Glenn Darden’s Baby Doll put an exclamation point on the final day of the J/22 Midwinter Championship, scoring all three bullets to secure the 2022 title. With crew Jewel Kelly, Jackson Benvenutti and Willem van Waay, the Fort Worth Boat Club-based skipper dominated the 25-boat fleet with 12 points in five races. Performing very consistently all weekend were James Freedman’s Miss Conduct in second (18 points) and Casey Lambert’s Blackburn Marine Racing in third (19 points). Top female helm was Laura Dalgleish. Hosted by Lakewood Yacht Club in Seabrook, Texas, Sunday’s conditions were the pick of the Championship, starting at 6-8 knots and increasing to 16-20. Glenn Darden praised his “fabulous crew who did it all.” This is his second consecutive J/22 Midwinters victory, and he also won the J/105 Midwinter Championship last weekend in Fort Worth. He continued, “It’s always great to be at Lakewood, and we appreciate the fine Race Committee. This is a very competitive fleet!” Local Casey Lambert added, “I’m proud to have this club host the J/22 Midwinters for the first time, and we hope to have the Class back for another Championship in the near future.” Congratulations to Max Vinocur’s Way She Goes from Annapolis, MD who competed through the USJ22CA Youth and Young Adult Resources program, which provides financial and related support to sailor applicants under 30. Full details are available for new candidates at https://j22.com/the-boat/youth-resources/.
Top Five:
- Baby Doll, Glenn Darden, Fort Worth Boat Club, 2-7-1-1-1- ; 12
- Miss Conduct, James Freedman, DCYC, 3-1-7-3-4- ; 18
- Blackburn Marine Racing, Casey Lambert, Lakewood Yacht Club, 6-5-3-2-3- ; 19
- The Jug 4 1, Chris Doyle, Youngstown YC, 8-2-4-8-2- ; 24
- HNL2, Douglas Weakly, -, 1-10-2-6-6- ; 25
Photos are available on the J/22 Class Facebook page, and complete results may be found at www.j22mw.com.