Debrief: Quantum Key West 2015

During 2015 Quantum Key West (Jan. 19-23), Sailing World magazine corralled a crew of contributors to provide their observations during the week. Here are some excerpts…

Dave Reed, J/70 class:
One of the best places to be at Quantum Key West Race Week isn’t on Duval Street or Mallory Square, it’s at The Galleon, a non-descript beige condo building with a marina on one side and a tiki bar on the other. Packed into the marina are most of the sportboats, J/70s, Melges 24s, and a whole bunch of the IRC big-boats. Come 0900, the place is a bustling with pros going to work and the rest of us amateurs enjoying another holiday in the sun. When the races are done, boats get put away and the question of the day before heading over to the Tiki Bar for a mudslide is always, “How’d you do?”

Forrest Williams, J/111 class:
Key West Race Week is the ultimate bar karate dojo and the sailors bring it Cobra Kai style all week. Bar karate, for the uninitiated, is the sport in which drunk sailors lie to each other at the post-race watering hole doing animated karate chop motions to illustrate where the boats in the story are positioned (“We were on starboard (CHOP!) and this guy comes out of nowhere on port (CHOP!) so we lee bow him (CHOP!) and send him back to the left (CHOP!) never to be seen again”). Scientists have placed the percentage of bar karate stories that begin with the phrase: “We won the start and were leading the whole fleet up the beat when…” at somewhere between 85 and 90 percent.

Terry Hutchinson, IRC 1 class:
One competitor stood out in my mind and in a very small way made me smile as you could see a bright future. Twelve-year-old Gannon Troutman finished fifth in the highly competitive J/70 fleet, and as Vasco Vascotto and I chatted with him and parents, swapping half truths about yelling at each for the last 20 years, we were all laughing. It was just awesome to see and it was also great to see the support that Gannon’s parents put around him to allow it to happen. Having had great parents that supported my addiction but did not push me, it was great to see as Gannon and his peers are the future of our sport.

Chad Corning, GC 32 class:
How to sum up our first event in the GC 32? First and foremost the feeling of foiling and racing at high speeds was unique and addictive. Having so much fun that you stay out long after racing tells a lot about the boat and how fun it is to sail. But the boat is a beast to sail and punishes mistakes ruthlessly. This makes for a very stressful and physically demanding day on the water. When you get it all right there is no better feeling. When it goes wrong, it goes very wrong.

For complete Sailing World coverage: www.sailingworld.com/quantum-key-west