U.S. Match Racing Championship – Day 1 report

by Francis K. George on 14 Oct 2017 Peter Holz added an Aussie touch to his Midwestern team and sailed a brilliant undefeated first day at the U.S. Match Racing Championship at Oakcliff Sailing. A perfect 10-15 knot breeze brought plenty of shifts and David Storrs’ team called them perfectly to tie for second.

“I think what we did better than other boats was call the puffs and respond immediately,” said David. “Our communication was excellent. When Hayden (Goodirck) called for a header, I wouldn’t even look behind me to check for boats; I would just count down and tack.” David has been off the water all summer recovering from back surgery so this is a big victory for him.

Just off of third place is defending champion, Nevin Snow, who won a hard-fought race against his Georgetown coach, Janel Zarkowski and her team, but they may meet again in the knockout rounds.

Pearson Potts of Yankee Creole Racing, who is tied for second, spent all summer training in Oakcliff’s Match 40 for this event. “The moment we secured our spot in the Prince of Wales, we were thinking, ‘All right, on to the next one. Let’s go to every Match 40 regatta we can!’”

Tomorrow’s quarterfinals will identify the top four to compete in the forecasted big breeze on Sunday.