Vince Brun and Drew Freides win 2019 Farr 40 Worlds
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September 29, 2009 - Rolex Farr 40 North American Championship
Flash Gordon 5 Wins 2009 Rolex Farr 40 North American Championship
Photo: Scott Diamond/ Layline Photography
Chicago, Illinois, USA - Flash Gordon 5, the Farr 40 owned by Helmut Jahn won the 2009 Rolex Farr 40 North American Championship, held September 24-27 in Chicago, Ill. Nine teams representing the best in North American one-design racing battled on Lake Michigan beneath the skyline that Jahn’s architecture firm Murphy/Jahn has helped to define over the past three decades. Racing was hosted at the Chicago Yacht Club (CYC), which provided race committee assistance under the leadership of Principal Race Officer Sue Reilly. At the awards ceremony held at the CYC, Jahn was presented with a specially engraved Rolex timepiece by Farr 40 Class Secretary Bunny Wayt.
“This title means a lot to the team because it is the culmination of a lot of hard work,” said Evan Jahn, Helmut Jahn’s son and co-helm of Flash Gordon 5. “With the achievement there now is the added responsibility of defending it and that requires continued effort so that we can stay at the front of the fleet. This victory solidifies us as one of the top Farr 40 teams in the country, and world, and we will use the upcoming winter events to prepare for the 2010 Rolex Farr 40 Worlds at Casa de Campo.” The younger Jahn, who is pursuing a Masters Degree in environmental management and sustainability, alternates helm responsibilities with his father, driving the boat at the race start, upwind to the mark and then trading off for the downwind legs.
Photo: Scott Diamond/ Layline Photography
Our first two starts were very conservative and we kept ourselves clean. I don't think this worked well for us. We never have sailed from a spot in the lead and Race 9 was our worst race. We didn't sail well and our crew work wasn't polished. I think the team was too reserved. Fortunately, Helmut wanted to stay out for Race 10 and the crew wanted to go out with a win. I feel Race 10 was one of our better, if not, best races of the regatta. We were slightly behind, sailed fast, sailed smart and survived. We won a tacking duel on the final beat.”
Gerber went on to explain that the goal for Flash Gordon 5 was the North American title. “Not always an easy thing to do -- say you want to win and do it,” he said. “These guys were awesome. We stayed positive, pushed hard and sailed well. Two other team members that deserve recognition are Kyle Kandt, the boat captain and Ed Adams, our coach. These two men did everything they could to help us go faster and sail smarter. Kyle had the boat in fantastic shape, the best boat in the fleet. And, Ed was his usual self of picking up strengths of the other teams and blending them into our strengths. There is no detail either one of these two miss. For Helmut and Evan -- the fastest Father/Son tandem in the Farr 40 Class -- I think this is awesome. For our team, I think this is awesome. For many months the North Americans was our bull’s eye and we hit it.”
Flash Gordon 5 crew included tactician Bill Hardesty,
Joe Londrigan, Matt Cassidy, Scott Murin, Alan Nakanishi, Jamie Stursma and Brian Turuta.
Bob Hughes Heartbreaker (Ada, Mich.), with tactician Steve Hunt, finished in second place, with Don Wilson’s Convexity (Chicago), tactician Eric Doyle, in third.
Prior to the North Americans, the fleet participated in the Windy City Match Race, hosted at the CYC, where Flash Gordon 5 won the two-day match racing regatta after a tie-break with Heartbreaker.
Title sponsor of the Rolex Farr 40 North American Championship is Rolex Watch U.S.A.
About Rolex Watch U.S.A. Since Rolex Watch U.S.A. first presented timepieces to America’s Cup defenders in 1958, the company has consistently recognized and encouraged excellence in every important arena of competitive sailing, including elite athlete preparation, US SAILING championships, disabled sailing, and offshore, one-design and women’s events.
The Rolex Farr 40 North American Championship joins other prestigious Rolex 2009 events including the Rolex Miami OCR, Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup, Rolex Swan Cup, Rolex Big Boat Series, Rolex Farr 40 World Championship and the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.
For more information about the Rolex Farr 40 North American Championship, including results, please visit www.farr40.org.
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2009 Rolex Farr 40 North American Championship
Results (9 boats, 10 races)
Position, Farr 40 Name, Owner/ Helmsman, Hometown, Race1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10, Total Points
1. Flash Gordon 5, Helmut Jahn, Chicago, Ill., 2-3-1-1-2-1-1-4-2-1, 18 points
2. Heartbreaker, Bob Hughes, Ada, Mich., 3-1-3-5-3-5-2-3-3-3, 31
3. Convexity, Don Wilson, Chicago, Ill., 1-2-4-2-5-2-7-6-2-2, 33
4. Defiant, Grant Wood, Toronto, Ontario, CAN, 4-6-2-6-1-6-3-1-1-10/DNF*, 40
5. Inferno, Phil Dowd, Chicago, Ill., 8-4-7-3-6-3-4-5-5-4, 49
6. Hot Lips, Chris Whitford, Chicago, Ill., 7-5-5-7-4-4-6-8-8-7, 61
7. Spaceman Spiff, Rob Ruhlman, Cleveland, Ohio, 6-7-8-8-7-7-5-4-6-6, 64
8. Virago, Stuart Townsend, Chicago, Ill., 5-8-9-9-8-9-8-7-7-5, 75
9. Pendragon, Brian Jackman, Chicago, Ill., 9-9-6-4-9-8-9-9-10/DNF, 10/DNC**
Photo: Scott Diamond/ Layline Photography
