(San Francisco, CA)- This past weekend was the occasion for one of the
most popular offshore classics in the San Francisco/ Monterrey Bay
region that take place all summer long. The Windjammer Race is the late
summer dash of 67nm from San Francisco, past Año Nuevo, down the
picturesque California coastline to the sunshine of Santa Cruz. For
many, it's a great way to enjoy a Labor Day holiday weekend in the sun
and join in with the "Day on The Bay" charity organization to support
the "Big Brothers" and "Big Sisters" organization.
Celebrating more than most this past weekend may have been Howard
Turner's brand new, fresh out-of-the-box, J/111 #91 called SYMMETRY.
Indeed, there was good "karma" for this team from Santa Cruz YC, as all
the commissioning bits & pieces all magically came together in time
to sail their first offshore race! And, what a ride it was!
Up against the creme'de'la'creme of the Northern California offshore
racing community, Turner's J/111 team on SYMMETRY simply blew the doors
off their competition to take both class honors and overall fleet
honors! Their sleigh-ride down the California coastline was described
as "breathtaking"! With spinnakers up and all kinds of "laundry
flying", the J/111 flew down the track and when the breeze came on they
were just sitting at 20-22 kts boat-speed for minutes at a time, totally
planed-off and "hauling the mail" down to Santa Cruz!
SYMMETRY's win
was all the more astonishing since they beat the pants off other
well-known, famous Left Coast sleds like the SC 50 ROLLER COASTER in
2nd, Greg Slyngstad's J/125 HAMACHI in 3rd, the SC 50 HANA HO in 4th and
the infamous R/P 45 CRIMINAL MISCHIEF in 5th. One can only begin to
hear the drumbeat of why J/111's are so effective offshore-- this
"newbie" crew simply proved it, again. Given most conditions, the J/111
is simply a "roller-skate" once the wind is aft of abeam when it's
smoking, or when it can launch a Code Zero and simply disappear on any
fleet. No wonder it's such a wildly successful, popular boat for the
Chicago-Mackinac Race (a largely reaching race). For more Windjammer Race sailing information
