Rated X is not playing games; wins M32 Midtown Cup Event 2
by Hannah Lee Noll 11 Jul 2023 22:58 NZST
July 7-9, 2023
M32 Midtown Cup Event 2 fleet © M32World / Felipe Juncadella
Jake Julien and his Rated X team were crowned champions of the M32 Midtown Cup Event 2. They did not need to sail the final race: a rare feat in this fleet.
The promising young team gets better at every event. This weekend, they won the first race and maintained their protagonist position wire-to-wire. Even scoring a DNS in the final race, they won with a 17-point margin.
"It was pretty awesome! The consistency is what really paid off in the end," said Julien. When asked what gave his team the edge, he's quick to humility: "The crew work is essential. The communication on our boat is incredible. Rhys [Mara], Keith [Swinton], Jeff [McCooey], and Julius [Hallstrom] are all extremely experienced and really know their way around a race course. It's all them."
Julien also won the Miami Winter Series overall. The fleet newcomer hasn't yet raced a M32 World Championship. The big dance is around the corner, and Rated X is one to watch. "Since we started with M32s, I've been so eager to win the Worlds. This year, we're doing everything we can to raise our odds."
North of the Pell Bridge, past halfway rock, nine M32s pranced around the Narragansett Bay ballroom for 15 races facilitated by Principal Race Officer Carol Ewing over three days.
Behind Rated X was a heated battle: six boats were in contention to podium today. On day two, Rated X, Convergence, and Midtown Racing all tied on points to win the day - that set up a great plot line of high stakes tight racing on a light and shifty Sunday.
Jennifer Wilson's Convergence steadily climbed the leaderboard all weekend: 8th place day one - 4th on day two - and up to the silver medal position when it mattered most.
Undecided until the final beat of the final race, third place was a brawl; there were multiple lead changes between Don Wilson's Convexity and Bobby Julien's Dingbat. In the end, Convexity kept fighting 'til the end and came out on top.
The Newport home of the fleet is the Midtown Race Club, located in the heart of downtown. Each evening, the class hosts unfussy social events for teams and friends. No blue blazer necessary.
The closure of this event marks the halfway point of the season. Next in Newport is the North American Championship August 25-27, Pre-Worlds Sept 25-26, and the World Championship Sept 28-Oct 1.
So you want to start a team? At each M32 event on the schedule, new owners have an opportunity to demo a boat and learn what it's like to own an M32.