Light winds continue for Miami OCR

Miami, FL (January 22, 2021) – Sailors were greeted with warm, sunny conditions and temperatures in the low 70s for day two of Miami OCR, the second stage of West Marine US Open Sailing Series. Light wind prevailed again for most of the day, similar to yesterday’s breeze on Biscayne Bay. Wind speeds peaked at around 6 knots in the afternoon.

After insufficient winds yesterday did now allow for the iQFoil and Open Windsurf Foil fleets to begin racing, there was optimism today with the improved weather forecast. While the winds failed to live up to the forecast, the minimal breeze allowed the two iQFoil fleets to complete one race each.

Mateus Isaac (BRA) earned the bullet in the Men’s fleet (9-meter sail) and Garrett January (Pinellas, Fla.) won the 8-meter sail race. Farrah Hall (Annapolis, Md.) placed third overall in the 8-meter race and the top women’s sailor.

Farrah Hall, who will represent the USA in the RS:X at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, believes the evolving windsurfing equipment could change the sport. “I’ve had over 15 years of RS:X experience, so it’s been a long time. The iQFoil is a new opportunity and breath of fresh air for the Olympic Windsurfing class.

“We really need to stay current with all the foiling boats we see out there. I think we are attracting new people from all backgrounds, including windsurfing and other sailing classes. We are excited to have something that is really fun to sail.”

The iQFoil is the 2024 Olympic Games Windsurfing class, replacing the RS:X equipment which has been used in the Games since Beijing 2008.

Hall also raced at the 2012 London Olympic Games for Team USA, and more recently represented Team USA at the 2019 Pan American Games. “I think windsurfing is the purest form of sailing. You are connected to your equipment. It’s in your hands. It’s very athletic and physical. And it’s also extremely fun and it’s going to be the biggest Olympic class.”

The 49erFX has been highly competitive through two days of racing and six races total. After posting mid-fleet results yesterday, the new team of Lucy Wilmot (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) and Erika Reineke (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) surged up the leaderboard today and took a one point lead over Stephen Baker (Miami, Fla.) and Nicholas Hardy (Newton, Mass.). Wilmot and Reineke posted a 2-1-2-1 scoring line. Baker and Hardy won both races yesterday to take an early lead.

Nevin Snow (San Diego, Calif.) and Dane Wilson (Ojai, Calif.) won five consecutive races today in the 49er fleet after placing second in Race 1 yesterday. They have a four point lead over Ian Barrows (St. Thomas, USVI) and Hans Henken (Coronado, Calif.), who Race 1 and have placed runner-up to Snow and Wilson in each of the last five races.

The 470 event has been paced by Stu McNay (Providence, R.I.) and Dave Hughes (Ithaca, N.Y.) who have won five of six races through two days. The fleet completed four races today.

In the Nacra 17 fleet, the Brazilian team comprised of Samuel Albrecht and Gabriela Nicolino (BRA) have had an impressive regatta through five races, including three races today. They have won four of the five races and lead by six points over Riley Gibbs (Long Beach, Calif.) and Anna Weis (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.).

Tomorrow’s forecast has winds once again beginning slowly but building from the east in the late afternoon. Racing is planned for January 21-24.

US Open information – Event details – Results

US Sailing and host yacht clubs at established sailing venues in Florida and California launched the 6-stage West Marine US Open Sailing Series to provide high-quality Olympic-class racing in the USA. usopen.ussailing.org

Source: US Sailing, Scuttlebutt