63rd Jan Friis Team Race

This regatta honors a former Tufts faculty adviser and used to be sailed in Larks on Upper Mystic Lake in Medford, MA. Previously a fleet racing regatta, the format was changed to team racing 1996. It is believed to be the 63rd running of the Jan Friis Trophy (I said that last year too but forgot about the Covid year). RWU has been hosting it since 2018 (and in 2015 when the Mystic was still frozen) in conditions that are gnarly more often than not, with no exception today.

Breeze started off in the high teens with higher gusts from the Southeast. By 3 pm it had moderated some. Current was going out for most of the day. The rain was non-stop and torrential at times. After race 11 there was major boat damage to one of the FJs and we had to substitute a fleet of 420s into the mix. Later, we had a couple of rigging failures that should have been resailed late in the day, but the wind was picking up again and we had to get the powerboats off the water before the expected 40 mph gusts arrived.

Many thanks to the umpire team who endured wind and serious rain to keep the racing fair: ChUmp John Mooney, Scott Booth, Jimmy Kennedy, George Higham, Brendon Scanlon, Mike Campbell, and Paul Gilman.

Emmett Nevel '25, Ruby Hope '25, and Tavia Smith '27 cranked out 44 races. Chase Reynolds '24 and Lexi Chigas '26 were warriors in the finish boat. Katie McGagh '26 was clutch on scoring. Thanks also to Joakim Karlsen for being the ICSA representative.

We'd also like to thank RWU marine sciences, Coast Guard, Brown, John Mooney, Michael Reuter, and Joakim Karlsen for lending their powerboats for the umpire team.

Racing cancelled due to expected freezing wind chill and big breeze.