Ten fleets of one-design raceboats gathered in the ocean off Marblehead for the 2019 Helly Hansen NOOD Regatta at Marblehead Race Week. Light winds and shifting currents had teams battling for top honors and a chance to earn a trip to the British Virgin Islands in late October for the NOOD Caribbean Championship sponsored by Sunsail.
Erica Beck Spencer helmed her boat Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team to a pair of firsts to lead the J/24 fleet after the first day of racing. “Jess Harris and I put the team together after the 2014 Worlds in Newport, RI, where we were frustrated to only see two all-female teams competing,” says Beck Spencer (Portland, ME). “It’s been such a great journey for us, and being sponsored by Seabags makes it all possible.”
Four crewmembers aboard the Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team are from Maine. They are in their fifth season sailing together and aim to peak at the J/24 World Championships in Miami later this year.
“There was a moment today when we realized how much we’ve learned,” says tactician Hilary Noble (Newport, RI). “We take something away from each race, which is why we love the sport and love sailing with each other.”
Bill Zartler (Houston, TX) and his crew lead the J/105 fleet with a pair of wins of their own. With a veteran team, it’s easy to come out swinging on the first day of an important event. “Our team has been sailing together on and off for 15 years in a bunch of different boats,” says Zartler. “We’re all good friends who’ve been sailing together for a long time.”
RELATED: 2019 Helly Hansen NOOD Regatta at Marblehead Race Week, Friday Images
Zartler and crew are preparing for the J/105 North Americans in Marblehead in September. Sailing in the NOOD will prepare them for the unique winds and challenging current this sailing area is known for.
“Today we had light air, but it was pretty steady,” Zartler says. “There was current, but it wasn’t as bad as Annapolis [Maryland], where you get it in a bunch of different directions. The wind went right all day, but it still paid to be on the left side of the competition, so we were kind of scratching our heads about that one.”
Zartler has been sailing in the NOOD Regatta series since the early 1990s, and competed in the Annapolis NOOD in early May. “It’s great competition out here,” says Zartler. “The first three boats are just a couple of points apart so it’s going to be tight racing. Hopefully we get a little more breeze out there tomorrow.”
At 18 years old, Cam Farrah (Destin, FL) is only a point behind the leader in the Viper 640 fleet. Having grown up sailing multihulls at Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida, Farrah had her father, Cliff, trimming spinnaker, and her friend, Eric Heilshorn doing bow on the three-person sportboat.
“The racing today was awesome,” says Farrah. “It was really close, and it was so shifty that it really made for good, tactical sailing. The whole fleet condensed at the gates, so it was really important to keep the boat moving and to sail smart.”
Farrah enters Tulane University in the fall, where she will compete on the college sailing team while also launching an Olympic campaign for the Nacra 17. The Viper 640 is a good in-between boat for her to go out and compete in, she says.
“I love to go fast,” says Farrah, “and the coed aspect of the Nacra is really cool. I’ve been sailing multihulls for a long time now, so it seemed like the next logical step for me.”
The Helly Hansen NOOD Regatta at Marblehead Race Week continues through the weekend, with the Laser, Laser Radial, and 2.4 Meter fleets joining the action on Saturday.
J 70 (One Design – 25 Boats)
1. Catapult, USA65, Joel Ronning – -1 -4 -5 ; 10
2. Rascal, USA25, Henry Brauer – -9 -1 -2 ; 12
3. AFRICA, USA372, Jud Smith – -7 -3 -4 ; 14
Rhodes 19 (One Design – 25 Boats)
1. The Mighty Rhodes, USA1683, Matt Hooks – 1 -1 -2 -1 -9 ; 14
2. Cruzin’, 1680, Chris & Debbie Schreiber – 8 -2 -1 -4 -4 ; 19
3. Mohotta Mobetta, USA982, Kim Pandapas – 3 -4 -4 -9 -3 ; 23
Town Class (One Design – 18 Boats)
1. Lille Venn, USA2074, Karen Solstad – -3 -1 -1 ; 5
2. Tonic, 2065, Nick Cann – -2 -2 -2 ; 6
3. Believe it or Knot, USA2086, Chris Howes – -1 -3 -3 ; 7
IOD (One Design – 11 Boats)
1. Javelin, USA130, Bill Widnall – 1 -1 -1 -2 -4 ; 9
2. Gypsy, USA7, Bruce Dyson / Norm Cressy – 4 -7 -4 -1 -2 ; 18
3. Elektra, 2, Hanna Vincent – 5 -2 -2 -6 -6 ; 21
J 105 (One Design – 15 Boats)
1. Deja Voodoo, USA130, Bill Zartler – -4 -1 -1 ; 6
2. Brouhaha, USA345, Ric Dexter – -1 -3 -2 ; 6
3. Good Trade, USA96, Bruce Stone & Nicole Breault – -2 -2 -3 ; 7
Etchells (One Design – 15 Boats)
1. USA Youth Team Red, 1208, Chris Manson-Hing – -4 -1 -2 ; 7
2. Natasha, USA1012, Ted Hardenbergh – -2 -3 -3 ; 8
3. Sour Mash, USA1153, Schaefer / Hancock / Newman – -1 -2 -8 ; 11
J 24 (One Design – 6 Boats)
1. Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team, USA2918, Erica Beck Spencer – 1 -1 -2 ; 4
2. Shifty, USA1359, Martin Gallagher – 2 -2 -1 ; 5
3. Sheldon J, USA4183, John Wells – 3 -3 -3 ; 9
J 80 (One Design – 5 Boats)
1. The Party Tree, USA3, Samuel Cushing – 1 -1 -2 -1 ; 5
2. Upsetter, USA381, Jason Viseltear – 2 -3 -1 -4 ; 10
3. Blind Faith, USA1001, Brian Gibbs – 3 -2 -3 -2 ; 10
Comets (One Design – 7 Boats)
1. Harms Way, 4123, Richard Harmon – 5 -1 -1 ; 7
2. 3952, 3952, Mark Buruchian – 1 -2 -4 ; 7
3. Gemini 2, 4151, Talbott Ingram – 2 -3 -2 ; 7
Viper 640 (One Design – 8 Boats)
1. Dragon Lady II, 236, Robert Bowditch – 3 -2 -4 -1 ; 10
2. Cat Burglar, 35, Cam Farrah – 1 -5 -3 -2 ; 11
3. Back in Business, USA207, Fletcher Boland – 2 -3 -5 -3 ; 13
