up and headed North. The difference in our accelleration and 6th place finish (out of 23 boats that night I think) were a good indication that things were in good shape.
I've been with the skipper, Lee Buress, since 2001, and after moving through just about every other spot have settled in as trimmer since last year, contributing as much as I can to tactics as well. I still feel like a 'new guy' but after lots of reading, picking Will Welles' and Chuck Allan's brains whenever I can, I'm starting to feel like I'm getting the hang of it. We set the rig for our anticipated 10-15, headed out and tuned up with fellow Newport boat 'Dogfish', skippered by Bob Kinsman (also a North-equipped boat). Bob and his crew have been doing really well this year, so we felt good about our speed next to his. After a couple of second-row (and thankfully) general recall starts, we really hit it on the real thing. Perfect start, got out to the right with good air and really started moving. Our speed and pointing were right there, and we rounded in 5th or 6th. One of the hallmarks of the Downeast Regatta is 5-leg windward-leeward races with absolutely no chance that they will shorten the race. On one hand it's good to have a chance to make up ground, but if you're out in front it's a lot of time spent looking over your shoulder biting your nails. As it happens, we used the length to good advantage, picking off a couple of boats on the first downwind leg and a couple more with a solid upwind beat. We rounded 3rd behind the Fleet 43 leaders 'Mr. Hanky' and 'Second Chance' - both really strong and consistent boats. We held our position for the last two legs, finishing 3rd. We were pretty happy with that, to be sure.
Between races things got odd, to say the least. The wind dropped and started shifting back and forth from the channel to the SSW, sort of a usual source of the sea breeze, and from the direction of Cow Ledge and more off the land. You could tell as it shifted because the breeze would go from a nice cool feel to just plain hot. The temperature was around 80 and in the bright sun it was just mean when it got hot. After a lot of moving around the wind (and the race committee) finally settle down and a course was set. Our wind diretion was almost back to where it started and we were off. One thing nagged at Lee and I about it though - while the right side was almost always favored with the wind from the SSW, we took a quickk look up the course on other side and saw that a couple boats far up on the left were carrying a lot of heel where some boats on the right were pretty straight up. That combined with an outgoing tide made us change our strategy just as the warning signal went off.
Another fantastic start and we took off on starboard for our new course out to the left-hand side. The only other boat to carry out with us was '5357' (I think it's Slam, but they just had the number on the registration and results list). In any event, they sailed a fantastic race. We chased them around for 5 legs and managed to keep 'Mr. Hanky' at bay long enough that he finally had to peel off to defend against 'High Five' (another great boat out of Marblehead). We finished 2nd, 'Mr. Hanky' was 3rd. Conventional wisdom cought most of the fleet off to the right, showing just how important it is to not let habit overcome getting your head out of the boat and looking around. Not being afraid to follow what we saw put is in exactly the right place, right when we wanted to be there. Racing was done for the day, and we were in great shape only 1 point behind, and no crazy mishaps on the day. As we've been in this position before in this regatta and gone on to really shoot ourselves in the foot with a horrible mishap of one kind or another the following day, we were still really nervous. Somehow, though, the Saturday night festivities always have a way of calming that.
Sunday came with overcast skies and cooler temperatures - I don't think it got above 65 or so. We spent a lot of time looking over conditions and retuning the rig - we decided on setting for lighter air but were still expecting it to be a around 10-12. The wind was from the North, so we were setting up facing the opposite direction from the day before. The pin looked good, and we had a great start, popping up at the last second and doing a great job winning the pin. Unfortunately our radio batter was dying, so we were left with that uneasy feeling about being over early, but decided to carry on. It was a tough call - we had an OCS last year that killed our overall results, but this time we were a lot more confident that we were OK.
On the first beat we were able to keep good clear air on the middle-left of the course, and were crossing boats easily. Our only worry was a couple of boats out to the far right. We thought that they might find something over there with the current in their favor on the first leg as the tide was still coming in. It wasnt' enough though - it was a similar situation to the day before, except this time we were just ahead of '5357' and 'Mr. Hanky' was just behind them. Sticking to the left side paid off the entire day - clear air, less current and steadier breeze kept us just in front. Momentary panic on the last beat to the finish as the wind lightened up below 10 - we started to fall off down onto '5357', but not enough to force us to tack away. We could have pushed them further past the end of the line, but we had Mr. Hanky approacing to weather and behind so didn't want to give them an opening. We tacked back for the pin and finished about a boat-lenght ahead of '5357'. 'Mr. Hanky' was 3rd, giving us a 1-point advantage overall. There was a LOT of nail-biting going on, not to mention a huge sigh of relief when we got the gun: no OCS this time!
Between races we checked and rechecked for seaweed on the rudder, backed the boat down and lightened up the rig, setting for 6-10. That and keeping the leech telltale flying (about 6-7 inches off the spreader most of the time) gave us the speed and pointing we felt we were missing on that last beat.
Last race for the day was lighter and a little more to the Northeast. We had another great start with no chance of being over - we were close enough to the committee boat to hear the verbal hails. We wanted to do much the same - play the middle left as much as we could. Too far left seemed sheltered - but less so than we thought. We found ourselves in the clear after seeing that unfortunately 'Mr. Hanky' was ducking back down around the end after being called over at the start. There weren't any other boats close in standings so we knew we just had to sail clean. About 3/4's of the way up we were out in front and found out that a couple of boats were making up a lot of ground farther out to the left. Thankfully we learned the lesson early enough to not let them get in front, but it was a good reminder that we couldn't let our guard down. We rounded just ahead of 3 or 4 boats (including 'Dogfish') with a big break back to the pack from there. We were feeling good until we rounded the leeward mark. We were still out in front by a few boat-lengths but they were signaling a course change that we couldn't read on the board. That proved a bit problematic later on. We stayed out in front, but as we approached the weather mark we realized it had a wake. Not a good sign: they were moving the orange tetrahedron becuase the course change mark was a yellow cylinder.
We were overstood by a bit at this point, but thankfully still in front of 'Dogfish' - even if only by a couple of boat-lengths. After another good rounding and set we were off. 'Dogfish' was the closest and had a little speed on us downwind. They worked steadily above and closed a little. Then we saw another moving mark - this time just far enough to port that 'Dogfish' got the inside overlap after we gibed to the mark. We rounded nose-to-stern with them and proceeded to horse-race up the last beat. Approaching the lay-line on the port side we felt our only chance was to tack just before they were planning to, and fast enough that we could complete our tack without their going right away to blanket us. It worked - sort of. We were able to close up some ground, but Bob kept us under his control the whole way up to the line: we jsut coudln't get out in front enough. They got the win by about half a boat lenght, and really earned it. Great way for them to finish the regatta, and we couldn't think of a boat in that fleet that we'd rather be there at the line.
Finishing second still gave us a total of 8 points for the regatta, well ahead of 'Mr. Hanky' with 16 (he sailed a fantastic race to get back up to 9th after his re-round at the start) and 'Al's 24 points in 3rd. Crazy conditions led to massive shakeups every race, so point totals were pretty high for most boats. 'Dogfish' did a great job with that last race and got themselves up to 7th overall for the weekend. Good job guys!
It was a truly amazing experience to finally have it all come together like that. Great new sails and nearly flawless crew-work got us where we wanted to be, when we wanted to be there. A couple of places where we could have improved tactically, but lucky for us it didn't impact our overall results. Thanks again to Will, and congratulations to my skipper, Lee, foredeck/mast one-two of Armelle deLaforcade (and skipper's wife!) and Ryan Hogan and our latest addition Devon Frazier (she's now our resident expert 'chute packer and puff-caller)!
Regatta results and photos here: http://www.regattapromotions.com/j24-fleet-43/downeast-regatta.html
For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts! To order your fast North J/24 sails online and have them delivered to your door, click here.
J/24 Sails
This past weekend Severn Sailing Association hosted the J22 Mid Atlantics and the J24 Summer regatta. North had a great weekend in both events. The weather was perfect allowing the race committee to run 4 races on Saturday and two on Sunday. We were very fortunate to have enough wind to compensate for the large motor boat chop and strong currents. The summer series is getting tight as the winner this year gets a spot for the 2009 Worlds in Annapolis. Peter Rich held the lead over Paul Van Ravensway on Saturday, but Paul came out and with two Bullets on Sunday won the regatta. Both he and Peter sailed a great regatta and showed out standing speed all weekend. Brent Ellwood finished third and was very fast with his new North Upwind sails. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts! To order your fast North J/24 sails online and have them delivered to your door, click here.
J/24 Sails
The 2007 J/24 North Americans were held July 11-14 at California Yacht Club in Marina Del Rey, CA. Sailed on Santa Monica Bay this event was superbly organized by CYC member Karen Stirling and a crack team of volunteers. Fours days of sailing saw everything Santa Monica Bay is known for from 15 to 18 knots and a very steep chop (a trademark of this area) to light air and flat water. 8 races were run over the course of three days. The fleet came from as far as Osaka, Japan. Makoto Nakane for Osaka chartered a boat and brought his team of Japanese sailors to race it. It was great to see the effort they went to to make this a truly international event. Thanks also have to go out to Wayne Clough and Lorne Chapman for running the measurement process. This regatta used the new method of weighing the all up sailing weight of the boat which really speed up the weight process. Look for this at more major events in the future. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts! To order your fast North J/24 sails online and have them delivered to your door, click here.
J/24 Sails
North Sails finished 1st, 3rd and 4th in Staten Island, NY this past weekend!!!! The regatta is called The Transplant Cup and run out of The Richmond County YC. It is the first regatta in their "Parkway Series", which runs throughout the summer. This will be the site for 2008 J/24 Nationals next May... This time of year at this location you'll see a lot of shifty WNW breezes off the land compared to their normal sea breeze from the south-Sandy Hook. 1st and 3rd both used our Newport Series Sails, 4th has our San Diego designs. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts! To order your fast North J/24 sails online and have them delivered to your door, click here.
J/24 Sails
How long has it been now sailing J/24’s for you? Mauricio - I have been sailing on the J/24 class for about 5 years. Please tell us about your teammates and their “normal lives”. Mauricio - I work for João Carlos Jordão. He is the boat owner. About 5 years ago we started the J/24 project together and since the begining we always achieved good results. I also have an event company in Brazil for organizing sailing events and environmental projects. When I travel for the championships, my wife and our team keep working on the events projects. In relation to my crew, I had to choose them carefully because I had to find good sailors that could conciliate their professional careers with our sailing schedule (we practice on the weekends and holidays). Alexandre Saldanha who works as our tactician and also works as a Beneteau 40.7 Sales Manager here in Brazil. Daniel Santiago, who is a lawyer, and on the boat he is our trimmer. You have to tell us what “Bruschetta” is all about, people ask me if you are sponsored by the appetizer. Mauricio - Jordão was looking for a name for the boat. At that time we were in Italy, eating Bruschetta for appetizer very frequently. He just love this appetizer and for this reason he decided to name his boat Bruschetta. How was it sailing The Worlds in Mexico as compared to last year in Australia, not only conditions but depth in competition, logistics, etc…?
The Australian J/24 World Championship was also very good. The organization was good and we did not have any problem. The people were always very kind with all sailors making a joyful atmosphere. The regattas in Australia had the waves very similar to the ones in Mexico but the winds were stronger in Australia – between 12 and 25 knots. In relation to the logistics I always start getting things done as early as I can to avoid problems. I am very happy with both championships and of course with the results – for me it means that we got to our goal and that our team is in perfect harmony. Looking at the results, many of your competitors were picking up letters and/or a bad race or two, how were you able avoid “a shocker race”? Mauricio - Our goal since the begining of the regatta was to get on the finals. To get there, of course we had to achieve good results. It was quite difficult… first because of the level of the competition and second because of the winds instability. On the last day we had a very good ranking so we were sure that we could get the first place.
Mauricio - On the last day we arrived with a very good ranking and it was only necessary to get 20 places behind Chris Snow – whose boat was on the second place – and 30 places behind the guy who was at the third place . During the dinner, on the day before, we talked about every detail. Some minutes before the last day regatta started we talked about which side we were going to choose. We chose the right side where the winds were much stronger. On the first upwind we were very fast and had two choices either keep doing our own race and try to turn the mark between the top five or keep following our main competitors so as disturb them in their ways. So...as long as we had a very good ranking we chose the second option so we were sure that any bad surprise would happen with us.
Mauricio - During the week I train with some young sailors which I call “our reserve team” . On the weekends I train with the official crew. We put our two boats on the water so as it is possible to compare the speed, the material and every detail that could be improved. How about your sail choices, what did you find here, I know you like black kites…? What features did you like about your North Sails? Mauricio - I sail using Newport upwind sails and San Diego Spinnaker. It is funny and might be a superstition but when the winds are light and the days are hot it seems that the black spinnaker works better. Since the beginning our first spinnaker was black because this cloth color was the only one that they had in the Brazil loft.
Now I say the the black spinnaker is our mark. Everyone recognize us because of it!
The sails we use are very easy to trim. They work well in any condition. What future J/24 Regattas are in the near future for you and your team? Mauricio - We are going to participate on the Italian Championship which will be in May (maybe the same place where the J/24 Worlds will be held in 2008).
We are determined to get the Gold medal in the PanAm Games which will take place on Guanabara Bay – Rio de Janeiro (at home !!!!)
And finally we are going to participate in the European and Brazilian J/24 Championships during the second semester. I heard a rumor that you guys may start sailing Melges 24’s, is this correct? Mauricio - We are not sure yet … We have this intention but it might be for the next ye ar.... I really don’t know. We want to participate on the next J/24 worlds in Italy – this is the only information I am sure about!! I am now training for the PanAm Games and looking forward for the next J/24 Worlds. Lastly, give the readers your top five components to a successful sailing program. Mauricio - I think the most important thing is to have a team harmony and good communication in the boat. Then we must have a training program and dedicate our time to it. It is also very important to keep improving the boat materials and keep searching for the market news and technology that can help in some way.
Click here to visit Mauricio's web site
Thanks a ton Mauricio. Good luck in you upcoming regattas, especially The Pan Am Games!
J/24 Sails
Dan, please briefly describe your sailing background. Dan: I began sailing on Chatfield reservoir just southwest of Denver at age 11 with my father. He had always wanted to start sailing and after a few rentals, he bought a Catalina 22, and we did a lot of over night camping type trips. Eventually he bought a Catalina 25 and we began racing. I sailed with him for a while, but after a while, like many young people, I decided that I would enjoy sailing with people other than my parents on more competitive boats. There were some Merit 25s and a few J24s, as I recall, and since I was small I was a good candidate for foredeck. Once I began getting experience on some of the competitive boats in my area, I got the opportunity to get on some of the J24s that were sailing in the very competitive Texas J24 circuit and got some great experience there. After that, I entered into a relatively low budget Soling campaign in 1990 to try to make it to the ’92 games. It was a great experience for the crew and me. We moved to the area that the Trials were to be held. There in Punta Gorda, FL, the crew and I took jobs in order to pay the bills and trained constantly. In the end, we didn’t win the trials, but it was a great experience.
Dan: I took a couple of years off after the trials and finished college. After college, I decided that I wanted to be close to the ocean, and I had family in Florida. I moved to the Tampa Bay area. Initially, I sailed Lasers and on a local Lightning, which is where I met my J24 trimmer Nate Vilardebo. Soon after, we met Juan Mauri who had qualified for the 2000 J24 Worlds in Newport, RI, but didn’t have a steady crew in place. I did a program to go to the Worlds with Juan. The next year we borrowed a boat for the World qualifiers and won a spot at the 2003 Worlds in Medemblik, Holland. I put together a program for that year which included buying and equipping my first boat, USA 1208, which subsequently was destroyed on the highway on the way home from an Easter Regatta. After claiming what insurance was in place on the boat and selling the hull after the accident, I was fortunate to find the boat we are presently sailing, USA 2436. The boat was one week from being scraped when we took delivery and after many hours of TLC we are sailing what is now Jesus Lizard. How did your present championship crew come together? Dan: Nate Dogg and I were sailing together in the world qualifiers a couple of years ago and met Patrick and Josh sailing a club boat. We hit it off and kind of merged our efforts. The rest is kind of history for us. Patrick calls tactics with Josh’s input and we have had a few different people on the bow. Initially we sailed with David O’Riley who was part of the initial "merger,” but he has had other priorities keep him from continuing to sail. Tell me who the current team is now and what they contribute to the effort. Dan: Nate Dogg is our trimmer. He handles genoa and spinnaker trim at all times. Patrick Wilson is our tactician. He sits in front of Nate and makes the tactical decisions for the boat. Josh Putnam is at the mast and assists where needed in sail handling; Josh is also the bow for the Pan Am Games. He also contributes tactically working with Patrick. In Columbia and at Nationals, Carl Bradley is foredeck and handles the spinnaker pole and halyards. We all make contributions throughout the race, but this is primarily how we are set up as a crew. So Patrick makes the tactical decisions. How much do you contribute? How about the rest of the crew? Dan: Again, tactics are primarily Patrick’s responsibility. I would say he does about 80% of the decision-making. We do a lot of pre-race planning as a team, but after about the two to three minute point in the sequence Patrick has primary control. He does get help by talking things through with Josh who also has a great feel for wind and puffs etc. Patrick relates the decisions to me and I act on them. What were your first one design experiences that you feel helped you reach this point in your sailing career? Dan: Again, I think doing the Texas J24 Circuit and the Soling campaign were key to my growth as a one-design sailor as they relate to my level of competitiveness and enjoyment of the sport today.
Dan: I have found that maintaining my equipment at a top level, consistency, and keeping my sail inventory fresh are probably the biggest factors. We work hard to make sure that we have our boat up to the level of our top competition. I think this is key to winning. Even though we had a bad first race in Columbia at the Easter Regatta, we were able to sail in the top of the fleet consistently the rest of the event to eventually win. We have also learned the importance of keeping our sail inventory fresh. We are very confident in our North sails. We know we are never at a disadvantage to any boat with our Newport design Norths. Second, regarding you recent success; what other major factors are there in addition to your North sail program, the effort to keep your equipment top-notch and consistency, do you feel are lending to your success? Dan: I feel we have an extremely dedicated crew that is always pushing hard to win. Our tactics have been great. Patrick and Josh do a great job. Also, Nate is an excellent trimmer. He is always keeping us going fast. How close do you stick to the tuning guide? Dan: We have been doing a little experimenting, but mostly we stick to the numbers. I think they are a pretty good guideline. We have a little different mast butt location. It just seems to set up right for our boat. Sometimes we are not exactly where the tuning guide says, but we feel very fast for the conditions, so we don’t make too many changes. You will be in Rio this summer for the Pan Am Games. You just qualified for the Worlds in Italy. Are you planning to be at the ’08 Worlds? Dan: Absolutely!! We missed Mexico, even though we were qualified. I had a new job and had pushed the limit on days off already, and we had some difficulties arranging to get our boat there, but we will definitely be in Italy. Finally, can you think of any advice for boats that are maybe a little farther back in the fleet right now but want to improve their programs? Dan: I would say, to me, the things that most people could work on are learning to use the tuning numbers. That is something every one can do. Aside from that, shifting gears is extremely important. You must be trimmed right at all times. This is especially important as it applies to all of the different gears you need to shift in these boats. Trimming right for flat water versus waves and puffs and lulls etc. are key to success. Again, I think this is something everyone can do with practice and experience. Thanks for taking the time to do this interview with us Dan. Congratulations again on you success. Good luck in your future events, and we will see you soon on the circuit.
J/24 Sails
Dan Borrer and Team Jesus Lizard Win 40th Annual Easter Regatta Thirty J24s gathered in Columbia, SC Easter weekend for the 40th annual Easter Regatta. As usual this venue would provide some challenging conditions for a very competitive fleet of sailors from as far away as Canada. Many of the boats were proceeding form Columbia to either Charleston Race Week the following weekend or Nationals in Jacksonville, FL the weekend after, or both. Undoubtedly this regatta will serve as an excellent tune-up for these upcoming events. Overall, the wind gods cooperated with seven nice races being completed in the three days of sailing. There were the usual lake-typical turning of the fleet in a number of races, but as usual, I think everyone would agree that the winners were deserving of their honors at the end of the regatta. After Friday and Saturday’s racing, with six races completed, Bill Fastiggi was sailing very well turning in some consistent finishes to lead all competitors. He was holding on to a three point lead over Dan Borrer and crew who were making a comeback from a poor first race and really looking forward to their opportunity have a good day on Sunday. The Canadian boat Rex skippered by Rossi Milev was in third and still in the hunt for the win. Team Rush, skipper Jason Decker, was a little farther back in fourth, but they were sailing a nice regatta drawing from their recent experience at Worlds. Sunday brought more typical Columbia conditions as Saturday’s sailing had seen winds in excess of 20 knots, more about that to follow. After a long postponement, waiting for wind, the race committee was able to get in one good race before calling it a regatta. Dan Borrer and his team on Jesus Lizard were able to win the race and put enough points on Bill Fastiggi in Beauty to win the event. Bill was quite gracious at the trophy presentation when acknowledging Dan’s ability to recover from his poor first race and win the regatta posting four individual race wins. Back to Saturday’s racing. If there was one word to describe Saturday’s sailing, I think that the first word that would come to everyone’s mind would be COLD. The racing started at nine AM sharp in wind chill that had to have been in the mid-thirties. The puffs were in excess of 20 knots at times. Hats off to Bill Fastiggi’s team for sailing very consistently on that day. I wonder if being from Vermont helped those guys negotiate the frigid conditions? I’m sure it didn’t hurt. Regardless how cold everyone may have been this weekend, I’m sure that a good time was had by everyone and they will be back again as well as some of their friends that they tell about it too. I think that Billy Ray deserves a special thank you for being such a good host of most of the after dark festivities. It was just too cold at night to do the usual late night keg thing, and all of the parties seemed to wind up at his 5000 square foot barn. He was a great sport and everyone seemed to have the usual Easter Regatta party fun even with the frigid temperatures. Congratulations again to Dan Borrer and crew on a great regatta. Dan sails with North Newport sails and is looking forward to Charleston Race Week and the J24 Nationals. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
J/24 Sails
MAURICIO SANTA CRUZ AND TEAM BRUSCHETTA
DAY 4:
By the time the second race started, the breeze freshened a bit but still included the shiftiness that we have come to expect from Banderas Bay. With a very crowded boat end start, a large portion of the fleet split to the right and left with the left seeming to pay in the shifting breezes. By the end of this race the wind had dropped drastically and the shifts became even larger. Being patient was key to success in this one. Leaders after Day 4
DAY 3: The wind that this area is known for returned for day three of the 2007 UBS J-24 World Championship. With race 5 starting on time in 10 knots and building to 18 knots by the end, these were the conditions that racers came all the way to Banderas Bay to compete in. Taking advantage of a late right shift, the British team of Southworh and Mclaughlin took the lead at the first top mark and were able to hold on to the finish. By the start of race 6, the breeze was up to 18 knots with about a third of the fleet opting to start with blade jibs. With the large chop that this fleet tends to produce, carrying a genoa proved to be the best choice. With the breeze moderating on the run all teams were back to genoas by the first bottom mark. The lead pack of Santacruz, Snow and Ingham stayed tight playing the shifts up the weather leg to the finish.
DAY 2: Racing continues down in Puerto Vallarta for the 2007 J-24 World Championship. Racers were greeted to a delayed start today due to winds oscillating through 90 degrees but with the pressure that this area is known for. The great part about this area (besides the warm air, beautiful scenery and wonderful people) is that the wind does not shut off in the afternoon as it does in California. We were able to complete races today that finished ~6:30 p.m. , and there is nothing wrong with a 1:00 p.m. start time. The wind locked into ~210 degrees and racers got off to a start in the first race at 3:00 p.m. With a heavily pin end favored start in 12- 15 knots and challenging chop, the leaders were splitting to both sides of the course with the left seeming to pay due to a receeding fog bank. By the time the second race started at 5:00 p.m. the breeze was up to 15 knots but showing signs of weakening. The current World Champion Bruscetta team showed showed great ability to change gears through the varying conditions leading the race wire to wire. The leaders after day two are:
Vallarta Yacht Club in Puerto Vallarta Mexico may not have hosted an event as large as the 2007 UBS J-24 World Championship before, but I am sure all the competitors would agree that they are doing an awesome job on this one. After a smooth measurement process and an incredible opening ceremony, complete with fireworks and an address by the governor, we are finally underway with this much anticipated event. For day one of racing at the UBS J-24 World Championship, racers were greeted to lighter normal 6-8 knot warm breezes but with the oscillations that seem to be standard for the area. After four recalls resulting in 25 Z flag penalties and 9 black DSQ’s the tightly bunched fleet found that playing the shifts and shifting gears in the lulls was the key to success in the light and fluky conditions. Race two started later in the day around 3:30, but the breeze had finally filled to ~10-12 knots with a more stable angle. Again shifting gears proved to be very important as the pressure was up and down but more consistent than the first race. Leaders after day one are:
Keep tuned for more!
J/24 Sails
Report by Chuck Allen North Sails won the 2007 J/24 Midwinter's held in Tampa, Florida this past weekend. A full nine race series was completed in awesome sailing conditions off of Davis Island YC. Robby Brown teamed up with Chuck Allen to win the regatta with 39 points, they used a complete inventory of our Newport Series Sails. Second was Peter Bream from Jacksonville, Florida and his Team Tarheel. Third was North Sails customer Tony Parker and his squad from Annapolis, using our Newport Upwinds and a San Diego Spinnaker. The regatta was a World Qualifier for 2008 in Sardinia, Italy-in which Robby Brown and Chuck Allen were awarded the spot. Robby hails from St. Petersburg, Florida and Chuck Newport, RI. North Sails provided awards for the top three boats and mid fleet award. Top 3: For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
J/24 Sails
Report by Steve Pickel FINAL DAY For the final day of the J-24 Mexican Nationals racers saw much lighter conditions (6-8 knots) than normal but with the shifting breezes that we have seen to be case in Banderas Bay. Ryan Cox took advantage of a large shift late in the starting sequence of the first race to take the lead in what ended up being a mostly port tack beat to the weather mark. With the offset mark well to weather of the weather mark, Ryan held his lead for the remainder of the race. The scores were tight enough for the final race that seven boats could have won the the regatta. With still lighter and shifting breeze it was still anyone's game. After 3 recalls and black flag start the fleet got off splitting to both sides of the course with most of the leaders to the right but the leader at the top mark coming from the left hand side of the course. With most of the boats jibing early due to a right hand shift the fleet worked a dying breeze to the bottom mark. After another lighter beat the race committe was kind enough to shorten the course finishing the fleet at the next leeward mark. With a 1, 2 on the final day Ryan Cox sailing with Dale Turley, Greg Larson, Garett Baum, and Steve Pickel came out on top to win the 2007 J-24 Mexican Nationals. Ryan used all North Sails San Diego designs showing great speed in a variety of conditions.
North Sails won 4 of 5 races. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts! DAY 1 44 J-24's braved the somewhat treachorous Mexican highways to compete in the J-24 Mexican Nationals held in Puerto Vallarta and hosted by the Vallarta Yacht Club. With the 2007 World Championship to be held the following week at this venue. This is sure to be a great look at the World's venue. The first race started in 8-10 knots and flat seas but with fairly large, 25 degree oscillating shifts. Ryan Cox on USA 3324 showed great patience in playing the shifts on the left side of the course to edge out Mark Hilman for the win. They were followed closely by Javier Velasquez and Keith Whittemore. By the time the second race started, the breeze had fully devolped and swung to the west although the shifts were still a big factor. Will Welles came out on top in this one, but was followed very closely by current World Champion Mauricio Santacruz. Race 3 started rather late in the day with softening breeze and a large amout of tidal influenced chop. Port tack caused much frustration as it was square to the waves with a dying breeze late in the day. Connecting the puffs was the order of this race. Keith Whittemore figured it out the best in a photo finish with Mauricio Santacruz in a very close second. More to come as we wrap up day two and the Mexican Nationals today. Top four after day one:
For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
J/24 Sails
Report by Brian Bissell The trials for the Pan Am Games in the J24 took place this week at Davis Island YC in Tampa, FL. In hindsight, the RC should probably have kept the fleet on the dock for day 1 since the breeze went from 0 to 3 knots and then back to zero the entire day. They were able to complete one drifter race. The next two days were much better and we were able to get 3 races in each day. The racing was tight and although the fleet was small, most boats were very well sailed. One boat stood out from the pack and did nothing short of dominating the regatta. North Sails customer Dan Borrer and his Jesus Lizard team won the event with a 1,1,1,1,2,2,4. They were powered by a North Newport Main, North Pan Am Jib, and a Newport Spinnaker. North customer Tony Parker finished in second place also using the North Newport Main, North Pan Am jib, and San Diego Spinnaker. North Sails won 6 out of the 7 races sailed and when the breeze finally piped up for the last race, Paul Van Ravenswaay won the race using the normal North Newport Blade Jib. Tuning Notes: There were 10 entries and 8 of the 10 boats were using North Sails. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
J/24 Sails
Report by Chuck Allen We are very excited with North's clean sweep in the J/24s this past weekend down at the St. Pete NOOD's. The last day of sailing was cancelled with winds in the 30's... Dan Borrer won the event using North Newport upwind sails and San Diego downwind sail. Robby Brown finished second with all North Newport sails. Great customers Paul VanRavensway and Jason Decker finished in third and forth - Great job!!!! Sailing World & St. Petersburg Yacht Club Get ready for the 2007 season! For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
J/24 Sails
Report by Robby Brown Saturday on Tampa Bay turned out to be a great day to sail the Fleet 86 and 169 J24 Meet in the Middle Midwinters Warm-up regatta. A good turn out of Davis Island and St. Pete boats meet in Apollo Beach to get in the last fleet racing before the Midwinters. Weather turned out to be very pleasant for the day with the rain that had been predicted holding off until after the racing. The wind was a nice eight to ten knots with some periods of less breeze, but, none the less, more than enough to get in the five races. Get ready for the 2007 season! For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
J/24 Sails
Report by Chuck Allen North Sails powered 1st, 2nd and 3rd places at The St. Pete YC Green Bench Regatta. Top 3: "We were just a little off the pace set by Brian and Robby but we were also cleary faster than everyone else. We were using the original North main I bought used from Robby in 2005 and a genoa with 30+ days as well. Sure love my North Sails." -- John Denman For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
J/24 Sails
Report by Chuck Allen North Sails won the Fleet 50 Season here in Newport, RI. We had sails on 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 10. Also, NS were on 26 of the 34 boats in the fleet.Here are the results:
2 5.19 Charles Enright Rooster 4274 5 1 3 4 10 17 14 4 6 19F 6 3 11 5 31S 4 7 5 2 1 3 34S 34S 34S 7 7.72 USA 3145 Will Wells 3145 7 2 11 1 5 19 22D 15 28S 28S 1 4 2 18 31S 10 4 2 33S 2 21F 34S 34S 34S 9 8.73 Scott Milnes Sugar Plum 1557 23S 23S 5 9 3 6 27S 27S 13 12 12 9 20 15 31S 6 6 33S 4 15 4 34S 34S 1 For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
Report by Paul Bogataj
The crew was really enjoyable to sail with. Craig (trimmer), David (middle), and Brian (bow) took care of everything very effectively. I was happy to win with them. The boat had North San Diego sails that have been used all season, and it was very easy to get the boat going fast and high and keep it going in the changing conditions. I really like those sails. Photos and results are at http://www.j24fleet.com/ For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
Report by Brian Bissell In a very light 3-day-contest, Dave Bonney, sailing with North Sails on his J24 for the first time came out on top, winning 3 out of 4 races in the 2006 Annapolis Race Week. There was some tough competition, but we had the right combination of boatspeed and good boathandling. It also helped that we went the right way on the race course more often than not. We used a full set of North J/24 Newport Designs (with a Kevlar reinforced Genoa) that were one year old. This was a good warm up regatta for the J24 North Americans later this month. I'll be sailing with Dave for that event as well. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
Report by Chuck Allen The start of the J/24 New York/NJ Parkway Series was this weekend
in Staten Island, NY... An excellent turnout combined with "Blade Conditions" made for superb sailing off of Sandy Hook. It blew form the 260-280 degree direction
both days, ranging from 18-30 knots. Blades were used most of the regatta with
our North Sails Jibs simply dominated the event! For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
Report by Mike Ingham J-Daze is always a fun regatta. It was the first weekend in May on lake Canandaigua, one of the gorgeous finger lakes of upstate NY. It is a 30 mile long lake with great winds out of the North or South where there is a long fetch, but out of any other direction the hills send the wind down on us in swirls. We never know what weather we will get at J-Daze, and we have even shoveled the snow off the boats in the past. This year we set up Friday evening under sunny skies and nice temperatures. Saturday we woke up to driving rain, blowing 15kts, and temperatures in the 30’s. Man was that cold, but the wind was out of the NW and it was a great day of sailing. Two races before we went in for a civilized lunch, then the rain stopped and we had two more great races. We had good starts and our boatspeed was excellent. It was a bit puffy so shifting gears was the key to speed. We focused on the “big lines” which in this case was the main sheet and Genny sheet, with some backstay and even vang playing if the changes in wind were big enough. Saturday night as usual at J-Daze was a blast. It always coincides with the Kentucky Derby and everyone cheers even thought they have no idea who the Horses are. Mount Gay sponsored the event and that always helps! One race on a dying Southerly was all the lake had in her on Sunday. In the end, I think 13 or 14 of the top 15 were North Sails customers! That’s an impressive. It was again sunny and warm so hauling and de-rigging followed by awards was fine. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
Interview by Brian Bissell
The 2006 J24 Nationals hosted by Houston Yacht Club took place last week, April 27-29, and it was a regatta to remember. The race committee was excellent and reminded me of the premier race committee work at Key West Race Week. Conditions didn't make it easy on them, but they were the epitome of professional. Sailing Anarchy sponsored the event and added a few appreciated extras such as the beer boat that handed each J24 5 cans of beer for the crew after the last race of the day for the sail in. There were live bands, good food, and fun parties every night. The racing, however, was where the real fun was had. In such a competitive class, with its rich history and storied past, I believe it's impossible not to have butterflies in your stomach before the start of the first race. An F-18 fly-by in the prestart only added to the excitement. On our boat, with skipper Chris Snow, trimmer Willem Van Waay, tactician Mark Brink, bowman Andrew Kerr, and tactical assistant, pit, and twings Brian Bissell (myself), we knew one thing from our combined experience....let's not make the big mistake early on, just stay in the hunt. So much for that idea, as we found ourselves going back to round an end after the first start of the regatta. What had happened was they called sail number 2938 and we were bow number 29. We got the clarification as we were rounding the midline boat. Oh well, let's see how many boats we can catch. I was impressed with how everyone on our boat kept their cool. No one was freaking out. We were on a mission. After starting in last place and giving the fleet a sizeable head start, we were able to grind back to a respectable 7th place, which fortunately was our worst finish in the regatta. I think our impressive comeback in that first race gave us some much needed confidence in our boat speed, boat handling, and tactical wizardry. We then knew that we didn't need to win the start to win the race. In fact, starting anywhere but 2 minutes behind the fleet would be nice. In varying breeze conditions (we saw everything from 3 to 30 knots) our scorecard read 7, 3, 1, 2, 1, 1, 4, 6 and we took home the J24 National Championship by a 46 pt. margin. The scary thing is that we were constantly improving and we still have room for improvement. We used a full inventory of North San Diego designs and 2nd place Mike Ingham used a full inventory of North Newport Designs. Each design has a slightly different tuning guide, but one thing we learned was that our tuning matrix was slightly off. For whatever reason (possibly the stretch characteristics in our upper and lower shroud wires) we were setting up tighter than what the tuning guide suggested. Each day we'd come off the water and measure our shroud tension with the Loos Gauge and it would be tighter than what we thought it would and should be. By the end of the regatta we had adjusted our matrix to fit the tuning guide recommendations and our boat speed improved. Lesson learned: don't rely on an old matrix, check it out before each regatta to make sure nothing has changed and you still get the same numbers through the full range. It might seem like a hassle, but I believe it's worth it. The one thing in common between the team I won J24 Worlds and North Americans with and this team was that we really were a "team". On both boats, we probably had 5 guys on the boat that could call tactics as well as anyone else and a few guys that could even drive the boat as well, but everyone played their role for the betterment of the team in order to achieve the ultimate goal....winning the regatta. Some professional sailors I've sailed with think that it's better to be the "alpha male" on the boat rather than be a team player. I've even heard of a tactician on a Farr 40 tell a fellow crewmember that he's not being paid to talk and to keep quiet after he simply tried to call out a puff of wind. Sailing with those types of people don't make you want to perform at your best. In fact, maybe even the opposite. One thing I will definitely take away from both experiences is the importance of the "team" when sailing on boats with more than one person. Find more pictures at www.yachtshots.com. For more about the event, visit the regatta website. For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
Interview by Chuck Allen Mike Ingham and Team won The 2006 J/24 Easter Regatta in fine fashion, repeating as champions from 2005. The first team to ever win the regatta back to back-hard to do on Lake Murray, SC. Mike hails from Rochester, NY. North Sails customer: Dan Borrer, St. Augustine, Fl., finished third overall by dominating the second half of the event in a variety of conditions. His team is showing superb speed with the important ability to "change gears" when needed . Both Ingham and Borrer are sailing with our Newport Upwind and San Diego Downwind Series Sails. North Highlights: The conditions were unbelievable this year with the majority of races being held in 9-18 knots of breeze from the WSW direction. This venue can typically fall into the 2-6 knot category, seeing 5 races normally. The Columbia Sailing Club R/C masterfully got in 9 races, which they thought might be a new record... All The CSC Members come out in full force for this event, volunteering at all levels: from on the water to cooking out in the evenings-they run a top notch event!!!! Some other notable North Sails Customers that have recently purchased sails were Jason Decker aboard Rush, finished 6th, one of his better finishes. James Howard on Classic, always in the hunt, wound up seventh and Chip Till and his Team on Large Red Delicious, were eighth-If not for a DSQ, they would have been closer to third for sure. Steve Wood and Team Tasmanian Devil finished ninth and Kiki Werner aboard Pee Wee rounded out the top ten. Many of the boats were packed up and driving to Houston, TX for The J/24 Nationals next week. Everyone looks forward to attending the event again next Easter! If you need any help at the Nationals, or is looking for new sails for your boat, give our J24 experts a call today!
Interview by Chuck Allen
Tell us about the Melbourne worlds? CB: It was awesome! It was absolutely an experience of a lifetime. The Aussies put on a fabulous event, They have wonderful sailing conditions... we were there for 2 regattas and never once touched the motor - it stayed tied in the boat the whole time - there's just always plenty of wind! ...and you guys shipped brain cramp? Whats up with that?
CB: Yes, we did, as did the Brazilians and four of the Japanese teams. The decision to ship vs. charter a boat is never easy, but we've learned that a big part of doing well is in the details - no unnecessary distractions and confidence in the equipment. The latest shipping containers have door openings wide enough to better fit the boats. It's really pretty easy. Is the shipping itself a headache? CB: Not really, it helps when you speak the same language, although there were times I wasn't sure that was the case in Australia! But really these shipping company's do this container thing like clockwork- like they don't understand why we call up months in advance and worry about all the details. On the packup to return home the container arrived to the yacht club an hour after we finished racing, they set it on the ground, we loaded it up and they trucked it away an hour later. I talked to our shipping agent in the States when we arrived back home and it was already on a boat home. Always the most important thing is to have a good shipping agent. So you have a way to tip the boat on its side for the container? CB: yes, a pretty simple dolly. The Japanese teams have the dolly thing really figured out well. They are looking like they are prepared to continue their presence at worlds in the future ... several of the Japanese teams were fast and smart and consistently up front. They are really good competitors, tough to beat! Fast... OK, what is it that makes somebody fast at an event like this? CB: Lots of things. The boat has to be right, good bottom, foils, mast. Good sails are critical. Good teamwork and boathandling. But at a worlds there are a lot of boats with the right stuff. Then it moves to the tougher stuff... confidence in the equipment, confidence in your ability to shift gears and stay fast, and finally which team can put all the rest behind and best master the course - the starts, the fleet, the wind, the conditions - all of it. Any surprises with equipment down under? CB: Well not really.... just that when we first arrived we noticed that all the boats down there have really strong, beefy spreader brackets. We couldn't figure out why they'd want the extra weight aloft, until the first day of the Australian Nationals when the wind quickly built to 35 - 40. They said puffs to 54. Most of us finished the race with mains only, something I had never imagined we would ever do. We were wishing there was a reefing grommet in that Fathead Mainsail - we would've used it! But the interesting thing was when we returned to the dock, expecting to see carnage, and there's virtually no one with any broken gear. incredible! So what sails were people using? CB: The Brazilians and most of the Japanese teams had North, with a 50 /50 mix of San Diego and Newport. I would say half the fleet had Norths and a mix of about 4 other brands made up the other half of the fleet. It is a huge advantage to know, as you're racing side by side with somebody good, that your sails are at 100% - and it becomes who can feel what the boat needs and instinctively adjust to suit the best. So even if everyone had great sails, it then becomes who shifts gears the best - and that's where the support from North has been invaluable - all the photos, the coach boats with you and Greg Fischer, and the ideas and advice via phone calls and emails from people like Vince Brun, Chris Snow, Antony Kotoun .... all that comes into play. It's amazing really, any monday after a regatta where we're not going well and Mike can be on the phone searching for answers with Vince. So when do you see packing it up for the next one? CB: 2007 in Acapulco is going to be an event to remember! We have to qualify, and for sure there will be plenty of teams who want to go. But if we do qualify we would drive to that one - the road trip to mexico is half the fun!
Interview by Chuck Allen Dan Borrer and The Borrer Racing Team have won The 2006 ST. Pete NOOD. Dan uses North's
Newport main and genoa and San Diego spinnaker.
Light winds have been prevailing in The Tampa Bay/St. Pete Region leading us into The 2006 Results:
For information on North sails for your J/24 don't hesitate to contact our J/24 Experts!
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1. Chris Snow
Mauricio, before we start-just an incredible job winning your second consecutive J/24 Worlds-very impressive!!!! Congrats to you and your team! 
You guys trained quite a bit for this event, can you give us some insight on a typical day? Two boat sailing was common, correct?
Dan Borrer is skipper of Jesus Lizard, winner of St. Pete NOODs, the J24 Pan Am
Trials and the Columbia Easter J24 Regatta. His team is Dan Borrer-skipper, Nate Vilardedo-trimmer, Patrick Wilson-tactician, Josh Putnam-Mast/tactics and Karl Bradley-bow.
When did you enter into your own J24 program?
You have recently won the St. Petersburg NOOD Regatta (defended your title from last year), the J24 Pan Am trials and the Easter Regatta in Columbia. First, what do you think are the key ingredients that your sailing experience has brought that allow you such success at this level of sailing?
It was back to light and shifty for the first race of Day four at the J-24 World Championship. The first race was started with a boat end favored line but with a late big shift to the right, the first leg turned into a mostly starboard tack beat. The Chilean Sebago team was able to take advantage of this the best and led the race to the finish.
After day three the leader board with throw out included is as follows:
I was invited to skipper a J/24 in the District 19 Championship this past weekend because the owner was out of town. There were 29 boats mostly from Seattle, but a few from Vancouver B.C., Portland, Montana, and California. Saturday's three races were shifty with variable wind velocity, so really benefiting those who could adapt to the changes quickly. Sunday's race was light and tricky, which we won and Keith was called over early.
