American Yacht Club in Rye, NY hosted the 2010 Melges 32 East Coast Championship onMay 14-16. The fleet size doubled this year, with 13 teams from England, New Zealand, California and the East Coast experiencing a wide range of conditions during the three-day event.A popular and highly successful component of Melges 32 Class regattas is “Take a Junior Sailing Day.” On Saturday, each team welcomed a Junior AYC sailor and presented them with a team uniform. A gusty 17-22 knot northwesterly provided an unforgettable experience, with 20-knot boatspeeds and spinouts aplenty on the downwind legs.
P.D. Duncan, having learned the best way to hang on “when we spin out” from tactician Charlie Enright on AYC member Ed Tillinghast’s Dark N’Stormy, enthused, “I’m having the greatest time ever!” Colin Kramer, who smiled his way through a spectacular knockdown aboard Stuart Simpson’s Team Barbarians (London, England), said it was “scary fast and fun at the same time!”
After a five-leg race in light, shifty breezes on Sunday, Alex Jackson’s Leenabarca (Riverside, CT) emerged as the East Coast Champion with 29 points. Sailing with Jackson were tactician Rob Greenhalgh (PUMA Ocean Racing’s Helmsman and Trimmer for the 2011-2012 Volvo Ocean Race), Peter Greenhalgh, Steve Irish, Jesse Fielding, Chris Coulson, David Rasmussen and Jeffery Brantley. Finishing second was a relative newcomer to the class, Phil Lotz’s Arethusa (New Canaan, CT; 32 points). Rounding out the top three was KipMeadows’ roXanne (RockyMount, NC; 34 points). American YC will host theMelges 32 U.S. Nationals on June 10-12, 2011. ✦
Joy Dunigan and Ed Tillinghast contributed to this report.
