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Upcoming events:
2019 Upcoming
February 16, 2019: General Meeting, Rules Meeting
La Tolteca, Salisbury, noon
Speaker: Jonathan Bartlett, North Sails
- Racing Strategy & Tactics
Read more about Jon..........
...........Allsopp, who is now marketing director for North Sails, believes Bartlett's strength is that "he's a great listener, has remarkable recall and is a decent, honest person." .......
Bartlett moved into the more technical Star class in 1988 and won numerous major regattas, usually with close friend Shane Zwingelberg aboard as crew. Work as a North Sails professional required sailing with customers and Bartlett has always enjoyed that aspect of the job. Among the first skippers, he worked with were Al Graf (Fast Forward, J/27) and Butch Michel (Hot Ticket, Farr 37).
"We won the Governor's Cup in 1986 without Bruce aboard and that was really a breakthrough moment for me personally," Bartlett said.
That was just the beginning for Bartlett, who has now won every notable distance race on the Chesapeake Bay as tactician for various skippers. That success has extended to major regattas up and down the East Coast with owners such as Tom Ballard, Jim Sagerholm, John White, David Askew and others.
"I'm not just a customer to Jonathan. I know that he really appreciates and enjoys sailing with our team," said Freitag, whose current boat is a Summit 40 named DownTime. "Jonathan is always calm and never loses focus."
Bartlett believes his success with amateur, family-oriented programs stems from understanding the importance of boat preparation, practice and team-building. Some big-name pros hop aboard and bark orders, believing their knowledge is key to victory. Bartlett has always put the focus and responsibility on the owner and his crew. "My job is to help people enjoy sailboat racing and hopefully have some success along the way," he said.
Robin Team has captured class honors at the Key West and Charleston race weeks twice each with Bartlett calling tactics. The North Carolina skipper couldn't imagine campaigning his J/120 Teamwork without Bartlett aboard. "Jonathan takes the whole program to another level. He brings a lot of expertise in terms of tactics and trim, but is also very good at helping the crew step up to 'A' game," Team said. "Jonathan is way more than a North Sails rep to me; he's a close friend who comes to Carolina for a visit when sailing wasn't on the agenda.
"Jonathan loves sailing and the relationships with customers are very important to him."
In 2011, Bartlett received the Charles R. "Sonny" Smith Skipjack Award from Annapolis Yacht Club for contributions to sailing. Some of his fondest memories involve racing Penguin dinghies with daughters Emily, 26, and Annie, 24.
