New York Yacht Club 154th Annual Regatta
by New York Yacht Club 16 Jun 2008 10:23 BST
13-15 June 2008
Meyers' Numbers shows its IRC prowess
Anticipation ran high throughout the New York Yacht Club's 154th Annual Regatta presented by Rolex, hosted Saturday and Sunday from the NYYC's Harbour Court Clubhouse in Newport, R.I. Competitors, designers, journalists and spectators alike were anxious to see how the newest, hottest IRC boats measured up against one another in seven IRC classes, while five other classes (one each J/105 and Farr 40 one-designs, one each for 12-Metre Modern and Classic Traditional, and one for Classics) stirred up their own excitement. A total of 110 boats competed.
In the end, it was Dan Meyers' (Boston, Mass./Newport, R.I.)
Judel-Vrolijk 66 Numbers that took IRC Class 1, where most of the
attention focused. In that class were such show stoppers as the 99-foot
super maxi Speedboat, owned by Alex Jackson (Old Greenwich, Conn.) and
skippered by Mike Sanderson (NZL), and Il Mostro/Puma Ocean Racing,
skippered by Ken Read (Newport, R.I.), which both suffered around the
buoys, due to their size and optimization for straight-line speed, which
will be better tested by next week's Newport to Bermuda Race. Numbers
instead contended primarily with Hap Fauth's (Newport, R.I.)
Reichel/Pugh 69 Belle Mente, which trailed Numbers by seven points in
overall standings after Numbers won the last three of that class's four
races, and Rogers Sturgeon's (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) Rosebud/Team DYT,
which then trailed Belle Mente by only one point in the final standings.
"It was a terrific regatta," said Meyers. "Today was a little tough
because there were larger sea conditions than wind, and each tack on
each side was substantially different. It was blustery and we tore two
spinnakers, so we were pretty busy, but it was a good opportunity to get
ready for Bermuda."
As for his competition, Meyers said, "Belle Mente at times looked quick
and Rosebud was sailing just as fast as us. All of the boats in our
class were good boats in the given conditions. The new boats (which also
included another STP65 Moneypenny, owned by Jim Swartz of San
Francisco), had some teething pains, but we've had them, everyone else
has been through them, too. It won't take long for them to all sort that
out. It couldn't have been a nicer regatta."
Belle Mente's crew member Matt Flood (Westbrook, Conn.) pointed out that
this was indeed the crew's first regatta since the boat was launched
earlier this summer. "It's so different in design, technology and speed
from the previous Belle Mente," he said. "It's the planing vs.
displacement, really, that makes it so totally different, very
impressive."
In IRC Class 3, Blair Brown's (Newton, Mass.) Taylor 45 Sforzando won
overall, with Bermuda's Star class Olympian Peter Bromby serving as
tactician. "Yesterday's winds were patchy," he said, after his boat had
won the day. "You were either in it or you weren't."
In IRC Class 4, which was comprised entirely of NYYC Swan 42s, new owner
Phil Lotz (New Canaan, Conn.) aboard Arethusa, made his initial power
play yesterday as well, winning two races before posting a 1-5 today to
seal the deal.
Kevin Grainger (Rye, N.Y.) won the J/105 class with his Gumption3 after
six races in his series. "We had two really good days of sailing in
varied conditions--light air and flat seas yesterday and 10-13 today and
lumpy and demanding. The top four boats were tight in our fleet, but we
managed to figure it out enough today to stay in contention and execute
better around the marks."
The Great Corinthian Trophy, awarded to the yacht club team with the
best score in the two-day series went to Annapolis Yacht Club, with team
members Rush, Flying Jenny VI and Tsunami.
For full results for the New York Yacht Club Annual Regatta presented by
Rolex, please visit www.nyyc.org .
Around the Island Race
As a precursor to the two-day series, Friday's Around the Island race
sent 78 entrants off on a 19-mile circumnavigation of Conanicut Island
in Narragansett Bay.
Sixteen two-boat teams entered to compete for the Rolex Cup, which was
won by Team NYYC Red, consisting of Richard Casner's Xhibition and Blair
Brown's Sforzando
The Rolex Cup was presented by Rolex to the New York Yacht Club in 2004
in honor of the 150th Annual Regatta.
More About the NYYC 154th Annual Regatta Presented by Rolex
The tradition of the Annual Regatta began at the New York Yacht Club's
original clubhouse in Hoboken, N.J., in 1845, during its second year of
existence.
The Annual Regatta is part of US-IRC Gulf Stream Series for IRC yachts
(www.us-irc.org) as well as the first leg of the 2008 NYYC
Classic Series for classic yachts (www.nyyc.org).
As it is in every even-numbered year, the Annual Regatta also is part of
the Onion Patch Series (www.bermudarace.com), which includes the Newport
to Bermuda Race and the Anniversary Regatta of the Royal Bermuda Yacht
Club, which takes place the Friday after the Newport to Bermuda Race.
IRC is the rating rule for the Annual Regatta and the Anniversary
Regatta, and ORR is required for the Bermuda Race entrants with an
additional option for IRC, which will be used for the purpose of scoring
the Onion Patch and determining an overall IRC winner for the Bermuda
Race (North Rock Beacon Trophy).
Later this summer, the New York Yacht Club will also host its sixth
biennial Race Week at Newport presented by Rolex. The event is scheduled
for July 19-27 with the first weekend devoted to Classics racing, in
honor of the 100th birthday of Olin J. Stephens, and the second half of
the week devoted to IRC, PHRF and One-Design competitions.