Sixteen J/70s took part in the Chilean fleet qualifier regatta for the 2017 J/70 South American Championship in Algarrobo October 27-November 1, 2017. It was close racing throughout the regatta, but the one to beat was Matias Seguel. After posting a 2-1-2-1-2-3 for total of 11 points, Seguel and team were winners of the regatta by a significant margin. The wind conditions were 12-15 knots on the first day. Seguel and his VOLVO crew had three clear starts and good speed to have a good track on the course to post a 2-1-2 on the first day and never looked back. Per Von Appen and crew worked hard to recover from a couple of bad starts and finished second overall. Third was Carlos Vergara’s SENSEI. Rounding out the top five were Pablo Amunategui’s BLACK JACK in fourth and Felipe Robles’ LEXUS in fifth place. Courses were long, cold and choppy so the crews had to manage the waves, especially on port tack, getting to the weather mark. The wind was sometimes shifting right and sometimes shifting left at the very end of the weather mark in the left corner, mostly close to the shore. For more Chile J/70 South American qualifier information, visit http://www.cofradianautica.cl/noticias/175-regata-glorias-navales-2017.