Racing for Glory: Teams gear up for Melges 24 Worlds at PCC Prelims
by U.S. Melges 24 Class Association 1 Aug 2024 20:47 BST
August 3-4, 2024
Sandra Askew - USA-869, Flying Jenny (Key Biscayne, FL) © Martina Orsini / Bacardi Invitational Regatta
Get ready for a dynamic display of sailing prowess as top Melges 24 teams converge in San Francisco for the Pacific Coast Championship (PCC) on August 3-4, hosted by the Richmond Yacht Club. The PCC is a distinct opportunity for each team to fine-tune their strategies, crew, and boats in an exciting prelude to the highly anticipated 2024 Diversified Melges 24 World Championship, scheduled for August 17-24 at The San Francisco Yacht Club.
The Pacific Coast Championship is earmarked as the official pre-Worlds regatta, welcoming 19 teams to the San Francisco Bay racing stage, including newly crowned 2024 U.S. National Champion Geoff Fargo racing Sentinel.
"We don't have any expectations as we look ahead to the Worlds," said Fargo post-Nationals. "We're just going to try and sail as fast and as clean as we can." He will retain most of his National Championship team: tactician Jackson Benvenutti, Willie McBride, Grant Janov, and the addition of Alec Anderson.
Other notable competitors registered to race include former World Champion Peter Duncan on Raza Mixta, two-time U.S. National Champion Bora Gulari on Kingspoke, Nationals runner-up Cuyler Morris on Dark Horse, 2024 Charleston Race Week Champ Anthony Kotoun on Stepping Razor, and Sandra Askew on Flying Jenny.
As many as nine teams have qualified to race the PCC as Corinthian including notables such as Duane Yoslov's Looper, Matt Hamilton's Chop Chop, Kent Pierce's Average, Bob Harf's Bones, Nick Pullen's Powdered Toast Man, and Kathrin Wagner's Tinka. Each and every one are all formidable challengers aiming to make the forthcoming World Championship their best performance yet.
The PCC is designed to help teams prepare for the main event by fine-tuning their boats and honing their teamwork in a real-Worlds environment. Racing is expected to take place in the same vicinity as the World Championship, providing teams with two days of the real-time, big-breeze conditions that only San Francisco Bay can deliver.
With its conclusion, it will be warp speed ahead to the Worlds, which promises nothing less than intense competition and high-stakes racing from top sailors representing Canada, Croatia, Germany, Italy, and the USA, all vying for the pinnacle trophy in the Melges 24 Class.
View the 2024 diversified Worlds entry list here.
The Melges 24 World Championship trophy is one of the most coveted achievements in all of the sport of sailing, with a storied list of past winners such as Vince Brun, Giorgio Zuccoli, Flavio Favini, Harry Melges III, Sebastian Col, Jimmy Spithill, Nicola Celon, Dave Ullman, Chris Larson, Brian Porter, Chris Rast, and Olympian Stu McNay (competing currently in Paris in the 470).
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