The J/109 Class held its annual North American Championship over four days in August on the waters of Buzzards Bay. New Bedford Yacht Club (South Dartmouth, MA) played host to 11 boats vying for the Class’s top prize from August 21 through August 24, 2019.
Over the course of the week, the fleet saw nearly all conditions—big breeze, light air, dense fog—and had to stay sharp through 11 races. In the tight racing, one mistake almost always led to a deep result.
David Rosow’s Loki, once again, started strong and never looked back. Sailing with an all-corinthian crew (unlike his victories in 2016, 2017, and 2018), Loki won five of the 11 races, and never placed lower than 4th in any race, for a total of 20 points.
Bengt Johansson’s Zig Zag sailed a very strong regatta and finished 2nd with a total of 40 points.
Jonathan Rechtschaffer’s Emoticon, Ted Herlihy’s Gut Feeling, and John Greifzu, Jr.’s Growth Spurt, rounded out the top five finishing, 3rd, 4th, and 5th, respectively.
Photo Below: The top five podium finishers with their half hull trophies. Bengt Johansson with the J/109 Corinthian Trophy and Class President Bill Kneller presents the J/109 NA Championship Perpetual Trophy to David Rosow.
2019 North American Championship Trophy Winners – Photo Credit: Fran Grenon, Spectrum Photo
The 2019 North American Championship saw a distinctive switch in the composition of the teams with nine of the 11 boats sailing in the Corinthian Division. Loki took home the National Championship perpetual trophy, and the Class’s new Corinthian trophy was awarded to Zig Zag.
More photos are available from Spectrum Photo at this link.
