Flying Tigers Roar into Long Beach
by FT10 media on 23 Jun 2008
Flying Tiger SW
Just one year after introducing the FT10 sport boat to the world of high performance sailing, the class may very well be the largest one design fleet at this week’s prestigious Acura Ullman Long Beach Race Week.
FT10 racers will be vying for the coveted Pacific Coast Championship title during this three day regatta beginning Friday, June 27, 2008 in the scenic waters off of Southern California. Racers from all over the West coast are coming to try and unseat last year’s champion John Paquin from Coronado, CA.
The father and son team of Philip and Payson Infelise will race their tricked out FT10 'Mile High Klub'. Philip and his son may have the advantage over John Paquin’s team with more than two decades of local knowledge and sailing out of Alamitos Bay Yacht Club which is co-hosting the event this year along with Long Beach Yacht Club. Last year Payson and his Dad finished up a full 10 points behind Paquin but with a year of experience under their belt you can bet they’ll apply the pressure at every corner of the course.
The highly competitive fleet will also see a new high profile member join them from Santa Barbara Yacht Club. Radio celebrity talk show host Dr. Laura Schlessinger has purchased hull number 80 and is scheduled to compete for her first time on the new boat. Dr. Laura is no stranger to mixing it up in a tough fleet though. For the past several seasons she has been successfully racing against some good competition in other classes but has decided that it was time to step up to a Flying Tiger. Her Santa Barbara based team is highly skilled and should bring yet another boat to the fleet capable of winning it all.
The forecast looks spectacular with cooler temperatures at the beach and very warm inland which creates the solid sea breeze that Long Beach is so well known for. These winds will combine with a 3-5 foot swell from the west and a good south swell to make for what should be some epic wave surfing conditions in these speedy boats. Spectators can view the racing from the Seal Beach pier and there will be a band at Alamitos Bay Yacht Club on Friday evening for event participants and their families.
About the FT10- Distribution
The Flying Tiger 10 M (FT10) is a new 10 meters One Design Club Racer designed by Bob Perry, built by Bill Stevens at Hansheng Yachts in Xiamen, China and commercialized by Hiptrader LLC. You can visit www.hiptrader.com
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