Friday, April 1, 2016

J/70 West Coast Midwinters Preview

J/70s sailing off California (Marina del Rey, CA)- California Yacht Club is pleased to welcome the J/70 Class for its inaugural J/70 Midwinter Championship West, to be sailed Friday through Sunday, April 1-3.  Late spring brings exciting sailing conditions to Santa Monica Bay, while the longer daylight hours insure a full afternoon of competitive sailing.

The regatta kicks off with a series of practice races on Friday afternoon, followed by a welcoming reception for all skippers and crew at the CYC Clubhouse.  Championship racing will be held Saturday and Sunday with the first start at 1200 each day and a total of seven races scheduled.  The weekend's hospitality will be a fitting complement to the on-the-water competition, with beer on the docks each day, a regatta dinner on Saturday and a reception preceding the awards presentation on Sunday.  Prizes will be awarded to the top finishers overall and in the Corinthian division.

Eight teams are registered, most all of them sailed the recent HELLY HANSEN San Diego NOOD Regatta in San Diego.  One of the top teams from the NOOD event that will be sailing is Jeff Janov’s MINOR THREAT, hoping to cash in on that experience to lead the charge for the hometown crew from Cal YC.  Nevertheless, many other teams were also in the hunt in the San Diego event and should find the offshore long-rolling swells of Marina del Rey a refreshing change from the billiard table-flat waters of San Diego’s South Bay.  Those teams include Steve Wyman’s NUNUHUNU, Jim Murrell’s HUCKLEBERRY with world-famous crew Willem Van Way aboard, Bruce Cooper’s USA 32 and Patrick Danly’s TALLY HO.

In the Corinthians Division, it will be a race to see which of the three boats takes the gold between Beverly Burr’s VIVACE, Jon Cianciarul & Patrick Kinkaid’s AVANTI and Craig Tallman’s JAYA!  Sailing photo credit- Paul Todd/ Outside Images.com

For any questions on the J/70 West Coasts, please contact Regatta Chair Marylyn Hoenemeyer at ph# (310) 617-3870 or email- J70mw2016@gmail.com   For more J/70 West Coast Midwinters sailing information