Alex Jackson (New York, NY), sailing Amelia, won the first U.S. National Championship of the Swan 42 Class hosted by the New York Yacht Club in Newport, RI, September 14-16. In second is Mustang, co-skippered by Gary Jobson, Norwood Davis and Whitey Lipscomb, and third is Tiburon, Mark Watson.

Jackson and his team sailed consistently over the first six races with two firsts and a second to build a strong lead, and while they struggled in the shifty conditions in the final race, their 2-8-5-11-1-1-15 finishes gave them a four-point victory.

Commented Jackson, “In general the fleet was very close.” He noted that up to the last race five or six yachts could have won. “We certainly didn’t win by much. The good races we had compensated for the bad ones.”

The wind was light to moderate from the south on Friday, but blustery on Saturday, as a cold front whipped up Narragansett Bay. Jackson reported winds of over 30 knots on one downwind leg. Sunday it was a northerly breeze that lost its way throughout the day.

With a second- and a fifth-place finish Mustang had the best results on the final day and climbed into second place overall. Mark Watson (San Antonio, TX), sailing Tiburon, seemed to have won the regatta after winning the seventh race, but a disqualification in race six dropped him to third overall.

Said Mustang’s Gary Jobson, “With seven races sailed, the fact that 13 of the 18 competitors placed in at least one of the races is exactly what we wanted for this class.”

The Swan 42 Class, which is just one year old, is a new one-design class commissioned by the New York Yacht Club in collaboration with Nautor’s Swan. This is an owner-driver class with limits on both professional sailors and sail inventory. Eighteen boats, many of them competing in their first event including Colin Buffin’s Uxorious III from Great Britain, participated in the championship. By year’s end, the Swan 42 class will have 38 boats competing in 11 countries.

Share or bookmark this story: