Sperry Top-sider St Pete NOOD Preview

(St Petersburg, FL)- The 2014 Sperry Top-Sider NOOD Regatta series kicks off in sunny St. Petersburg, FL from February 14th to 17th. The fleet of 123 boats is dominated by J/Teams, representing 38% of the participants.  Of the forty-five J’s sailing there are twelve J/24s and twenty-eight J/70s racing one-design, while there are a half-dozen J’s sailing PHRF handicap classes.

The J/70 fleet, now in its second year at St. Pete, boasts the most entries and it’s a J/70 World Championship qualifier for the fleet.  Competitors will duke it out for two open spots for the Worlds in Newport, RI, in September 2014.

For Todd Fedyszyn, St. Petersburg YC’s youth sailing director and head coach, this year’s event will be a change of pace. Having previously raced J/24s at the NOOD, a parent of one of his team member’s offered to loan him a J/70 for the weekend. “It’ll be our first regatta,” says Fedyszyn, “so hopefully we can be competitive with the top of the pack if all goes well.”

The top of the pack, says Fedyszyn, includes many who are participating in the Quantum J/70 Winter Series at Davis Island YC. “Jud Smith on AFRICA was really fast last month at the first Winter Series regatta,” notes Fedyszyn. “He was almost unbeatable. I think Marty Kullman on TOUCH 2 PLAY will also be one of the top guys. People will always keep their eye on Heather Gregg-Earl and Joe Bardenheier on MUSE. Patrick Wilson had a good first Winter Series event as well sailing STAMPEDE. Mark Ploch’s SUGAR DADDY team is another crew who’s been spending a lot of time on the boat and should be in the front of pack. There are four or five who are going to jump out, who seem to have an extra gear.” Defending St. Pete NOOD J/70 champion Joel Ronning, on CATAPULT, will be also be back, along with Don & Tom Finkle on JUNIOR, Jim Cunningham on LIFTED, Kerry Klingler on MENACE, and Will Welles on RASCAL.  For more Sperry Top-sider St Pete NOOD sailing information.

Community Sailing Raffles New J/70 Speedster!

(East Greenwich, RI)- The Greenwich Bay Sailing Association (GBSA) was established over 20 years ago by the East Greenwich Yacht Club as a separate nonprofit community sailing program. We serve about 120 kids each summer and a growing number of adults.

We don’t ever want a kid to miss out on the benefits of learning to sail due to financial need – toward this end, we granted over $5,000 in scholarships this past summer. We are also the proud hosts of the CJ Buckley Regatta – which for the past five years has served as the Club 420 Association’s Jr. National Team Racing championships, attracting teams from throughout North America.

Every two years we have a charity auction event to raise funds to help cover our capital expenses (fleet, powerboats, etc). Our plan for 2014 and beyond is to dramatically increase our impact in the community by adding more opportunities for kids and adults to learn to sail.

Our plan centers around building a fleet of keelboats for that purpose. Two years ago, we were fortunate enough to receive a J/24 as a donation to the program. It has proved to be a great boat for our adult learn to sail program and for our “sailing adventures” class in the afternoons (older kids). Our plan is to use the funds from this raffle to purchase three more used  J/24s.

We have received the support of both the Town of East Greenwich and the City of Warwick (our facility straddles the line between the two towns) to implement this plan. All that’s left now is to secure the funding – and that’s where the “Win A J/70 Raffle” comes in.

The J/70 is the most popular boat to come around in a generation. We came up with this crazy idea to raffle off a J/70 to raise funds for GBSA. Through a lot of hard work and support from our partners at McMichaels we’ve made the raffle a reality. The plan is simple – sell 650 raffle tickets at $100 each!  Good odds, isn’t it!?   For a chance to be the lucky winner, please enter the raffle here!

Having Fun Sailing-- according to Don Finkle

(Youngstown, NY)- Don Finkle from RCR Yachts, the J/Dealer in upstate New York, wrote a nice perspective regards why successful one-design sailboat classes have a “collegial atmosphere” amongst their sailors.  Here are Don’s comments as posted in Scuttlebutt:

There are not as many racing sailors out there as I thought there were. Much has been said about the decline in sailboat racing so that is no secret, but it dawned on me recently that it is worse than I had thought.

When I was sailing 36 foot racer-cruisers, we usually sailed with and against people we knew from year to year, even as we moved around. And those people normally stayed with the same crew, or maybe switched from one boat to another within the same fleet.

Now that I sail mostly on J/70s we travel a lot more and are exposed to a much larger pool of sailors, many of whom I did not previously know. So I pay a lot more attention to the other sailors in our fleet, who they are, where they sail, their backgrounds, etc. I want to meet new sailors, follow their accomplishments and hopefully learn from them.

What I have found is that many of these people sail in a variety of boat designs, not just in one class. They may have a favorite but they can be found in different boats in different events, sometimes driving, sometimes crewing.

Where I am going with this is that if you name four different fleets of say small keelboat one designs you don’t have four distinct sets of sailors. Many of the names sail in multiple fleets, so the total number of participants is less than you would first think. I figured this out by looking at the results of the J/70 class at first, then scouring the results of other classes….and the same familiar names cropped up on scoresheets all over the place.

Some of these people sail Melges 20s, Melges 24s, J/80s, Lightnings, J/22s, J/24s, etc. in addition to the J/70, often 3 or 4 different classes. This is not a bad thing at all; it means that sailors get to try and enjoy different boats (there is no perfect boat) and meet more people as they move around. But it can give the impression that there are a greater number of sailors than is actually the case.

Each class is thus in somewhat of a precarious position. With sailors hopping from class to class they might not have the long term commitment to any one, so any given class could find itself with a drop in attendance at any time.

The exception to this would be those classes that focus their energy on sustaining membership based on a collegial atmosphere, involvement at a social level, being inclusive of sailors of varying ages and abilities, etc.

J/70s At J/World Annapolis!

(Annapolis, MD)- Attention all J/70 sailors!  J/World Annapolis is anxiously awaiting the delivery of their J/70 (USA 357) this August and are planning events for the boat in 2013 and 2014.  There is a unique opportunity for new and potential J/70 buyers to “try before they buy” while also getting top level racing and boat-handling coaching as well as experiencing the first  J/70 North American Championship this September.

Beginning Monday, September 23, 2013 J/World Annapolis will be conducting a three day training clinic followed by three days of racing in the 2013 J/70 North American Championship.  This six day racing event is patterned after our “super-week” training program and includes on-board coaching for all six days, three days of pre-event multi-boat training, daily video and still image debriefing and nightly discussions with J/70 sailmakers and local racing experts.

This program is perfect for new and prospective J/70 owners for several reasons.  First and foremost, owners quickly maximize their sailing experience by working through the boat-handling gremlins that can plague self taught teams.

Second, the methodology is easily transferred to crews when clients return to their teams - making the owner's programs stronger. J/World believes well-rounded racing education requires cross-training, and our program will put each client into each of the roles onboard.  During practice and the regatta clients will rotate through each of the roles, gaining valuable experience in every position and valuable knowledge that will help them train their own crews.

Finally, because this will be an “owner crewed” event J/World are creating relationships that make racing fun and create important peer-to-peer networks that strengthen the class.

J/World Annapolis have nearly two decades of experience conducting this style of training program in the J/80 and look forward to bringing their experience and training program to the J/70 class.  In addition to the J/70 North Americans they will be conducting this style of program at Key West Race Week, St Petersburg NOOD, Miami Race Week, Charleston Race Week and Annapolis NOODs.

The J/70 North American six day regatta program is $2,495 per person and includes three days of training, three days of racing, event registration, crew gear and lunch each day.  It is exclusive of travel and lodging.

Please contact them if you have an interest in learning how to sail your J/70 faster and better!  Contact is Kristen Berry at ph# 410-280-2040 (Office) or 410-599-3542 (Cell) or email- kristen@jworldannapolis.com

J/Teams Sail Frenetic San Diego NOOD!

J/70s Challenge Shifty Winds
(San Diego, CA)- The second stop for the eight event Sperry Top-Sider NOOD Regatta circuit was in San Diego, CA on March 15th to 17th weekend. The feast or famine tradition for this event prevailed, where strong conditions in past events were set aside this year for light and spotty winds. Three race courses hosted 101 boats competing in 12 one design classes. A total of 38 J/Teams participated, accounting for over one-third (37%) of the fleet!

According to Benjamin Miller, SailFlow.com Meteorologist, spring in San Diego can be quite dynamic. The passage of winter storm systems continues but these winter storms become less frequent and less potent as the month of March progresses. Meanwhile, the North Pacific High begins to rebuild, resulting in some modest WNW breezes, too. However, despite all great and wonderful prognostications, such was not the case!

On the opening day, the fog lifted to deliver great conditions for racing for the J/Teams for the duration of the afternoon.  But, the light winds and significant shifts tested the patience of sailors in all fleets.  By the end of the regatta, it was self-evident the weather was putting a premium on good starts and conservative strategies.

Emerging from the heat of battle amongst the rock-star laden J/70 fleet was Bennet Greenwald, sailing a consistent series on PERSEVERANCE to win the emerging 10-boat J/70 class, scoring a 2-3-1-4-2-4 for 16 pts.  On-board with Bennet was fellow San Diegan and Star/ Etchells 22 World Champion Vince Brun.  Next in line grabbing an early lead on the first day but succumbing to a deep finish on the second day was champion sailor David Ullman sailing USA 32 to a 1-1-4-7-4-3 tally to snag second by one point!  Recent St Petersburg NOOD winner, Joel Ronning, sailed his brand new midnight blue/black CATAPULT to a great series, improving just about every race to collect a 3-5-5-2-5-1 for 21 points to grab the third spot on the podium.  Aside from the usual sailing rock stars, the NOOD Regatta also attracted a couple other notable celebrities in the field, including national talk radio host and author Dr Laura Schlessinger.  She sailed her new J/70 called VENGEANCE to a credible fourth place for her first outing!  Like Joel, she too improved virtually every race to win the top J/70 scoreline on the last day, counting an 8-4-3-5-3-2 for 25 pts!  You go girl!!  Rounding out the top five was Karl Pomeroy sailing with Scuttlebutt Newsletter editor Craig Leweck on their boat- ZERO TO 60.  Sailing photo credits- Tim Wilkes.com  For more Sperry Top-Sider San Diego NOOD Regatta sailing information

J/70 Sailing World Awards Ceremony

(Bristol, RI)- J/Boats and CCF Composites were honored in Bristol for earning recognition in Sailing World magazine’s "Boat of the Year Awards" this past week.  Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee and United States Senator Jack Reed joined the state’s civic and marine industry leaders to celebrate J/Boats' national and worldwide recognition.

“The annual Sailing World Boat of the Year Awards are much-anticipated by the marine industry and consumers,” said the spokesman for the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association (RIMTA). “An independent panel of experts puts new designs launched the previous year through rigorous inspection and sea trials before announcing an authoritative pick of overall and category winners.”  The J/70 from J/Boats and builder CCF Composites earned overall honors from the magazine.

“If you look at a map of our state, it’s not hard to understand why the marine trades have always been one of Rhode Island’s premier economic assets. They are among our state’s oldest and proudest industries, and this legacy continues to the present day with outstanding companies such as J/Boats and CCF Composites,” Rhode Island's Governor Chafee said. “I offer my congratulations and my thanks for helping to maintain Rhode Island’s reputation for excellence in the marine industries.”

With 400 miles of coastline and its compact size, Rhode Island is a magnet for marine businesses. Traditional and modern boat builders, sailmakers, hardware and component manufacturers, riggers, marinas and other services together form a manufacturing continuum that has created a significant center of expertise.

Joining the Senator and the Governor as speakers were Peter Van Lancker, who spoke on behalf of RIMTA; David Reed, Editor of Sailing World magazine; and George Brengle, Director of Marketing for Sailing World; and Jeff Johnstone, President of J/Boats to recognize the company teams behind the award-winning J/70 one-design speedster.  Amongst the dignitaries and sailing industry leaders present were North Sails President Ken Read of Newport, Rhode Island; most recently renown for his Volvo Ocean Race exploits aboard PUMA Mar Mostro winning the Inshore Series of the event and, miraculously, nearly winning the event overall despite an unexpected "vacation" in Tristan da Cunha (a lovely island in the middle of the South Atlantic with a golf-course laid out by the mythical unicorns).

J/70 CATAPULT Wins St Pete

Brown Takes J/24 Class & Overall NOOD Title
(St Petersburg, FL)- It’s hard to remember a class that has hit the ground running faster than the J/70 class. Amateur sailors from a variety of other classes are scrambling to get in and get good, while representatives from every sailmaker are investing a lot of time and effort to get the early jump on sail design, rig tune, and boat-handling techniques.

None of this will diminish the importance or satisfaction gained from a regatta win, but it does add another layer of intrigue to any J/70 regatta in 2013. Who won is as important has how they did it.  The Sperry Top-Sider St. Petersburg NOOD Regatta was the NOOD debut for the J/70 class, and it did so in style with 20 boats signed up to sail.

Unseasonably cool conditions dominated the 16th edition of the Sperry Top-Sider St. Pete NOOD. But with the cool weather came breeze, and sailors generally prefer wind and cool weather to balmy temps and glassy seas. Those who braved the wind chill on Tampa Bay Friday through Sunday were rewarded with near perfect racing conditions, which enabled the race officials to run up to 11 races for each of the nine classes.

The biggest class was the fledgling J/70 class, with 20 entries. As the J/24 did when it debuted the late 1970s, the J/70 is attracting a lot of interest in its first full year of one-design racing. Joel Ronning, of Minneapolis, MN sailed his brand new boat, CATAPULT with Willem Van Waay and Jeremy Wilmot and a St Pete YC Sailing Center Opti sailor to win the J/70 class by 20 points with a 1-4-4-1-1-2-1-6-2-2 record.  It wasn't easy as the CATAPULT team was challenged by several boats over the course of the regatta, but a combination of incredibly shifty conditions, OCS's and misjudged boat-handling (shrimping and broaches) in the 15-25 kt breezes encountered on Saturday's and Sunday's racing practically eliminated CATAPULT's principal competition.  Nipping at their heels the entire regatta was the team of Will Welles (Newport, RO) and Ethan Bixby (local sailor from St Pete) sailing RASCAL, winning two races, but having to recover from an OCS in a critical race meant the RASCAL boys had to settle for a 3-6-3-5-3-1-8-10-4-1 scoreline for a total of 44 pts to take second overall.  Just behind them in third overall was MENACE, on-board were past J/22 and J/80 World Champions sailing as a team, Kerry Klingler (Larchmont, NY) and Terry Flynn (Houston, TX), sailing their best series to date and compiling a 6-19-2-7-4-8-3-4-1-4 tally for 58 points.

Behind the top three was a real battle for the balance of the top five.  In the hunt were the teams of LIFTED (Jim Cunningham- Tiburon, CA), USA 171 (Peter Vessella- San Francisco, CA), MUSE (Heather Gregg-Earl & Joe Bardenheier- Boston, MA), JUNGLELAND (Chris & Carolyn Groobey- Annapolis, MD), SURGE (Jeff Perini) and USA 69 (Joe Colling- Bath, OH).  With all six teams within ten points of one another going into the last day, anything could happen to settle the score for the top five.  In the end, Jeff Perini's team sailed well in the final day's extremely shifty winds filled with enormous puffs and holes to beat out the others to secure 4th overall.  Fifth went to Jim Cunningham's LIFTED team, beating out USA 171 by 3 pts and MUSE by 4 pts!  It was fun, close racing overall with lots of reports of J/70s hitting 15-16+ knots in the windy, wavy conditions!

St. Pete local Robby Brown dominated the 15-boat J/24 class winning seven of 11 races. By virtue of the impressive win over some top competition, Brown, whose boat USA 799 first touched water 35 years ago, was selected as the overall winner for the regatta. That honor includes a trip to the British Virgin Islands in November, where Brown and his crew will get a chance to battle for national bragging rights  against the overall winners from the other five Sperry Top-Sider NOOD Regattas.

Robby Brown (seen here second from the left) and the crew of the J/24 USA 799 celebrate their overall win in the 2013 Sperry Top-Sider St. Petersburg NOOD Regatta. This is Brown's second time winning the overall honors, but after being unable to go to the Caribbean the first time he is determined to make it to the BVI in November for the NOOD Championships.

Robby commented about his win, "A huge thanks to everyone aboard Team 799 this past weekend! Seen here rounding first with our complete North inventory. A fantastic job by all. Despite Travis Odenbach and Team Honey Badger's attempt to cripple our trimmer on Saturday night, our team performed at top speed all weekend. We were honored to be chosen the Overall event winner for the second time and will definitely represent Tampa Bay in the Virgin Islands for the Championships this November. A HUGE thanks to Nate Vilardebo, Stephanie Karidas, Karen Regan (the future wife) and Matt, our newly discovered secret weapon. Thanks to the event organizers for an outstanding regatta, and we were absolutely blessed with some superb sailing conditions on Tampa Bay all weekend!"    Sailing World's Stu Streuli Interviewed Robby Brown, please see it here.   For more J/70 and J/24 Sperry Topsider NOOD St Petersburg Regatta sailing information

St Petersburg NOOD Preview

Hot J/70 Debut, Strong J/24 Fleet Sailing
(St Petersburg, Florida)- Riding the tail-feathers of the J/24 Midwinters will be the Sperry Topsider St Petersburg NOOD Regatta hosted by St Petersburg YC.  As one of Florida's leading yacht clubs, StPYC has a reputation for not only being a fabulous host but also one of those famously gentile clubs that simply knows how to take care of their sailors and run a great regatta.  Famous for being the starting point of the SORC (Southern Ocean Racing Circuit), sailors from around the world would belly-up to the bar and admire the gorgeous full-hull tank-testing scale models of 12 meters that hung from the ceiling-- amongst the sailing heroes casting admiring glances were Ted Turner on the Carter 39 MUNEQUITA; Dennis Conner on the many Peterson-designed WILLIWAWs; as well as Tommie Blackaller (bless his heart) on Good Lord knows what, but certainly and most infamously with Tommie Dreyfus on YOUR CHEATIN HEART! Their ghosts are still there for those offshore sailing history buffs as well as the gorgeous 12 meter and other wooden models-- who can name them!?

For the J/Tribe, it looks like there will be two good fleets of boats in both J/24s and J/70s.  For the former, they're the "veterans" and have a tradition of supporting local sailing for a long time.  For the latter, they're the "new kids on the block", the J/70 is debuting for what appears to be the largest fleet in the regatta with over seventeen entries!

Amongst the J/24s will be Todd and Genoa Fedyszyn sailing SPOONY TACTICS.  If you recall, the Fedyszyn's received their boat as a wedding present from her parents. "It's a good boat," said Genoa. "It might not be pretty, but it's fast." Both Todd and Genoa coach sailing for St. Petersburg YC's junior program; they spend most weekends attending the sailing aspirations of others.  One regatta they never miss is the St Pete NOOD. "With our schedules, this is the one event we set aside in advance," said Todd. "We look forward to it every year."  They will have tough competition from David Ogden, J/24 sailor extraordinaire from Royal Canadian YC in Toronto, ONT, Canada and from local ring-leader Robby Brown from across the Bay at Davis Island YC.

As for the J/70s, the experience at Key West proved one thing only, the class is on a steep learning curve, acknowledged even by the winner Tim Healy and those like Brian Keane on SAVASANA who were vying for class honors.  With ten boats from the Midwinters and seven new boats showing up, the class will continue a dramatic ascent up that learning curve.  With additional participation from a number of Midwest boats from the Great Lakes (IL, MI, OH) the event promises to break even more new ground for performance.  Chief amongst the leaders may be teams on the fast-track at Key West, including J/24 and J/80 champion sailors like Kerry Klingler on MENACE; Mark Ploch/ Mike Bruno on SUGAR DADDY; Joe Colling on USA 69; Brandon Flack on TORQEEDO; Peter Vessella on USA 171 and Heather Gregg-Earl on her gorgeous, sublime MUSE.   For more Sperry Topsider St Petersburg NOOD Sailing Information.

Sailing World- Interviews J/24 Ace- Terry Hutchinson

(Key West, FL)-As if there weren't enough J/24 World Champions in the mix, like America's Cup winner Ed Baird calling tactics on the TP52 QUANTUM RACING or champion J/24 sailor Tony Rey sailing on the Ker 40 CATAPULT, here's a great interview with Terry Hutchinson who was sailing with long-time friend and compatriot in crime Jimmie Richardson from Newport, RI sailing his Farr 40 World Champion BARKING MAD- interview by Stuart Streuli at Sailing World.

"The Key West Scrolls"- Sailing World Blogs

Sailing World Blogs- the Most Excellent Key West Experience
(Key West, FL)- During Quantum Key West Race Week, there was more than enough activity and perspectives on life, love, friends, family and "simply messing about in boats" to fill an encyclopedia.  To that end, Sailing World's Dave Reed and Stu Streuli and others like Don Finkle, long-time J sailor and dealer and Jonathan McKee, long-time family friend from Seattle, WA provided unique insights on "why" people enjoy the "Woodstock of Sailing"-- Key West Race Week-- a gathering of friends from around the world to start the "New Sailing Year".  Yes, there are others that are similar that bring together sailors from a wide variety of classes and from all four corners of the compass; like Cowes Week, Cork Week (Ireland & Canada), SPI Ouest France, NYYC Race Week, Big Boat Series, Long Beach Race Week, Bacardi Miami & Charleston Race Weeks (NKOTB's), Kieler Woche, Block Island Race Week, Whidbey Island Race Week, Delta-Lloyd Race Week, Marseille and Palma Mallorca's newly famous shindig- PalmaVela, just to name a few, but the grand-daddy of the big-time winter events that gets the ball rolling for the new sailing year simply happens to be "Key West".  Here are some perspectives from those who experienced it first-hand.

"Musical Chairs"- by Dave Reed
Sailing World Editor Dave Reed was embedded with Tim Healy's J/70 HELLY HANSEN for an insider's look into the class's first major event.  Here are some excerpts:

Sunday, January 20- The Beginning of Time
"Tim Healy, John Mollicone, Geoff Becker. These guys are what you’d call 'The Starting Three'. As J/24 champions many times over, they know what they’re doing. Together, they’d be pretty darn close to an ideal combined weight for the J/70 class, rumored to be around 600 pounds or so, but no one really knows. Then there’s myself. Over the next five days of racing I could either be the extra (excess) weight in this program, or just the right difference when, and if, it gets really windy. I’m OK with being an extra set of hands and a little more righting moment. I’ve got one of the best seats in the house.

It’s all new, this J/70 thing. Most of the teams in the fleet are still assembling boats, sailing them for the first time, and debating over headstay length, rake, and whether to race with three up or four up, and then where to put them and who does what. In the fleet of nearly 40, the talent and crew combinations are all over the map. Where there’s a few big guys, there’s a petite fourth. There are big-three Etchells-type teams, and plenty of foursomes."

Friday, January 25- The End of Time
"The Final Four- A week ago, as you may recall (if not, see above), I joined 'The Starting Three' in Key West, full of uncertainties. A new boat, a new team, zero practice days, and a lot to figure out: who does what, who sits where, what’s the right headstay length, and on and on.

Our first two starts were terrible, and in light winds, comebacks don’t happen easily. That’s where the double-digit points came in. The next day, we went 3,3,1. 'The Tim Healy' (as labeled on his recyclable metal water bottle on the boat), shook off whatever it was that was occupying his mind, and started like the expert he is. After winning the last race of the day, he joked with a wry smile, “Well, at least I know I don’t suck."   Read more about Dave's adventures being the "cog in the wheel" on what is, at least for the moment, one of the world's fastest J/70s.  Plus,  see Facebook sailing video for good downwind sailing technique on Tim's boat here.

"The Finkle Files"- by Don Finkle
Long-time J/Sailing Veteran, J/Dealer and leader at RCR Yachts enjoyed his first J/70 regatta with his son Tim and friend Morgan Paxhia-- it was a family affair.

Sunday, January 19
"When the editor asked me to write a blog for Quantum Key West Race Week, he failed to tell me that the other storytellers he chose were Jonathan McKee and Steve Hunt. I’m not sure I would have agreed to do this if I knew I was in such accomplished company. But even 'ham-and-eggers' like me have stories, so here we go.

Quantum Key West 2013 started for Team Junior last Monday as my wife Heather and I pulled out of Youngstown, N.Y. (near Niagara Falls) with our J/70 in tow.  So began a three-day drive, which was enjoyable for me but less so for her. The fog in the mountains of the Appalachians made for some hairy driving conditions. Plus, I had no idea there were so many 18-wheelers on the roads. We passed a couple of them in the ditch, which was even less reassuring to Heather….

One of the reasons for my downsizing from my 36-footer to the J/70 was the ability to travel more easily. My favorite part of sailing is doing travel regattas. To that end I wanted to tow down and back myself for the experience. We had already done that in November to Annapolis for the Fall Brawl Regatta, but that was only a one-day trip. Key West is a much bigger deal, but so far, it’s been well worth the trip---

Another reason I moved into the J/70 was so that I could sail with younger people, especially my family, who frankly have more fun on a sportboat. I’m 65 years old, and I’ve always sailed with multiple generations on our boats. I find sailing with younger people gives me energy. I’m clearly the weak link on our crew this week, but that is OK, the boys seem happy to put up with me-- at least so far.

Our youngest son Tim is the trimmer. His long-time friend Morgan Paxhia, who is family to us, is our driver. These two started sailing against each other in the Youngstown YC junior sailing program when they were about 10 years old and have been school classmates, buddies, and sailing friends for 20 years.

Morgan went off to sail in college at the University of Rhode Island, and Tim went to Connecticut College where he played hockey and lacrosse. The three of us sailed together on the J/70 in Annapolis in November and had a ball, but figured we'd be light for Quantum Key West so Morgan tabbed his former teammate from URI, Joey Mello, to be our fourth. Joey has been heavily involved in the 'Ninkasi' Melges 20 and Melges 32 programs. He’s our tactician, and that leaves me with the all-important tasks of passing up water and sandwiches, helping on the hoist and douse, making sure the Velocitek has batteries, and so forth. It all worked well on the practice day, now we get to see how we do when the fur starts to fly in earnest!"  Read more here about the Finkle's dramas and adventures (or lack thereof) on the Sailing World blogs.

"McKee's Key West Minute"- by Jonathan McKee
Jonathan and his brother Charlie have all grown through their experiences racing a variety of boats, including J/24s and other various J's over time.  Jonathan is not just a remarkably talented sailor, he's also a great person with an interest in helping grow the sport overall along with friends Dave Ullman, Carl Buchan and others who grew from their experiences in various one-design classes.  Here's Jonathan's amusing commentary:

Sunday, January 20
"It is so great to be back in Key West. I missed it last year and somehow my whole year was not the same. The combination of sunny warm weather, beautiful emerald water, great racing, and a unique colorful town is unmatched by any other regatta.

Key West always provides ample down time, and causes me to reflect on what a fortunate life I have. Not only do I get to race on a beautiful high-tech race boat with a well-trained crew, practicing my craft against the best sailors in the world, but there is time to catch up with old friends from previous campaigns. I always run into people I have not seen for years, sometimes decades. Memories flood back of races and good times past.

Coming as it does at the beginning of a new season, Quantum Key West is a fresh start, but also a time for reflection, a chance to give thanks for all this sport has provided to me over the years, and all the funny and wonderful people I have had the pleasure of knowing. Now onto the racing."

Thursday, January 24
"One of the many great things about Key West is the live music. There must be at least 20 bands and musicians playing at any time. I have never seen anything like it. Nearly all the venues are open to the street, and there is no cover charge. So it is very easy to drift from band to band and check out several musicians in a short time. Personally I get quite inspired by watching music performed live, so I really love this aspect of the Key West experience. In fact, I am listening to a grisly old singer/guitar player right now, crooning an old Leon Russell tune in the Schooner Wharf Bar. Beats working!  The amazing thing is most of the musicians are really good. I guess if you are traveling musician, Key West in January is not a bad gig. Most of the music is sort of folk or blues oriented, with the odd rockers and jazz types. Not a lot of hip-hop here in Key West. I guess this reflects the demographic, which is predominantly white and middle age. Although, maybe I’m not ferreting out the alternative venues well enough."

The Editor was pleasantly amused by Jonathan's perspective.  On Wednesday, the night before he wrote his impressions of the local music scene, Jonathan happened to walk into a famous local "wine bar" called Virgilio's, an open-air patio behind the equally famous Italian restaurant on Duval St called "La Trattoria".  A three-piece band was playing-- two guitars and a drummer.  After catching up for awhile about family, friends, life, the band resumed its next set and we were simply blown away by the sound and improvisation of this trio. There you go Jonathan, we certainly found another great "alternative venue", if not entertainers!  To next year!  And, with you and Elizabeth sailing a J/70!
Read more about Jonathan's sailing experience here on SW's Blogs.

J/70 Sailing World 2013 Boat of the Year!

(Newport, RI)- In addition to being named SAILING WORLD's Boat of the Year 2013, the J/70 also had a nice review by boats.com's Sailing Editor/ Contributor- Carol Cronin.  As Carol exclaims, "the J/70 is hitting the high notes.  This offering from J/Boats is already popular, months before its first birthday.  Every once in awhile a boat comes along that hits the high notes perfectly, a moment of sweet sound in the raucous symphony we call one-design sailing. This time, it’s the J/70 that is showing off its perfect pitch.  Read more of Carol's J/70 sailing article here.