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Reed Baer and John Burnham win the 60th Shields National Championship at Larchmont Yacht Club

by Edward Padin 24 Sep 03:33 BST September 19-21, 2024
Grace ahead during the 60th Shields National Championship © Doug Reynolds

Larchmont (NY) Yacht Club hosted the Shields Class National Championship regatta on Long Island Sound from September 19-21, 2024. Twenty-two boats were entered in the Championship, hailing from local fleets and Narragansett Bay to Monterey, CA, and Edgartown, MA. Over three days, the maximum eight races were sailed in conditions ranging from light and shifty breezes on the opening day to a clocking easterly with wind speeds in the high teens for the series' final race.

In the end, it was co-skippers Reed Baer and John Burnham, hailing from Newport's Ida Lewis Yacht Club and Fleet #9, winning their fourth Shields National Championship (2002, 2011, 2016). Aboard Shields #107 Grace with Baer and Burnham were Rachel Balaban, Mat Buechner, and Pete Schott and, with a 1-2-4-2-1-3-3 scoreline after seven races, Gracie's uncatchable lead allowed them to skip the final race to pack-up their boat early for the drive back to Rhode Island the next morning.

Second place was also locked up after seven races by another Narragansett crew comprised of Matt Hirsch, Tim Dawson, Mat Van Note, Scotty Innes-Jones, and Nate Frizell. The competition for the final podium spot tightened up during the final two races. In the end, it was Larchmont's Ward Young sailing with his brother Andrew, Mike O'Connor, Billy Rohman, and Ben Cesare. They settled that question in dramatic fashion, winning both of the two final heats. There was a sense of nostalgia in Young's podium position as he was sailing Shields #25 Checkmate, the lovely "Shields Green" boat that originally belonged to and was raced by Cornelius Shields himself, the originator of the Class, which Fred Werblow sailed for decades before he sold her to Ward.

Also fighting for that third-place finish were the Buzzards Bay crew of Ken Deyett, Carolyn Petie, Josh Johnson, Luke Celu, and Katie Collins, who finished fourth one point behind Young. The local Larchmont team of Rob Dailey, Com Crocker, Anna Tikhononova, Patrick Slattery, and Ryan Zupon, another four points back, finished fifth.

On the water, the courses were straight-forward windward-leewards, but the shifting north/north easterly breezes combined with tidal changes put a premium on solid tactics and consistent course management. Over the seven races, the top boats demonstrated that consistency. Baer and Burnham's lowest score was a fourth, having won two races, and Hirsch's low scores were a tenth and a fifth. These two crews "had their game on." However, there were another six boats in the hunt, each earning at least one top-three finish, showing that this was anyone's Championship to win.

Holding the 60th Shields National Championship was clearly a celebration for the host club. LYC member Cornelius Shields had the Shields boat designed in the early 1960s and worked tirelessly to create fleets around the country. He provided boats to the various maritime academies who would then charter them to local sailors during the summers. Shields Fleet #1 is located at Larchmont Yacht Club and continues to be one of the strongest fleets in the nation. It is the Club's most active one-design fleet.

However, this diamond anniversary Championship celebration could not have been possible without over a year of preparation by Event-Co-Chairs Doug Millar and Matt Tym and over 70 Club volunteers bringing the Championship to life. Long-time Newport Shields sailor Peter Gerard traveled to Larchmont to serve as Co-PRO with LYC's Cynthia Parthemos, and a full jury was on the water observing the event from the signal boat, Satan's Toe. In addition, scores of onshore volunteers staffed the registration and hospitality desk, helped traveling boats get into and out of the water, and manned the Race Committee.

"For Matt and me, this regatta has been like having a second job for the past year. Our attention to every detail from logo design & crew gear, awards, sponsorship, housing visiting crews to our 60s throwback tie-dye shirts BBQ Thursday night made this a Championship to remember," noted Doug Millar. Matt Tym added, "Without the total cooperation of the Club's professional marine facilities and house staff, and the generous support of our sponsors McMichael Yacht Yards & Brokers and Carlsberg Beer, this could have been just another regatta. Instead, this weekend of racing and shoreside camaraderie will be remembered and talked about for years."

Given the historical link between the Shields boat, the Shields Class, and Larchmont Yacht Club, it was only befitting that LYC hosts this diamond anniversary Championship. Adding to the nostalgia at Saturday night's awards ceremony Carol Shields, Corny Shields daughter-in-law, was on-hand as was her son Corny IV who flew in from Montana for the event with his four-year-old son Corny V.

LYC Commodore Steve Leicht summed up LYC's approach to this and other regattas, saying, "It is in our Club's Mission Statement, and our membership's DNA, that we host world-class regattas. That's what we're here for and why we do it so well! As such, it should come as no surprise that the Shields Class held its National Championship in our waters for the fifteenth time. Larchmont Yacht Club looks forward to 2030 when we will again host the Shields National Championship as we celebrate our Club's 150th Anniversary."

Overall Results:

PosSail NoBoat NameSkipper / CrewClubR1R2R3R4R5R6R7R8Pts
1  107GraceReed Baer John Burnham / John Burnham co‑skipper / Rachel Balaban / Matt Buechner / Pete SchottIda Lewis Yacht Club1242133DNS16
2  USA 254AeolusMatt Hirsch / Tim Dawson / Mark Van Note / Scotty Innes‑Jones / Nate FrizellConanicut Yacht Club31103252DNS26
3  25CheckmateYoung / Young / O'Connor / Rohman / CesareLarchmont Yacht Club106183111130
4  237Bit~O~HoneyKen Deyett / Caarolyn Petie / Josh Johnson / Luke Celu / Katie CollinsBuzzard Bay15TLE24625231
5  5454Rob Dailey / Com Crocker / Ryan Zupon / Pat Slattery / Anna TikhononovaLarchmont Yacht Club9TLE65414635
6  106LadyJohn Mawe / Wes Bemus / John Mawe / Doug Millar / Kate Millar / Bill WigginsLarchmont Yacht Club64819619539
7  USA 26TangoKaren & Dan Ronan / Kevin Hynes / Katrina Ronan / Steve Ronan / Marion ManikerLarchmont Yacht Club4877579442
8  23RascalKurt Weisenfluh ‑ Matt Tym / Maura Weisenfluh / Chris Foley / Owen WeisenfluhLarchmont Yacht Club2TLE510114101152
9  USA 138EnvyAdam Walsh / John Gochberg / Scott Reichhelm / Mike Devlin / Lauren WalshNew York Yach Club13TLE31612815869
10  238White RabbitRichard Robbins / Ethan Robbins / Alan Silk / Peter Cassidy / James LambBeverly18320141797371
11  USA 221CorneliaStephen Glascock / Hayden Bennett / Curtis Adam / Garrett Carlson / Taylor FitzpatrickNYYC7TLE13913146UFD72
12  usa 180MartinMICHAEL RAJACICH JR / Michael Rajachich / Matt Rajachich / Eric Wagner / Nate Dunkertayc5712121416211480
13  176KatherineGregg Takata / Doug Campbell / Andrew Wertheim / Margaret Takata / Fred TreffeisenLarchmont Yacht Club12TLE919102213780
14  158GloryRon Oard / John Nothacker / Cullen Martin / Carolyn Garth / Rob SchuttNew York Yacht Club215151371011UFD82
15  96OctoberJames Wirtz / Dino Pick / Larry Gamble / Justin Lacy / Heath PackardMonterey Peninsula Yacht Club8TLE1418161516988
16  182LureSkip McGuire / Tim Walsh / Greg Kaldor / Kate Manion / Will GallagherLarchmont YC20TLE11171513121088
17  USA 205NemesisJonathan Krumeich / Adam Zakka / Zach Warner / Ted HelmeIndian Harbor Yacht Club16TLE1961920141296
18  41HavocMatthew Hays / Ken Bond / Chris Schoen / Tim Drucker / Tim SawyerLarchmont Yacht Club14TLE1821211281396
19  5Swamp FoxJames Lawless / Marta Brown / Bill Bond ‑ not Friday / Mike Mollerus ‑ Fri / Dana EmeryLarchmont YC19TLE1711818181799
20  220PhoenixDan VanderWoude / Polly VanderWoude / Erik Bengtsson / Chris Lonegro / Michael O'ConnellLarchmont Yacht Club11TLE161518172015102
21  USA 219DeJa VuSteve Mettler / Stuart Randall / Mike Bankero / John Hess / Cindy Alten‑DelottoEdgartown YC17TLE212020211716121
22  139DelaplaineJames Pala / Hunter Van Stetsen / Ashtin Signh / Ryan Moore / Max CuriozNaval Postgraduate School22TLE222222192218135