Key West 2005 - Race Week News

cover photo: Sue Bodycomb / Yachtshots.com

Saturday - Issue 6 - January 22, 2005

Winners Take All

It was winner take all in numerous classes on the last day of Key West 2005.

A total of 13 classes were undecided going into Friday’s final race on the emerald waters off the Conch Republic. Things were so close in some cases that winning the day meant winning the regatta.

Concerns there would not be enough wind to hold a race were unfounded as an 8-10-knot westerly made for a fun and fair finale. Seven teams went out in style, notching a bullet in Race 8 or 9 to secure overall victory in the northern hemisphere’s largest mid-winter regatta.

Perhaps the most dramatic ending came in the talent-laden Melges 24 class, where Pegasus Racing and its all-star crew took the gun to close out a wild week. Helmsman Bill Hardesty was smiling broadly on the parking lot of the Truman Annex after surviving a back-and-forth battle that saw the lead change daily and no fewer than four boats in contention at the end.

Hardesty downplayed his role, deflecting all the credit onto a crew that included former Olympic medallists Kevin Burnham and Freddy Loof along with two-time College Sailor of the Year Mark Ivey.

“My team gave me all the confidence in the world coming into today. They just said, ‘Do your thing and get off the starting line in good shape and we’ll do the rest,’ ” Hardesty said. “We went out with the attitude of winning the race. We knew that was the only way to guarantee we would come out on top.”

Bob Wilson and his team aboard Trumpeter took the same approach in C&C 99 class. The Toronto-based boat entered Friday in second place behind Tom Sawchuk’s Breakaway and knew the best approach was to go for the gun.

“We just tried to sail smart, stay clean and focus on boat speed,” Wilson said. “It’s really awesome when a major regatta like this comes down to the final day. It makes thing so exciting.”

Wild Thing, the 1D35 sailed by the husband-wife duo of Chris and Kara Busch, also locked up the series with a bullet on the last day. The San Diego couple entered Race 9 with a two-point lead then extended that to three by posting their third bullet in four starts.
“We were real happy the breeze was up today,” Busch said. “We made a big gain on the first run and really cranked the boat hard to stay ahead.”

Kurt Muller, helmsman aboard Pamlico, said Thursday evening his team would pray for either no wind or lots of breeze. That’s because the Andrews 38 was clinging to a three-point lead in PHRF 1 and Muller knew that would evaporate in light air.
“This boat just doesn’t move in anything less than eight knots. It cannot stop and go,” said Muller, who reported Pamlico finished 40 minutes behind the rest of the fleet in Thursday afternoon’s race that ended in 2-3 knots of wind.

Imagine the mood aboard Pamlico yesterday as the crew watched the anemometer go as high as 12 knots. “It was unbelievable. The wind started at eight and just kept creeping up. We were like ‘Yea, we can deal with this,’ ” Muller said.

Pamlico did indeed deal well, picking up its sixth bullet of the series to capture PHRF 4 by four points over the Beneteau 40.7 Dame Blanche, owned by Othmar von Blumencron of Annapolis.

“We are tired but happy. We certainly weren’t expecting to win this regatta,” Muller said. “The wind was on our side and we sailed a strong series. We also had a lot of luck.”

Other class winners who secured overall victory with a bullet in the last race were Groovederci (Deneen Demourkas, Mumm 30), Star (Jeff Ecklund, PHRF 3) and Condor (Freudenberg/Hudgins, Corsair 28)

DIVISION 1
German computer software magnate Hasso Plattner is a relative newcomer to the highly-competitive Farr 40 class. Plattner celebrated his 61st birthday on Friday by clinching the championship of the marquee class at Key West 2005.

Plattner, with three-time America’s Cup winner Russell Coutts calling tactics, steered Morning Glory to a fourth in Race 9 _ good enough to maintain the lead he assumed on Thursday. Barking Mad, skippered by Jim Richardson of Newport, R.I., won the final race to leapfrog defending champ Mean Machine (Peter de Ridder) into second place.

“This is my first win in a big (Farr 40) regatta and I’d have to say the difference was Russell,” said Plattner, CEO of SAP, the world’s second-largest provider of industrial software. “(Coutts) doesn’t put me in tough situations. He stays calm in a critical situation. That helps me as a driver and also the crew not to get nervous or excited.”

Morning Glory, which also had America’s Cup veteran Sean Clarkson aboard, won three races and finished fourth or better in five others.

“We were not winning this regatta until the last 300 meters when we passed three boats,” Coutts said. “We got a couple of little shifts and puffs and that was it.”

Demourkas took time off from sailing and seriously considered giving it up several months ago. The Santa Barbara, Cal., resident had been going hard on the Mumm 30 circuit and experienced several low points.

“I took a big break after Mumm 30 Worlds and really contemplated my sailing. I honestly wasn’t sure I wanted to keep doing it at this level,” she said. “I really, really needed to have fun again. I was determined to do that at this regatta.”

Consider it mission accomplished as the crew aboard Groovederci sailed pleasantly and impressively en route to finishing first or second in seven of eight starts. Former Team New Zealand member Hamish Pepper called tactics, Laurent Pages trimmed the main while Pete Spaulding worked the main and spinnaker.

Eric Chowanski, Zack Maxam and Kyle Vowels completed a crew that threw Demourkas off the dock of The Galleon during a raucous celebration. The skipper could barely climb out of the water due to a sore arm injured during a death roll in practice on Sunday.

“The team sailed really well and with a positive attitude. I couldn’t be more pleased,” said Demourkas, who had never won a major Mumm 30 event. “I’ve been working very hard for a long time with a lot of bumps in the road for a moment like this.”

Better Than, owned by Andrzej Rojek of Newport, R.I., made quite a jump in Swan 45 class _ going from sixth in 2004 to first in 2005.
“We did our homework and it paid off. We came in early to practice and put more time into preparation than we did last year,” Rojek said. “This was a major improvement in performance that was the direct result of hard work.”

Ryan Malley served as helmsman while Chris Zaleski (co-owner of Z Sails) worked as tactician aboard Better Than. Peter McCloskey of Nautor Swan was aboard as main trimmer.

“This is my first victory in Swan class so I have to tell you that I am very, very happy,” said Rojek, who once earned PHRF Boat of the Week honors at Key West with a J/29 named Wow.

It’s been a long time since Chris Busch steered a class champion. He owned Wild Thing when it won 1D35 class at Key West 2003, but could not helm since he was a professional sailmaker at the time.

“Except for the Transpac in 2003 (when Wild Thing won class), the last time I drove was in an Etchells regatta in 1994,” Busch said. “It was nice driving our own boat to a win. I got progressively better during the week.”

DIVISION 2
Esmeralda wrapped up victory in PHRF 1 with a second in Race 9. The Transpac 52 owned by Japanese industrialist Makoto Uematsu counted all firsts or seconds in a dominant performance that bested the Reichel-Pugh 75 Titan 12 (Tom Hill).

Ken Read called tactics while Tom Lihan steered as Esmeralda out-dueled fellow Farr Yacht Design entry Sjambok in the TP 52 sub-class that numbered five.

“The team was spectacular all week. We’ve got a core group of guys who have been working together for years and it shows,” said Read, a North Sails loft owner who has skippered several America’s Cup challenges.

Jib trimmer Bob Wylie and middle man Robbie Naismith are among many crew members who started aboard Pigs in Space and have been with Uematsu through three Esmeraldas. Main trimmer J.B. Braun was another key player this week.

“We had good karma going all week. Our crew work was spot-on and we were able to maneuver the boat well in any situation,” Read said.

On the other end of the spectrum from the big PHRF 1 boats were the Corsair 28 trimarans, which numbered 10 at Key West 2005. Floridians Todd Hudgins and Peter Freudenberg have been sailing the speedy multihulls in the event for three years now, finishing fourth in 2003 and second in 2004.

Freudenberg and Hudgins, who hail from Stuart and Sewell’s Point, respectively, finally got over the hump this year despite suffering a DNF (did not finish) in Race 1. The duo followed with five straight bullets, but felt the most important result was a second in Race 7.
That is when the throwout came into play and the Condor crew was able to toss that ugly 11th. “We were sweating bullets until we got that seventh race in,” Hudgins admitted.

Keith Notary, a veteran multihull sailor who once won the Worrell 1,000, called tactics aboard Condor and gave the team a big lift.
“It’s the first time we had a true multihull guy on the crew and it definitely helped. Keith was great at calling laylines and keeping everyone focused,” Hudgins said.

Freudenberg credited experience in the class and a learning curve accelerated by racing top competition at Key West as keys to the victory.

“It’s been a long, hard road. It’s been three years of changing rigging, finding the right sails and working like a team,” Freudenberg said. “I’m still a little numb right now. Winning Key West is such a big deal.”

Brothers Kurt and Bobby Muller have been racing together for years, once winning Annapolis-to-Newport aboard an old IOR 38 called Valkyrie. When Bobby, owner of Muller Marine in Annapolis, discovered the Andrews 38 he felt it would be perfect for he and Kurt.
Both Mullers knew coming in that Pamlico would perform well in heavy air and that was the case as she posted five bullets in the initial six starts. Things got dicey when the wind fell out on Thursday as the Andrews 38 took a fourth and a seventh.

That gave Dame Blanche a ray of hope as another light air day might unable von Blumencron’s Beneteau 40.7 to overtake the series-long leader.

Pamlico suffered a slight setback early in Race 9 when she was struck by the Beneteau 40.7 Making Waves while on starboard tack. However, the Annapolis team remained focused and played the favored left side of the course all the way to victory.
Bobby Muller, somewhat of a local legend around Annapolis, called tactics and planned strategy aboard Pamlico.

“We needed consistently strong air and we got it. I still wasn’t sure if we would be able to hang with Dame Blanche because we’ve never beaten that boat in a series back home,” Kurt Muller said. “I think this win is a testament to Bobby’s ability to figure out the boat. He’s always tweaking, adjusting and doing whatever necessary to make it go faster.”

Dame Blanche did sail a fine regatta, finishing third or better in all nine races to win the sub-class of five Beneteau 40.7s. That was of little consolation to von Blumencron, who didn’t understand why Pamlico was in PHRF 4.

“You’ve got eight boats that rate between 48 and 51 and one at 72. I don’t understand that at all,” he said. “Pamlico was never in touch with the rest of the fleet.”

Upon further reflection, von Blumencron _ a former Olympic aspirant for his native Germany, felt good about his team’s effort.
“We have a semi-professional team that has its act together. There were many races this week that we could not have sailed any better,” he said.

Things came down to the wire in J/109 class as well with Bill Sweetser’s Rush trying to protect a two-point victory over Mike Manila’s Antaean and Jose Suarez Hoyos’ Mariah.

“We went out with the goal of winning the idea we had to finish no worse than second,” said Tad Hutchins, a Quantum Sail Design Group rep who trimmed the main on Rush.

That strategy was executed to perfection as Rush passed Mariah on the final downwind leg to grab the runner-up spot behind Mariah and seal a narrow one-point overall victory.

“It feels fantastic, especially since the competition in this class was so strong. We won three races by less than a boat length,” Sweetser said.

Mike Hobson of the J/World Annapolis loft called tactics while Tad Hutchins of Quantum Sail Design trimmed the main aboard Rush, which finished second in class at Key West 2004.

“The crew performed in a stellar fashion. Everyone worked in harmony,” Sweetser said. “Our tactics throughout the week were outstanding. Mike always had us going the right way.”

DIVISION 3
Hardesty felt fortunate to have been selected to steer Pegasus 575 in Key West 2005. The opening came when owner Philippe Kahn decided to race aboard his Farr 40 this week.

Hardesty, a San Diego native who once mounted an Olympic campaign in Laser class, got the gig after showing well on the helm at an event in Key Largo.

“Pegasus Racing is a team atmosphere and the other sailors pick who is going to be on the boat and what they will be doing,” Hardesty said. “When Philippe asked me if I could be available for Key West I was honored. This program is five-star all the way.”
Hardesty’s crew was almost too good to be true, beginning with Burnham. He was recently named Rolex Yachtsman of the Year after teaming with Paul Foerster to capture the gold medal in 470 class at the Athens Olympics. Loof once won an Olympic medal in Finn class while Ivey was a four-time collegiate All-American at St. Mary’s in Maryland.

“We’ve got the best team in the world and these guys tell me what to do. Freddy (tactician) kept us in the right place on the course while Kevin focused on trimming for speed,” Hardesty said. “My job was pretty easy… to keep us out of trouble. I never needed to look up.”

Midge Tandy, a 5-foot-4, 101-pound female, was the fifth crew member aboard Pegasus and Hardesty said it helped to have the extra hands.

“Regardless of all the credentials aboard the boat, no one had an ego,” Hardesty said. “Every day we did a debrief, people said what was on their mind and how they thought we could do better. We just kept moving onward and upward.”

DIVISION 4
Usual Suspect, owned by Bryan Sims of Bronte, Ontario, barely hung on to win PHRF 6. The C&C 43 took a three-point lead over E-Ticket into Friday’s race and narrowly avoided being overtaken.

E-Ticket, skippered by Dan Myers of Lighthouse Point, Fla., nabbed a bullet in Race 9 and darn near pulled off putting three boats between herself and Usual Suspect. The Moorings 38 would have won the tiebreaker by virtue of more first-place finishes.

“We dodged a bullet. We knew we had to get no worse than third and we barely did so,” Sims said. “We tried not to worry about E-Ticket. We just wanted to sail our own race and keep our nose clean. Fortunately, the results came out the right way.”
Dave Belford called tactics while Murray Dinning worked the main aboard Usual Suspect, which placed sixth in class at Key West 2004. “We got new sails for this regatta and worked all year on improving our boat speed,” Sims said.

While Trumpeter was going for the win, Wilson said it was also important to stay in contact with regatta leader Breakaway.
“We wanted to get a good start and make sure Breakaway was below us. We came in tight on the committee boat to make sure that happened then covered them the whole way,” Wilson said. “It was tough because Breakaway was never more than three or four boat-lengths behind. They were right up our butt on the downwind legs and really put a scare into us.”

Wilson and foredeck crew Jim Speir put significant time and effort into upgrading Trumpeter, which had fallen into a bit of disrepair. This was the second straight victory at Key West for that particular C&C 99, which captured class honors under the direction of Wally Hogan.

“We had the boat set up well and knew we had good boat speed. We just tried not to do anything stupid,” Wilson said. “The racing in our class was great all week. Breakaway and TAM (Hogan) were both very well-sailed and pushed us hard.”
Remedy, skippered by John Fries of Mystic, Conn., won PHRF 5 and also captured the sub-class of six Evelyn 32s.