Terry Flynn – J/22 Champion

60 SECONDS WITH 2003 J/22 MIDWINTER CHAMPION TERRY FLYNN

We recently got a chance to talk to Terry Flynn who has been the King Fish of the J22 Class in 2002 (winning the Worlds) and so far in 2003.  Terry grew up (which his wife still doubts) in Annapolis and sailed all his life.  Both his father and grandfather were sailmakers, so working in the business was a natural step.  In 1980, Terry moved down to Texas to work for John Kolius at what was to become Quantum Sails.  The company has changed names a few times since he originally went to work in Seabrook.  He has been involved with Quantum Sails from the very beginning.  He enjoyed starting off with a clean sheet so they could build the company the way they wanted to.  We got right to the racing with Terry and here is how it went…

NOYC.org: Tell me about your crew and their roles on the boat?

Flynn: Randy Borges does the middle. He is the owner of US Watercraft, who currently builds J22s.  Paul Grenauer is our bowman and owner of Margo.  Paul is in charge of tactics while Randy and I get involved in the pre-race game plan when we have different ideas.  Most of the time we can come to some agreement.  That may be why my job is easy.  I can spend more time concentrating on driving which is what I should be doing.

NOYC.org: You obviously have got the J22 figured out, can you share a few go fast tips with us?

Flynn: It is pretty much all in the Quantum Tuning Guide.  Time in the boat is still the best weapon.

NOYC.org: How about those Quantum sails, what kind, how fresh were they, how did you set up for the windy races on Saturday, mast step & headstay length etc?

Flynn: Quantum only has one design on the J22 sails.  After all, we have to sail them in a variety of conditions.  We have an angled mast plate and our headstay was 5’-3/4’’.  The sails were new for the regatta.  Our rig settings came right from the tuning guide.  Since I wrote it, I know it is accurate.

NOYC.org: If you had to buy sails other than Quantum, whom would you buy them from?

Flynn: This is a loaded question. If I could not use Quantum, I guess I would have to work on my golf game.

NOYC.org: In your Sailing World article after your 2002 J22 World Championship victory in Corpus Christi, you mentioned that you “usually have trouble getting off the line.”  I never saw that this past weekend; you were always at the front of the pack.  What was your starting strategy at Midwinters?

Flynn: You must not have been looking when I got shut out at the committee boat and had to circle around after the starting gun or when I tried to fit a J22 into a Laser size hole on a general recall (thank God).  I am improving in this area but I still lack consistency.

NOYC.org: While sailing upwind in heavy air, like at Midwinters (20 plus in flat seas), I noticed that you play the mainsheet very aggressively and keep the traveler on center.  Are you twisting, vang sheeting, how are you working it?

Flynn: I do not use the traveler very much.  I already have too many lines to pull. I think I pulled the traveler up to windward in the first race but after that it stayed on the centerline.  We vang sheet and I play the mainsail and backstay constantly.  As the crew counts down the puff, I get ready to pull the backstay on more and get ready to play the mainsheet.  Trying to keep the boat flat is key.

NOYC.org: It was puffing thirty knots easy this past weekend, how fast do you think these boats were going downwind?

Flynn: Beats me.

NOYC.org: Have you ever gone swimming in these types of conditions?

Flynn: I think the first year that the Midwinters were in New Orleans I remember one really windy race flipping our J22 over 3 times downwind and 1 time upwind.  I still get grief about it from Paul and Randy.

NOYC.org: All of your races that you counted at Midwinters were Top 3s in a 56-boat fleet.  How did you stay so consistent?

Flynn: First off we try to make sure we are winning or in the top group on the side of the course we are at.  Then we start looking around for the best time to get back across to the other side.  Crew work is always important.  We feel as long as we are near someone we have the confidence to know we can get by them.

NOYC.org: Scott Nixon was tied with you heading into the final race.  Did you change your game plan at all or was it just another race?

Flynn: We could not treat this as just another race.  We wanted to attack Scott off the line and drive him back right away or hope we had him on the first cross and then start driving him back.  He got the better of me off the line but we managed to get by on the second beat.   From there we just covered him.

NOYC.org: How many times did you tack on Nixon this weekend?

Flynn: Not that many times the first two days because we were never in the same area.  On Sunday, we glomped him enough to make up for the rest of the weekend.

NOYC.org: I know you guys work for the same team, when you need to cover him, do you slam him or let him breathe a little to keep him going in the same direction?

Flynn: We work together and tune up against each other, but when the racing starts we do not play much favoritism.  We are there to win.  My crew would kill me if I went out not to win.

NOYC.org: You had the newest J22 at Midwinters.  Do you think the newer J22s are any better than the older ones?

Flynn: They sure are nicer to sail because of the deck layout and all the gear is new. It is also nice to be able to keep clothes and other things dry.  You J22 sailors out there know what I mean.  Older boats leak so much.

NOYC.org: It looks like Team Margo has the J22 thing down pat, do you see yourself trying to get into a Melges 24 program any time soon?

Flynn: For the cost of boats and the strength of the class in the southwest it is tough to beat the J22.

NOYC.org: What kind of successes have you had outside the J22 class as of lately?

Flynn: I have been crewing on J80 in the Texas circuit and just finished winning our third straight Southwest Circuit.  We also won our class at Key West.  I also spend a lot of time sailing and helping customers all around the country.  For business, my key focus is on the J22.

NOYC.org: It seems that the J22 Midwinters has only been won by professional industry sailmakers (Fisher, Faget & you) over the past three years, would you have a problem with spotting the weekend warrior non-industry types 10 points at this type of event in the official scoring?

Flynn: Run this same question by Dwight Leblanc, Rob Johnson, Mark Foster and the rest of the top amateurs to see if they would accept those points.

NOYC.org: It’s been pretty windy at three of the last four J22 Midwinters here in New Orleans.   Did you know that it blows here all year round and the average wind speed for Lake Pontchartrain is 18- 20 knots except for August when it drops to around 15 knots around dusk?

Flynn: Next you’re going to tell me the average temperature is 75 degrees and 40% humidity.

NOYC.org: Thanks for making time for NOYC.org, any closing comments?

Flynn: No, I probably said too much already.  Thanks for opportunity to get some free press.

-Brandon DuMontier