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his month we spotlight Hands-On Racing Charters to Mexico and Hawaii, plus Charter Notes.
How You Too Can Experience Serious Offshore Racing There's no doubt about it, the amount of leisure time available to many American adults is gradually shrinking. Greater demands from employers, increased commute times, and the activities of uber-active kids all contribute to the dilemma. With this in mind, it shouldn't surprise you learn that a recent study of the US sailing industry showed that while boat ownership is slowly trending downward, both yacht chartering and participation in instructional sailing schools — or "clubs" — is trending upward. Today's sailors still have the same passion for sailing as ever, but fewer of them can rationalize buying and maintaining a boat of their own just to have it available for daysailing. And even fewer can find the time — or justify the expense — of gearing up to compete in major regattas or offshore races. But a few savvy sailing organizations have capitalized on the new opportunities that these trends create. California-based J World, which specializes in performance sailing instruction, is a prime example. We happened to be in Banderas Bay last month when the San Diego to Puerto Vallarta Race concluded, and had a chance to catch up with J World owner Wayne Zittel and several student race
ALL PHOTOS PAUL MARTSON / J WORLD
Bay Area sailor Jim Lussier steers downwind, as coach Wayne Zittel trims. Jim is now thinking about doing a Hawaii race.
crew who'd competed in the 1,000-mile race aboard J World's new speedster Cazan, a DK 46. The team didn't achieve a podium finish, but none of the six students nor their three coaches had really expected to. This offshore adventure was more about honing skills and experiencing both the thrills and challenges of long-distance ocean racing. "What I wanted from this sail was the experience of being out on the ocean under sail," says Mark Graham, a landlocked sailor from Kansas City. The trip exposed him to all aspects of ocean racing: "prepping the boat and sails before the start, the routines of life aboard, teamwork in accomplishing a hard task, sights and sounds from a foreign environment, and, finally, measuring our performance against our competitors. It was the totality of the experience I wanted." "Our emphasis is on training," explains Wayne; "on letting the individuals sail the boat while we provide what I jokingly call 'parental supervision'." Aboard Cazan, each crewmember stood watches of three hours on and three hours off throughout the trip. "When we are in downwind mode," says Wayne, "during a three-hour watch a crewmember would trim the kite for an hour, drive for an hour, and grind for an hour. Then they'd be of f again for three hours." "You will get as much out of the experience as you put into it," says first-time crewman Jim Lussier. "Coaches Wayne, Paul Martson and Patrick Farrell are
super-highly skilled in every aspect of ocean racing, and are passionate about sharing their knowledge with others. Their patience with answering questions is infinite. And they are very easygoing if someone makes a mistake — it was clearly 'the spinnaker's fault' when it blew up. "If you want you can sit back, relax and enjoy the ride, but I would encourage future students to really put in the effort to learn how best to trim, grind, drive; learn which sails to put up and why; navigate, etc., to get the maximum speed the boat is capable of and build their skills." Jim, who normally sails in the Bay Area, describes some of the high points of the trip for him: • "Screaming along under spinnaker and surfing waves at 18.5 knots at 1 a.m. in the light of a full moon. • "Doing 24 three-hour shifts, including a total of 24 hours at the helm, day and night in all conditions, and learning to drive straight in high winds and waves. • "Seeing dolphins surfing in our wake and whales swimming off our beam. • "Forming a high-performing racing team with a group of former strangers,
