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Highlander News Sail Information || Highlander News || Highlander Tuning Guide || Contact Experts || Order Interview by Greg Fisher JB: The first thing that I focus on when going to any big regatta is choosing people to sail with I really enjoy. After all , this is the opportunity I take to get away from work and spend time with friends. Which is one reason my Dad sailed with me in both regattas. However, on the water, I would say keeping our boat speed up and in the right gear was a large part of or focus. JB: Absolutely, having good, consistent boat speed is very important. I would say that the ability to depower the boat smoothly and efficiently when the wind picks up is very important. Doing things like adding a little extra vang, and keeping the jib trimmed really seem to help in keeping the boat driving fast and high upwind. JB: All of the tuning numbers were exactly in the middle of the North Highlander Tuning Guide. JB: Our over all wight was about 480 , which is a little bit light for a Highlander. The wind was on the light side at this year ' s Nationals and our lighter crew weight may have helped in these conditions. When the wind picked up we would have found ourselves using a lot more vang and trimming the jib super tight. It is something that past national champ Ed Spengeman started doing. But it really seems to neutralize and balance the helm and depower the boat without sacrificing boat speed. JB: The Highlander does seem to take a little more effort to get going in the light stuff, as opposed to something like a Thistle that seems to accelerate pretty quickly in light air. Therefore, in light air we sail pretty open with the sheets well eased and the sails twisted. Sometimes it seems like we are reaching everywhere !. Because it ca n take so long to get the boat going in light air, I would rather head a in direction that is not necessarily favored and maintain headway. It's the old adage in light winds, speed is more important than hitting the shifts.
JB: Sailing Highlanders has been a big part of our family's activity's ever since I can remember. I guess it is pretty cool that most of us have very much of the same interests and passions.. . and are all still at it. I know that I have just as much fun sailing with my Dad, brother, Uncles and Aunts, as I do sailing with friends. I guess we all sail together just because we enjoy being around one another. Of course when everyone has the same interest at hand, it is pretty easy to have a great time .
JB: My Dad and I have a pretty special relationship. We spend a lot of time together. When we go to work, we work together, when we take off work, we take off together, when we vacation, well , ok we don't always take vacations together !. But we do spend a lot of time together and it is special to both of us . So when it came time to sail a Nationals together, it was natural to sail with my Dad. Not only is he fun to be with, he is a great crew !We had Sarah Paisley as our third, who as you know is an outstanding sailor herself. Not only is she a great friend, but she is a lot of fun to sail with too. Sailing with my Dad and my buddy Sarah is one of the reasons winning the Highlander Nationals was one of the most gratifying experiences of my life. JB: Aunt Sue is on the Midwinters trophies. Uncle Jack is on the Nationals trophy as a skipper and my Dad Harold is now on there twice as crew. The first time he got his name on there was with his cousin Rob Spring. JB: I am already looking forward to next years sailing season. And yeah, I am looking forward to sailing in the Midwinters and the Nationals again next year. For more information on North's fastest Highlander sails contact our Highlander experts.
Report by Greg Fisher Two weeks ago the Highlander Nationals were held at Lake Norman Yacht Club in Charlotte, NC. Light winds greeted the fleet with only two days of sailing and 6 races.
We were proud to hear that the 2008 Midwinter Champion, John Bauer, with his Dad Harold and Sarah Paisley won the championship in convincing style. For more information on North's fastest Highlander sails contact our Highlander experts. Report by Greg Fisher
Results: Don't hesitate to contact us if you need any assistance with your Highlander program. Our Highlander experts can help!
Report courtesy Ed Spengeman
We’ve historically had good pointing in most conditions so we decided to rake the mast to max forward according to the North tuning guide. This got rid of most of our helm and kept the boat easy to drive as the breeze came up. The top diamond wires were dropped off to the point where they just barely registered zero on the loos gauge. This depowered us by spilling air out the top of the sail. This was crucial since we’ve always sailed well below the recommended crew weight for a Highlander. We also played the mainsheet straight from the block and vang sheeted throughout each race. We’ve found that cinching in the vang and playing the main constantly kept us sailing at a much higher angle than just dumping the traveler. We were able to move the jib cars all the way back in the flat water, which allowed us to sheet the jib much harder without closing the top off. In large gusts we would dump the main 10 to 15 inches to keep the boat flat while the jib stayed strapped in to keep the boat driving. Trimming the jib in hard and blowing the main is typically supposed to drive the bow down, but it seems to do just the opposite in big breeze. We’ve used this technique for the past 7 years and it consistently proves to be very fast while maintaining a fairly high angle in relation to our competitors. Thanks to Greg Fisher for helping us tune up before Cleveland Race Week. I also want to thank my beautiful wife Erin and our good friend Barret Rhoads for making it a memorable week that we won’t soon forget!
For more information on Highlander sails, contact the North Highlander experts.
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John, congrats on a great season sailing the Highlander. Winning the
Midwinters and the Nationals is quite an
accomplishment! You were very consistent in both series...what do you focus
on most in sailing both these regattas? 
North Sails perform at the 2008 Highlander Midwinters held by Lake Norman Yacht Club in Charlotte, NC May 10-11.
John Bauer with his Dad Harold and long time friend of North, Rob Spring won the event held in a wide variety of conditions. North Sails were also sailed by the 3rd, 5th and 6th place boats!
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John Bauer 1959 1 4 5 1 1 12
Edgewater Yacht Club provided the perfect setting for this year’s Highlander National Championship. Each day started with a pleasant 10mph breeze that quickly built as the day went on. All three days brought breeze off the shore giving us fairly flat conditions for Lake Erie.
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