2016 J/24 National Championship. Photo by Chris Howell.
The top J/24 sailors from the United States (and a few from around the world) met at the Sayville Yacht Club in Sayville, New York last weekend for the J/24 U.S. National Championship. The teams were fighting for the title and for spots at the world championship.
Quantum J/24 expert Travis Odenbach said the conditions were challenging each day. “Friday the thirteenth, of course, had the lightest winds with rain. As the weekend went on the breeze picked up. Sunday it was blowing over 25 knots at times.”
Thirty-nine sailors turned out for the event, which featured some amazing competition. “J/24 sailors chose to compete in this event mostly for the chance to race against some of the best in the class,” said Odenbach. “But the other reason was to have a chance to win a qualifying spot for Worlds in Toronto next year. There were five spots open. Those spots could only go to people who haven't qualified yet and who are from the United States.”
Odenbach, who’s been doing well already this season, was on one of the teams that qualified. “Our team sailed very hard that week, and I was very pleased and thankful for the effort that was put in by the whole group! We had unfortunate finishes, but seemed to enjoy the breeze on Sunday and had a second and first place finish in the last two races of the regatta. That felt great.”
At the end of the event, four of the five spots for the J/24 Worlds were taken by Quantum-powered boats. Three of those four teams were amateurs, proving again how effective Quantum sails can be for any hard-working team. Great job to everyone at this year’s J/24 U.S. Nationals, and thanks to Quantum for sponsoring the event!
A special congratulations to Travis Odenbach, Alfred Constants, Ron Medlin, and Aidan Glackin for advancing to Worlds!