Will Welles’ Kaster of the USA has achieved his second J/24 World Championship in five years, this time at the 40th edition of the prestigious Championship in Riva del Garda, Italy. With crew Nick Turney, Rich Bowen, Giuliano Cattarozzi and Andrea Casale, the Newport, RI-based helmsman recorded 47 net points in 10 races. Next best was Nobuyuki Imai’s Siesta of Japan who ended with 68 points. Three Americans followed: Keith Whittemore’s Furio, Travis Odenbach’s Honeybadger and Mike Ingham’s Nautalytics, who dominated Friday’s three contests with a 2,1,1. The day’s other race winner was Welles.
The IJCA also awarded its perpetual trophies:
• Jaeger Women’s Trophy to Lynn Wolgast, Derbe Kerle, Germany
• Under-25 Turner Trophy to Pietro Parisi, Ottobrerosso, Italy
Welles put together a combined American and Italian team, and commended “Giuliano for bringing a fast boat and Andrea for putting it all together.” He also thanked PRO Hank Stuart and all the various volunteers and sponsors. Reflecting on 40 years of J/24 World Championships, he said that the robust international attendance proves that “The Class is as strong as ever!”
Top five:
1) Will Welles, Kaster, USA, 2, 5, 2, 9, (25), 2, 2, 1, 8, 16, Net 47
2) Nobuyuki Imai, Siesta, JPN, 25, 10, 5, 5, 1, 1, 7, (32), 7, 7, Net 68
3) Keith Whittemore, Furio, USA, 31, 19, DPI20, 3, 2, 9, 3, 1, (46), 3, 4, Net 75
4) Travis Odenbach, Honeybadger, USA, 14, 7, 8, 3, (16), 12, 8, 15, 2, 11, Net 80
5) Mike Ingham, Nautalytics, USA, 20, (43), 4, 10, 5, 8, 30, 2, 1, 1, Net 81
Eighty-nine teams from 14 countries (Australia, Brazil, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden and United States) competed August 27-31 from Fraglia Vela Riva del Garda. Complete results may be found at http://www.j24worlds2018.it/results/, and photos are available on the J/24 Class Facebook page.