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Scuttlebutt News: Conversations within the sport of sailing - Chris Larson It is often said how sailing is unique as a sport, where the opportunity is readiliy available to compete against the very best in the sport. Occassionally we get the chance to chat with them too.
The last time I competed in a J/24 World Championship was 1998 in San Francisco, CA (finishing third). Well, I’ll have to say there has been quite a bit of rust rubbed off over the past week. The J/24 is very “old school” by having to sail upwind inside of the genoa all of the time. It’s taken me about 2 or 3 days to remember that trick. Not too much has changed with sailing the boat other than the implementation of a Kevlar genoa which just took effect in March. The beginning of May is a funny time here in Annapolis. In the past, this week is usually a transition period from early spring to late spring. However, this year has been much cooler than normal. The water temperature is only 58 degrees, even though it has risen 5 degrees in the last 7 days. Typically we see fewer strong fronts pushing though the Mid-Atlantic region offering predominately lighter winds. It’s a famous saying here, “If you don’t like the weather, just wait a minute and it will change.” I would expect to see at least 3 of the 5 days under 12kts. You would have to consider any of the past World Champions, Andrea Casale, Mauricio Santa Cruz, Anthony Kotoun as front runners as well Tim Healy and Will Wells. Peter Levesque could be a sleeper due to his performance this past weekend at the Annapolis NOOD (Pete was winning until a ZFP in the last race). I have a fantastic team this year. I’m lucky enough to have 6-time J/24 World Champion, Moose McClintock calling tactics, Dave Hughes in the cockpit, Steve Frazier in the middle, and Curtis Florence on the bow. It’ll be a treat to sail with these guys for the next 2 weeks. Event website: http://www.j24worldchampionship2009.com back to top |
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