Billed as the world’s highest regatta at 9,017 ft above sea level, racing for the Dillon Open Regatta takes place on beautiful Dillon Reservoir in Dillon, Colorado, where sailors enjoy mostly sunny days and spectacular views of the snow-capped Rocky Mountains. The regatta is hosted by the Dillon Yacht Club. Mountains and valleys with rapidly changing weather again kept the tacticians on their toes this year. With winds rolling down the steep mountain sides along the lakefront (or the occasional micro-burst blowing down vertically out of clear blue sky), the faster (and sometimes luckier) crews had a field day picking up windshifts and breeze lines to work themselves to the front of the fleet. For well over 25 years, the J/24s from around the Midwest and deep South have made their annual migration to sail in the warm and friendly confines of Lake Dillon, nestled cozily in the Rocky Mountains. Eight J/24 teams made the starting line this year. Greg & Susan Johnson’s Pinotage, posted three firsts in their scoreline on their way to winning the J/24 class with a 5-1-3-1-1-2-3 record for 16 points. Alan Dille’s Septillion’s 2-3-2-4-2-4.5-2 for 19.5 points snagged them a second overall. Taking two firsts was Frank Kelble’s team on USA 1966, amassing a 1-5-4-5-4-1-4 for 24 points to take third on the podium. The balance of the top five was taken by Doug Pierini on Cold Smoke in fourth and Stephen Bergman on Event Horizon in fifth. For more Dillon Open Regatta sailing information, visit http://www.dillonopen.com/.