2014 Jet-14 Women Nationals

Three boats fought it out for the 2014 Jet-14 Women National Championship. The races were contested in very light air that only a duck could love. In fact, a duck actually won race 2 but was disqualified for not doing penalty turns.

Race 1 saw Einthoven and Berchem get off nicely but Hennon came back from underneath both of them to take the early lead. The two Paulas held the advantage until mysteriously turning the boat 90 degrees off course on the run, laughing all the time while their sickly looking spinnaker struggled to get launched. This allowed Einthoven and Berchem to pass easily and take control of the race. Ultimately Berchem would pass on the second windward leg and use a tight reach to sail into the finish in first place, followed closely by Einthoven. Meanwhile the two Paulas were still trying to round the windward mark as the race committee mercifully scored them 3rd so they could get another race in.

By this point the wind had shifted about 120 degrees so the race committee set about 23 marks in the water in hope that one of them would serve as a useful weather target. The breeze freshened a bit to the 2-4 kt range, making the second race a little more fun. The first beat was only about 500 ft. away from the start line and Hennon/Pacheco made a nice start to gain the early advantage. However, they allowed Einthoven to escape to the right and that move turned out well, putting them in the lead at the mark. Coming down the course on the run, all 3 boats were within 90 ft. of each other with Einthoven leading Hennon and Berchem into the final mark rounding. The final leg to the finish was another beam reach, but Einthoven delayed in launching her chute until she heard Hennon/Pacheco already riding up onto her air. By then it was too late and Hennon passed. The only remaining question was whether the Paula's knew they were finishing the race or not, as it appeared they would cross the finish line on the wrong side of the pin. Fortunately, Paula threw the tiller over at the last minute to take bullett with Einthoven a couple of feet behind.

The finish order in the second race placed all three boats in a tie with 4 points. Unfortunately another race could not be started in the fading daylight. Hennon/Pacheco win the crown by virtue of the tiebreak rule, with Berchem/Fosmire in second and Einthoven taking third despite finishing 2nd in both races. It was an exciting beginning to the week.

Women Nationals				Race
Place	Sail	Skipper	Crew	1	2	Total
1	483	P. Hennon	P. Pacheco	3	1	4
2	951	C. Berchem	T. Fosmire	1	3	4
3	1116	N. Einthoven		2	2	4

2014 Women Nationals

Mayfield Yacht Club, Mayfield NY