It’s a combination of who you know and what you know.
From grand-prix racing all the way down to Opti sailors, you need to know your way around a race course to win a season championship. That said, knowing the right people can help. The right rigger, the right person to help with a racing bottom, and, yes, the right sailmaker will make a difference. If you know “what to do” and have had the help of the right people, championships can be within reach.
Knowing the right sailmakers clearly was demonstrated at the recent annual awards night of New Jersey’s Keyport Yacht Club. Located on Raritan Bay, just below New York Harbor, the Keyport sailors have their mettle tested regularly by strong winds and tricky currents – not to mention the distraction of the imposing Manhattan skyline. Keyport is an active club with an average of 25 boats competing most Wednesday nights at the club and also on their Saturday races. Luckily for the Champions of all three KYC divisions, they knew the right sailmaker.
Dave Martin is part of the UK Sailmakers Northeast team and is located in the Raritan Bay area. With Dave’s solid input, all three KYC’s divisional season champs sailed with confidence. After all, having the right sails for the kind of sailing you do gives you a big leg-up. For two of these club racers, Dave recommended UK Sailmakers’ X-Drive® sails. X-Drive are the price-performing loadpath sails that provide club racers and performance cruisers exceptional shape-holding and durability approaching that of grand-prix sails…but at a fraction of the price. Terry Sculac’s Jenneau 45 sports a suit of UK Sailmakers’ performance Dacron sails.
“All three of these sailors are champions in their own right,” said Dave Martin. “I’m just glad to have played a part in their success by being the right sailmaker for them.”
