SA's Best Designer:

Lot's o' talented designer-types out there, and it would be hard to go wrong picking any number of them, but for '03 it is Clay Oliver for Mari Cha IV. Although Philippe Briand is listed as the lead designer of the boat, a look at his other designs reflects that Mari Cha IV came out of a different gene pool. Consider the boat's apparent strength and lightness, and the light starts shining on Clay Oliver. Clay is also lined up with Owen-Clarke design group to drum up the V70 work and generally shows strong versatility and high demand for his skills in various and diverse projects No one really doubts his AC contributions either.

Honorable mention:

To schmoes like us, the world of designers begins and ends with monohulls. And I know the 3 of you out there who disagree will piss and moan, but that's the way we see it. Of course we know that the speedy multis are wicked, and we'll address them later, but for most of us, the single hulls are where it's at. We're hesitant to go this direction, but I think it needs to be done: The second best designer is a team, and it is the one that designed the America's Cup winner - The Alinghi design team. Led by Rolf Vrolijk, they came up with the boat to beat, plain and simple. Fast all the time, no apparent weaknesses, they stepped right to the front of a very tough field. Could Coutts have won with Oracle or even TNZ? Probably, but that is not what happened, is it? And yes, the AC is so much bullshit, but these guys need to be acknowledged for doing what a whole bunch of designers (Farr, Nelson, Frers, R/P) have not done.

2nd Honorable mention:

His latest boats haven't won anything yet, and he's not well known outside of his home turf, but Brett Bakewell-White made some great impressions for '03. Let's start with his 98' Zana. Barely losing first to finish in the Sydney to Hobart Race (by 14 minutes), the boat looks cool and seems quick. Think there are a few designers that wish they had gotten that order? Earlier he designed a TP 52 Braveheart (the jury is still out on how fast it is), and has a new 39' production boat that already has a bundle of orders. Oh, did we mention that Chris Sayer's Bakewell-White Mini appears to be very good? Bakewell-White has flourished while others have floundered, and truly has become a designer to reckon with.

3rd Honorable mention:

Morelli & Melvin for being able to merge the experience of Playstation in the Gunboat design, the Reynolds 33 design and the new Aclass cat "A2". The Columbia 30 sure looks promising, too, assuming Columbia Yachts can execute it properly. I hope the other meaning of execute doesn't materialize here.

SA's Worst Designer:

This is a group affair. First, for the failed concepts in Gitana X, the Open 60 tri. In fairness, it is not just Ollier to blame. Gitana X was designed by the Gitana Design Team which included the Gilles Oliler Design Team (France), Duncan Mac Lane (USA), Mario Caponetto (Italy), Sebastien Schmidt (Switzerland) and .Too many steps were taken away from the design development route pursued by the class, and the boat went the route of complexity (e.g. individually threading xbeam fibers through the main hull!!), and in the end of the second season the boat ended up a confirmed dog, albeit a very expensive and eccentric one. According to Multiplast The decision to have not a similar boat as the others 60-footer was the one of Benjamin de Rothschild, the armator.
The last nail was hammered in the coffin when the boat was replaced by an older boat in the fleet, Gitana XI (former Belgacom).

On the monohull front, the prize goes to the French AC boat Areva lead by the design team of Pallu de La Barrière and Daniel Andrieu, also a Multiplast's project. This effort from one of the best yards in the world practically eliminated the"builder screwed up" excuse, and overall the boat showed a worse effort than with Juan K…'s as the principal designer on the previous French AC boat program. The boat failed to make any impressions in New Zealand. Just like here.

Dishonorable mention:

There are a few who have done virtually nothing for '03, and they know who they are, but we still think Juan Kouymajomamma has done a good job hovering near the bottom. The sailing world waits while the 115' likely debacle for Frank Pong continues to get delayed. Oh this is going to beauty! His virtually useless "mini AC boat" looks like a waste of time and somebody's money. (Btw, why Seahorse, an otherwise fine mag, continues to feature this guy so prominently is a mystery. Perhaps he pays for his exposure?) The world does not seem to be beating a path to his door for maxZ 86's. TP 52's, IRC or IMS boats. Curious though is why Oracle BMW would hire him, if any designer was tailor made for the French, it's "Juan." His return to SA's Worst list is an honor to be sure.

SA's Best Sailmaker:

This of course is a tough one. North's 3DL continues to dominate most of the sport's premier classes, and few have much to complain about that product, other than price and perhaps longevity - in truth those are two big considerations. Plus we continue to hear stories of dissatisfaction from the rank and file, and their overall corporate arrogance is extremely unappealing. We've always like Quantum's approach - good build quality and terrific shapes, but they've been caught out by 3DL, Doyle's D4 and even UK's Ultra, which have leaped-frog them, technologically speaking. We'll see how Q's new string sail technology pans out for '04. Doyle's D4 continues to impress and those that have them truly like them. Halsey Lidgard make superb panel sails and do a great job in their areas of concentration. For '03, it's too close to call, but I would say that Doyle is much closer to the top than they were, and if all the players get their string technology together, North could be in for a good ass kicking. One that has been a long tome coming.

Honorable mention:

It's the little guy. The independent. We don't mean any old hippie with a sewing machine, we mean the local, dedicated craftsman who has been building some really nice sails in your area for years. You all know who we are talking about - the loft that builds fast sails at a fair price, understands customer service and is dedicated to their art and their community. In SoCal there are a couple who come to mind, Harry Pattison from Elliott/Pattison Sailmakers, long time advertisers here at SA, and Gary Swenson from Ullman Ventura. No Cal has Kame Richards from Pinapple. You no doubt know who your guy is in your area - almost everyone has one. Even in this day of big brand market domination, loft mergers and the reduction of the independent, these guys are out there and we think it is important to consider them. Remember, you don't have to have the latest "multi thread, unobtainium fiber, barium enema 6DL" sail to make your "Joe 6 pack 34" win in your local fleet. Spread some love to your homeboys, homeboys.

SA's Worst Sailmaker:

Am I too much of a bitter a-hole to give it to Peter Conrad and the company formerly known as Sobstad? I guess the answer is yes. A nearly forgotten and irrelevant Genesis product (due to their own mismanagement), probably the worst spinnakers in the business, a network of nobody "agents", a merger (with Elvstrom) than created no buzz whatsoever, and you my friends, have the worst sailmaker in the business.

Dishonorable mention:

What the hell has happened to Ullman Sails? I know that some of their franchise lofts continue to turn out nice sails, and they still make good OD sails in some classes, but where the hell is their overall direction? They have no new technology, they have no presence in the big leagues, and they seemingly have no national or international media plan. They have disappeared from most everyone's radar screen and had better get with it for '04, or they are going to be left further behind than they already are.

SA's Best Performance:

Is it too lame and predictable to give it to Russell Coutts? He did establish that he is perhaps the greatest AC sailor of all time, all the while doing it with class and dignity that the used to be greatest AC sailor rarely exhibited. Lots of other very good sailors accomplished some great things, but sorry, we're giving it to Coutts.

Honorable mention:

Jonathan McKee shocked the world with his performance in the Mini Class. Unfortunately his Transat was ruined with a rig failure, but that does not diminish his impact. Impact is exactly what he has no matter what boat he sails on. There is no doubt that he guy can win in anything.

2nd Honorable mention:

Francis Joyon for being able to sail a 90 foot tri singlehanded faster than a skilled crew. You try it. It has been suggested that Samuel Kahn make this list. I don't think so - we have mixed feelings. Sure he won the Melges 24 Worlds, a remarkable feat under any circumstances, but circumstances are indeed a factor here. He had the resources made available to him that 99.9% of people don't have. We submit that almost anyone, with that upbringing, that much money, and those resources could have done exactly the same thing. It's still quite an accomplishment, just not quite the phenom that everyone wants to believe it is.

SA's Worst Performance:

Of course he's not anywhere near the worst, but in terms of The Big Time, Dean Barker's dismal outing during the last America's Cup has to be one of the most glaringly bad performances of '03. Showing what appeared to be almost no true leadership, apparently having little ability to grasp the enormity of the task and how to manage it, Barker led TNZ to a disastrous AC result. This had to be the Big Time Bust of '03.

Dishonorable mention:

There's lots of guys to put here, but how about we throw Peter Isler in the drink, no pun intended? We've rather kindly ignored him last year (easy to do), but he deserves an SA for a really bad couple of performances on Roy Disney's 75' Pyewacket. As the "star" navigator for the Cal Coastal Race (the lead in race for the TransPac), it was Pyewacket's next to last race before the new '86 arrived and they fell behind, ended up in a giant hole, and getting their ass kicked by rival Pegasus, dropped out. Not exactly an auspicious debut. Then in the TransPac, Mark Rudiger on Pegasus, wiped the smirk right off of "Pedro's" face, showing who is the World Class navigator, and who is best at writing wimpy articles for Sailing World ("Fortunately the race to Hawaii is more than just winning.") Really? I'm sure that's exactly how the guys writing his checks feel too. So overrated.

Best Sport Boat:

In a category that should have too many entries, we are disappointed to actually find too few. This market should be flat out thriving, yet there does not seem to be the designer and builder combination that has put it together yet. Or is there? We think Steve Thompson and T-Boat have got the product line that should be able to hit home runs. With Jim Betts here in the States building the new T 1150, T Boat should finally start to get some traction. However, it is the T770 that we like for Sportboat of the Year. It is a slightly modified version of the 870, and with a new US dealer, we like what this boat is all about: performance, versatility, pedigree and value.

Honorable mention:

Not because they advertise here, but the Blackman 21 sure looks interesting. We like new concepts and attempts at doing things differently with some creativity, and the 21 is certainly that. And of course the Columbia 30 has loads of promise, as well. These two will be fun to watch.

Worst Sport Boat:

Hunter jumped into the fray with their 216. Perhaps they shouldn't have. We like some of designer Glenn Henderson's work, notably his 30, but I suppose he has to put food on the table, and likely the concept is not his. Putting a plumb bow and a sprit on a tub does not equal sportboat. Of course having said that, they'll be up to hull number 350 by this time next year. There is no justice.

Dishonorable mention:

JS 9000. Boy, did they fuck this up. They had the world at their feet: An exciting new concept, delivered at a very reasonable price - they had the goal line in sight and all they had to do was not fumble. THEY FUMBLED!!!!!! Disastrous delivery times, poor quality and one BS story after another left a lot of pissed off customers. They may have saved themselves by handing off to another builder, one that swears to do it right. But they are down by 14 points going into the second half, they'll need to score early and often to come out on top.

SA's Best Race Boat:

There can be no doubt, right? It simply has to be Mari Cha IV. Incredible concept, incredible engineering, incredible capability. They smashed the Transatlantic record by being first monohull ever to sail across the Atlantic Ocean in under 8 days. Some of you ask, "Yeah, but who are they racing?" We say time, motherfucker, time. As y'all know, that is one tough bitch to beat. And they did.

Honorable mention:

The TP 52 class. This is where it is at for big buoy and offshore handicap (and hopefully class) racing. The boats are scary quick, relatively easy to sail, great looking, and have some real momentum behind them. Imagine being the poor sucker being caught building a 52' IMS boat right about now? Really, there is nowhere else to be for this size and type of boat than the TP 52 Class.

SA's Worst Race Boat:

We said it last year and we'll say it until it or us die first: Stop the god damn IMS nonsense. These slab sided, tippy things are ridiculous. Good lord, somebody needs to be shot. Might as well start here:

Dishonorable mention:

Can we ignore TNZ's AC boat? You know, the one that started sinking, the one that broke it's boom, the one that broke it's mast and the one that probably had pace but was so ill prepared that it will go down in AC history as one of the biggest failures ever? Yeah, that one.

SA's Best Racer Cruiser:

A boat that has (as many of the good ones do) slid under the radar, is the Max Fun 35, designed by Simonis Voogd Design. It's got all the ingredients for a good R/C, and what we like about this boat is that it clearly errs on the side of racer, something most of the R/C's don't do. (Think Beneteau 36.7, for example). We think it was introduced in "02, but it matters little as it is still the coolest looking thing of anything else introduced since. Dual purpose with style and speed - that's what we're talkin' about.

SA's Worst Racer Cruiser:

We give it to the "new" J/133. Is this what it's come to - recycling the same everything into a "new" boat? Oh and charging through the nose for it? Don't misunderstand, we like J/Boats and in fact named the 109 the Best R/C last year. But at least that boat represented something fairly new in a new size range. This treads over the same boat in the same size range, promising absolutely nothing new. I know they have found a theme that sells, but when does "successful formula" end and "market over saturation" begin? We'd say right about here.

SA's Best Builder:

Oh hell, where do you start? Cookson? McConaghy? Goetz? All good, all craftsmen, and all turn out a world-class product. If only to be so fortunate to be in a position to actually order something from any one of them......

Honorable mention:

I think it still has to be DK Yachts in Malaysia. They have enormous capability, turn out a nice product, and seem to be about the best answer for building mass- produced race boats. Assuming that there still is such a thing.

SA's Worst Builder:

I know they're long gone, but let's give 'em a kick in the ass anyway. Carroll Marine certainly tried, but the economy, and some marginal quality issues finally did them in. Oh yeah, BC certainly seemed to be a bit of an a-hole too. He certainly was to us, but then again, we do seem to bring the worst out in people, don't we?

Chump of the Year:

I must admit that nobody really stands out for this year. There is no John Podmajerky this time, unfortunately. Perennial hate magnet Paul Henderson could likely win it every year. For me Bruce Nelson could win it for his chump move of shoving me in the water. I think that curse I put on him has paid off nocely though. For this year, let's just give it to every A-Hole in your area that acts like and indeed is a chump. The jackass that cheats and gets away with it. The PHRF board member that is a self-serving prick. The guy who gets his trophies by spending more than everybody else. The bitter loser that holds a grudge 10 years later. The guy who always seems to be drunk after every regatta party and turns into an idiot. You know who they are. So for '04, raise your middle finger at 'em, and tell them to kiss your ass. Anarchy rules!