29er North America

RECENT NEWS
US Youth Worlds Qualifier Antoine Screve and James Moody sailed smart, fast upwind legs in heavy air, steep chop and a cross course swell during a critical day one of the Youth World Championship Qualifier, scoring four straight bullets which set the stage for an exciting closing day battle with Sterling and Hans Henken. Day two brought a moderate 7 to 10 knot southwesterly breeze which, given their two bullets and two seconds, suited the Henken brothers quite well. The epic 29er battle continued to the very last race of the 3 day regatta, where Antoine and James finished first and qualified for US SAILING's 2010 Youth World Team.

Congratulations Antoine Screve and James Moody! You are the Qualifier Gold Medalists and you're going to Istanbul, Turkey to represent the USA in the 40th Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship! "We have a very strong team," said U.S. Sailing High Performance Director Kenneth Andreasen. "This event was a true test of skill in heavy and medium air, and these sailors demonstrated they were the strongest in their fleets. We're excited about the prospect of them winning the Volvo Youth Sailing trophy this summer."

Congratulations also to Silver medalists Sterling and Hans Henken and Bronze medalists Tyler Macdonald and Brian Bolton. Honorable mention goes to the first all women's team of Chanel Miller and CC Childers who captured a bullet in Race 9, breaking a tie with Katy Cenname and Burgess Malarkey . . . as well as the other team in the exciting battle for 4th, JP Barnes and Duncan Swain.

The 29er Fleet would like to offer a huge THANK YOU to the volunteers and staff at Clearwater Yacht Club and Clearwater Sailing Center who made this regatta a tremendous success!

Complete results can be found here.
Videos of the event can be found here
To learn more about the 40th Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship, go to www.isafyouthworlds.com. The 29er's open co-ed status and permanent inclusion in the Youth World Championship, not to mention it's deserved reputation as the fastest and most exciting boat on the youth circuit, is bringing great prestige to the fleet and many new racers from Florida and the Eastern half of the North American continent . . . even as the class surge in the west continues to swell the ranks.
1/20/10
Buy/Sell Boat owners ready to upgrade? Take note: a boat wanted ad is now posted to the used boats section.
1/13/10
2010 Worlds Wrapup The French 29er team of Kevin Fisher and Glenn Gouron sailed brilliantly and won the 2010 29er World Championship, followed by Pepe Bettini and Fernando Gwozdz of Argentina in 2nd . . . while Lorenzo Franceschini and Riccardo Camin of Italy took the bronze position on the medal stand after an intense and incredibly close battle with the USA team of Max Fraser and David Liebenberg, the Danish team of Oscar Hauman and Taus Holtug and Argentines Nahuel Fernando Martinez and Axel Vugdelija.

Among the eleven boat fleet of North American racers, Max Fraser and David Liebenberg finished the regatta in Grand Bahama style, with a 2nd and two bullets in the final three races . . . bringing their total to 100 points, a single point short of a bronze medal.

The Bahamian venue was interesting and varied, with resort front launches followed by crews visually sounding the crystal clear waters for coral heads in the shallows near the beach. Terrific camaraderie was reported among the North Americans, with U.S. Sailing’s Leandro Spina coaching and Ben Glass assisting. Cool, and later cold temperatures and brisk, shifty winds off the beach and a weather mark in waters 20 feet from shore provided a venue which required quick adaptation.

Of the eleven North American boats, seven finished in the top 20. .....Final Results
View more Fried Elliot Photos
1/13/10
CISA Clinic application deadline Feburary 1 The annual CISA Clinic is coming up again and the application deadline is coming quickily. Don't miss out on your opportunity to learn from the best coaches and to sail against the best sailors. .....Clinic details and application
1/12/10
29er Worlds, New Year's Day The 29er and 49er sailors at the 2010 Worlds on Grand Bahama Island were treated with a beautiful New Year's Day today. 10-18 knots of wind, warm temperatures and even warmer water made for great sailing. Just as most teams were starting to pack it up for the day an afternoon downpour brought in the colder weather forecasted for the next few days. The rain sent everyone running for cover, but thankfully didn't last too long.
Measurement starts tomorrow morning and racing begins on the 4th. Stay tuned for more! .....29er Worlds Website
1/1/10
Announcing the Seiko 29erXX Superbowl Regatta The Coconut Grove Sailing Club will be hosting the 2010 Seiko 29erXX Superbowl Regatta in Miami, Florida. The regatta will have a practice day Sunday, January 30th and will have three days of racing Monday - Wednesday Feburary 1-3rd. These dates follow the Miami Olympic Classes Regatta allowing both North American sailors as well as internationals in town for the OCR to participate. Charters will be provided thanks to PS2000 and Sturgis Boat Works. Thanks for the support guys!! .....Event Website
12/13/09
29er Trailer...heading east for the winter Max Fraser, driving the big white van, is headed East with a trailer of 29ers for the winter. The boats will hit a circuit of clinics and regattas including the 2010 Worlds in the Bahamas and the US Youth Worlds Qualifier in Sarasota. Sounds like a great winter of warmer weather racing. Sunday night Max is in the middle of Texas.
Drive safe Max!
12/13/09
29er Midwinters East / CYA Youth World Qualifier The details have been finalized! The 29ers are headed to the US Sailing Center in Martin County, Florida February 18-21st for the Midwinters East and the Canadian Youth Worlds Qualifier. Its a great venue and addition to the 29er winter Florida circuit. Don't miss this one! The NOR and Online Registration are posted and ready for your use. ..... USSCMC for more information
12/4/09
Used boats and sails Don't forget to take a look in the used gear section. There are lots of great deals, including sails! .....used gear
12/1/09
Turkey Day Photos Thanks to Jill Powell for sharing her great photos from Turkey Day. .....Jill's Turkey Day photos
12/1/09
Henken Brothers Bring Home the Turkey! The 2009 Turkey Day Regatta, hosted by Alamitos Bay Yacht Club, included a fleet of seventeen 29ers . . . more than double the turnout last year . . . and included teams from San Diego to San Francisco and all points in between. This Long Beach Holiday tradition had special significance this year, as it was the final regatta of the year-long 29er Pacific Coast Championship Series and the introduction of the perpetual Maxam Family Trophy.

Saturday presented very light winds mixed with swells and big chop stirred up overnight by a cold front that rolled in from the North. At the end of the day, the top 3 boats had slogged through three long races to within striking distance of each other. The challenging conditions did not dampen the spirits of the fleet as evidenced by the camaraderie at the huge Saturday night Turkey Feed. Dessert included an inspirational speech from Olympian Charlie McKee that challenged the kids to work together in their efforts to achieve their goals. Tons of laughter and large groups "chillaxin" in the parking lot capped off a great day. Sunday brought better sailing conditions with a steady, six to eight knot West-Northwest breeze and very tight, but Corinthian racing.
Sterling Henken, sailing with his brother Hans Henken, won the big frozen turkey (seriously, turkey is the trophy) with three bullets in the 6 race regatta. Antoine Screve/James Moody, also showing three bullets on their card, took 2nd place honors in a tie-breaker over 3rd place finishers Tyler Macdonald/Brian Bolton. John Papadopoulous event photos.

SPECIAL WELCOME TO NEW TEAMS Zack Downing and Rex Cameron, Patrick Powell and Roman Milioti, Chris Ford and Michael Deady, Brady Sih and Lusela Sih. .....Final Results
Turkey Day Trophy Recipients with their birds and pies.
11/24/09
Pacific Coast Championship Series Zack Maxam traveled to Long Beach, California to make the debut presentation of the perpetual Maxam Family Trophy at the closing ceremony of ABYC's Turkey Day Regatta, the final regatta of the year long PCC Series. The new Maxam Family Trophy, honors Bill, Lois, Zack and Lauren Maxam's efforts in creating and growing the 29er class since the boat's 1998 introduction in the U.S. The PCC Series began at St. Francis YC with the Spring Dinghy Regatta, followed by the Midwinters-West at Coronado YC, the Elvstrom-Zellerbach Regatta, Skiff Fest, the Pacific Coast Championship Regatta and the Turkey Day Regatta in Long Beach. The trophy recognizes the importance of both skipper and crew in 29er sailing, with a winner in each category engraved upon it. A total of 42 sailors were competing for this series championship in 2009.

Max Fraser, sailing out of Richmond Yacht Club/Santa Cruz Yacht Club is the 2009 Champion Skipper and Brian Bolton from Dana Point Yacht Club is the 2009 Champion Crew. The top female skipper for the series was Paris Henken (CYC) and top female crew honors went to CC Childers (SDYC). The top "Under 18" skipper was JP Barnes and the top crew was Brian Bolton.

All of these sailors were awarded customized Helly Hansen mariner backpacks donated by Art Vasenius of Sailing Pro Shop in Long Beach. Thank you, Art, for your continued support of the 29er class!

Thanks also to the many volunteers, yacht clubs, coaches and parents who have given their time and energies to pave the way for the tremendous growth in the 29er class. The 29er will be well represented at the U.S. Youth Championships next August and the ISAF Youth Worlds in Istanbul, Turkey in July. It is also considered to be a perfect training boat for youth interested in the Olympic Class 49er. The 29er class is growing even in these turbulent economic times because the boat is fast, exciting and surprisingly affordable to campaign. Throw one on top of your car and hit the road with us in 2010!
PCC Champion Skipper Max Fraser and Champion Crew Brian Bolton accept the Maxam Trophy from Zack Maxam.
Paris Henken wins top Female Skipper Award.
CC Childers takes top Female Crew Award.
JP Barnes takes top Under 18 Skipper Award.
11/24/09
Tyler Macdonald and Brian Bolton win Santa Barbara's world famous GOBLIN REGATTA! While a half million students at nearby UCSB gathered for the nation's biggest Halloween party, Tyler Macdonald (Newport Harbor Yacht Club) and Brian Bolton (Dana Point Yacht Club) nailed the starts and sailed "screaming" fast upwind legs . . . holding off tactically "spooky" downwind challenges by Jr. National Champions Sterling and Hans Henken . . . edging the Coronado, California brothers out by a 2 point margin in the shortened, four race 29er regatta.

14 teams from all over California raced in the Santa Barbara Sailing Center's 2009 Goblin Regatta, chaired by Beverly Toole and run beautifully by Chris Erickson, who was invited up from Long Beach to handle the 29er, I-14, Laser, J24 and J105 fleets as PRO. Saturday's conditions featured sunny skies, warm temperatures and 9 to 12 knots of westerly breeze along with other interesting features . . . like a 180 degree current shift before race 3 and hard to spot kelp island parking lots on the tactically favored right side of the race course. Sunday's racing was abandoned after a high pressure system parked on top of Santa Barbara, but the hours of waiting were enlivened when James Moody (taking 3rd in the regatta with skipper Antoine Screve) borrowed a Laser centerboard and put on a wakeboarding clinic behind a slightly underpowered safety boat. One way or another, 29er sailing is always fun!

A special welcome to Goblin Regatta participants and new fleet members Esteban Forrer, Chucky Eaton, Patrick Snow, Marly Isler, Tucker Atterbury, Kristen Stipanov and Davey McBride. .....Final Results
Tyler and Brian, Goblin champions. Photo by David Bolton

Hans and Sterling Henken having fun on Halloween. Photo by David Bolton
11/5/09
BIG News from US Sailing! The proposed boats for the Youth Champs have been voted on! The 29er, 420, Laser and Laser Radial are in. The big news is that the 29er is again voted in due to its growing popularity. The event will be held at Cabrillo Beach Yacht Club on August 1-4. (The 29er nationals will be held also at this venue the week before!) for those of you who have questions on this event check the .....US Sailing website.
11/1/09
archived news

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UPCOMING EVENTS
29erXX Seiko Superbowl Regatta	Jan 31 - Feb 3	Miami, FL
Richmond Midwinters #3	February 7	Richmond, CA
SDAYC Luff In	February 13	San Diego, CA
Midwinters East	February 18-21	Martin County, FL
SCYA Midwinters	February 20-21	San Diego, CA
		2010 schedule