Skunked Again at Sonar NA’s

Darien, CT (September 16, 2018) – No wind meant no racing today at the 2018 Jaguar Range Rover Sonar North American Championship, for the second day in a row.

Karl Ziegler and his SPITFIRE crew maintain their lead after four races and take home the title of Sonar North American Champions, Ziegler’s third win in this event (1993 and 1996 were his previous wins).

Racing for the 2018 Sonar North American Championship is scheduled for September 14-16.

Event details – Entry list – Facebook

About the Sonar Class
The Sonar is a 23 foot (seven meter) one-design keelboat for three to five people. It is bermuda-rigged, with a large mainsail and a 100% jib. World Sailing recognizes the class. The Sonar showcased disabled sailing at the 1996 Paralympic Games where the sport was a demonstration event with only the Sonar boat. The Sonar went on to be the three person keelboat at every subsequent Paralympics through 2016. When being sailed by disabled it is crewed by 3, and sailed without a spinnaker. Instead, when running downwind a whisker pole is used to hold the jib out to windward for maximum exposed sail area. The Sonar is well suited for disabled sailing because of its large open cockpit making adaptations easy.

The Sonar was designed in 1980 by Bruce Kirby, designer of the popular Laser dinghy. Since then, over 800 boats have been built. Most of the fleets are in the USA, with smaller fleets in Britain and Canada. Since its adoption as a Paralympic class the Sonar has spread to many other countries as well. The Sonar was inducted into the American Sailboat Hall of Fame in 2004.

Source: Richard Matthews