Bacardi J/24 Midwinters- It’s Official!

(Coconut Grove, FL)- Just as the swallows return to Capistrano, the J/24s keep coming back to Miami. This time the regatta host is Coral Reef Yacht Club, the new title sponsor is BACARDI, and the dates are February 21st through 23rd.

You might ask why this will be the 15th time that Biscayne Bay was chosen as the venue in the 36 years of Midwinter Championships? Yes, it might have something to do with the fact that Miami guarantees no blizzards, nice breezes, lots of great Cuban food and a legendary J/24 tradition. It also just makes sense.

According to last year’s winner, John Mollicone, “I will be down in Miami for the 2014 BACARDI J/24 Midwinters and really am looking forward to it.  I have been racing in the J/24 Class since 1998 and like the competition, the boats, and especially the great people.  There are no restrictions on sailor classification in the J/24 class so you end up racing against so many great skippers and crews.  I also love sailing with the genoa, which you do not really see anymore on other types of boats.  I love sailing in Miami during the winter months for its warm weather, dependable breeze, and I like the chop that Biscayne Bay has to offer.” Some of the other sailing stars who have already registered include Skip Dieball, 2011/ 2012 winner Peter Bream, Tim Healy (5 time champ), Robby Brown and Travis Odenbach as well as top local sailors like Eamonn DeLisser and Gary Sprague.

Although the J/24s have been around for 37 years, they are comparable to a Ford Mustang … still going, still popular and very American. Watching the boats with their colorful spinnakers is fun, too, and the sailors will certainly enjoy the food and beverages at Coral Reef Yacht Club along with the competitive race courses and regatta management by Coral Reef Yacht Club’s highly regarded Race Committee.

J/24's are one of the oldest classes still racing in Biscayne Bay. Local J/24 Fleet 10 was the 10th fleet formed in the late 1970's when the class first started and has as many members as the local Miami Etchells 22 and Snipe fleets.

Here are the ingredients: The Overall Regatta Chair is Mark Pincus of Columbus Day Regatta and Bacardi Miami Sailing Week fame. For a class which began in the 70s and is still charging along, “be there or be square”! You do not want to miss out on the sailing and the partying.

For more BACARDI J/24 Midwinters sailing information, contact Connie Bischoff at wingsmiami@aol.com or 305 812-1073 or check the BACARDI J/24 Midwinters website.

Healy Crowned BMW J/24 World Champion

(Howth, Ireland)- "It's usually not like this here", was the familiar refrain heard from the local J/24 sailors from Howth Yacht Club.  After a reasonably windy J/24 Irish Nationals, the forty teams attending the J/24 Worlds were looking forward to battles on the windy, storm-tossed Irish Sea-- at least that was the promise from the Mayor of Howth and the local Chamber of Commerce!  However, an unusual front passed over Ireland for the first few days, producing somewhat capricious, light airs for the first few days of the event, even forcing cancellation of sailing on the Tuesday due to lack of wind (and later a notorious Irish pub crawl for those with too much time on their hands)!  With the exception of the one day, the  championship featured four good days of racing, with the wind strength progressively increasing as the week went on-- in fact hitting 20-25 kts on the last day.

The racing was very closely fought, especially by the top three teams.  There were six different race winners and the four American entries all finished in the top ten, which featured two British boats, two German boats and the sole Italian and Brazilian entries.

In a tense and closely fought final day any one of the top three teams could win the regatta, with all three of them trading positions atop the leaderboard during the previous three days.  Going into the last day, Travis Odenbach's HONEY BADGER was winning, followed by Mauricio Santa Cruz's BRUSCHETTA in second and Tim Healy's HELLY HANSEN in third.  On the final two races in fairly big breeze, Healy's HELLY HANSEN scored a 4-5 to become the impressive winners of the BMW J/24 World Championship-- they had eight top-five results (including three race wins) in the ten race series.

Healy, who previously won the title in 2010, was pushed all the way by the defending champion Mauricio Santa Cruz from Brazil on BRUSCHETTA, who also demonstrated remarkable consistency, but who had to be content with the runner-up spot, four points adrift of his rival.  BRUSCHETTA's final day tally of 9-3 was not enough to pull off a record-tying fifth J/24 World title to match the famous Ken Read from Newport, RI (now President of North Sails).

Third place overall went to another American crew led by Travis Odenbach from Rochester on HONEY BADGER who had been the series leader overnight but who did not enjoy the final day. A 20-8 score completely blew-up their chances of winning the regatta, although he was only two points off Brazil's Santa Cruz in the end.

In fresh westerly winds which touched 25 knots at times, the penultimate race saw a second win in the series for Britain’s Ian Southworth on IL RICIO, ahead of fellow Briton Bob Turner’s SERCO. Third place went to local Howth skipper Mossy Shanahan on CRAZY HORSE, following up on his great form the previous day, a result which contributed to him finishing as the top Irish boat overall in 19th place.  Success in the last race went to the German boat ROTOMAN skippered by Tobias Feuerherd, with Keith Whittemore sailing FURIO from Seattle 2nd and Santa Cruz 3rd.

Rounding out the top ten was England's Ian Southworth in fourth followed by Germany's ROTOMAN in fifth-- for both sailors their best J/24 World's regatta performance to date.  After leading the first day, Seattle's Keith Whittemore sailed FURIO fast and furiously, but not enough to overcome a third race "black flag" that knocked them out of contention, settling for sixth overall.  British skipper Bob Turner sailed Team SERCO fast and smart at times, managing scores of 1-2-2-4, but five higher double-digit scores moved them down the ladder into seventh overall.  Posting five top ten finishes was Italy's Ignacio Bonanno sailing LA SUPERBA (also J/24 Italian Nationals champions) to place eight overall.  Top Washington, DC political strategist and, arguably, the "wiseman cometh" of the J/24 "tribe", Tony Parker, sailed his famous BANGOR PACKET team to a first place in the first race to put their stamp on this year's Worlds-- cool, eh?!  Tony has only sailed a J/24 since 1977, since back in his Falmouth Foreside/ Portland, Maine days-- almost four decades!  Nevertheless, after winning the World Championships for a few hours, Parker's crew may have been blinded by ambition, scoring a few double-digit races but still celebrating their time in the limelight with five top ten finishes-- good enough for ninth overall.  In tenth was the other top German team, SULLBERG skippered by Stefan Karsunke from the Blankeneser Segel Club.   Sailing photo credits- by David Branigan - Oceansport Gallery   For more J/24 World Championship sailing information

J/24 North Americans Preview

(Newport, RI)- Forty one J/24s are entered from six countries across North and South America to compete in the upcoming J/24 North American Championships hosted by SAIL NEWPORT in Newport, RI from September 19th to 22nd.  Renown for their pro-active race management, the J/24 sailors should be treated to superior racing by SAIL NEWPORT's Race Committee team on either Narragansett Bay or outside on Rhode Island Sound, depending on wind and weather conditions.  For America's Cup history buffs, the J/24 NA's are being sailed at about the same time as past Newport-based America's Cup had been sailed for several decades; with promise of cooler weather conditions and generally reliable sea-breezes from the south/southwest.

The largest number of teams hail from the USA, however, eight Canadian teams are sailing and a very competitive group of seven teams are participating from the South American countries of Chile, Peru and Argentina.  What's readily apparent is that many of the J/24 sailors are looking at this year's event as a "warm-up" for the 2014 J/24 Worlds also being sailed in Newport and hosted by SAIL NEWPORT in late September 2014.

The top US teams include Mike Ingham from Rochester, NY; Peter Bream on Team TARHEEL from Florida; John Mollicone on HELLY HANSEN from Newport, RI; Taylor Neff on BUBBLES from Lake Minnetonka, MN; Pat Toole on THREE BIG DOGS from Santa Barbara, CA; and Travis Odenbach sailing HONEY BADGER from Rochester, NY, amongst many other good teams.  Some of these teams have been sailing quite a lot lately, including recent J/24 World's participants Ingham, Odenbach and Mollicone (the cockpit/ tactician for Tim Healy's recent J/24 Worlds win in Howth, Ireland).

Eight Canadian teams from the Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia provinces include Greg Blunden on ADRENALIN RUSH; John Whynacht on STICKY FINGERS; Mike Howarth on MISTER H and Rossi Milev on CLEAR AIR.  Some of these teams are well-practiced having just competed in the Chester Race Week regatta in Nova Scotia.

The South American contingent all have tremendous experience at the top of the J/24 class, including a few with world-class experience.  The top Argentinean crews are Mario Cubria on ELVIS, Sergio Pendola and Guillermo de Martis on TWIN.  The Chilean teams include Matias Seguel sailing GURU and Robert Vernon on GRINGA.  And, the Peruvean teams include Lucas Peschiera on TIAMAT and Javier Arribas on WAYRA.

The lone ranger from Japan is Sumio Shimoyama sailing aboard SOKOKUMARU. Sumio is no stranger to top flight J/24 competition, having been a top Japanese J/24 team for years and is always a factor in the J/24 Worlds in recent years.   Sailing photo credits- Carter White   For more J/24 North Americans sailing information

J/24 US Nationals Preview

Will Three Big Dogs Prevail?
(Wayzata, MN)- Lake Minnetonka will again be the playground for J/24s as the Wayzata YC hosts them for their National Championship from June 20-23.  As J/24 Fleet #1, Lake Minnetonka has more experience than any other club hosting major events for J/24s over the course of time sailing on the lake since 1977!  The Wayzata YC J/24 sailors are looking forward to another "most excellent" regatta with a stellar group of twenty boats participating.

Recently, the J/24 class established a "World Rankings" website (http://www.j24worldrankings.com) that gives J/24 sailors around the world a ranking overall and by country based on performance and participation.  Currently 1,118 sailors and 140 regattas over 4 years were used in these rankings (best four in past two years count using a high point system).  Not surprisingly, six of the top ten are Americans with Brazil, Italy, Argentina and Germany filling out the balance of top teams.  Sailing in this year's J/24 Nationals are three of the Americans, including World #1 Mike Ingham from Rochester, NY, #9 Pat Toole from Santa Barbara, CA sailing his famous THREE BIG DOGS and #10 Travis Odenbach from Rochester, NY sailing HONEY BADGER.  Not to be outdone are some of the famous founding members of  J/24 Fleet #1 sailing with Rolf Turnquist and John Gjerde on the mighty yacht OZ!  For more J/24 US Nationals sailing information

Mollicone Dominates J/24 Midwinters

Newport Fleet #50 Steamrolls Competition
(Tampa, FL)- John Mollicone's HELLY HANSEN team has seized the lead after five races on the opening day and never looked back.  Taking four 1sts and three 2nds in ten races, John Mollicone from Newport, RI and his HELLY HANSEN team were crowned 2013 J/24 Midwinter Champions. With Tim Healy, Geoff Becker, Dan Rabin and Gordon Borges, the group was able to spectate the last of the 10-race series to allow the other 19 teams to duke out the remaining places.

Will Welles, also from Newport Fleet #50, skippered COUGAR to an impressive series and 26 points for second place, starting off fast to lead the series after four races but dropping back in the end, collecting a 2-1-5-4-6-1-2-3-8-2.  Peter Bream’s TEAM TARHEEL accumulated 43 points for third overall but had to work very hard to three other teams that could have easily grabbed the last spot on the podium.  Dueling for the bronze and just 1 pt back with 44 pts was Mike Ingham's team on USA 5448 from Rochester, NY in 4th place; Tony Parker's "AI" team in 5th place just two points back with 47 pts; and in 6th was Travis Odenbach on HONEY BADGER tied with Tony Parker on points but losing the tie-breaker!  Close racing, indeed!

Conditions in sunny Tampa Bay remained gorgeous on Wednesday, with breeze between 14-16 knots and puffs to 18. Mollicone praised the “champagne sailing conditions” as the best he’s ever seen there. On the heels of winning last November’s J/24 North American Championship, Mollicone thanked his consistent team, saying “We’ve got a good team, but the biggest thing is we’ve got the same people all the time, and it makes a big difference in our crew mechanics and communication.” The group put in some practice time and training before the event which “helped a lot with getting comfortable again on the J/24 after taking some time off,” Mollicone explained. His dependable group will be heading to Howth, Ireland in August for the J/24 World Championship, but he’ll turn over the helm to Tim Healy. “We’ll just switch roles, and then next year I’ll drive in Newport (for the 2014 J/24 Worlds),” shared Mollicone. In Wednesday’s final two races, Mollicone and Tony Parker took the bullets.

The top ten J/24 teams overall were: 1st- John Mollicone (21 points), 2nd- Will Welles (26), 3rd- Peter Bream (43), 4th- Mike Ingham (44), 5th- Tony Parker (47), 6th- Travis Odenbach (47), 7th- Chris Jankowski (76), 8th- Robby Brown (77), 9th- Darby Smith (80) and 10th- John Poulson (84).   For more J/24 Midwinters sailing information and results
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J/24 Midwinters Preview

(Tampa, Florida)- This year's J/24 Midwinters are shaping up to be as competitive an event as its seen in recent years.  The Davis Island YC that is playing host to the event from February 12-15 is no stranger to having to manage this group of high-test racers who look forward to their winter pilgrimage down to Florida to challenge the locals as well as the top teams that show up from around the country, a tradition that started back in 1978 in the first J/24 Midwinters and has never let up since!  

With a massive Low pressure weather system flowing across the south and into the northeast coast this coming weekend, it may just clean out the weather and offer up some great sailing conditions on Tampa Bay for these intrepid J/24 sailors.  The Bay can be notoriously fickle at this time of year since most of the weather is driven by relatively fast-moving frontal systems from the Arctic North curving south and sweeping across the North American continent.  It's not unknown for Tampa Bay to have light to moderate winds one day and blowing "dogs off chains" in rather "fresh to frightening" conditions the next day as yet another enormous winter front pushes through the amazingly choppy waters off the Tampa city-front.  Without fail, the Midwinters always provides challenging conditions to the competitors.

Fresh off their win at the first J/70 Midwinters, perhaps it's somewhat symbolic the "three musketeers" of John Mollicone, Tim Healy and Geoff Becker have joined together again on I FEEL LIKE(?) as a formidable crew to take on other top teams for the J/24 Midwinters.  Giving them a serious run-for-the-money, and perhaps looking forward to knocking them off the podium, will be several top teams all with equally impressive credentials.  Special mention must first go to Tony Parker sailing yet another incarnation of the famous BANGOR PACKET, more often than not, Tony's always a factor amongst the regatta leaders-- not bad for a guy who's sailed J/24s starting in Maine since 1979! Yes, that does span four actual decades for those who are counting!  Watch out!  The wise-man cometh.  Other notable teams include Peter Bream's crew on TEAM TARHEEL, Robby Brown sailing USA 799, Travis Odenbach on HONEY BADGER and a pretty formidable group from Newport/ San Diego that know a thing or two about sailing J/24s- Will Welles is teamed up with Chris Snow and Anderson Reggio.  Sailing photo credits- Tim Wilkes.com
For more J/24 Midwinters sailing information
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