Will Welles helmed Cougar to the top of the leader board on day 1 of the J/24 Midwinter Championship at the Davis Island Yacht Club in Tampa, Florida. Twenty-seven teams from across the United States and Canada are participating in the event. Current J/24 World Champion Welles scored a 1,2,1,12 on Friday for a total of 16 points. Travis Odenbach’s HoneyBadger is 12 points behind in second. In the day’s first contest, Welles took line honors, with Odenbach in second and Christopher Stone’s Velocidad in third. Welles and Odenbach reversed their top two positions in the next battle, while Robby Brown made his way into the top three. Welles took another bullet in the third race, trailed by Brian and Kat Malone on Supernatural Fishslapper and Dan Busch’s Buschwhacker. In race four, some new names emerged at the top: David Ogden/John Mollicone’s Buckaroo, Bob Kinsman’s Dogfish and John Poulson’s long shot. Conditions on Tampa Bay were sunny but chilly, following record low temperatures in the area that morning. Winds were light and variable, between 8-10 knots. Racing continues through Sunday. Photos are posted on the J/24 Class Facebook page, and complete results are available here.