Windage is windage (opposite) even when you displace over 180 tonnes. Hanuman skipper Ken Read (left) goes full strength to persuade all of those tonnes to change direction at the top mark; a penalty in race six after a ‘brave’ attempt to squeeze in on port at the weather mark dropped Hanuman to second overall. J Class world champion Lionheart leads Topaz (above) past the Newport ‘cottages’. Rejected when drawn by Burgess and Stephens in 1937, today’s leading J Class expert Andre Hoek considers Lionheart to have turned out as the best all-round performer of all
a massive trickledown. Furling systems, rigging systems, sail design and material technology, very high-powered and effi- cient winch systems highlight just a few of the areas that are now light years ahead of where they were even a few years ago. Who says that big boat racing can’t
photography and video from the J Class Worlds here in Newport will go into the history books as among the very best ever. The first day of racing up into Narra-
gansett Bay had the local area at a standstill. We heard stories of all the streets along the waterfront of Newport, Jamestown and Portsmouth being jammed with stopped cars and people gawking. Six J Class yachts running into the bay in single file under the Newport Bridge. Forget the lunar eclipse, these boats and their jet black sails were literally blocking out the sun. And the show went on throughout the
week with close sailing. Small mistakes were harshly punished, as we found out all too well on Hanuman with a couple of
unforced errors that led to bigger than necessary race scores. And in the end it was the incredibly
consistent sailing by Harold Goddjin and Corinne Vigreux’s Lionheart that ruled the week. Tactician Bouwe Bekking did a really nice job keeping it simple onboard and always playing in the top three while letting the boat do its thing. For the rest there was very tight racing
that saw four of the six boats win a race. The showcase was immense. Tons of boats on the water to watch, and it was the talk of the region among sailors and non- sailors alike. Sailing was king, with the shoreline packed with people all week. The impact from events like this is also
trickle down? What is learnt today on high- powered sailboats tomorrow will have implications on the rest of sailing. This is a wonderful by-product of all the money spent to speed up these incredible boats. With Lionheart winning the world
championship and the inaugural Kohler Cup (overall season championship), all eyes now turn to next year for the Js. The Kohler Cup will be in its second year and class events are planned for St Barths, Palma, Porto Cervo and St Tropez. Sounds like a lousy schedule if you
don’t like fantastic people, beautiful places and picture-perfect sailing. Long live the new J Class and what they are all about. And the racing and images and products that they are introducing to the world of sailing and beyond. Ken Read, Newport RI
q SEAHORSE 37
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88
