{"id":69705,"date":"2021-08-16T22:30:37","date_gmt":"2021-08-17T02:30:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/?p=69705"},"modified":"2023-06-13T12:23:25","modified_gmt":"2023-06-13T16:23:25","slug":"hard-earned-j-70-worlds-win-for-duncan-and-crew","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/racing\/hard-earned-j-70-worlds-win-for-duncan-and-crew\/","title":{"rendered":"Hard-Earned J\/70 Worlds Win for Duncan and Crew"},"content":{"rendered":"\n


<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"sailboats <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n Peter Duncan’s J\/70 team on Relative Obscurity at the 2021 World Championships in Marina Del Rey.<\/span>\n \u00a9Sharon Green\/ultimatesailing.com<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

Peter Duncan\u2019s Relative Obscurity has prevailed over 60 other teams and challenging wind conditions to capture the 2021 J\/70 World Championship title at California Yacht Club, today. In a five-day series that tested the skill and patience of top-notch competitors from 11 nations, Duncan \u2013 sailing with Willem van Waay, Morgan Trubovich and Victor Diaz de Leon \u2013 secured a top five position in the beginning of the regatta and never let go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m elated!\u201d said Duncan as he returned to the dock, bustling with activity. \u201cThat was a tough day out there. We didn\u2019t start very well but had a bit of a break with a header on the first run of the second race that let us get close to everybody and sail through some folks we need to sail through,\u201d he explained. \u201cWe have a lot of fun onboard \u2013 joke and laugh and keep it light \u2013 and that worked in our favor when we had to grind through. Everybody knows what their job is, and these guys do them exceptionally well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The leaderboard changed with every rounding during Races Seven and Eight, as the top contenders scrapped for honors. \u201cIt was very cool that there were four boats who could have won this thing in the last race,\u201d Duncan added. \u201cTo me that\u2019s really fun, exciting sailing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duncan is no stranger to the podium. Recently he won the J\/70 North Americans in Annapolis and triumphed in the 2017 J\/70 Worlds in Porto Cervo, Italy. \u201cThis competition was really great, and the Race Committee did a terrific job getting the races in with the breeze we had. I\u2019m really pleased. Cal Yacht Club did an awesome job.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At day\u2019s end, the top tier was separated by just eight points with Bruce Golison taking second place. His team Midlife Crisis was primed with a solid win in the Pre-Worlds last month. One of only two teams to get bullets in the tightly matched Worlds this week (along with Magatron) Golison sailed with Steve Hunt, Erik Shampain and Jeff Reynolds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Laura Grondin and the team of Dark Energy, just one point astern, took third. Grondin only recently began competing in the J\/70. A competitive Melges 24 sailor, she switched to the J\/70 when the boat\u2019s popularity exploded. \u201cIf you really want that fleet racing experience, this is the boat,\u201d she said. \u201cI decided to go for it, and when Taylor Canfield came along, my husband Rick suggested we take this opportunity and just do as much as we can and see where we go.\u201d Where it has taken her, is third place in the J\/70 World Championships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In contrast to her life as a business owner and CEO, Grondin noted, \u201cOn the racecourse, I am really just another member of the crew.\u201d Unlike her corporate life, she laughed, \u201cHere, I don\u2019t have the final say. But these people are far more experienced than I am, so why wouldn\u2019t I listen to them? And if I can do my job in a way that allows the rest of my team to do their jobs to the best of their ability, that\u2019s a win for me. And that is the same in business and in sailing. It\u2019s very exciting and rewarding.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Ducasse Sailing Team of Santiago, Chile, triumphed in the Corinthian division. \u201cWe are having a really nice time, and this is so good for us, because the level of competition is so good,\u201d said Francisco Ducasse, who is sailing with his father and three brothers: Andres Ducasse Soruco, Ignacio Ducasse Soruco, Rodrigo Ducasse Soruco, and Andres Ducasse. Hoping for better wind \u2013 because they are sailing with a team of five instead of four \u2013 he said they were pleased with their result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ducasse noted the effort it took to bring the campaign from Chile, and their good fortune in chartering a sound boat. \u201cWe had really good training in the Pre-Worlds,\u201d and added the team is in it for the long-haul. \u201cThe level is so good, we are practicing and adapting a lot with very good teams. We were hoping for a top ten finish, and then to do better the next Worlds. We are shortening the average.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The J\/70 World Championship regatta began Wednesday August 11 with enthusiasm: a characteristic that would continue throughout the week and result in multiple General Recalls and the hoisting of the U flag and Black flag. Breezes of 6 to 8 knots greeted the fleet, but by Thursday the wind vanished. The Race Committee attempted to pull off the desired two races, but deterred by the shifty zephyrs, abandoned racing for the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A slight improvement in velocity Friday allowed for one race \u2013 just skimming the Class\u2019 lower limit for breeze. A championship regatta isn\u2019t always about heavy weather, many competitors pointed out, saying it\u2019s just as vital to conquer light and shifty conditions, as heavy air. And the masters of the fleet proved that over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saturday\u2019s forecast rang true, with a breeze that started at 6 knot and filled in to 14 knot by the end of the day. Principal Race Officer Mark Foster squeezed out three races, despite repeated General Recalls which threatened to trim the number of races. But organizers already had the requisite number under their belt to constitute a World Championship and allow for throw-outs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Late Saturday, drenched and exhausted, the fleet returned to the yacht club for a \u2018California Dreamin\u2019 style buffet with music. The frontrunners had consolidated their positions with Duncan\u2019s Relative Obscurity in the lead followed by Dark Energy, Savasana, Midlife Crisis and Catapult. The final day of the J\/70 Worlds Championship Regatta would bring fair winds averaging 7 \u2013 10 knots to Santa Monica Bay, with a number of shifts that kept racers and Race Committee on their toes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plans for the championship regatta had been on the books since 2018, according to Chair Marylyn Hoenemeyer, and slated for July 26 to Aug. 1, 2020. By early that year the entry list was brimming at 96: nearing the 100-boat limit, with half the fleet hailing from around the globe. Then the pandemic turned everything upside down, and the event was rescheduled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"sailboats <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n Light winds challenged competitors and race committee alike in the early going at the J\/70 worlds, but once the weather cooperated, racers enjoyed moderate conditions that kept the racing close.<\/span>\n \u00a9Sharon Green\/ultimatesailing.com<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

\u201cThis has been a tremendous effort and success,\u201d added Hoenemeyer. \u201cThe racers, Race Committee and entire organization have been so patient and tenacious, and I would like to thank everyone involved. This was a full club effort. I think we\u2019re aware of the volunteers on the water, but less aware of the volunteers onshore, and the impact on the members. We\u2019re thankful for the support of the Cal Yacht Club membership and our terrific staff. We\u2019re no different than other organizations that are working short staffed these days \u2026 they\u2019ve pulled together a really tremendous effort and we are proud of the experience we\u2019ve provided these racers, both on the water and off. “<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The last J\/70 World Championship regatta had been held in Tor Bay, England, with GBR\u2019s Paul Ward and Eat Sleep J Repeat besting that 77-boat fleet in a grueling 14-race series. Ward finished seventh in the 2021 event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here for complete results<\/a> of the 2021 J\/70 World Championship<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It took every race of the 2021 J\/70 World Championship in Marina Del Rey, California, for Peter Duncan and his crew on Relative Obscurity to earn the big title.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32431,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"BS_author_type":"BS_author_is_guest","BS_guest_author_name":"Betsy Senescu","BS_guest_author_url":"","hydra_display_date":"20210816","hydra_display_updated":false,"_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"159","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"It took every race of the 2021 J\/70 World Championship in Marina Del Rey, California, for Peter Duncan and his crew on Relative Obscurity to earn the big title.","_yoast_wpseo_title":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","arc_story_id":"B6F44XEMMVFJ3ARPEI3K47PMKM","arc_website_url":"story\/racing\/hard-earned-j70-worlds-win-for-duncan-and-crew\/","custom_permalink":"","arc_subtype":"right-sidebar","arc_exclude_from_feeds":false,"sponsored":false,"sponsored_label":"Sponsored Content","sponsored_display_label":false,"sponsored_image":false,"post_right_rail":true,"post_right_rail_ad_1":true,"post_right_rail_ad_2":true,"post_right_rail_ad_3":false,"post_right_rail_ad_4":false,"post_right_rail_recirc":true,"fixed_anchor_ad":true,"post_top_ad":true,"post_off_ramp":true,"post_taboola":false,"labels":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":"","ad_settings_ads_on_this_page":true,"ad_settings_automatic_ad_injection_into_the_content":true,"ad_targeting":"","sponsored_url":"","social_share":true},"categories":[159],"tags":[335,232,177],"class_list":["post-69705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-racing","tag-j-70","tag-one-design","tag-racing"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69705"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69705\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}