Perseverance pays off big

Our life is not as smooth as we imagined, just like the sails on a ship sometimes guide you to the right track, but when experiencing strong winds and waves, it will slightly deviate from the sailing track. If we can continue to sail forward in the face of the difficulties ahead, then you will see the rainbow ahead and meet more unexpected surprises.

Our urca watch dial design is derived from the second. We can also see that it is hollowed out, and we can see that each part is operating in an orderly manner. It's like our ship sails slowly at sea. In life, there are many enthusiasts who like to sail on the sea.

While many people think sailing is all smooth seas, sunshine, sunsets, and beautiful beaches, it’s also a lot of hard work and can be incredibly challenging. Sometimes we just need a little inspiration or some friendly reminders about why we continue to battle the seasickness and the fear and the storms to reach that personal nirvana and freedom that comes from being one with the sea. Let's take a look at their daily sharing.

When California Yacht Club tried, and tried again, to host the J/70 World Championship regatta, members of the Marina del Rey, California-based yacht club and neighboring organizations stepped through the year of pandemic postponements, protocol and obstacles to pull off a world-class competition.

“This event has been years in the making,” said Chair Marylyn Hoenemeyer, who pressed on even as travel constraints and uncertainty threatened to disrupt the regatta. But in early August she prevailed, welcoming 62 competitors from 11 nations for five days of racing in Santa Monica Bay.

Hoenemeyer is an accomplished sailor and winner of both sportsmanship and service awards and knows how to rally the troops. She commended the resilience and determination of an army of volunteers from CYC, Del Rey and Alamitos Bay yacht clubs and US Sailing, which pulled strings to obtain travel clearances for international competitors and jury.

“It did take a village, a tremendous volunteer effort, to make this a success,” Hoenemeyer said. “Our team of volunteers did a fantastic job in keeping all eyes on the target and it paid off.”

Volunteers like Mary Stuyvesant were the fuel in the fire.

“I was in charge of all the social media, brought in some sponsorship and did a little bit of racing during the day,” Stuyvesant said.

In addition to organizing the cyber media team and nightly cocktail programs, she also did bow on Rich Festa’s J/70 Groundhog Day.

“This is the fourth world championship I’ve competed in, and when you go to an event and experience a club really extending themselves, it makes it so much more fun for the racers,” Stuyvesant said. “I wanted to ensure that CYC really delivered on that, for our guests.”

“The international teams add an exciting element too,” she said. “And even though there’s really close racing and a lot of yelling at the mark roundings, everyone comes up to the club afterward for a good time and some drinks. There is great camaraderie!”

Despite fickle conditions, organizers managed one race on Day 3. Then it was breeze-on, with three wet and wild races for the fourth day of the regatta. With a half-dozen races under their belt, the event now officially qualified as a championship regatta, and players earned a throw-out score, shuffling the leaderboard once more. By the final day the top tier was packed tight.

“It was very cool that there were four boats who could have won this thing in the last race,” said Peter Duncan, who triumphed aboard Relative Obscurity with his team of Willem van Waay, Morgan Trubovich and Victor Diaz de Leon. “To me that’s really fun, exciting sailing,” added the New Yorker, who captured his second J/70 World Championship title. “The competition was really great and close.”

In the end, the top five finishers were separated by only eight points. Bruce Golison’s Midlife Crisis took second, while Laura Grondin’s Dark Energy finished third, edging out Brian Keane’s Savasana by one point.

Winning the Corinthian title, in ninth place overall, was the Ducasse Sailing Team of Santiago, Chile. Consisting of Andres Ducasse and his four sons, they were disadvantaged at first sailing with a crew of five, instead of the standard four. Their victory was “amazing” son Francisco Ducasse-Soruco said, adding that the real win was in the experience, as they are in it for the long haul.