Adrian Fawcett and Jesse Dobie World Champion F16

World Championship F16 was sailed from June 23 – 27 in Newport, USA. 4 days of racing and 29 boats at the start. Youth teams, mixed teams, solo sailors,… An unique mix, typical for the F16 class.

Here is a report about the event where you can read about the venue, the sailors, top 5, a link to the full results and a letter of the US chairman with a big thanks to event sponsor Red Gear Racing.

Adrian Fawcett & Jesse Dobie, Australia: “this was a great location. You have to visit Newport. Lots to see and great sailing conditions. Due to unstable wind there was 1 day where we could not sail, but our race officer made sure that we still managed to get 13 races in.”

On Monday we had the practice race. Matt McDonald, USA: “Each race was different due to different wind and current. Getting the course right and adjust yourself to it was very important.”

On Tuesday racing started in difficult conditions with winds up to 20 knots. Alot of teams were very close to each other, especially the top 4. After day 1 Adrian & Jesse, Australia, were leading the fleet. On 2nd place were ex olympic sailors Jay&Pease Glaser. On third: Olympic sailor Robbie Daniels.

Wednesday was a very light wind day, to the advantage of lighter teams. Andi Lutz, Switzerland: “we noticed on Wednesday that lighter teams really had an advantage on us, a heavier men team. The lighter teams could speed up and Adrian & Jesse could not be kept up with!”

On Thursday no sailing because of too little wind. Sailors discovered the area and went to see some nice yachts and race boats, like the American VOR70 and the Spindrift, the 140 foot catamaran.

With 2 discards the race was still very exciting. Adrian & Jesse were leading with 2 points ahead of Ravi & Sam. Robbie on 3rd and Glaser on 4th place.

On Friday, the last day of racing, there was a distinct gap between top 4 and rest of the fleet. Top 4 only a few points separate of each other. Very exciting! Andi: “On this last day all sailors decided to sail as many races as possible today. We started early and we managed to race 5 more races!”

Adrian & Jesse stayed on top of the fleet during the whole event and also this last day they were not to be stopped. Their boat speed made sure they sailed Gold at these Worlds! Congratulations to the new World Champions!

Top 5:

Adrian & Jesse – world champion – Falcon F16

Ravi&Sam – 2nd place – Viper F16

Robbie & Catherine – 3rd place – Viper F16

Jay & Pease Glaser – 4th place – Falcon F16

Sandra Tartaglino & Max Kramers – 5th place – Viper F16

Full results can be found here: http://f16worlds2014.org/assets/F16%20Worlds%20Final%20Results.pdf

Next big event for the Formula 16 class is the European Championship in Le Touquet: 28/07 – 01/08. Register here: https://sites.google.com/site/assofrf16/european-f16-2014/european-competitors

Here is a letter of our US chairman about the Worlds:

I trust that you have all made it safely home by now after our very successful World Championship regatta in Newport, Rhode Island. Hearty congratulations to all of our trophy winners, and most especially to our newly crowned Formula 16 World Champions, Adrian Fawcett and Jesse Dobie from Australia!

The success of an event like this depends on many, many people, but ultimately it would be nothing without the sailors who make the effort to come and compete. So I want to thank every one of you who made the decision to join us in Newport. A week-long event away from home involves a very significant commitment of your time and money and we are grateful for your participation. We particularly appreciate those who traveled from outside the US and helped to make this a truly international event.

It’s also important to reiterate how greatly we appreciate the support of our sponsor, Red Gear Racing, who came through with a significant financial contribution in support of the Class to help us meet the costs of the regatta. Jill Nickerson and Robbie Daniel from Red Gear have been stalwart supporters of the Formula 16 and we are extremely grateful for their continued involvement in the Class.

For me, one of the most enjoyable aspects of the regatta was observing the great diversity of the Class – sailors aged 12 to 75, male and female, and with Olympic campaigners and medalists competing alongside weekend sailors relatively new to racing. It reflects well on the versatility of the Formula 16 Class that we’re all able to participate in an event like this together, both in the competition on the water and in the camaraderie on shore.

Numerically, it was encouraging to see the regatta attract a similar number of boats (29) as last year’s Worlds in Travemunde (32) and significantly more than last year’s US Nationals at Racine (16). Nonetheless, continuing to build the Class, and multihull sailing in general, remains an important goal for all of us. Every one of us has an opportunity to play a role here: every time you go sailing other people get to see you in action. So please, get out and have fun!

For the US Class, now that the Worlds are behind us, planning can begin for our 2015 Nationals. We are grateful to have received expressions of interest from two clubs so far who are interested in hosting us next year, and in due course you can expect an announcement about that event.

Sail well!

Mark Thomson
US-F16 Class Chairman