on a recent archaeological dig through a stack of external hard drives for an elusive photo, I stumble upon an untitled folder dated 10 years ago. Opening an image in the preview window, I know exactly where I’m at: NOOD Regatta; Annapolis, Maryland; 2015.

That and the rest of the photos look and feel like ages ago. Scrolling them, I expect to see boats that I haven’t seen in a long time, but with each tap of the down arrow key, I’m stuck in a time warp. One by one, they’re all the same boats I’d seen a week earlier at the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta in Annapolis.

There’s that same dark blue J/30 Avita and Bebop, and dozens of the same J/70s, Alberg 30s (minus the tie-dyes), J/22s…and the list goes on. These are the regulars, the local teams who race with us in Annapolis year after year, boats and faces aging in unison.

I’ve been working the SWRS-née-NOOD beat for 30 years, so whenever I arrive at the host club, I expect to see many of the same characters committed to their respective classes. The lifers. Considering how long I’ve been at it, I’m pretty good at recognizing and seeking out newcomers. Which is why I intentionally strike up a conversation with Sarah Olivieri and her father, Marshall Borris, wandering through J/80s on trailers at the Annapolis YC Sailing Center’s circle entrance, bustling with arrivals.

My hunch is correct. They’ve just pulled in from New Jersey and have that look of: What do we do next? What’s the launch procedure? Where do we register? Where do we put the trailer?

I lob a softball Olivieri’s way: “Where are you coming in from?”

She and her 78-year-old father have made the short drive from New Jersey without incident. Their J/80 is the one with stained white gelcoat hull and a large numerical Greek pi decal near the bow (she later explains to me that pi has a value of 80). They’ve owned this particular J/80 for seven years and have been racing it exclusively in the Hudson River Yacht Racing Association’s PHRF fleet. This regatta will be their first time ever racing Pi in a one-design fleet.

Olivieri is “superexcited.” Racing against 22 boats in a new venue, with a lot of experienced teams, is a big deal.

I agree, leave them to it, wander off, and then later contemplate how exciting it will be for them to no longer be the loners of their hometown PHRF fleet; to check in with the class, play the game differently, and see where they stand on the ol’ level playing field, not to mention a playing field new to them. Trailering and traveling takes a higher commitment, and that’s what makes fast teams fast. Regatta voyaging takes us out of our comfort zone.

Olivieri started sailing with her father on a J/24 at 8 years old. The family J/35 came in high school, and the J lineage includes a cruising J/30, a J/22 and now the J/80. They are the quintessential J-boat family.

When the J/80 Worlds were contested in Newport, Rhode Island, in 2022, Olivieri convinced her father to charter their boat for the regatta and watch and learn from the sidelines. She used the opportunity to ask questions and check out how other teams rigged their boats. The experience was revealing, she says. “I learned that people in the class are so nice, like nobody’s keeping secrets. They’ll tell you all their tricks, especially if you’re interested,” she says. “It made me feel really welcomed and that I could do it.

“I was like, ‘You know, Dad? We could do that. We could do level racing.’”
She raced the Helly Hansen regatta in Annapolis this past year as a crew, and “this year I was like, I gotta bring my boat. I’m gonna do it—my first regatta, level racing with my own boat.”

Saying is one thing, but doing requires commitment. For Olivieri, who’d never towed a big keelboat beyond her own ZIP code, that meant a lot of trailer prep and a new tow vehicle. Then came the discovery of a bottom-paint issue this spring. “I started to work on it, and at a certain point, I had to call it,” Olivieri says. “I’m like, ‘It’s as good as it’s going to be.’ The big thing, the big win, is getting there, doing it, having a good time. And, you know, we’ll fix whatever we can later.”

Olivieri taking full responsibility for Pi is a generational passing of the family sailing torch. She grew up “very much like the sailor’s daughter,” she says. “I was pit early on because he wanted me to be safe, but the most interesting transformation was a couple of years ago, when we started sharing being captain.”

Health issues had forced her father to step back from sailing, and with Olivieri on the helm with a new team, they won every single race and their first season. “That was a big year for me,” she says. “I was excited and scared, and I really had to do well for him. I put a lot of ­pressure on myself.”

As newcomers to J/80 fleet sailing, there is a new kind of pressure in Annapolis, however, and the first day’s results are what she expected. They didn’t finish last, which is a good thing, but isn’t because of the Chesapeake’s swift and unpredictable currents winds—child’s play compared with Olivieri’s Hudson River training grounds.

“Growing up, I used to think everywhere else must be harder, but for me, shifty is more like 180 degrees. There’s 3 knots of current and a lot of obstacles.”

All that trained her well for the Annapolis J/80 scrum. “What I’ve learned this weekend driving is that I’m not used to being close-quarters with other boats, except at the starts,” she tells me on the morning of the final day of racing. “I’m used to maneuvering really tight because of other obstacles. I felt very comfortable out there. I was very pleased. I’m like, ‘Give me 3 inches on each side, and I’m good.’”

With her father having to return home on the second day, Olivieri picked up a local connection, and they worked through the kinks.

“Everyone on the team is experienced,” she says, “but if we’re not experienced together, it’s gonna hurt a little—it’s all the little things. It’s the dance; it has to be in sync. I knew that coming down here.”

She also discovered that she’s surprisingly comfortable driving in the high-density fleet. She didn’t find it all the least bit intimidating. “People at home say, ‘Oh, it looks so scary to be with so many boats,’ but it’s not at all because everybody knows what they’re doing,” Olivieri says.

Her tactician for the weekend, David Doyle, is an experienced J/80 owner and racer, and he initially kept their starts on the conservative side. “He was nervous how I’d feel pushing up in the line, but he quickly learned that I’m very comfortable at very close quarters. So, eventually, we had some decent starts and some races.”

On the final day, a cold, windy and raining affair, Olivieri and her crew posted a sixth—a top-10 keeper and their best finish of the regatta. The whole experience was an epiphany of sorts for the one-design first-timer.

“I’ve realized here that I maybe know how to sail this boat faster than some of the class racers,” she tells me. “And that’s because at home we rarely have ideal J/80 conditions, and we race against boats that sail to their rating.”

She admits that she’s not as good—at the moment—with the tactics of being with other like boats, but adds, “I know how to sail it faster because of PHRF racing, where every second counts and you have to pay attention until you cross the line.”

Given her enthusiasm and commitment, I’m confident that I will see her again next year.

The post PHRF for One-Design Perfection appeared first on Sailing World.

The Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta in Chicago captured the essence of competitive amateur sailing, featuring the impressive Melges 32 team of Jeremy Alexis and Jocelyn Saxon’s Fleetwood. On the waters of Lake Michigan and against the Chicago skyline, this team displayed its new chemistry and drive to perfection.

Their crew composition is diverse and tight-knit, with Jeremy introducing their weekend lineup: “We had Patrick Norris, Abby Brown, Jonathan Goldsberry, Benny Allen, Emery Williams and Josh Putnam.” The team’s approach is characterized by a quiet efficiency, with Jeremy highlighting that “everybody knows their jobs. They just got their jobs done, and everything was very smooth.”

As the speed machine in its nine-boat PHRF Spinnaker division (rating band), managing the fleet wasn’t so easy Saxon says: “We’re a really fast boat [PHRF 21], and it’s really hard to gauge where we are. It’s not one-design racing, which we’re used to.” This uncertainty added an extra layer of complexity to their fleet management.

Their boat handling in the weekend’s moderate winds was noteworthy. “We just really want to make sure we keep this crew together and continue to build the chemistry that we have,” Alexis says. This commitment to team development has been a key factor in their success.

The team’s performance was impressive, especially in lighter winds. “We do really well in light wind,” Saxon says. “Obviously, we’re a super light boat.”

While the team’s scoreline was perfect over eight races, the racing was closer than the scores would indicate Alexis says. “If we didn’t sail a perfect race, those C&C 115s were coming for us. They were knocking on the door the whole time. And that’s what kept us so focused.”

Looking forward, the team has ambitious plans. Alexis is hoping their win inspires others to consider the Melges 32 for PHRF racing. “They’re amazing boats.”

The team’s division win earned them a berth at the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta’s Caribbean Championship in the BVIs in October. The win is a significant milestone for the team. The championship is “the most iconic thing that a non-pro sailor” could experience, Alexis says.

The team’s approach to sailing is a blend of technical skill, strategic thinking, and genuine enjoyment. Alexis says the team dynamic is what makes the Fleetwood squad what it is. The core team, Saxon says, “has come together really nicely. We all get along really well. Have a lot of fun.”

The post Fleetwood’s Rise to the Top appeared first on Sailing World.

If there’s a theme to be realized at the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series in Chicago, it is one of perfection, and we’re talking both the caliber of races over three days and that of perfect scorelines of a handful of teams that simply excelled in the weekend’s light to moderate winds.

Among the picket-fencers was Jeremy Alexis and Jocelyn Saxon’s team on the Melges 32 Fleetwood. In its nine-boat PHRF Spinnaker division, Fleetwood aced all eight of its races, a few of them by good margins. Multiple port-tack starts made it clear they were in to win it and tactician Johnny Goldsberry wasn’t afraid to call it.

“It was nice to have the fastest boat in the fleet and get ahead and sail our own race with starts like those,” says Alexis. “It was good for us to be able to stay in clear air while the C&C 115s battled it out among themselves.”

The win in Alexis’ home waters is a culmination of months improving the boat and the team, attending high-level regattas over the past few months.

“We did them all with mostly the same crew, which is pretty amazing and it’s great to come to our hometown and finally win one. We’ve been working with Quantum Sails and have a good code zero and staysails that are fast. We’ve also work with a couple of pros, which has been essential to getting the boat dialed in and sorted. We recognized here that our boathandling is definitely getting better.”

Alexis was thrilled with the event and happy to win the division, but more importantly the regatta’s overall winner title, which earns the Fleetwood crew a berth at the Caribbean Championship in the BVI in October. As the Chicago challenger, the team will face overall winners from the regatta series’ other regattas, as well as the defending champion. The racing will take place in Sunsail’s fleet of 41-foot charter boats.

“It was just fantastic racing,” is Alexis’ summary of the regatta. “Lake Michigan really delivered. As did the race committee. They kept it rolling and we had a lot of great fair racing. This is a good example where PHRF works. If we didn’t sail a perfect race those C&C 115s were coming for us. They were knocking on the door the whole time. And that’s what kept us so focused and making sure that, you know, every corner was good, every tack was good.”

Saxon has raced the Helly Hansen Regatta (nee-NOOD) as many as 15 times and says she’s been eager to win the overall title. “To actually get to go the BVI is so exciting as an amateur racer,” she says. “And fortunately for us, we’re a little bit familiar with heavy boats. We’ve chartered a J/109 here in Chicago for the last few seasons just to do one-design racing, so I think we’re going to be pretty good in the BVI.”

On the third and final day, with the promise of wind, the regatta’s ORC and PHRF distance racers were dispatched on 14 and 12-mile races, respectively. With wind holding steady at sub 8-knots, it was indeed a day for slippery boats of the fleet, including Jeffrey Davis’ J/111 Shamrock, which won its second race of the weekend.

ORC2 honors went to David Baker’s Handsome Pete, a Beneteau First 10R, after winning today’s race and thereby winning a tiebreak over George Jackowiec’s Tartan 10 Out of the Blue.

In the PHRF 1 Distance Race, Bryan Sims’ Custom Perry 58, Suspect, won the day’s race, but Tomek Kokocinski’s Koko Loco, a Beneteau 39, finished second to win the class outright. John Notch’s Baltic 35, Exeter, won its second race to sweep the PHRF distance division.

The small boats of the regatta, tucked closer to shore off Montrose Harbor, enjoyed a full series of races for ILCA 6 and 7 sailors. Roman Plutenko was top ILCA 7, and Emilio Bocanegra Lopez went undefeated in the ILCA 6. Macatawa Bay YC’s junior racing team, with Lucas Nykamp on the helm, came on strong on the final day to win Youth Keelboat Invitational title. Macatawa’s team also won SWRS invitational in Detroit a week earlier.

The J/109 and J/88 classes sailed for their Great Lakes Championships, and for the 109s it was Evan Jahn’s Team Tumbler that won the regatta with only 3 points on its rivals on Jim Caesar’s Liquid Lounge 2. The racing was tight until the end, with each of these two teams winning a race on the final day.

Lindsay Duda and her teammates on the J/88 Sin Duda won five of eight races to secure its Great Lakes Championship by 6 points, a spread that doesn’t fairly reflect the tight racing of this fleet all weekened—and all winter for that matter.

“The last three days were great racing,” Duda says. “Everyone was in the mix. We’ve brought in a new tactician [Hector Guzman], so Annapolis [Helly Hansen Regatta in May] was our first time as a team. We’re learning to communicate and get through maneuvers, and this weekend we really starting to gel. Clean maneuvers, smart tactics and clear air really helped us get out front.”

Their rivals on second-placed Piranha was 5 points behind and a constant threat Duda says. “They are so fast, and they were right there the whole time.”

Craig Roehl and Edward Mui went 2-1 for a 16-point win in the Tartan 10 class and Cate Muller-Terhune’s team on Casting Couch close out an incredible regatta with a lead so large they were able to sit out the last race in the J/70 series. Richard Witzel’s Rowdy was runner up and Bob Willis’ Rip Rullah was the top Corinthian. Eva Wilson’s Convergence was the fleet’s top Mixed-Plus team.

As a display of the competitiveness of Chicago’s Beneteau 36.7 fleet, the race committee rolled through three general recalls until getting a fourth start off for the final race today. Out of the scrum emerged Jarrett Altmin’s Soulshine, which broke a mainsail halyard in the day’s first race and rebounded with another win in the nine-race series.

Overnight leaders in the J/105s, Clark Pellet’s Sealark, which was helmed by Pellet’s friend, David Brown, won the final race to lock the J/105s series handily. Brown praised the team, especially his MVP, Russ Radke. “

“Russ is the biggest reason for our success this weekend,” Brown says. “He’s the tactician, main sheet trimmer, rig tuner, and crew coordinator, giving all crew maneuver commands. Russ’s eyes and constant feedback made it incredibly easy for me to just drive and concentrate on speed. Clark has a fantastic crew all around, especially Russ. He’s the hero.”

With the conclusion of the 35th edition of the Chicago the series continues next in Marblehead, Massachusetts in July, and the Caribbean Championship with Sunsail in October.

The post Fleetwood Comes Home to Win Chicago Series Stop appeared first on Sailing World.

There’s no one magic bullet when it comes to success in PHRF racing—or any time of racing for that matter—but there are a few easy ways to ensure your boat is up to snuff and race ready for when the season finally gets underway. Here’s what’s at the top of my list, and while they may seem obvious, they’re guaranteed to make a difference.

1. Weight is slow

As is with any boat, making sure your boat is as light as possible is key. Most PHRF areas mandate what can come off versus what has to stay on. For example PHRF Southern California allows you to take V-Berth cushions out but requires you to keep factory mid ship and aft cabin cushions in. Make sure the boat is on a constant diet to remove old gear, clothing, and even food and drink that can accumulate on board our boats throughout the season.

2. Optimize lines

Unlike many one-design classes, there are no line type or size restrictions in PHRF. This is a great place to examine every piece of line on you boat and make sure it is the right choice for the specific application. One easy upgrade is with your backstay or runners. New line on the market is lighter, stronger, and has less stretch which helps keep your forestay tight when going upwind. It’s the same for Jib or Genoa halyards. Keep your headsails luff tight with a good high-end line.

3. Hardware—weight and strength rule

Also, without the restrictions of one-design rules, you’re free to use whatever hardware you want, so you might as well be weight and strength conscious and get the best parts you can when you go to replace old blocks and hardware. In multiple boats we have actually modified existing hardware to cut weight. Low friction rings can be a great way to cut weight as well.

4. Optimize sails

PHRF generally outlines how sails are measured, and working with your sailmaker to get sizes that fit your boat perfectly is very important. An example is with asymmetric spinnakers. The rules on luff lengths can vary. Having a max-length luff can be very slow at times. Another is the asymmetric vs symmetric spinnaker question. Some areas allow you to carry both with no rating penalty. If so, at least one AP asymmetric is key for reaching legs. In some cases, the asymmetric can be actually have more square feet than the symmetric. In the case of lighter boats that generally sail higher apparent wind angles, changing over to only asymmetrical could be a consideration. Some areas mainsail and jib roaches are measured differently, so be sure to check and make sure you are getting the most sail area you can.

5. A fast bottom: let it be thin

In PHRF you can sand or fair your boat bottoms. Most PHRF boats live in the water so make sure you have a slippery smooth bottom is a top priority. I always hear about people excited to be getting a new bottom paint job just before the annual championship or right before a long offshore race. This is the wrong time for that. While a fresh coat of anti-fouling paint keeps growth at bay, it adds weight and can be bumpy until it is properly cleaned a few times or sanded. Your best bet is to get a new paint job at the beginning of the season and slowly wear it down so it is thin, light, and smooth by the time the season championship comes around. The same goes for an offshore event like the Transpac. Let the paint get sanded down so it is as light and smooth as possible before the event and wait until you return to get a new bottom job.

6. Configuration changes: risk vs. reward

PHRF allows to you to modify parts of your boat and then will rate you accordingly. Often people will modify their boat only to be angered when their local PHRF board penalizes them. Most, if not all, PHRF areas will accept a letter of intent from an owner and make their best guess at what the rating change will be. For example, I would write to my local PHRF board and indicate my current configuration and then explain that I would like to add a square top mainsail and give them the proposed sizes and sail area changes. I would ask them what my rating penalty would likely be. I would then get a letter back saying what the rating change would likely be (+/-3 seconds, of course). Armed with that data, I could decide whether I was willing to take that risk. Because I made the decision beforehand about whether I wanted to take the risk, I would never complain about the rating that I received for my modification. For the boats with bigger budgets, you can employ a yacht designer to help answer some of these questions in a more scientific fashion.

The post Six Go-Fast Tips for PHRF appeared first on Sailing World.

My first experience with “beer can racing” was when I took over the boat and team management of Surfrider, a Frers 46 owned by the Ruhlman family in Cleveland, OH. I’d just finished my sophomore year in college, and up until that point in my life the majority of my experience was sailing on smaller dinghies such as Thistles, Highlanders, Lasers, 420’s, etc. A 40+ foot keelboat is a completely different animal, but being introduced to the boat during these Wednesday evening races was both educational and fun. Beer can racing is a great way to allow sailors of all skill levels a chance to experience yacht racing in a competitive yet fun environment, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be competitive and run a successful campaign.

I’ve now managed numerous club regatta campaigns over the years and here are a few tips and tricks that sailors of all levels can use to manage a successful beer can racing team and make the most of their campaign.

Make a Schedule

Putting together a season long schedule takes time and effort, but it’s important to set expectations as early as possible as summers fill up fast and it’s stressful for crew and owner alike to not know what’s going on. Even if some events later in the season are still in the planning stages, getting them on the radar and gauging interest is key.

There are a few options out there for managing this online, two popular (and free!) ones are Doodle (a scheduling tool that makes it easy for team members to show their availabity and comment to the group) and Google Sheets (another free service that behaves a lot like an Excel spreadsheet, but allows group editing in the cloud).

Prep the Boat

Don’t be afraid to ask for help when prepping the boat. Getting the team together to work on the boat not only expedites the process, it is also a great way to create a sense of ownership in the program. If it’s a new team or there are members who don’t know each other well, parlay prep time into a team dinner or barbeque (see more on team building below…)

Pro tip – It’s also a good idea to use these times to discuss the season’s shore crew responsibilities. Click here for a great article about how to build a great shore crew.

Engourage Team Building and Participation

Creating a sense of team and camaraderie among the crew will go a long way towards having a successful and enjoyable season. Team gear emblazoned with the boat/team name is a great way to build a strong bond. Having a steady crew participating each week is important, but don’t forget that beer can racing is also a great way to introduce new people to sailing, such as coworkers, friends and family. If you’re struggling to find crew, talk to other boat owners, your local yacht club and/or junior race team to find people eager to participate. Participation isn’t just limited to the boat — don’t forget to invite your spouse, kids and whoever else wants to join the after-race socialization at the yacht club.

Have Fun and Learn Something

Most beer can racers show up to the dock after a long day at the office. Make sure to breathe, turn up the music and relax. These races are about having fun, socializing and introducing people to new experiences. Yelling and ill-tempers should be kept to a minimum, if not completely banned from these races. Take this time to try team members in different positions on board, so everyone gets a better understanding of each other’s jobs…except the owner, who, in my experience, should never be allowed in front of the mast, or bad things happen.

Set Goals

While these races may not be as highly competitive as a championship regatta, they can still be rewarding for both the owner and team. Take some time to think about the strengths and weaknesses of the entire team and set goals that are realistic and meaningful to the team. Feel free to have some fun with these goals as well, with a mix between goals that are based on results, participation and humor.

Bring Enough Beer

This one is simple enough… Bring. Enough. Beer. (Of course, use good judgement and be responsible, but if it’s your thing, bring enough beer.)

So, back to that first night on Surfrider. Being new to the boat and team, I was able to talk briefly with the owner, some team members and a former caretaker of the boat to get a general sense of what the team’s expectations were for the season. Ultimately, they were a high-performance racing team that enjoyed the opportunity to sail together and with friends/family in a more relaxed setting each week. We went out that evening with the simple goal to have fun, drink beer and enjoy a beautiful evening on Lake Erie. I don’t remember how we ended up on the score sheet, but I do remember we had a great time, I made some lifelong friends and Wednesday evenings have become one of my favorite nights of the week.

P.S. Bring enough beer.

This tip was brought to you by Quantum Sails.

The post How to Win your Beer Can Series appeared first on Sailing World.

In the ’70s and ’80s, if you were keen to race your cruising boat, PHRF was the handicap rule of choice. For furniture-laden production boats saddled with performance compromises, PHRF was an easy gateway into competitive sailing. There were also designers and custom builders devising faster and leaner boats for owners wanting to compete at a higher level. IOR was their racing fleet. It was a technical rule, used internationally, which allowed owners to compete on the world stage. In the heydays, top IOR teams had global respect. This two-tiered rating rule hierarchy essentially remains the model in most countries today: There’s a gateway rule and a technical rule. Not so in the United States.

While PHRF serves the vast majority of local handicap racers, American owners now have a shopping list of more-­technical options — IRC, ORC and ORR — none of which are compelling enough to outwit the other. Having too many options is negatively impacting participation. Handicap fleets need tiers of competition, providing a ladder for owners and teams to climb and find their appropriate level. Local, regional, national, and international steps create inspiration and motivation. A unified rule fosters confidence with ­owners and provides direction to designers and builders, encouraging them to invest in the development of new boats and equipment. I see this in other countries where there’s a commitment to a technical rule, but not so much in the United States. Without a compelling reason to invest in racing programs, we instead see older boats with handy age allowances focused on local and regional sailing.

Lacking high-level big-boat handicap racing, many of these same people have joined smaller keelboat one-design fleets, bringing their grand-prix budgets into the Corinthian realm. My dad had boats in the 25-foot range, contending he could race at a high level without being outspent. Today, he says, that wouldn’t be the case. With fleet numbers in decline since the 1980s, PHRF has become the catch-all. “We have seen some drop at the top end but a significant drop in participation in recent years of the midlevel racers,” says Bruce Bingham, chair of the U.S. PHRF Committee. “We know boats are still out there because owners dutifully get certificates each year, but maybe race one or two of their favorite regattas instead of all season long.” Bingham says the lack of a uniformly accepted high-level measurement rule is negative impacting PHRF. “It is too much to ask of PHRF to support a mixed fleet across all skill levels in the same class,” says Bingham. “PHRF was never intended to rate the top end of the fleet where thousands of dollars (or more) are spent to gain a few seconds per mile.”

To help bridge the rating rules, the idea was born for a universal measurement system, which would allow a boat to be measured once. A boat’s measurement data could be applied across all technical rating rules. Implementation of the UMS took some doing, as IRC, ORC and ORR each have unique measurement protocols. The advantage of UMS, however, is that a boat measured in England, where IRC is most prevalent, could now readily compete in the Mediterranean, where ORC is prominent. I’m not convinced UMS is progress for the United States. Each rating rule is complicated, and people like familiarity. As long as all three rules remain on the table, owners will advocate for what is better for their boat. UMS is a good solution for an international problem, but I fear it will only hasten the headway we really need, which is toward a unified national rule.

Dual scoring is another attempt to encourage participation, offering multiple options for entry so owners enjoy their preferred rule. The practice of entering a race under more than one rule, however, often leads to inconsistent results. Winners under one rule often find themselves down the ranks in another, scattering the spotlight and turning trophies into participation awards. Is there a sensible reason for the existence of three technical rules?

“That is a tough question,” says Bjorn R. Johnson, executive director of Offshore Racing Association, which owns and manages ORR. “It all depends from where you sit in the grand scheme of things. Having raced and campaigned many of my own boats, I have seen the diversity of the rating systems firsthand. In the States, we have a capitalist economy and that allows us to have choices and make our own decisions.”

James Dadd, director of the RORC Rating Office for IRC, is succinct: “No one needs lots of rating rules. Racing should be about getting out there, enjoying yourself and chatting at the bar about what you got right or wrong, and not about the rule.” ORC, the latest rule to the menu, arrived in the United States by invitation, says Dobbs Davis, Communications Director for ORC. “There are fleets dissatisfied with other options for many reasons, whether it’s being too subjective, not responsive enough to measurement and certification, not transparent in process or development, not confident of the accuracy of the ratings, too expensive, et cetera.”

Each rule makes a compelling case. IRC, which is managed by British and French authorities, is the widest geographically spread rating rule recognized by World Sailing. “Looking at the results we see around the world, I would suggest it works well as both an inshore rule and an offshore rule,” says Dadd. “Notably, it’s the principle system used in every offshore race around the world outside the United States.”

ORC, headquartered in Italy, has had the benefit of being the designated rule with a world championship. “ORC championship events such as the Worlds, Europeans and Sportboat ­Europeans continue to attract record entries,” says Davis, noting the rule’s usage in more than 40 countries. “There were 131 at the Worlds, 78 at the Europeans, and 40 at the Sportboats. Bids for these events extend out as far as 2020, demonstrating a strong demand.”

What IRC and ORC have are numbers. Participation ensures these rules are self-sustaining and able to invest in the technical tools needed to effectively rate boats. As international rules, U.S. boats can readily compete abroad, but perhaps more important, they allow foreign teams to compete in the States. Quantum Key West Race Week, for example, sees its use of ORC as a means to encourage international entrants.

ORR, on the other hand, has yet to cast its net beyond North American waters. This has limited overall participation, and while the sale of their products and agreements represents the major parts of the business model and provides general financial support, the rule does look for interested donors or sponsors to fund research and development and for educational projects.

ORR’s strength stems from its founding clubs — the Chicago YC, the Cruising Club of America and the Transpacific YC — which joined forces in an effort that led to the development and administration of the rule. These clubs use ORR in their signature events — ­Chicago Mackinac Race, Newport Bermuda Race and Transpac Race — which have fostered growth in those regions.

“ORR now extends far beyond the events of its founders with its use in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Bermuda,” says ­Johnson. “The events are as varied and diverse as the competitors themselves, and while ORR is known for being used primarily in offshore events, it works equally well for inshore racing.”

US Sailing is neutral, thus the health of the sport now teeters within the self-­interest of the respective rule proponents. Each rule operates differently, which contributes to the chasm. While they each assemble dissimilar boats for competition, they cannot continue to coexist without ­deteriorating U.S. fleets.

For increased participation, we need a clean model. PHRF must be exclusive to racer-cruisers — the big kids have to get out of their sandbox. A consensus technical rule provides the necessary division to promote growth, and this accord will occur only when prominent clubs and event hosts look beyond themselves and work together for the good of the sport.

The post The Handicap Racing Question appeared first on Sailing World.

It’s the ultimate bummer. The starting gun sounds, you’re in the front row and looking good. Just like they draw it up on the wipe board. Then there’s another horn, the X flag, and, after an excruciating wait, you hear your sail number on the VHF. You’re OCS and you can kiss a good result good-bye.

Don’t give up so quickly. An OCS is a hurdle for sure, one of the bigger ones you’ll ever face in your quest for a good result. But on the plus side, you’ve still got the whole race in front of you—not to mention whatever’s left of the regatta. Take a few deep breaths, and keep these tips in mind.

1. Stick to the game plan. So many times the frustration of being OCS causes teams to completely abandon the pre-start game plan. Here’s a perfect example, you’re OCS at the leeward end of the line, you clear yourself by jibing around the pin, and then you head off on port tack and go hard right only to see the left side come in strong, just like you’d predicted. It’s the ultimate double whammy! Don’t abandon all your pre-start research.

2. Work to get a clear lane. Sticking with the example above, your best opportunity to get to the left might be to clear yourself around the pin and tack back to starboard. You’ll be second row—or worse—but the separation from the boats that started properly may allow for you to execute the plan. However, this may also be a little bit of wishful thinking, especially in a big fleet. So instead of tacking right back to starboard and sailing in bad air, sail on port tack to take advantage of the lifts off of the backside of the fleet on starboard and choose a cleaner lane for your tack toward the left side of the race course.

3. Get out of phase (with the fleet). If neither side is strongly favored, look to find clean air by going against the grain: sailing on port when most of the fleet is on starboard, and vice versa. Sailing out of phase with the fleet will create separation and allow you to sail your boat at optimum speed. Groups of boats always tend to slow each other down. I am always amazed how long people will sail in a pack when tacking away would afford them much cleaner air.

4. Minimize tacks. Hitting a corner is one way to reduce the number of tacks. But it’s a risky call. If you decide to be more conservative, make sure to limit your tacks to the bare minimum. Double check your lanes and try to anticipate where boats ahead of you will tack.

5. Boat speed. This may seem obvious. Boat speed is always important. But it’s easy to get discouraged or distracted when looking at so many transoms. Redouble your efforts and focus. Every ounce of energy needs to go into sailing the boat fast.

6. Focus on short-term goals. Turn your OCS into a positive. Establishing short-term goals, for example, by only looking one mark ahead, helps the motivation on the boat. It can be difficult for everybody to put everything they have into hiking when it may all be for naught. A quick acknowledgment of the mistake is key. Identifying boats that can be picked off, or closed on, and then maintaining a constant dialogue of your progress will keep the team’s frame of mind as positive as possible.

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dave reed headshot

During a recent meeting of owners, designers, and builders of grand-prix raceboats I wrote in my notepad, “. . .first time ever to have a certificate from one worldwide authority.” I underlined “ever.” This was “big, breaking news,” the emcee proclaimed, news that bodes well for the future of handicap racing—especially at the top of the pyramid. The implications of the announcement are still unclear, but I did get a sense that afternoon that there was cooperation between once disparate rule administrators, and a new openness among design firms willing to share data in the interest of developing faster, more exciting boats.

I struggle to get my head around handicap rules: the international fiefdoms, the acronyms, the design speak, and measurement systems that require advanced degrees to decipher. It doesn’t help that our rating systems are always changing behind closed doors. So hopefully the announcement is progress toward a truly transparent, single-authority system that can provide stability for owners and regatta organizers.

The meeting also confirmed that a subset of the handicap-racing community has been restless for a rule that encourages no-compromise planing boats, the result of which is the latest offering, the High Performance Rule. The HPR movement has been quietly organizing its house for two years, and makes its official debut this year. Development was spearheaded by stakeholders at the New York YC, but now encompasses a cadre of designers and technical wizards working in collaboration to develop “modern, high-performance racing yachts.”

Under HPR there will be no “credits” for slow features, for which IRC has long been criticized. Modern is defined as wide, ultra-light boats with bowsprits, robust asymmetric spinnakers, fractional rigs, and square-top mainsails. It’s the return of “Fast Is Fun,” and yes, Bill Lee, the designer who coined the famous phrase, is involved, too.

With three 40-foot HPR boats launched and racing last year, interest in the “performance-oriented, type-forming, continuum box rule” is on the rise—albeit slowly. The rule’s greatest strength, say its founders, is that its algorithm is fixed until 2017 and published at the Offshore Racing Congress’s website, www.orc.org, allowing yacht designers, sailmakers, and owners to run trials as they wish. There are no secret components, and at the heart of it (this is where the single worldwide authority comes in) is what’s called the Universal Measurement Form. All the major players sitting at the table—US Sailing, the Royal Ocean Racing Club, and the ORC—are jointly developing the form, which includes all measurements currently required by IRC, ORR, ORC, HPR, and PHRF. So, yes, a boat must still be physically measured, but once done so, its rating can be calculated under any participating rule.

The stated goal of the HPR is to get more exciting and modern boats out racing. The intent is not to replace PHRF or IRC, for example, which happily accommodate dual-purpose boats, but rather to jump-start custom boatbuilding. The trickle-down faucet the America’s Cup no longer feeds would, theoretically, be turned on once again. The HPR boats now sailing are turning heads, but as it is with any planing design, the beat is always longer than the run. Let’s hope that’s not the case with this latest rule.

Click here to read more from editor Dave Reed.

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Ken Read golf

Handicap racing needs a jolt. We’ve got systems like ORR and IRC and even the new High Performance Rule, which rate the boats, but when boats are rated by complex formulas that can be exploited by clever designers, an arms race is unavoidable. New sails, pro crew, and constant tweaking of the boats will always serve as a way to gain an advantage. It can be fun for those with deep pockets and the people they employ, but frustrating for those who can’t afford to play such a high level. And then we have PHRF, which tries to equalize all shapes and sizes of boats, allowing them to race against each other fairly in all sorts of conditions.

It’s time to take handicapping a step forward, and PHRF is the perfect rule to tweak and revolutionize. It’s time to consider handicapping the sailors. Where I sail on Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay there’s a lot of racing happening at the local level, but I’m amazed to see the overall numbers are down quite a bit, and that many of the teams doing the racing are the same programs I saw 25 years ago. There’s little growth and even fewer new faces. It’s great to see the longevity of sailors and their passion for local events, but there’s cronyism in the clubs. The same people routinely win the trophies.

Hence my epiphany—and it didn’t even happen on the water. It happened on the golf course. The handicap system in golf is simple. Every time you play a legitimate round of golf you put your score into golf’s national handicapping system, called Golf Handicap and Information Network, which is a part of the United States Golf Association (golf’s equivalent to US Sailing). The score is placed in your list of the last 20 rounds played, and not only is the score saved, but each golf course has a rating as well. For example, an 80 on a difficult course carries more weight than an 80 on an easy course. Each round helps determine your overall “handicap,” and that handicap is an average amount of shots “over par,” based on the top-10 scores you’ve had from the last 20 rounds played.

In August, I played in a three-day tournament. It was match play with twosomes, including handicap, which in layman’s terms means that my friend and I were a team, and we played in a ladder format against the next pair that we met in the ladder, either in the winner’s bracket or the loser’s bracket, all including our “handicaps.”

In this particular tournament, there were golfers of all ages and skills levels. The beauty of the handicap system is that it puts everyone on the same level. My friend and I played our first round against a twosome with an average age of about 70. With a handicap spread between us of 10 to 18, we gave them quite a few strokes. If it were a straight up score, we probably would’ve run away with the match, but the handicap system prevented that from happening. Next up was a twosome with a very good 35-year-old (3 handicap) and an average 50-year-old (14 handicap). They guy with the 14 handicap inflicted the most damage. He was on fire, and consequently, they trounced us. We went into the loser’s bracket against a team that had very similar age and handicaps to us, so we essentially played them just about level.

So how does all this golf talk relate to sailing and handicap racing? In golf, the person who plays three times a week can compete against someone who plays once a month, with both having a good chance of winning. Tournaments and normal matches amongst friends, strangers, or business acquaintances flourish year after year because everyone comes into any given match feeling as though they have a chance. Handicaps equalize the playing field, and if you’re on your game that day, life is good. If there were no handicaps applied, only the best golfers would show up. This is where PHRF can go to encourage new blood into the grassroots side of the sport, as well as increase participation, and as result, spread the trophies around more equitably.

Let’s take an average PHRF program from Narragansett Bay. They probably do an evening beer can series at their local club, as well as a few major events during the year. What if you had to put in your score after each race in order to get your handicap? The boat still has a base rating in seconds-per-mile, but the crew’s skill for that particular boat would create an additional seconds-per-mile correction to the boat’s base rating. And, the actual event you sail in would serve as a multiplier for that “personnel-rating factor.”

A weeknight race could hold less weight than the PHRF New England Championship, for example, or Key West Race Week. Maybe the boat’s personal-rating factor would simply be a seasonal or bi-seasonal correction. There could be a number of ways to accomplish this.

It would have to be fairly self-policing. If you want to stack the deck by putting a bunch of pros on board, no sweat, but when you win you will be hurting your handicap after collecting that trophy. If you decide not to get that new jib and want to sail with all your family or newcomers to sailing, then that’s fine as well. Your personnel-handicap factor will reflect the relative skill of the team over time.

A few individuals in the marine industry will see this as a terrible idea because it doesn’t really give an advantage to a new sail, a new spar, or the smoothness of the bottom paint. In reality, however, it does present an advantage because everyone would see what the posted personal-rating factor is, and a lower number means you’re a better sailor or team. The marine industry would also gain long term because hopefully this would be a way to increase participation, which in turn helps everyone. Plus, every golfer wants a single-digit handicap: It tells everyone you’re a player. And I’ll still buy new clubs and equipment to help me get better, even if my handicap is going to go down as a result (hopefully). We all want to get better—that is sport at its core.

I realize this is a broad way of talking about handicapping people or crews, and I’m not the first person to think of it, but the fact remains that we have the infrastructure in place (US Sailing) and smart people who can write software and create websites to make it happen. The rest should be easy. Find an equitable way to handicap sailors and more people will come and play the game. The proof is on the green.

Click here to read more of Ken Read’s column Gaining Bearing.

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Sparkman & Stephens 30

Purpose: daysailing/PHRF racing
Recommended race crew: 3 to 4
Best attributes: overall look, high-volume
interior, easy handling
Price as sailed: $169,000
www.bluenoseyachts.com

Record labels re-master classic albums for good reason: Great music is always great music, and with modern digital tools, great songs can be improved. The same is true of the Sparkman & Stephens 30, said to be one of the late, great Olin Stephens‘ favorite designs. In the 1930s, Babe (Design No. 97) had a notable ocean-racing career, and in his final years, says the design firm, Stephens revisited the design with intentions of building an updated version. With his passing, the firm carried on, but instead of the wooden version Stephens envisioned, they introduced a fiberglass production model that superbly connects the past with the present.

The judges had three other classic-styled daysailers to test this year, but in many respects, the Sparkman & Stephens 30 was untouchable. “The first thing I thought when I saw it was how much better it looked than it does on the drawing,” said Stewart. “The sheer comes up nicely from the bow, it’s got that narrow look, and the traditional stern gives it a nice touch.”

“It looked good sitting there at the dock, but when we sailed it, it had a great feel,” he added. “All the control lines worked really well. There’s not a lot of extra stuff anywhere on the boat, so it feels very clean and open.”

It’s billed as a daysailer, but it’s much more than that, said the judges. The interior is minimalist, with no galley or refrigeration, but with a lot of volume, long setees, and a proper enclosed head (with frosted Lexan folding doors). It’s more of a weekender and beer can racer [estimated 100 PHRF] than anything else. “The interior volume is amazing,” said Stewart. “The extra-long companionway and dodger setup allows you to stand inside the boat and look out. You can happily sit in the settees [while sailing], which puts the weight where you want it to be.”

Its high-aspect sailplan compliments the boat’s slender hull, and under full sail the boat leans on its waterlines, gracefully climbing upwind. A spinnaker on an optional top-down furler, and tacked to the stem, did wonders for the boat’s downwind performance. “Having the screecher out there is the way to go,” said Rich. “With that setup, even if you’re singlehanding it, you won’t be afraid to use it. This makes the boat much more user-friendly, and keeps wet sails out of the interior.”

The finish quality and overall construction were very good, noted the judges (it’s built by C&C Fiberglass Components, which also builds the J/70). With a simplistic, but efficient, layout inside and out, it’s the sort of boat you’d want to take out for a sunset sail or race, and then keep on sailing well past nightfall.

For more images of the Sparkman & Stephens 30, click here.
To read more about Sparkman & Stephens, click here.
To see the rest of 2013’s winners, click here.

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