Wednesday, December 15, 2010

J's Dominate Lauderdale-Palm Beach


J/44 white gold/ gold rush sailing to windward(Ft Lauderdale, FL)- The 54th Annual Wirth M. Munroe Memorial Ft. Lauderdale to Palm Beach Race was sailed on Friday, December 3, 2010. This race is co-sponsored by the Cruising Club of America and The Sailfish Club of Florida.
Conditions for the race were beautiful, northerly winds, 15-20 kts with 4-8 foot seas, blasting up the shore and the Gulf Stream.   Go "stream-hunting" to the edge or stay left and pick off the lefty puffs coming off the Florida shoreline?  The long beat to windward was to the liking of the various J's sailing in the race, with two of them winning their IRC and PHRF divisions overall.
In IRC Class, Jim Bishop's J/44 WHITE GOLD walked off with 1st place overall, winning the coveted Wirth-Munroe Trophy.
In PHRF A, Frank Kern's J/120 CARINTHIA from Detroit's Bayview YC won their PHRF Division in class and overall.  Just behind them was LOKI, a J/105 sailed by David Bond was fourth.  For more Lauderdale-Palm Beach Race sailing info.   Sailing photos from John Payne Photo.