Month: July 2025

(Cherbourg, France)- IRC Three line honors went to Philippe Girardin’s J/120 HEY JUDE, one of the highest rated boats in the fleet. She had held the lead not just on the water but under IRC too for much of the race. She was slowed more by the adverse tide, around Alderney and the Cotentin peninsula, than the lower-rated boats which arrived at that point later.
Eventually, she took sixth place after IRC time correction, less than four minutes behind Mzungu!
“We were pleased with weather this year, because Philip has a problem with his back – we are now old men,” mused crewman and much capped doublehanded sailor Louis-Marie Dussiere, who has been a friend of Girardin’s since they were at dental school 40 years ago. “We had a very bad start but were able to come back towards the head of the IRC Three fleet leaving the Solent. We had a very good exit at the Shingles and we were back at the head of the IRC Three fleet at Portland.
“At the Rock there was a little rain and very low cloud. We could see nothing – not even the light of the Fastnet Rock until we were one mile away – and we did a very late tack for Fujitsu British Soldier.

Ultimately, it was Julien Bentz’s J/99 WHIMJY 99 that crossed the Cherbourg-en-Cotentin finish line at 0042 local time to take victory in IRC 3 after IRC time correction by 19 minutes.
“It changed a lot and was really difficult over the last 24 hours, because the conditions were shifty and the current challenging,” Bentz commented. “It was a roller coaster of emotions, but we fought until the end and it paid off.
“For most of the crew it’s our first Fastnet, so it’s a great achievement. We have been working on this project for two years and, while it was a mix of intense racing and adventure, there was also a lot of discovery for us along the way.
What was their winning formula? “A mix of many things of course and we prepared very well for two years. The crew and the atmosphere also – we’ve been sailing together for a very long time – maybe 45 years with Romain Troublé.”
“It was a very good race for this boat – upwind and downwind, with no reaching – it was perfect,” added Troublé, son of former America’s Cup skipper and supporter Bruno. “The Fastnet Rock two days ago in the fog and in the dark at two o’clock in the morning was quite an amazing memory for us.”

(Racine, WI)- The 42nd consecutive running of the “Death’s Door Challenge”- a.k.a. The HOOK Race- was run by Racine Yacht Club for a large fleet of 49 PHRF handicap boats, 11 of which were J/Teams!
The HOOK Race is a 189.0nm race on Lake Michigan held each year in July. This challenging event starts outside the harbor in Racine, Wisconsin, “hooking” through Death’s Door (Porte Des Morts passage), a narrow and often treacherous passageway between Washington Island and Wisconsin’s Door County Peninsula. Then, the most scenic part of the race continues across Green Bay and ends in Menominee, Michigan.
HISTORYThe first HOOK was sailed in 1984 with 12 boats. It was originally run on the same weekend as the Chicago Mac and was envisioned as a shorter and less expensive alternative to the Mac! In 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic cancelled the Mac, the HOOK became the only long-distance race on Lake Michigan, with registrations soaring to over 100 boats.
This year’s race saw moderate west/ southwesterlies blowing offshore at the start, making for a fast trip north to the Porte Des Morts Passage in very flat water. Then, it was a light to moderate beat to the finish at Menominee. J/Crews certainly enjoyed the somewhat sybaritic race. Here’s what took place in the five divisions they sailed in.
PHRF 2 DivisionThis half-dozen-boat fleet was Mark Pirie’s J/111 SWATTER from Charlevoix YC, which took the silver medal. Meanwhile, their colleagues on the J/111 SHMOKIN JOE, sailed by Jeff Schaeffer, placed fourth.
PHRF 3 DivisionProving that “J/cruisers” are also quite fast, David Saudek’s J/42 AUSTRAL brought home the bronze medal in their eight-boat fleet, missing the silver by exactly 62 seconds (!!) and first place by a mere 7 minutes!
PHRF 4 DivisionNo one likely anticipated the only three J/crews in this seven-boat fleet would experience a podium sweep! Winning was Shawn Casey’s J/110 MARICA, taking the silver was Ron Otto’s J/110 TAKEDOWN 2, and completing the podium was Dan Fallon’s fire-engine red J/105 POWERS OF TWO! Hmmmm, more J/cruisers taking home silverware for their trophy rooms! “Not fair,” said their erstwhile competitors!
PHRF 5 DivisionThis seven-boat fleet seemed to be filled with old-time classics. In the end, the well-kept J/30 CONUNDRUM sailed by Matt Fulkerson garnered a well-earned bronze medal!
Four divisions, silverware for J/Teams in every division entered! Congratulations to all who persevered and triumphed in the end!
Sailing photo credits- Scott Lewishttps://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPPb-yldz0I2vUvD_E99dIlnMPFWkPD0vvyfV2f-jQFJgukWK80oaKILA2AcYR42Q?pli=1&key=Y3NJZ2luYi0xcHJId2RjNDR2bWVaWWhTODR3Y25B
For Racine YC’s The HOOK Race resultshttps://www.yachtscoring.com/event_results_detail/50002/1
For more The HOOK Race sailing informationhttps://www.racineyachtclub.org/schedule

(Mackinac Island, MI)- It was a “slow-motion thriller” for the 116th edition of the 289.0nm Chicago Mackinac Race- presented by Wintrust. For nearly four days, multiple division leaders were within shouting distance of each other on Lake Michigan, swapping tacks, and trading leads as they clawed their way through the Manitou Passage and up into the Mackinac Straits. A big, fat high-pressure system with nary an isochron in sight was parked over northern Michigan, leading to light and fickle winds from the north, northwest, and easterly quadrants. As one wise navigator explained, it was as good as “rolling the dice” as to where the next breeze line would settle in for an hour or two, then just disappear. In the long run, the “stop & go driving” saw many J/Teams excel in the difficult conditions, leading to many of them garnering silverware on the podium.
This year’s Chicago-Mackinac Race reminded sailors that no two “Mac Races” are ever the same, delivering the kind of dynamic challenge that has made it one of the world’s most iconic offshore races and a fixture on every sailor’s bucket list.
Known as “America’s Offshore Challenge”, the 2025 Mac Race tested sailors’ tactical instincts, patience, and mental endurance over the course up Lake Michigan and into Lake Huron for the finish at Mackinac Island, MI.
Unpredictable wind conditions made this year’s race especially demanding, with many boats taking longer than usual to reach the finish. On average, this year, the racing division took 57 hours. In contrast, last year’s race was one for the record books as the 80-foot canting keeler MAVERICK broke the 22-year-old monohull record (just over 22 hours). It’s this unpredictability that keeps Mac Racers returning year after year. Here is how it broke down by division for the large numbers of J/Teams.
Mackinac Cup Fleet (116 larger boats)Overall Results:4. Doug Evans’s J/122 ELBOW ROOM- only 30 mins corrected from 2nd place!6. Matt Songer’s J/122 EVVAI10. Blaine Shea’s J/111 STRIKING BACK12. The trio of Nick Gibbons, Rich Murphy, and David Normandin’s J/145 SIC PARVIS MAGNA13. Jeff Davis’s J/111 SHAMROCK15. Chris & Autumn Lamb’s J/111 PADAWAN17. Scott Sellers’s J/111 NO SURPRISE
Division 2- 15 boats1. The trio of Nick Gibbons, Rich Murphy, and David Normandin’s J/145 SIC PARVIS MAGNA6. Bill Schanen’s J/145 MAIN STREET
Division 3- 14 boats3. Jim Murray’s J/125 CALLISTO (a successful J/70 sailor, too!)
Division 4- 13 boats5. Tom Papoutsis’s J/133 RENEGADE
Division 6- 14 boats1. Doug Evans’s J/122 ELBOW ROOM2. Matt Songer’s J/122 EVVAI5. Len Siegal’s J/122E LUCKY DUBIE6. Mike & Bob Kirkman’s J/120 HOT TICKET7. Charlie Hess’s J/120 FUNTECH RACING8. Bob Eger’s J/120 CALIFORNIA GIRL
Doublehanded Division- 6 boats1. Andy Graff’s J/88 EXILE2. Evan Jahn’s J/109 TUMBLER4. Dan Floberg’s J/88 MISTY- missing podium by 3 minutes!
Mackinac Trophy Fleet (119 smaller boats)Overall results:2. Andy Graff’s J/88 EXILE- missing the gold medal by 19 minutes!5. David Gustman’s J/109 NORTHSTAR- just 9 minutes in arrears of the J/88!6. Jim Nacthman’s J/99 RAMBLER 8. Evan Jahn’s J/109 TUMBLER9. Jim Caesar’s J/109 LIQUID LOUNGE II10. Mike Hendrie’s J/109 BULL
Division 7- 13 boats2. Tim & Cathy McGuire’s J/112E ELEVATION- celebrating her 25th Mac was Cathy!3. Tom Dickson’s J/105 WARLOCK6. Todd & Heidi Patton’s J/112E BLONDIE
Division 8- 12 boats1. Jim Nachtman’s J/99 RAMBLER2. Bob Asher & Wes Ory’s J/99 SHING-A-LING3. Ray Douglas & Christine Maybach’s J/109 COURAGEOUS
ONE-DESIGN CLASSES
J/111 Class- 12 boats1. Jeff Davis’s SHAMROCK2. Chris & Autumn Lamb’s PADAWAN3. Scott Sellers’s NO SURPRISE
J/109 Class- 8 boats1. Dave Gustman’s NORTHSTAR2. Mike Hendrie’s BULL3. Jim Caesar’s LIQUID LOUNGE II
J/105 Class- 18 boats1. Paul Hickman & Jody Kjoller’s KASHMIR2. Mark Denuyl’s GOOD LOOKING3. Mark Fruin’s NYCTOSAUR
Level 35 OD Class- 9 boats1. Keith Stauber’s J/35 PAPA GAUCHO II2. Hugh Haggerty’s J/35 NOBLE BUFFALO3. Kim & Linus Isabell’s J/35 REDLINE
For more Chicago Mackina Race sailing informationhttps://cycracetomackinac.com/

(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- Marking the 100th anniversary of the Royal Ocean Racing Club, the 2025 edition of the ROLEX Fastnet Race is certain to be a special one. From its humble beginnings, the race upon which the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) was founded has grown to become the world’s biggest offshore race, with 381 IRC-rated yachts competing. From the start off the famous Cowes/ Royal Yacht Squadron starting line in the Solent, the fleet rounds Fastnet Rock just off the southeastern tip of Ireland, then heads for home to the finish off Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, France- a distance of 695.0nm.
Making HistoryIn 1925, before offshore racing was even a sport in the United Kingdom, seven cruising yachts and their valiant crews embarked on what was then called “the Ocean Race”. Inspired by the Newport Bermuda Race, the U.K. equivalent was started off Ryde Middle in the Solent by the Royal Victoria Yacht Club. The fleet headed counter-clockwise around the Isle of Wight, before heading west to Land’s End, crossing the Celtic Sea to the Fastnet Rock lighthouse, rounding it to port and returning to the finish off Plymouth, England.
Weather ForecastTeams that competed in the last two ROLEX Fastnet Races and are returning for this Saturday’s special centenary edition will be breathing a sigh of relief looking at the long-term forecast. In contrast to the battering they received from the 30+ knot winds at the start, and the subsequent gale force winds of the first 24 hours, they endured during the last two editions, the long-term forecast for this year’s race shows more benign conditions.
Regardless of the wind conditions, the Rolex Fastnet Race is never easy as it always involves making best use of or attempting to avoid the tide, especially while exiting past the Solent past The Needles and off southern England’s famous headlands – St Alban’s Point, Start Point, the Lizard, Land’s End – and again at the end of the race when all competitors will be affected, for better or worse, by the powerful Alderney Race (a massive cut of fast-moving current) on the approach to Cherbourg.
Along the way, competitors must avoid the Traffic Separation Schemes (TSSs). Exiting the Solent, the Casquets TSS mid-channel limits how far south boats can go before they are obliged to tack. Tactically, one of the most important TSS zones lies off Land’s End, where the shorter passage is between this and the Scilly Isles. But, depending upon the state of wind and tide, it can also be advantageous to take the longer route between the TSS and Land’s End.
Another TSS is immediately south of the Fastnet Rock, acting as a natural spreader mark, separating yachts arriving at the Rock from those exiting it. TSSs also lie to the west and south of the Scilly Isles, and there is a further tactical option to leave the former to port or starboard. Finally, the Casquets TSS once again comes into play, forcing competitors south of it and causing some even to pass south of Guernsey to avoid the worst of the tide en route to the finish line.
While at present the weather looks like it will be dominated by a giant area of High pressure off to the west and southwest, the shape of this and a micro system that may or may not be spinning up in the Celtic Sea on start day are currently playing havoc with the routing.
It’s tricky,” comments Will Best, navigator on Leopard 3. “The difference between yesterday and today is almost 24 hours in routing for us. There’s a system coming, and at the moment, the timing, intensity, and associated weather are not lining up. The U.K. model is quite a big outlier at the moment. The Euro model is looking better today compared to what we expect – probably two and a half days for us. Yesterday, it was a pure windward-leeward with quite light VMG downwind to the finish. Today, it’s not crazy wind speeds, but it just turns into a reach to the finish, which saves us hours on these 100s. It’s pretty normal for it to be this inconsistent so far out.”
RORC Rear Commodore Joe Lacey is racing double-handed. “Big picture, the weather is basically stable,” he says. “There’s high pressure over the Atlantic, which the entire fleet is probably going to be in for the entirety of the race. The exact position of that high pressure changes the angles. For example, going along the south coast, it could be upwind, or it could be reaching. And going across the Irish Sea, it could be upwind, and it could be reaching.
At the moment, it says we’re going to be upwind in 12-15 knots at the start, but then it will take us 24+ hours to go along the south coast of the UK, so by Sunday, we should be reaching. Maybe we will still get some shifts, but I don’t think it’s very stable. The forecast is changing daily. At the moment, it’s giving us some positive readings: our fleet will finish in 3.5-4 days, and it goes well for us if we can reach along the coast of England. At the moment, we’ll never have more than 20 knots of wind and never less than eight knots.
It’s going to be a pretty standard beat out of Solent, because it’s a prevailing northwesterly. Once we get out into Christchurch Bay, it could swing round a bit. I don’t know whether it’ll go fully into a reach until we get towards Weymouth.
To the Fastnet Rock, it looks like the wind oscillates between 10 and 20 knots – possibly slightly more as we get closer. And then it’s putting the kite up and going all the way to Cherbourg by the looks of it.”
Royal Engineer Yacht Club’s J/109 ProjectAs regular as the Fastnet Race has been the RORC’s premier event, so has been the Royal Engineer Yacht Club (REYC), which – incredibly – has participated in every single edition. Since 1925, they had already been competing in offshore races for decades.
Since 2021, they have been campaigning their J/109 TROJAN in what is arguably one of the most competitive one-design classes in southern England.
“There’s definitely an undertone of pride to it,” says Andrew Motion, the REYC’s Captain of Boats, TROJAN crew in 2021 and skipper in 2023. “There’s also quite a lot of pressure that comes with it. There’s a real expectation that it’s a no-fail event for us.”
Along with many other services, yachts, their J/109 TROJAN, are based out of Hornet Services Sailing Club in Gosport. In the Rolex Fastnet Race, they compete for the Inter-Regimental Cup for Best Service Yacht Overall and the Culdrose Trophy for Best IRC Services Yacht around the Fastnet Rock on corrected time.
Of their 2025 campaign, Motion adds: “We’ve got servicemen and women coming from all over the country. But, there’s a lot of pressure because of the centenary and because we’ve entered every single one and should continue to do so. It makes it all the more important to achieve. Whatever happens, come hell or high water, we will have that boat across that start line!”
IRC 1 DivisionThe massive 73-boat fleet has four well-prepared offshore J/crews. One of them is the J/121 DARKWOOD from Ireland. Over the years, DARKWOOD has not enjoyed the luck of the Irish, with a retirement in 2019 following rudder damage, and then a collision shortly after the start in 2021. But her owner/skipper Mike O’Donnell is nothing if not persistent, and 2025 is shaping up to be a good year for the J/121 from Ireland. Currently, DARKWOOD lies third overall in IRC One in the RORC’s Season’s Points Championship.
The other J/Teams include Herve Perrein’s J/130 DULCISSIMA, Francois Charles’s J/133 SUN HILL IV from France, and Nick Edmonds’s J/45 STICKLEBACK.
After winning IRC Four in their beloved SUN HILL III in 2023 (and coming third in class twice before), François Charles and his French crew return on SUN HILL IV, a substantially larger, faster J/133. She arrived on Tuesday from Charles’ native Morlaix, where he is a rigger. Morlaix has produced several top French sailors, including Solitaire du Figaro winners Jérémie Beyou, Armel le Cleach, and Nicolas Troussel, who has been calling tactics on board this season. Despite only acquiring their boat this year, they have already notched up a second place in the Cervantes Trophy in IRC One.
As to their prospects this year, Charles says he is resigned to the tough challenge ahead, racing the wily Géry Trentesaux and his now fully tricked-up LONG COURIER. “We want to use this to discover the boat – it’s much faster than our last one, which I’m very happy about,” says Charles. His team has a sponsor/ supporter in his Rolex Fastnet Race campaign by the Cabinet Bourhis Insurance company. “That’s good because it allows us to buy more sails!!” Charles is racing with five crew ranging in age from 22 years to 65.
IRC 2 DivisionThis very large 70-boat fleet has a significant armada of J/crews- nine boats total.
One of the contenders is Lawrence Herbert’s J/133 CORAZON. They scored a second place in IRC Two in the Myth of Malham, and their young crew (all under 30) have been performing well across the past three seasons of RORC racing.
Derek Shakespeare, Vice Commodore of RORC, has been successfully campaigning his J/122 BULLDOOG, with an overall win in RORC’s De Guingand Bowl Race last year as some indicator of the boat’s potential.
JENIS is a J/112 GP from Kazakhstan, skippered by Murat Abdrakhmanov. Last year, this Kazakh crew finished second in class in the Rolex Giraglia Cup.
The J/122 MOJITO, owned by Peter Dunlop and Victoria Cox, and racing out of Pwllheli Sailing Club, participated in the RORC Nelson’s Cup Series and the RORC Caribbean 600 in Antigua in early 2025. In the Nelson’s Cup, MOJITO won races during the week and, ultimately, finished runner-up in IRC Two. In the Caribbean 600, MOJITO also finished second in class.
Cris Miles has covered plenty of sea miles in his professional career, having completed many, many ISORA races, Scottish Islands Peaks Race, and the Three Peaks Yacht Race. However, this is his first attempt at the Rolex Fastnet Race, and he’s skippering the J/111 JEZEBEL. Miles describes his crew as “an exemplary bunch of guys with military background,” but adds intriguingly: “Professions are on a need-to-know basis.” One of the crew will also be scattering the ashes of his late father at the Fastnet Rock as per his wishes.
The J/122 WHISKEY JACK is a well-known name in the world of offshore racing in the Far East. Owner/skipper Nick Southward of the J/122 is looking forward to showing what his Hong Kong crew can do in the Rolex Fastnet Race. A fifth place in IRC Two at the Myth of Malham suggests WHISKEY will be one to watch for the Rolex Fastnet Race.
Frans van Cappelle’s experienced crew from the Netherlands has had good offshore success on the North Sea, racing their J/122 MOANA. Their most recent performance was a podium finish in the well-known North Sea Week.
Finally, just beginning to scratch the surface of the potential of their new race horse, the French team on the J/45 JUST, led by the experienced offshore trio of Sacha Vandenbrouck, Yvon Lucas, and Eric Gautier, hope to lead their fellow J/teams across the finish line in Cherbourg!
IRC 3 DivisionIn a still larger fleet of 86 boats, there will be a fleet of seven J/Teams. Here’s the principal guiding force for all IRC 3 participants: it’s always an intensely competitive class! And, it has produced the overall winner of two of the last six Fastnet Races!!
Picking out potential class winners at this stage is an almost impossible task. Competition so far this year in IRC Three has been exceptionally close, with 12 boats from four different countries scoring top-four places in the first five races of this year’s RORC series.
Three J/112E’s are competing and, given the current weather forecasts, they should prove to be quite competitive. Those teams include Simon Harris & Charles Linard’s J’OUVERT, Ubbo Neisingh’s Dutch team on NARWAL, and Wayne Palmer & Kate Ledgard’s THINKING SPACE.
A trio of J/99s should also be significant factors in the division. There are two French teams (Jean-Lin Flipo’s YALLA and Julien Bentz’s WHIMJY 99) and one British crew- Alain Waha’s FURTHER WEST.
Rounding out the J/fleet is Frenchman Philippe Girardin’s very experienced, winning offshore crew on his J/120 HEY JUDE. They’re accustomed to winning silverware in their French offshore circuit!
IRC 4 DivisionIRC Four division, representing the smallest and lowest-rated boats in the race, is the most numerous this year, with 95 entries. They vary from enormously experienced and competitive teams with the potential to lift the Fastnet Challenge Cup, the main IRC Overall prize, to those chasing a bucket list experience. Nevertheless, many of the latter will inevitably get hooked on the race and join the legions of sailors who compete time after time and notch up a dozen or more editions.
An impressive ten J/109s are entered this year. Among them is JUST SO, which has been hugely successful in offshore racing in the 18 years the McGough family has owned her, gaining a slew of trophies. However, success in the Rolex Fastnet Race has always proved elusive, and JUST SO had to retire in both the 2019 and 2021 editions. The ambition this year is modest but heartfelt: “Our main goal is to finish!” says skipper William McGough.
Lesley Brooman is the third owner of her J/109 JUMUNU and has previously taken part in six Rolex Fastnet Races, two in her boat, plus two RORC Caribbean 600s, one Rolex Middle Sea Race, as well as the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race. She says their hope is “to finish, preferably in the top half” and for “better weather!”
Other leading J/109s include Rob Cotterill’s MOJO RISIN, which has notably won silver in both Warsash Spring Series and Hamble Winter Series for what seems like decades.
A trio of J/99s will be joining them to vie for division honors. They include Mark Kendall’s JIRO, Jean-Baptiste Brian’s JOLLY JUMPER, and Tim Tolcher & Steven Deutsch’s RAGING BULL.
FEVER, a Dutch-flagged J/35 of 1984 vintage, will be sailed by a group of friends from the Jachtclub Scheveningen, including Volvo Ocean Race and America’s Cup veteran Simeon Tienpont. The plan is to “sail a neat race from start to finish and have a good time,” says Tienpont. “The most challenging thing will be the luck of timing and good tactical decisions at the finish, considering the strong currents in France.”
IRC Doublehanded DivisionThe fifty-seven boats in this fleet seem to have a common theme- the father and daughter team aspect particularly appeals to several families, providing them a race within the race. One of them is Richard and Emma Breese, who are competing in an older, but competitive boat, the J/105 MOJO. Emma has a long track record of making boats go fast, having been Optimist Junior National Champion in 2019, and finishing as second female at last year’s 420 Youth National Championship– dinghy sailors are fast in J/105s!
MOJO will be up against a “rogue’s gallery” of tough offshore competitors, all with proven silver-winning performances offshore. There are two J/112E’s- the Harris & Linard duo on J’OUVERT and the Palmer & Ledgard pair on THINKING SPACE. In addition, the J/99 RAGING BULL will have the Tolcher & Deutsch team, who are persistent and smart. Finally, a past RORC Season Series IRC Double winner is the McGough & Lavery pair on the J/109 JUST SO.
For more ROLEX Fastnet Race sailing informationhttps://www.rolexfastnetrace.com/en

(Edgartown, MA)- As they have for decades, the Edgartown Yacht Club rolled out the proverbial red carpet to welcome sailors from all over the world to their cozy confines on the water in Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard. Their annual Edgarton Race Week is a regular stop for many New England sailors for one primary reason- the 60.0nm dash around Martha’s Vineyard Island and the huge awards celebration party afterwards at the yacht club! Here’s how it all took place in this year’s challenging, finicky race.
PHRF 3 DivisionWinning this fleet was Joe Brito’s J/121 INCOGNITO, a repeat performance for Joe and his crew, Round the Island! Second was Robert Littleton’s J/111 SHE’S NO LADY 2.0, and fourth place was Robert Reifess’s J/120 MURMUR.
PHRF 4 DivisionIt was a J/109 sweep of the podium of this fleet. Leading the way was Eliot Shanabrook’s HAFA ADAI, followed by Ed Dailey’s RAPTOR in second, and Ted Herlihy’s GUT FEELING in third place.
PHRF 5 DivisionThe two J/teams in this fleet sailed well, with one making it onto the podium. Taking the bronze medal was Phil Stathos’s J/110 AIRBENDER, then finishing fourth place was Olwen Huxley’s J/35 RESILIENCE.
PHRF 8 Doublehanded DivisionSailing any boat double-handed around Martha’s Vineyard is always going to be a challenge. It’s not a straight line to a mark 60.0nm away, where you just set sails and send it! In the Round Island Race, you’re always going clockwise, turning right around each point of land. So, changing sails and setting them for speed is an ongoing challenge! In the end, Henry Sesselberg’s J/105 UBUNTU sailed a strong race to take the silver medal in this class!
For more Round Island/ Edgartown Race Week sailing information and resultshttps://yachtscoring.com/emenu.cfm?eID=16270

(Lavrion, Greece)– The successful 5th edition of the challenging Aegean 600 Race, organized annually by the Hellenic Offshore Racing Club (HORC), saw many smiling faces among more than just the winning teams who were poised to win their trophies. Their beaming smiles were knowing that they had just completed one of the most challenging, yet rewarding, 600-mile races in the offshore sailing world.
Perhaps that’s a reflection of the event’s promotional pitch… “A sailing race that has the makings of a legend. The sea of myths and legends. The sea of Homer, Seferis, and Elytis. The sea of painters and philosophers. The sea of sailors. 600 miles of sailing in the Aegean Sea. A race where the wind god- Aeolus- will make his own game to control sailors’ seamanship. A race where the dolphins will accompany the boats to drive them faster to the finish.”
Temple of PoseidonA highlight of the race is the start held in the shadows of the mythical temple of Poseidon, the ancient Greek god of the sea. The temple dominates the southernmost tip of Attica, where the horizon meets the Aegean Sea. Perched on the craggy rocks of Cape Sounio, the temple is enveloped in myth and historic facts dated from antiquity until the present times.
There are stories about the ship of King Menelaus who stopped briefly at Sounio on his way back from Troy; or about the unfortunate King Aegeus who drowned himself on that spot and the Aegean Sea got named after him; or about the people who built a temple using local marble to honour the god of the sea and safeguard the profits from the neighbouring Lavrio mines.
The unknown architect is probably the same one who built Theseion in the Ancient Agora of Athens. He decorated the temple with sculptures made of Parian marble (i.e., from Paros Island), which depicted the labours of Theseus as well as battles with Centaurs and Giants (Gigantes). The remaining sculptures are showcased in the Lavrio Museum, whereas the impressive kouros [male youths] that once stood in the temple yard are now on display in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens.
The race continues to gain its passionate followers, steeped in history, and a feast for the eyes, passing dozens of other spectacular, mythical islands as marks of the course!
Participating for their fourth time was the J/111 AIOLIA J. Her owner/skipper, Spiros Papantoniou, was able to overcome the challenging course to take the bronze medal in ORC 3 Division and also take 4th in ORC Overall!
For more Aegean 600 Race sailing informationhttps://aegean600.com/

(Sydney Harbour, NSW, Australia)- The Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race starts July 26th, 2025, hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia (CYCA). This year’s race promises thrilling competition and exceptional seamanship as fifty-one yachts, including thirteen doublehanded boats, will be sailing the challenging 384.0nm course from Sydney Harbour to the Gold Coast.
The Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race is one of Australia’s premier offshore yacht races, attracting top-tier sailors and vessels from around Australia. Participants navigate the picturesque yet demanding coastline, testing their skills and endurance against the elements.
When the fleet sets off on the 26th July, there will be a race within a race taking place. Of the fourteen double-handed yachts entered, six are sailing as J/99 one-designs!
Those teams are BALANCING ACT (Tony Craner and Rick Plain), BLUE PLANET (Chris O’Neill and Jason Keg), JUPITER (Ian Smith and John Cross), RUM REBELLION (Shane Connelly and Tony Sutton), THE GAFFER (Rob Frayne and Richard Dumas), and VERTIE (Paul Beath and Stephen Prince).
NSGCYR Media chatted to four J/99 competitors- Rob Frayne, Ian Smith, Tony Craner, and Shane Connelly- about their experience and anticipated competition in this year’s race.
——–Quietly confident on board THE GAFFERAs the 2024 Cabbage Tree Island Race fleet departed Sydney Harbour, one mystery yacht sailing on Sydney Harbour sparked curiosity among commentators; THE GAFFER wasn’t on the entry list.
Newly-launched and yet to complete a qualifying passage, co-skippers Rob Frayne and Richard Dumas were not competing, but used the opportunity to gain offshore experience, shadowing the fleet.
Still, THE GAFFER was the first J/99 to reach Cabbage Tree Island- an impressive result. The pair, who previously sailed together in the 75th Rolex Sydney Hobart, were now preparing for a full Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore season, including the 80th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.
“We’re quietly confident,” said Frayne. “The Noakes Sydney Gold Coast is a great opportunity to build on our experience in time for Hobart.”
———JUPITER spins into a busy seasonIan Smith’s J/99 JUPITER was briefly up for sale earlier this year- but offshore racing proved too tempting to resist.
“I like offshore racing. It’s extremely uncomfortable. But, when you get to the other end, it’s so rewarding,” Smith said.
Despite limited ocean racing experience before 2023, Smith has quickly made his mark, finishing third on Double Handed IRC in the 2024 Rolex Sydney Hobart with co-skipper Lincoln Dews.
For the 2025 Noakes Sydney Gold Coast, Smith will race with John Cross, whose usual ride- Transcendence Rudy Project – is being repaired following dismasting in the last Hobart.
With multiple J/99s entered, Smith sees the race as a valuable one-design showdown. “We’ll be watching each other like hawks,” he said. “It’ll be open slather, really.”
———-Is BALANCING ACT the J/99 to beat?After success in Queensland, Tony Craner is bringing his J/99 BALANCING ACT south for a Sydney challenge.
The yacht has dominated recent races, including back-to-back wins in the RQYS Brisbane to Keppel Yacht Race (Double Handed Division and Overall in 2024) and class victories in the Brisbane to Gladstone.
“There’s a strong core of J/99s in Sydney- they lift the game,” Craner said. “We’re looking forward to lining up against them.”
Craner praised the boat’s versatility: “It’s a good all-rounder- quick upwind, quick downhill. Very hard to beat.”
Craner will race with Rick Plain in the Doublehanded Division.
———-RUM REBELLION eyes on a podium finishShane Connelly’s RUM REBELLION has been a mainstay in the Doublehanded Division since its inception in the 2021 Rolex Sydney Hobart.
In 2023, Connelly and former co-skipper Andrew Downing placed third on Doublehanded IRC and IRC Division 3 in the NSGCYR. Last year, alongside Tony Sutton, they finished just a mile behind two other J/99s after 384.0nm of racing.
“You sail 300.0nm and can still see each other- that’s just crazy,” Connelly laughed.
RUM REBELLION finished fourth on Doublehanded IRC and second on Corinthian PHS last year. This time, the team hopes to reduce tactical errors and make the podium.
“We always like to get on the podium,” Connelly added.
The 2025 Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race will showcase tight competition in the Doublehanded fleet, with the J/99s shaping up as one of the most exciting battles to watch.
For more Gold Coast Yacht Race sailing informationhttps://goldcoast.cycaracing.com/