Looking back at the
Australian Formula Nationals 2004
It was nothing less than a great result for Severne Sails. Ben Severne and Jesper Orth tried out some early proto's of the race sails (SSR's) at the Australian Nationals in Sydney.
With nearly no Formula experience at all, Jesper Orth finished as 4'th at this years very competitive Nationals counting 54 entrants. The top 3 was nobody else than pro sailors Steve Allen, Phil Mcgain and Jesper Vesterstroem, finishing in the same order.
"I didn't have much experience on the Formula gear, and my strong side is definitely slalom. With our base in Perth (West Australian), most days are pretty windy, and most races there are more likely to be slalom competitions. However, I knew that we had some really fast Formula Racing sails, and wanted to give it a good go in Sydney. Needless to say I'm happy that our new design proved to be extremely competitive with good stability and pointing abilities.
When I finally got the "hang" of it with some good starts, in the large fleet, I did quite well. One race I was even leading around the top mark, with Steve Allen behind me, but without Formula racing experience I could not keep up with the pro's and had to see the top three tuned guys in front of me in the end. Still, I'm so stoked with my 4th, and it is so good to se that the Severne Formula sails is right up there with the latest NP and Gaastra sails. Our hard work in the in the R&D loft with Ben Severne and Mark Pattison have finally paid off.
During the process, top Formula racers have been flown in from around the world to help with the testing,to ensure that we have some high performing sails to present very soon. It is very rewarding to see the successful outcome of all those hours. It is a huge motivation factor, and I can't help thinking what these sails can do in the hands of top pro racers, rather than with an inexperienced Formula sailor like myself."
Jesper used his 11.0 and 10.0 SSR proto's and the Starboard 158 throughout all 8 races over 4 days.
