J/24 World Championship at Sail Newport - Day 1
by Christopher E. Howell 23 Sep 2014 07:59 BST
22-26 September 2014
Breezy opening day leaves two teams tied for the lead
Newport, Rhode Island welcomed 70 teams from around the globe with wind and waves on the first of five days at the 2014 J/24 World Championship. The top of the fleet saw some familiar names but also some fresher faces. Mark Hillman's Sokokumaru (USA) and Vernon Robert's Gringa DC (Chile) are tied at five points, with Hillman having the first-place advantage thanks to a bullet. Will Welles's Cougar (USA) landed just two points behind in third place.
Teams battled blustery conditions on the ocean course, with five-leg races and 1.5 mile opening beats. Local Welles thrived in the 14-16 knot breezes of the initial contest, which also saw 3-5 feet waves and larger swells. Fellow Newport resident John Mollicone's Helly Hansen team followed Cougar in second, and Robert's Gringa DC in third. Winds dropped slightly to 12-14 knots in Monday's second battle, which suited Hillman's Sokokumaru just fine as he notched that bullet. Robert's Gringa DC moved up to the runner-up spot, and Pedro Garra's Extasis of Uruguay followed in third.
Results after Day 1: (top ten, 2 races)
1. Sokokumaru, J 24, Mark Hillman , Bethesda, MD, USA, 4 -1 ; 5pts
2. Gringa DC, J 24, Vernon Robert , Santiago, Región Metropolitana, CHI, 3 -2 ; 5pts
3. Cougar, J 24, Will Welles , Portsmouth, RI, USA, 1 -6 ; 7pts
4. Bruschetta, J 24, Mauricio Santa Cruz , Rio de janeiro, RJ, BRA, 12 -4 ; 16pts
5. Extasis, J 24, Pedro Garra , Montevideo, URU, 14 -3 ; 17pts
6. Helly Hansen, J 24, John Mollicone , Providence, RI, USA, 2 -24 ; 26pts
7. Semi Pro, J 24, Matias Seguel , Santiago, RM, CHI, 21 -5 ; 26pts
8. Pipe Dream, J 24, Mike Marshall , Jamestown, RI, USA, 13 -13 ; 26pts
9. JJONE, J 24, Frithjof Schade , Berlin, GER, 15 -12 ; 27pts
10. Team Tarheel, J 24, Greg Griffin , Jacksonville, FL, USA, 23 -7 ; 30pts
Hosted by Sail Newport, racing continues for the 70 teams from 13 nations (Argentina, Barbados, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay and the United States) through Friday. More photos are available on the J/24 Class Facebook page, and complete results are at www.yachtscoring.com/emenu.cfm?eID=982.
About the J/24
A stable sailboat for family togetherness, the J/24 has also been the competitive launch pad for the careers of numerous America's Cup professionals. The worldwide acceptance of J/24 design, the strong one-design Rules and the strength of the International J/24 Class Association have led to the J/24 being selected as the platform for the International Sailing Federation's (ISAF) Nation's Cup, the ISAF Women's World Match Racing Championship, the Rolex Women's International Keelboat Championship and US Sailing's St. Francis International Masters Championship (aged 55+). While some of the world's best sailors have the latest version J/24, a well-prepared 1977 model, built to the same shape and weight with rigid end-grained balsa core construction can still win the J/24 Class World Championship even after 30,000+ miles of trailering. That's "One Design" racing! The International J/24 is presently built in the U.S., Argentina and Italy, and has more than 5,600 boats in 27 countries.