ENLIGHTENMENT FROM THE INSIDE

The top boat of this winter’s J/70 racing is sailing at a higher level with a greater sense of urgency

- DAVE REED

THE most recognizable spinnaker in the US J/70 fleet is arguably the white one with a stylized red stick figure. And it is immediately recognizable because Brian Keane's Savasana has been a fixture of the class since 2012, usually near the front of the fleet and found wherever J/70s gather in numbers. Keane and his teammates have won plenty of J/70 regattas over the years, but never a world championship. Close, yes, but never No 1.

However, his current cast teammates-Thomas of Barrows, Ron Weed and Conner Harding-have their collective minds set on the impending Worlds in St. Petersburg, Florida, in November. There's no reason to doubt this could be their year to win the big one, especially considering they ran the table on the Miami J/70 winter regatta circuit with three big wins and then followed up with another at Charleston Race Week.

You might think this peak in Keane's long sailing career, which includes Junior National Championships, All-American honors and the Hinman Trophy, and has spanned eras in the J/105 and J/80 classes, is the result of some game-changing sail development or magic bullet. But you'd be wrong. The difference is Keane's present battle with cancer.

"Fewer things bring about clarity, focus and purpose than knowing you have been diagnosed," Keane says when we speak by phone in April after winning the J/70 Midwinters. "I can say for sure that has helped me this year because I want to win. It's a focus. Millions of people have cancer, but it's real, and I'm confident in a full recovery. That purpose is important to me."

That is certainly a far bigger challenge than battling at the top of a pro-stacked one-design fleet.