505 North American Championship 2025 at Kingston Yacht Club

by Lexi Pline 25 Aug 07:22 BST August 20-24, 2025

After four days of thrilling competition on the waters of the St. Lawrence River, 505 class legends Howie Hamlin and Jeff Nelson secured their first 505 North American Championship title as a team, adding another championship feather to their cap. Battling it out for the podium, Mike Martin / Adam Lowry finished second, while Mike Holt / Carl Smit rounded out the podium in third.

This will be Hamlin's eighth and Nelson's fifth North American title, but this year is the first time they've been able to clinch the title as a team.

"There's nothing like winning, but this one is extra sweet. Jeff and I have been sailing together for many years, and yet the North Americans trophy has eluded us, so it was really important for me to finally deliver the speed that Jeff needs to execute his tactical brilliance," said Hamlin.

"Jeff's just a phenomenal sailor. In 505 sailing there's nothing harder than crewing - crews have to be a 220 pound ballerina that's a tactical genius and who can make the boat go fast, and Jeff delivers on all of those things."

"We talked a little bit before the week, it's Howard's 50th anniversary of his first NAs, it's my 25th, and it certainly hasn't gotten easier over the years," said Nelson of the event. "It felt great to win in this venue where it's been more moderate conditions, not just a one-side race track that's all about boatspeed; it was very tactically difficult and tricky both upwind and downwind."

Hamlin and Nelson excelled in the mid-range conditions, where they were able to use their tactical skills to best their competition. They credit their consistency, good starts, and downwind speed to their success. And what a success it was - the pair won seven of 12 races, with only two scores outside the top five.

Hosted by the Kingston Yacht Club, the 2025 championship brought together 36 teams from across the United States and Canada, showcasing the depth, talent, and camaraderie of the 505 class. From world champions to parent-child teams and new faces in the fleet, competitors celebrated what makes the class unique: speed, skill, and community.

The regatta kicked off a solid east breeze, unusual for Kingston, as a building thermal breeze carried the fleet through four competitive opening races. Early leaders Mike Holt/Carl Smit were closely trailed by Hamlin/Nelson and Nic Baird/Eric Anderson, setting the stage for a tightly contested championship.

Mid-regatta, Hamlin and Nelson hit their stride in the moderate, flat-water conditions, delivering a string of podium finishes that positioned them firmly atop the standings. Behind them, the battle for the remaining podium spots intensified. A tie between Mike Martin/Adam Lowry and Mike Holt/Carl Smit kept the pressure high, while Baird/Anderson and Doug Hagan/Arne Wittemer remained in striking distance, with few points between them in fourth and fifth, respectively.

Overall Results:

Pos	Nat	Sail No	Helm	Crew	Club	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	R8	R9	R10	R11	R12	Pts
1st	USA	9262	Howard Hamlin	Jeff Nelson	NHYC‑ABYC	‑13	1	1	3	5	1	1	1	1	3	1	(DNC)	18
2nd	USA	9106	Mike Martin	Adam Lowry	StFYC	2	3	‑10	‑9	3	2	2	2	4	1	6	3	28
3rd	USA	9072	Mike Holt	Carl Smit	SCYC	6	2	‑8	1	‑7	4	3	3	6	5	3	2	35
4th	USA	9248	Nic Baird	Eric Anderson	St.FYC	3	‑10	3	2	6	8	5	4	‑9	4	5	1	41
5th	USA	9252	Douglas Hagan	Arne Wittemer	PCYC	5	8	2	‑10	1	3	‑12	8	2	7	8	7	51
6th	USA	9250	John Turney	Brendan Heussler	CYC	4	7	6	8	4	‑18	7	‑9	3	6	4	4	53
7th	USA	8576	Mike Punnett	Rich Mundell	PCYC	8	4	‑11	6	2	5	11	6	10	‑14	7	8	67
8th	USA	8808	Augie Diaz	Bobby Starck	BBYC	1	5	7	12	8	7	4	11	‑22	‑19	10	18	83
9th	USA	8786	Luke Ingalls	John Ingalls	SYC	11	11	9	4	‑25	6	13	7	11	‑18	9	5	86
10th	USA	8854	Craig Thompson	Adam Wolnikowski	Unafilliated	16	‑23	‑18	7	10	9	6	13	13	10	13	6	103
11th	USA	8856	Ethan Bixby	Ted Huebner	SPSC	10	6	16	13	‑20	11	‑18	12	5	17	2	14	106
12th	CAN	8467	Jeff Boyd	Danielle Boyd	KYC	‑26	12	5	11	13	‑17	15	5	12	12	14	13	112
13th	USA	8930	Duane Delfosse	Mike Hull	LSYC	‑20	17	14	20	‑24	15	8	10	7	2	11	10	114
14th	IRL	8987	Peter Scannell	John Dunlea	MBSC	18	18	4	5	18	12	9	(DNC)	8	13	‑21	11	116
15th	USA	8937	Tim Murphy	Gavin Murphy	SCYC	15	16	12	17	11	16	16	14	17	‑20	16	‑23	150
16th	CAN	8841	Ali Meller	Devlin Lovshin	KYC	‑23	13	15	16	‑26	13	19	17	20	8	18	22	161
17th	CAN	8821	Luke Strickland	Christian Voyer	NSC	7	14	13	14	9	‑27	27	25	15	16	24	(RET)	164
18th	USA	9005	Thomas Kivney	Gordon Russell	HYC	14	21	‑25	15	12	20	14	19	(DNC)	21	20	9	165
19th	CAN	9042	Chris Tattersall	Bruce Clifford	MSC	9	26	‑29	‑29	14	22	10	20	24	11	12	19	167
20th	USA	9095	Macy Nelson	Steen Byskov	WRSC	22	15	17	22	15	‑25	23	16	18	15	‑26	25	188
21st	USA	9116	Jimmy Franzone	Bjorn Antell	StFYC	‑29	9	22	25	21	26	‑29	15	14	28	17	12	189
22nd	CAN	8696	Deborah Ashby	David Adams	NSC	12	19	19	18	22	21	20	18	‑27	‑30	19	21	189
23rd	USA	9172	Paul Scoffin	Jason Breeden	NYCSD	‑28	20	27	19	17	14	17	24	23	(RET)	15	16	192
24th	CAN	8866	Cynthia Des Brisay	Charles Hansen	KitsilanoYC	17	25	20	21	16	10	22	23	21	‑26	‑28	20	195
25th	USA	8643	Barney Harris	Tony Zakrajsek	PRSA & OHCC	19	24	21	26	(RET)	19	21	(DNC)	16	25	22	15	208
26th	CAN	8600	Marie Gendron	David Browne	NSC	21	(DNS)	(DNC)	24	31	31	24	21	26	9	25	17	229
27th	CAN	9186	Shona Moss Lovshin	Stephen Lovshin	NSC	24	‑28	24	27	19	‑29	25	22	19	23	27	24	234
28th	CAN	8410	Malcolm MacGillivray	Kyber Lovshin	BYC /NSC	27	22	23	23	23	28	28	26	28	24	‑30	‑29	252
29th	CAN	8442	Thomas Adolph	Stephen Adolph	NSC	25	‑31	26	‑34	29	24	30	28	29	22	31	28	272
30th	CAN	8587	Paul Place	Rae‑Anne Norwood	NSC	30	29	31	28	28	‑32	‑32	27	25	27	29	26	280
31st	CAN	9138	Marek Balinski	Alex Taylor	OHCC	32	27	28	32	27	23	26	(DNC)	(DNC)	DNC	23	27	281
32nd	CAN	8753	Conor Morrison	Drake Morrison	OHCC	‑35	‑34	30	30	30	33	33	29	30	29	32	30	306
33rd	CAN	7776	James Clarke	Rob Voyer	NSC	31	‑33	‑34	33	32	30	31	30	32	31	33	31	314
34th	CAN	8951	Finn Abush	Joshua Abush	EYC	34	30	32	‑35	33	34	34	32	33	32	‑35	32	326
35th	CAN	7605	Adam Gesing	Perryn Bennett	KYC	33	32	33	31	34	‑35	35	31	31	(RET)	34	33	327