Please select your home edition
Edition
Sailingfast 2018 2 728x90

J/70 Youth Championship at Newport - Overall

by J/Boats Inc 14 Aug 2017 17:19 BST 11-13 August 2017

Santa Barbara YC win free use of a J70 for a year!

The inaugural U.S. J/70 Youth Championship had its fair share of drama after two days of sailing. Tight racing. Teams pushing the envelope tactically all weekend long. Close-quarters racing producing dramatic turn-arounds at each corner of the course. As each race unfolded, yet another wind shift and puff pushed another group of boats past leaders in front of them. To say the least, it was about as atypical weather conditions anyone could imagine from a "locals" point of view in Newport.

Ultimately, winning and demonstrating good tactical decision-making capability, extraordinary boat-handling, and a steady boat-speed advantage through-out the regatta was the Santa Barbara YC Youth Team- skippered by Lucas Pierce with an excellent crew of Ryan Eastwood, Chris Kayda, Payne Donaldson, and Kris Ozolins. It was a remarkable performance, especially considering the wildly fluctuating and variable wind conditions every team had to contend with over the three-day regatta.

Remember, on Friday, it was a cruise ship floating around the bay off Newport that kept winds fluctuating from the SSE to SSW direction. Then, on Saturday, after a long weather delay/ postponement, an ornery passage of a weather front ultimately produced mist and a good breeze from the south to finish a second round of nine races by early evening. Sunday's finale was no different, fog, then sun, then good breeze, then a thermal breeze shutdown by a front with high-level northwesterly breezes!

All things considered, the regatta format permitted good teams to rise to the top given enough opportunities to get there! In the Sunday morning "repechage" round that consisted of four races on Sunday morning, the top three teams were Annapolis YC, Little Traverse YC and Coral Reef YC. They joined the double-round-robin leaders- Santa Barbara YC, Sail Newport and Severn Sailing.

The finale started just after noon time. Winning the first race was Sail Newport's team led by Brendan Read. Then, in the second race, Annapolis YC won by a large margin. Then, in the third race, Sail Newport Youth Team won again. There was no question the Santa Barbara YC crew were feeling the heat, especially from the local youth team from Sail Newport. In the fourth race, the wind went crazy, going light and mixing cat's-paws with small streaks and shifting at least 50 degrees. Two boats shot into a leg and half lead, in second was Santa Barbara, having seen the first streak and shot right to grab it and take off around the windward mark. Sail Newport went left and missed it, bobbing in the powerboat chop. The race was ultimately canceled due to the time limit, much to everyone's delight! As a result, with no visible wind in sight and less than forty minutes to the regatta time limit, PRO Dooley wisely decided it was time to call it a day and fired off three guns to mark the end of racing.

As a result, winning the regatta by ten points was the Santa Barbara YC Youth Team. Second was the SAIL NEWPORT Youth Team comprised of Brendan Read, Andrew Sherrin, Kate Nota, and Ted Bjerregaard. Third was Annapolis YC Youth Team comprised of Porter Kavle, Will Comerford, Benjamin Podlich, and Jake Viskers. Rounding out the top five was Severn Sailing Association Youth Team in 4th and Coral Reef YC in 5th place.

At the awards ceremony, the Santa Barbara YC Youth Team was presented not just with their keeper trophies, but also the FREE J/70 their club gets to use for twelve months! The SBYC Vice Commodore Scott Deardorff, himself a J/70 sailor, is looking forward to utilizing their FREE J/70 (complete with a brand new suit of North Sails and Triad Trailer) for club events, youth keelboat development and perhaps even women's keelboat development!

Regatta Chairman Stuart Johnstone remarked, "it was amazing to see the high-level of competitiveness by all nine teams. Having sailed against some of them in past J/70 events, it was evident most could compete in the top ten in any major J/70 regatta, that is how much they had improved over the course of the year. I also wanted to thank all the boat owners who donated their boats for the event- SAIL 22 (Ed & Becky Furry), Tim Healy, Henry Brauer, and Juan Reid from Chile- without them there would be no regatta! I also want to thank our sponsors that provided amazing support- North Sails, Harken, MJM Yachts' Bob Johnstone (who also donated the free J/70), Sail Newport (Brad Read and Vinnie Pattavina), and Sail 22 (especially the help of Sam House as our regatta bosun). Finally, kudos to our PRO Kevin Dooley from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy- amazing job for running 25 races in crazy weather conditions! And, thanks to his supporting RC cast of Bill Canfield, Oakley Jones, Paul Hazlett, Bob Spagnolo, Richard Barker, Jack Fisher, and Macken Offspring!"

Overall Results:

PosTeamSkipperR1R2R3R4R5R6R7R8R9R10R11R12R13R14R15R16R17R18R19R20R21R22Pts
1SBYC Youth TeamLucas Pierce123115   112433       27
2Severn Sailing Association Youth TeamJames Golden25155   25   24611    39
3Sail Newport Youth TeamAndrew Sheerin / Brendan Read / Kate Nota / Ted Bjerregaard   423616253   125    40
4Annapolis Yacht Club Porter Kavle4122   553342DSQ   4211248
5CRYC Youth TeamIvan Shestopalov330  14246213   66524355
6Little Traverse Yacht ClubIan Beckley 453462  44   2553133155
7MudRatzMudRatz Racing5DSQ4  0533   515232445462
8Eastern Yacht Club Junior TeamClark Uhl6   34141  RET65144 656669
9St. Pete Youth Sailing TeamBlaire McCarthy  666236  6RDG1463  362570

Related Articles

Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week overall
Class Leaders Win Big at 20th Edition There were few surprises on the final day of racing at Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week as class leaders who took control on Day 1 skillfully navigated the unusual-for-Long Beach conditions to prevail in their respective classes. Posted on 23 Jun
Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week Day 2
Another day of not-so-classic Long Beach conditions Day 2 of the 20th edition Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week, co-organized by Alamitos Bay Yacht Club (ABYC) and Long Beach Yacht Club (LBYC) dished up another day of not-so-classic Long Beach conditions. Posted on 22 Jun
Mustang Survival sponsor J/70 Corinthian Worlds
Being held at Marblehead, Massachusetts this September The Eastern Yacht Club and Mustang Survival are thrilled to announce a partnership to bring the 2025 J/70 Corinthian World Championship to the waters of Marblehead, Massachusetts. Posted on 21 Jun
Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week Day 1
Leaders emerge in all 10 classes in a lighter than usual breeze Day 1 of the 20th edition Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week, co-organized by Alamitos Bay Yacht Club (ABYC) and Long Beach Yacht Club (LBYC), challenged those used to the bigger breeze that the venue usually dishes out. Posted on 21 Jun
Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week starts Friday
115+ competitors race ready for 20th edition of legendary West Coast event With some 115 boats signed up to participate in the 20th edition of Ullmans Sails Long Beach Race week, the regatta is thrilled to welcome plenty of newcomers to enjoy three days of world-class sailing in the best racing conditions Posted on 19 Jun
Royal Thames YC 250th Anniversary Regatta overall
Perfect Solent conditions and desperately tight racing for the conclusion Picture-perfect conditions of a building 8-18 knots from the south-west, bright sunshine and flat Solent conditions on the flood tide made for a glamorous conclusion to the Royal Thames Yacht Club's 250th Anniversary Regatta on Sunday. Posted on 16 Jun
The Ultimate Guide to Load Pins
Types, applications and uses for cruising and racing The use of load pins onboard yachts dates back to grand prix racing in the 1980s. And, while there are many different load sensing devices available today, for standing rigging on yachts 50ft+, the load pin remains king. Posted on 15 Jun
Behind the scenes at Long Beach Race Week
The inside scoop on the LBRW Race Management Team To pull off not just a good but a great regatta requires both a passion for the sport but also solid knowledge of sailboat racing and a healthy appetite for fun. Posted on 14 Jun
Royal Thames YC 250th Anniversary Regatta Day 4
Challenging summer Solent conditions test the fleets A brisk south-westerly breeze, with gusts above 20 knots at times, made for challenging top-end conditions for all the fleets on a very busy Solent for the Royal Thames Yacht Club 250th Anniversary Regatta. Posted on 14 Jun
Royal Thames YC 250th Anniversary Regatta Day 3
Patience rewarded on light air afternoon Conditions more akin to the Mediterranean greeted the 251 entries on day 3 of the Royal Thames Yacht Club's 250th Anniversary Regatta, with bright sunshine and a shut-down of air flow across the Solent racecourses. Posted on 13 Jun