Star Class Honoring the Past, Leading the Future
Marblehead, MA (September 7, 2017) – In a class with such tradition, with competition at a spectacular venue, day one of the 2017 Star North American Championship began just as it should have.
Two races began on time and were completed with course legs between 1.2 and 1.4 nautical miles in length from a south west direction. Wind speed varied from 6-14 knots throughout the day, just enough for a Star crew to drop into the hiking position! The race committee started a third race, but by the time sailors reached the windward mark, a major right hand shift forced them into AP over A and competitors returned home.
When sailing a non-spinnaker keel boat, with minimal variation from boat to boat, competitors place the utmost importance on boat speed. This was priority for today’s second place boat Eric Doyle and Payson Infelise. “Having just recut our main, we made sure to focus on setting the boat up appropriately to make sure we were fast,” commented Infelise.
In addition to boat speed, the team loves the all-around competitive nature of the class. “Star sailing is by far my favorite sailing,” Infelise added. “It’s competitive, physical, and very tactical.”
Luke Lawrence and Ian Coleman won the day with a 1,3, attributing their success to pre-regatta preparation. “The biggest thing we focused on before the event was time into the boat,” said Lawrence. “We want to be confident in our systems and tuning so when the regatta begins we can prioritize the basics (starts, fleet management, mark roundings)”. Today was the first of a four-day event in a class where endurance is key.”
Eight races are planned for the 46-boat fleet on September 7 to 10.
