Top Class Competition, Top Class Camaraderie

After decades of one-design fleet competition, cooperation, and community on Puget Sound, and years of committed volunteer planning, the J/105 North American Championship came to Seattle in mid-October 2026. Hosted by Corinthian Yacht Club of Seattle (CYC), The J/105 NAs drew 23 total teams, with visiting boats traveling from Texas and California combining with 15 teams representing the local fleet.

Over the course of four race days, the teams were tested with tight, tactical sailing in conditions that varied in many ways—there was a little rain and a lot of sun, more and less chop depending on the tide cycle, and racing in both southerly and northerly winds. The vast majority of the racing, however, was done in pretty flat water and moderate breeze typically ranging between 8 and 14 knots.

In the eyes of both the fleet and the club, the proceedings actually began the weekend before at CYC’s Puget Sound Sailing Championship Big Boat regatta. With a light air day and a 20-plus-knot day, and all but one of the North Americans fleet on the water, the pre-event gave a window into the competition in wide-ranging conditions. It also let some of the teams iron out a few kinks—both with the boat handling, trim, and tune; but also with some of the fleet dynamics. Numerous sailors described “carnage” with multiple collisions and other challenges.

Not necessarily related to the prior weekend’s peccadillos, worldwide Racing Rules authority and local legend, Dick Rose, gave a presentation to the fleet on the eve of the North Americans. One way or another, the racing in the actual championship event was extremely competitive and also very clean, with participants noting the high level of sportsmanship.

On the whole, the traveling teams, especially those from the San Francisco Bay fleet, showed their skill and experience with the boat. Rod Hearn of the Seattle-based Jaded team was the first to point out that the visiting teams had a significant advantage in upwind point, and the traveling teams “knew every gear of these boats and how to switch between them.” It was often difficult for the Seattle teams to hold lanes. One of Seattle’s most accomplished sailors, Dalton Bergan, was sailing with Mike Goldfarb’s War Canoe, the top finishing local boat, and said “We definitely didn’t quite have the height of some of the out of towners.” Dalton described getting rolled after performing a bow-ahead lee-bow; he guessed they weren’t among the five fastest boats on the water upwind.

As is often the case, the visiting sailors were effusive about the beauty of the sailing venue, appreciating the mountain views in every direction—though reportedly some of the Texans found the temperatures too chilly for their liking. Everyone was pleased to be able to score multiple races each day of the championship, and many shared War Canoe skipper Mike Goldfarb’s sentiment when he said, “I thought the race management was super good.” But the stunning surroundings and full slate of racing may not have been the most notable environmental factor for some competitors; that title might belong to the current on Saturday. With breeze waiting to develop until the late afternoon and significant current running, general recalls prompted the committee to fly Z and U Flags. A pair of brilliantly sailed Bay Area boats, Ne*Ne and Arbitrage, each caught an unfortunate Z flag scoring penalty. They finished third and fourth overall respectively, with those penalties in Race 8 being their highest scores for the regatta.

At the end of the weekend, Randy Hecht’s Niuhi from San Francisco stood atop the podium to take home an impressive fourth J/105 North American Championship. Local sailors noted that Niuhi has sailed together as a team for more than five years, and that they were the picture of event-long consistency and savvy. They also finished strong under pressure, closing the regatta with a race win and a second-place finish. The locals on War Canoe were in it to the end and finished three points behind the winners, taking second overall. Dalton described a moment on a run during the last race when the winners, “surged ahead just enough to be able to jibe clear of us and we lost our pin, it was good racing.” Mike Goldfarb praised, “Hats off to the Niuhi team. They’re just fast as all get-out.”

Numerous local boats whose finishing positions were deeper in the fleet than they might have hoped pointed out that they were still impressed by the local fleet’s showing, while also learning a lot from the traveling teams. Locals were inspired to see firsthand some of the tools they can still develop to improve their J/105 sailing. Whatever the finishing position, no one was bummed, it was a conclusively great championship experience.

One performance to highlight was the team from Seattle Sailing Club (SSC) on Puff. Skippered by longtime class sailor, Stephen Summers—whose sailing and racing instruction touches most of the local teams—the Puff crew of Steve, four sailing club members and another SSC instructor finished 13th overall, an impressive 6th of the 15 local boats. They had new sails and Steve talked about needing four races to figure them out. Once they did, their scoreline in the final seven races placed them squarely in the top 10 boats for that stretch. Steve said to his team at their debrief on Sunday, “Do you know we didn’t make any mistakes this whole regatta?” Numerous teams shouted-out Seattle Sailing Club as huge supporters and drivers of the J/105 fleet’s momentum and enthusiasm. All seven of SSC’s J/105s were sailing in the event, most with local owners and their crews, and a couple as charters for out-of-town teams.

From the front of the fleet to the back, the vibes were good on the water and even better ashore. When accepting the awards, the winners highlighted the incredible volunteerism and community effort that made this event possible, with the fleet showing up in a major way from long before the regatta through its awards ceremony. The camaraderie and sheer fun was evident every day, from shot skis on the dock to a truly packed CYC clubhouse.

By all accounts, the J/105 North American’s was a smashing success. Taking the temperature among the local sailors, it’s clear that the old trope of a championship regatta signaling the end of an era for a local fleet won’t apply to the Seattle J/105s. The enthusiasm and commitment to one another seems higher than ever, and the level of excitement and inspiration about how the local crews might improve, travel more, and raise the collective tide is at least as thrilling as hosting a big championship. Congratulations and well done, everyone!

Full results at www.2026j105northamericans.com

Feature photo by Jan Anderson.