DF 95 Traveler Series Interview number 2.

February 25th, 2025.

Jess Atkinson, winner of the Midwinter/ Traveler Regatta at

Eldorado Park. ( second venue in Traveler Series).

BY: Eugene Elliott M.D.

Question;

Jess, you are well-known on the West Coast and beyond for your RC sailing

Expertise. Tell me a little bit about your life journey.

Jess;

For the last 42 years, I drove tugboats, both coastal and harbor. I was in San Francisco

Bay for over 30 years and was in Southern California for about six years prior to moving.

North.

I learned to sail as a young kid on the lakes in Arizona. My Dad started me out there.

 

Question;

What kind of boats?

Jess;

My Dad built our first sailboat. It was an inland lake planning skow. Then I had a boat called an

Eightball which was similar to a Naples Sabot.

 

Question;

As an adult working in the maritime industry did you have time to sail?

Jess;

I did some sailing. I owned a 30-foot sailboat, and sailed to Catalina often. That’s how

I dated my future wife. When we moved to Northern California I bought a 48-footer.

We lived on that boat in Alameda.

 

Question;

How and when did you get interested in RC sailing?

Jess;

I got exposed to RC sailing when I was really young, maybe 13 or 14y.o., before I could drive a car. My uncle was doing it. He would bring us down to the Mission Bay pond in San Diego.

Many times. When I was in high school I built a 36/600. Never got to float it. My brother was involved in radio boats. I was always a hobbyist. I flew gliders for a while. I really started

Sailing RC sailboats when my uncle became too old, he gave his fleet to my brother and me.

 

Question;

When did RC sailing become a serious endeavor?

Jess;

I was given a Soling 50 in about 1993-4. I sailed it one day a month but wanted to

Be more active so I bought an Odom kit, and actually built a couple of them. I would come

Down to King Harbor and race. My brother had a Santa Barbara so I bought a Santa.

Barbara. When I came down to visit my brother on the weekends we would race both classes. That kickstarted the progression of RC sailing.

 

Question;

Eldorado Pond, two weeks ago, no wind, no patterns, you were pretty much unbeatable,

Not by short distances, just plain dominant, connecting all the dots that no one else could

See. What are your thought processes in very light air?

Jess;

First and foremost I keep the boat moving. The wind and my tune were at one with each other. I was just along for the ride and my boat took me there. I just let it rip.

I set the boat up a little loose. You can’t have the boat set up for 6 knots of wind if you’re

Sailing in one knot.

 

Question;

I observed you were working the sails a lot. Is that something you consciously think about?

Jess;

I think about working the sails more than the rudder. From RCs to dinghies  to big boats

Staying off the rudder is faster.

Question;

So when you got a lift, you didn’t necessarily take it?

Jess;

I would initially sheet out a little bit which would generate some speed which helps to generate some flow then I would sheet in if I needed to depending on the lay lines.

 

Question;

Do you use that technique in all conditions or more prevalently in light air?

Jess;

When the conditions and situations dictate I do like that technique but there are times.

When sailing a tighter weather course is also important.

 

Question;

When you say loosen the boat for light air, you’re mostly referring to twist/

Jess;

correct

 

Question;  I’ve read that light air tuning is not too dissimilar to heavy air tuning in the sense

In heavy air you want more twist to depower the boat. Is that accurate?

Jess;

The concept is good but it’s not the same. The day before Eldorado I raced in San Diego in

4-6 knots and the biggest change I made in my tune was to let off the vang a little bit in

Eldorado.

 

Question;

Recently at Mission Bay Aquanauts, you gave a really good seminar on tuning the DF 95.

In that seminar, you explained looking at the break of the jib and adjusting the twist.

To basically have an even break from top to bottom. Can you, for the benefit of our

The audience explains that concept.

Jess;

It’s a sailing and tuning technique I use. From making my own sails I have learned what

Makes a boat go fast and slow. I learned that most of it had to do with how much twist was

In the jib. So then I figured out not just with measurement but how to read it on the water.

So I could pull the boat in quickly and make changes as necessary between races.

I developed an eye for that. I generally let the top of the sail lead in the break, then the break moves down instead of letting the bottom of the sail lead the break. It’s a visual

Concept.

 

Question;

So if the bottom of the sail was breaking first you would add a little more twist?

Jess;

That’s correct. If I’m sailing and the top is just stalling and flogging I would tighten up the

Leach. It’s the same concept as moving the car on a big boat. The topping lift is the solution for that in radio sailing boats. I’m an advocate of tuning my boat on the water. You might

Bring it back once or twice or four times. I don’t do it all on the beach and just go sailing.

 

Question;

I was told you set the twist of the main and then match the jib twist to the main.

Jess;

I don’t think it’s a bad idea, but sometimes I see guys set up their DF95 with too flat a main

Verses IOMs that tolerate a tighter leach. If you then match a tight main leach to the jib you’ll have a case of the slows.

 

Question;

How did you get interested in sailmaking?

Jess;

I had a dear friend, rest in peace named Karl Tulp.. He was making sails for guys.

I asked him to make some sails for me. I used his sails for a long time. I got 4th in the

Odom Nationals of 2002 in Las Vagas with his sails. After that, he told me he was not going.

To make any more sails for me but he would teach me how, using the Swede Johnson.

Technique. I’ve expanded on that but still use his 101 principles. The art of being able to create drove the whole sail-making thing. I owe my appreciation to Carl who got me started.

 

Question;

I would think that being an accomplished sailmaker gives you a heightened understanding of what makes a boat go fast.

Jess;

I think it does in the sense that I’m very conscious of the work that I do.

 

Question;

What’s your basic routine between races?

Jess;

I’ll take a look up and down the pond and adjust my boat accordingly but I still will

Take a new look sailing for final adjustments.

 

Question;

Are any pearls in your basic boat preparation?

Jess;

I go through the boat in my garage, but if it isn’t broken I don’t fix it, but if I see a chaffed line I will change it. If any of these boats are tuned properly they are on fire, so not a lot of changes, just millimeters if necessary.

 

Question;

I don’t know if you’re planning but if you were going to sail in the DF95 NCR in Newport Rhode Island, current, likely waves. What is your technique for getting a low-inertia boat

Through the waves?

Jess;

That’s a really good question. I revert back to some of my big boat stuff. Mostly I try not to get stalled out on the crest of the wave. The tune is completely different and it’s all about making sure the boat doesn’t lose power. Your situational awareness has to be heightened.

When and when not to tack You have to think ahead. If you tack at the wrong time you could end up stopped dead by the crest of a wave in irons.

 

Question;

Your concept of situational awareness is really important.

Jess;

I think a lot of radio sailors are focused on their boats and possibly on the body of water. But

Then you have the guys that are looking windward, looking at the puffs, lifts, headers.

Those are different levels of situational awareness. Putting all those pieces together is when you start winning. That’s when you see guys rise to the top like Gary Boell, Sean Fidler, Peter Feldman, Steve Landeau, and Craig Mackey to name only a few.

For me, not to be redundant, I think it’s all about situational awareness.

 

Question;

What else can you say about the radio sailing sport?

Jess;

I am passionate about running clinics and teaching in my local pond, San Diego.

Argonauts. I have recently run clinics for the DF95, IOM, and coming up the Odom.

I’m really happy to be part of what the San Diego Argonauts are doing right now.

Through the clinics and other events, radio sailing is being promoted and the bar is

Lifted for everyone.

 

Question;

When I go sailing in San Diego I notice you will approach a sailor in a constructive fashion.

And offer a little tuning or tactical suggestion. I wish there were Jess’s at all radio.

Sailing clubs raising the bar.

Jess;

I relocated to San Diego 2 years ago but raced in 1998 in Soling 50’s.at Race Week.

I have noticed when I started sailing in San Diego 2years ago there was a lot of separation.

Between the top and bottom. Not so much anymore. That’s good for our sport and that’s

What I feel good about.

 

Question;

This has been great Jess. Do you have any questions?

Jess;

No, but I would like to end this with a quote from Paul Elvstrom;

I heard him once say when asked how to make a boat go fast his response was;

“I sit on the weather rail and stare blindly into the horizon”

 

Eugene Elliott MD is an active RC sailor and member of the OCMSC and The San Diego Argonauts. Sailing DF 95’s, IOM’s, and Volvo 70’s”

Who is Jon Rodgers?

Take the time to read the below interview:

 

Interview with Jon Rogers DF95 # 44, winner of the first DF95 Traveler Series held at Long Beach Yacht Club, on December 28th.

Jon has an extensive and impressive resume including winning the J24 and Snipe Worlds Multiple times. Jon is currently head of sailing instruction at San Diego Yacht Club.

At the age of 13, his nickname was ‘Barnacle’, hard to get him away from sailboats.

Q; Do you have a practice routine with the DF95? If so, what is your regimen for improving Your sailing and racing skills in the DF95? My analogy is golf. You can go out and practice, But if you practice the same mistakes it’s not productive. What are your thought processes For productive sailing practice?

A; One of my biggest thought processes is I treat everything like practice even the regattas. I usually like to practice solo. About 10 – 20% of the time my sailing is alone. I call it pretend Sailing. I simulate situations in my mind. I’m pretending that I’m racing. Often Kenny Read is the boat that’s right on my tail and I practice racing up and down the pond. I usually do that on Mondays for about one hour and fifteen minutes by myself. On Wednesdays, we have unofficial racing at the pond ( Mission Bay ). I usually set

Two or three goals, mostly related to starting and close-hauled sailing. I really only treat The Nationals or Regionals championships as a real regatta. Everything else is just practice so I don’t even look at the results.

Q; So when you don’t look at the results does it free you up a little?

A; Yes, because I look at sailboat racing as a series of races, so I’ll block out 25 – 30 races.

In the next three to four months I’m going to use the skills that I have practiced and I’m going to use the odds and keep trying to do what’s right every single time, I try to avoid thinking about what place I’m in. I try to sail like I’m winning every race all the time.

Q; When you arrive at a regatta venue, for instance, Traveler’s at Long Beach Yacht Club what is your routine?

A; I pretty much follow the exact routine every time. I kept a checklist for a long time, like for the first two years. I kept a checklist of every step, making sure there were no cracks in the hull, making sure the sheets were not stuck around the mast, and making sure the sheeting angles, foot, rake, backstay, and boom clearance were all proper. Just a detailed checklist. Now all I do is set the boat up at home. I try to set my boat up the same for all conditions. So I really practice with one base setting a lot and when I get to the venue I’m just trying to get the weather helm perfect. I like to have the tiniest amount of weather helm I can possibly have but almost none. The way I check for rudder angle is to sail the boat directly at myself on a broad reach four or five times before the first race and keep watching. That’s the one point of sail where your boat should sail straight if the rudder is aligned.

Q; Do you go out and sail the course just to get a feel for predominant shifts and current Before the start?

A; I keep track of time so I don’t mess that up, but usually try to sail without a lot of tacks, going in straight lines for the first 5 to 6 minutes, then go downwind. The next time I

Go up and play the shifts more, trying to figure out which tack is the difficult tack. I felt

In Long Beach the starboard tack was the one I didn’t have an easy time with so anytime I had a good starboard angle I stayed. I try to figure out which tack is not going up the pond as much and during racing if I get one of those I just stay on it. I felt in Long Beach the port tack was often lifted. Anytime I got on a starboard tack and got lifted I would just keep the boat rumbling just even foot a little bit, bow down but not too much. You can never go more Than 2 degrees lower than the wind because any lower will be a detriment to VMG. I’m tapping my boat down on starboard lifts to keep full speed ahead toward the next easy Port tack.

Q; What is your basic tuning.?

A; I think the best tuning video is Ken Read’s. Everyone should follow that first because he and I think exactly alike. He says the boom should be 1-2 mm from the eye almost touching the eye. Change that you change a lot. I sail at 1133, right in the middle. If it’s windy I go to 1130 and in really light air 1135.1133 is my average setting.. When setting up the boat if there is too much weather helm I will tighten the backstay or loosen the vang. If there is not enough Weather Helm or lee-helm I will do the converse.

Q; Recently, at your pond ( Mission), Jess Atkinson gave a DF95 tuning tutorial. He discussed In detail setting the twist of the jib in terms of the break of the sail. How do you set the twist of the jib?

A; I’m a little more on the side of adjusting the topping lift so I’m almost luffing at the top.

Jess is a big believer in the jib breaking at the top. I only want the top of the jib luffing in any boat in overpowered conditions, so I’m very cautious not to overdo it. Jess pulls his topping lift so he sails with a little more twist. I sail with less twist and therefore less break at the top of the sail. I just think we are underpowered most of the time sailing in relatively flat water, so slightly less twist, more power.

Q; For the less experienced sailor explain how you choose where you will start on the line.

A; Before the two-minute gun to windward of the line, I reach on port and starboard without Touching my sails. If there is no luffing on either tack the line is pretty square, If you’re on Starboard tack and your jib is luffing and you’re parallel to the line, then you go back the other way, and on port tack, it is not luffing then the pin is favored. Theoretically, if you’re beam reaching down the line both ways it’s even, if you’re close reaching it is not. At one minute to 1:15, I am on port tack below the line going parallel to the line with my sails in the exact halfway point. On my transmitter with the sails about 45 degrees out then it helps me read wind shifts.

Q; In Long Beach, it seemed like the pin end was slightly favored. The tide was going out the pin end was in deeper water. You seemed to start mostly on the pin end.

A; I personally look at everything as practice. I liked having 30 boats on the line. I don’t think the sport is designed for guys like me. I think it’s more designed for the weekend warrior. The line was very dangerous. You get the sharks that dive to leeward of you right before the start .

They don’t have right of way but they think they do, so I started down at the pin end because I knew out there it was the only way II could get a start with less chance of getting completely screwed up by other boats.

Q On the course, we are all looking for that first shift or to get over to the favored side. How do You approach tactics on course.?

A; I practice a lot of starboard tack close-hauled sailing and staying on it a long time because I find

Jumping onto port tack can be really hard. This regatta in particular the wind was a little West/ northwest making the docks and the right side of the course in slightly lighter wind. My tactic was to stay on starboard and be one of the last boats to attack the right.

As soon as I would tack someone would get a lift and force me to tack over again.

I would keep going until I had a lane.

Q; As you get into the 8th race of a 12-race regatta do you have an acute awareness of Your competition?

A; I can’t say I am never putting it in my thought process but my main thought process is wanting to sail the most efficient VMG race. I want to beat them. I don’t really look at points. Believe it or not, I went about 20 years from the age of 13 until I was almost 30 Never looking at results. When I became a pro sailor, 28ish I had to start looking at results, But I’m still really good at not letting the results get into my head. I’m just trying to get 1st, 2nd or 3rd. My goal is to round the weather mark in the top quarter of the fleet and then Anything in the top three I consider 1st.

Q; At the end of the day, what maintenance do you do in addition to hosing your boat down?

A; I don’t take my boat completely apart. I release the Cunningham, take a paint brush And Corrosion X, and pay attention mostly to the gooseneck and metal parts. The Gooseneck gets the most care on the boat.

Q; Jon, this has been great is there anything else you want to add?

A; I just think the Kenny Read video is really good. I am going to do a little video of my own Regarding the tuning used for the Long Beach Regatta. I suggest once you get your base Measurements, after that the only adjustments are your boom vang and back stay paying Attention to your weather helm. If it’s windy I pull the mast a little forward to 1130. All Adjustments are in tiny increments.

Q; How do you approach sailing in some chop?

A; I watch the bounce of the boat. If I see the boat bouncing, I am barely tapping the boat down and as soon as the bouncing stops I just let the boat sail itself. When another wave Hits again I’m barely tapping the boat down but not letting it foot too much.

Q; So slightly bow down.

A; Yes. I practice this on Mondays. I practice steering as little as I can to accomplish my goals.

Q; Do you work your sails?

A; I don’t do that very much except in light air. Airplane wings are a solid shape for a reason. A sail that’s trimmed holds a certain shape but the wind direction is different at the Top and bottom.

Ken Reid does play the sheets a lot and I consider him the best in the world. I think there Are only two to three people that can beat the guy, that’s how good he is.

In lighter winds I do play the sheets instead of steering when the sail stalls I let it out and then pull it back in.It’s a very finite motion, hard for people to achieve.

Q; The DF95 Nationals are in Newport, Rhode Island. Are you planning on going?

A; Yes. That’s my dream to go. I can’t make all the traveler series but hope to get to Newport. It’s a real sailing town, one of my favorites. I lived there when teaching at J World, Newport. Brad Reid is a good friend. I have raced against him a lot.

Q; Thoughts on sailing in Newport?

A; The current will be a bigger factor than we are used to. Bring your rain transmitter bags. The chop will vary based on the wind direction. Anything from the Northeast is going to be very choppy blowing against the dock, South is not too bad.

Jon, this has been great, and very informative. Thank you for your time and expertise. Congratulations

 

Eugene Elliott MD

” Eugene Elliott is an active RC sailor and member of the OCMSC and The San Diego Argonauts. Sailing DF 95’s, IOM’s, and Volvo 70’s”.

Region 8 Travel Trophy # 2

2-16-2025

Helmsmen Model Yacht Club Long Beach, El Dorado Lake. Twenty-nine competitors showed up from as far away as Arizona to attend the second of seven DF 95 Travel Trophy regattas. A big thank you to Kevin Gault for taking the time to put his crew together and continuing effort in keeping Lake El Dorado venue open to RC sailing. It’s always a huge effort to keep the walkway clean, marks in place, and the many other hidden variables that spring up over a season.

By reviewing the results Jess Atkinson is at one with Lake El Dorado scoring five firsts out of six races and throwing out a second place. I’m not sure how he did it sniffing out every shift and zephyr that crossed the pond. With the light breeze, the deep sigh of the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat was a constant throughout the day. This was truly expressed in heats 2 & 5 with Chris Collins having a substantial lead in both races to sail into the doldrums and have me sail up to him and then deal with the winning shift. In race five Collins stayed in the breeze as we approached the finish line while I was dealt the bad card and dropped to third. That is the amazing part of how Atkinson kept his hand on Aces and Eights throughout the day. Atkinson’s sailing was like observing a grandmaster playing chess on six different tables at the same time, and winning each match. If only I can open that door of awareness this season.

The next DF 95 Travel Trophy is April 14-15 in Good Year Arizona at [https://www.sailrc.club/event-6062594](https://www.sailrc.club/event-6062594) entries to date are Gary Rozyk, Gene Elliot, Michael Fruciano, Dennis Sharp, Henry Johnson, Bruce Rasch, Jess Atkinson, Allen Lehman, Bob Speaker, Chris Davidson, Larry Grant, Don Shirley, Len Bose, Rod Sturgess, and Bob Kruft

If you are like me trying to open that “door of awareness?”

Every Tuesday Mason Lake Irvine 11:30-3:30

KHYC Saturday, Feb 22 11:30-

Helmsmen Model Yacht Club Long Beach, Sunday, March 9th

Mason Lake Irvine March 15 11:30-3:30

San Diego Argonauts Mission Bay March 22 11:30-

Let’s Go Sailing!

Len Bose

 

You can now register for Travel Trophy Regattas

Arizona April 11 & 12 https://www.sailrc.club/event-6062594/RegistrationsList

Sacramento May 3 & 4 https://www.theamya.org/RegattaDetail.asp?RGID=10452

Registration in NOR.

San Diego 17 & 18. R8 Championships. https://sandiegoargonauts.com/. Registration is now the opener for the 2025 AMYA Dragon Flight 95 Region 8 Championships. The Top SIX finishers will qualify for an invitation to the NCR in Newport, RI in October.

Region 8 Travel Trophy # 1

Saturday, December 28, 2024, Alamitos Bay, Long Beach Yacht Club “Holiday Regatta”. This is the start of the DF 95 2024/25 Reg. 8 Travel Trophy Series along with the beginning of a new sailing season. I started the day at 7:00 Am by sending, the organizing authority, Keith Ives a text with a couple of items that came to me in the early morning. Ives must have been on the same wavelength as me because of his quick response, and I am quite certain he had a couple of other concerns about getting the day started.

I had a quick chuckle when being one of the first to arrive, the San Diego crew was already in the parking lot with their boats rigged and game day faces on. Jon & Dennis Rodgers, and Jess Atkinson, Larry Grant was the first to arrive for the home team. Tina & Keith Ives were next to arrive by boat and hit the dock like a U.S. Marine beach landing both headed toward their objectives and completed them ahead of schedule. Chris Raab arrived laughing and said, “Oh man, everyone is here, this is going to be a rather bit challenging today.”

This is the third year for the “Holiday Regatta” which started with fifteen competitors attending and now pushing over thirty entries. This round we had Rod Sturgess driving in from Arizona, Gary Roszyk from Lake Arrowhead, Henry Johnson from Crestline both driving down from the San Bernardino Mountains, Austin Artis came in from Ventura, along with five skippers from the San Diego area all traveling close to two hours plus. This time of year, has proven to be an attractive time to schedule a regatta, and again it’s rather simple to make the trip when you are located in Southern California. I can’t imagine how the folks in Newport Rhode Island who had the saying “Neither Snow, nor rain, nor slush or freezing conditions will keep us from sailing on this weekend. At the Sandusky Sailing Club in Ohio, I noticed photos in hard dinghies breaking ice in the harbor to sail this weekend.

Back to the Long Beach Yacht Club with 5-7 knots of breeze out of the southwest with a cool 63-degree air tempter. Our biggest problem was how to stuff enough sailing in three hours with 29 skippers on the dock ready to sail. The Ives and I looked down the dock and went with Keith’s idea of stretching out the course and going with one division rather than splitting the fleet in an HMS system. We understood the risk of such a large fleet and went for it, yes it had its challenges, yet the cream always seems to rise to the top. Look at the results and my guess you could have picked the top ten at the start of the race. The Ives and their team got in 10 long races. After the skippers meeting, we had our awards presentation of the 2023/24 Travel Trophy with Chris Davidson taking 3rd, Mark Golison in 2nd and Larry Grant being awarded the first Yellow Chair for the victory.

The breeze filled in right on time with most of the competitors looking for the best angle to view the 29-boat starting line. The breeze did shift back and forth a couple of times changing which side of the starting line was favored. The interesting variable was that if you did find yourself on the wrong side of the line you could still make it to the weather mark in good order as long as you kept your bow out in front of the crowd. The following day after racing I checked in with five of the competitors who all said they had a great time, and it all worked out. I wanted to give a Bravo/Zulu for a job well done to Tina Ives, she made it look easy.

The Long Beach Yacht Club is the first yacht club with the insight that Remote Control sailing will continue to grow attracting more members and can be spectated from the Yacht Club itself. LBYC is very fortunate to have a perfect venue that can support a world-class event and be viewed from their club’s balcony. It goes without saying the LBYC recognizes the potential of promoting this class along with an increase in food and beverage sales!

Thank you Jennifer Golison for the photos!

Next TT February 16 Helmsmen Model Yacht Club at El Dorado Park.

Let’s go sailing!

1. Short Video

Len Bose

 

By: Chris Staiger

Photo by Jennifer Golison

The San Diego Argonauts continued their 45-year triennial tradition by opening Race Week XV with the AMYA 2024 Dragonflite95 National Championship Regatta August 1st – 4th. 42 Skippers, including 3 past DF95 National Champions, from 9 different states competed.

Thursday afternoon began with check-in and practice-racing. Technical Committee members Jess Atkinson and Steve Ross performed check-in and measurement. Skippers were treated to Hot Dogs courtesy of Bob Williams who grilled hot dogs all week for all the Race Week classes!

Friday morning saw the remaining skippers and boats checked-in. Gil Jansky provided coffee and donuts and distributed Gift-Bags containing logo hats, coffee mugs, mini tape measures, stickers (and Cuda Scissors courtesy of Chuck LeMahieu!)
PRO Chris Staiger set 8 marks: an inside leeward Gate, a Starting Line, a Finish Line and two windward marks. The course, which was used for every race in the regatta, consisted of: Start, two windward marks to port, inside leeward Gate, two windward marks to port, inside leeward Gate, Finish. The HMS with 3 Fleets and 4-Boat Promotion/Relegation was utilized, resulting in 17 Boat Heats throughout the event. Finishes and Scoring were recorded by Steve Delva.

Following the Skippers Meeting, competitors were greeted by perfect sailing conditions: mild temperatures and sunny skies with 8 – 10 knots of wind straight down the racecourse with only minor left-right shifts. Friday’s competition was tight, but past Champion, Peter Feldman, dominated by winning 6 straight heats and accumulating only 5 Points for the day (throwing out a First Place!) Local skipper Chris Davidson and past Champion Mark Golison were 2nd and 3rd with past Champion Dennis Rogers close behind in 4th. Daily Sandwiches were provided by Commodore Emeritus Mark Hallberg. Chips, Ice, beverages as well as complete daily pond-side facilities setup and take-down were provided by Site-Manager, Bill Bridge. Friday afternoon Bob again grilled Hot Dogs.

Saturday morning, the perfect conditions continued: Coffee, donuts and 8 – 10 knots straight down the pond! Dan Shier took video play-by-play when he wasn’t racing. Len Bose discovered how powerful the Upgraded DF95 Sail Winch can be: After a sheeting snag, his winch sheared the turning block completely out of the cockpit wall and proceeded to saw a slot in his deck between the cockpit and the hatch! Thanks to Corinthian Award winner Gary Winton, Len was able to continue racing using Gary’s spare hull!

By the end of Saturday, Peter was still in command, but Mark had narrowed the gap as he leapfrogged Chris into 2nd by managing just 15 Points for the day compared to Peter’s 21 and Chris’s 47. Meanwhile, Jess Atkinson scrambled up the leaderboard into 4th. After Day Two the Top-5 were: Peter, Mark, Chris, Jess and Barr Batzer. Following Saturday’s racing, Skippers were treated to an on-site dinner from local favorite Phil’s BBQ, served by Pat and Jan Nevitt and Henry Johnson, and a Prize Drawing was held.

Sunday morning continued the perfect conditions: More coffee, donuts, sandwiches, chips, Gatorade and Hot Dogs! (…and more mild temperatures under sunny skies with 8 – 10 knots straight down the racecourse!) Interestingly, the final day produced no changes in the Top-5
positions but the remainder of the Top-10 changed significantly. Local brothers Dennis and Jon Rogers battled into 6th and 7th Place respectively, just 2 points apart (Rematch, anyone?) Larry Grant, Jim Sears and Keith Ives rounded out the Top-10.
Special thanks to Race Week XV Chairman Gil Jansky who made the impossible seem easy, and to Protest Committee members Steve Ross, Pat Nevitt and Argonauts Commodore Tom Warren (who also manned the rescue boat!)

 

Photos by Jennifer Golison:

The Winners:

RESULTS:

2024 NCR Results – Final

The red tape of U.S. Customs has parted and the DF95 is loose! Pre-ordered 95s have started making their way across the States to expectant and nervous new DF95 Skippers.

Courtesy of Dragon Sailing North America, every pre-ordered DF95 has already been submitted to the DF95 Class Owners Association Registry at no cost to the skipper.

Additionally, the sail registry will be available for viewing soon.

The COA registration page is up and functioning for those who did not pre-ordered.