Three teams take titles in Tampa: J/70 North American Champion Dalton Bergan’s WarCanoe, J/70 North American Corinthian Champion Lee Sackett’s FM, and overall event winner Haroldo Solberg’s OceanPact from Brazil.
After four days and nine races, the J/70 North American Championship title came down to the final race. Saturday’s final three contests, sailed in planing conditions, saw a shifting leaderboard with five different teams within just eight points going into the final race. In the end, WarCanoe won the final race just seconds ahead of OceanPact, but it wasn’t enough to take the overall win. WarCanoe placed second overall, one point behind OceanPact.
“We felt relief as we crossed the finish line,” said Bergan, who subbed in for longtime class member Michael Goldfarb who couldn’t make the event because of a family emergency. Bergan, Goldfarb, and crew Alyosha Strum-Palerm are all part of the “J/Pod” a growing group of 60 Seattle-based teams.
Solberg finished fourth at the recent J/70 World Championship in Brazil and now take the win in Tampa. “The Class in Brazil is improving a lot. Two or three years ago, we had only six boats. Now we have almost twenty, and the level keeps rising. At the Worlds in Buenos Aires, Brazilians finished third, fourth, and fifth — that shows how strong the fleet has become.” Brazilians take two of five spots at the North American Championship.
14 teams competed in the Corinthian division, led by Lee Sackett and his FM team of Abie Griggs, Jeff Haase, and Liam Walz representing Edgewater Yacht Club.
Joel Ronning earns the Mixed-Plus title with his teammates, Olympians Stephanie Roble and Guilia Conti, plus Jeremy Wilmot and Beccy Anderson.
Frank McNamara’s Chinook earned the One-Pro Division title with Malcolm Lamphere, Colin Jermain, and Joshua Pfosi.
Top female helm was won by Corinthian and Mixed-Plus entry Beat Machine by Marina Lamphier, Roy Lumpier, Cassidy Chalut, and Matt Koch.
Top five overall:
- Haroldo Solberg’s OceanPact 36 points (BRA)
- Dalton Bergan’s WarCanoe 37 points (USA)
- Bruce Golison’s Midlife Crisis 42 points (USA)
- Ralph Vasconcellos Rosa’s Mindset 46 points (BRA)
- Joel Ronning’s Catapult 49 points (USA)
Top Three Corinthian (14 boats):
- Lee Sackett’s FM 135 points (USA)
- James Gary’s Ayacucho 153 points (USA)
- Patrick Shanahan’s Bronco 160 points (USA)
Davis Island Yacht Club hosted the event December 3-6, 2025 on Tampa Bay. The championship featured 42 boats from six nations: BER, BRA, CAN, MEX, SWE, and USA.
Event Information / Results: yachtscoring.com/emenu/50327
Social Media: instagram.com/j70class and facebook.com/J70Class/
Photos: gallery.hannahleenoll.com/2025-j70-north-americans/
