2014 U.S. Melges 24 National Championship

2014 U.S. Melges 24 National Championship - Long haul

by Melges 24 on 15 Nov 2014

2014 Melges 24 U.S. National Championship downwind fleet racing. 2014 JOY | U.S. Melges 24 Class Association

The saying goes, 'it's a marathon, not a sprint,' and on the first day of the 2014 U.S. Melges 24 National Championship hosted by Davis Island Yacht Club (DIYC), PRO Eric Robbins made good on his promise.

It was a long day with the completion of five races, leaving the fleet with weary grins, and a well-earned session at the new DIYC tiki bar. Despite light and tricky breeze in the morning, then shifty and puffy breeze in the afternoon, the racing was stellar and the perfect reminder of why Melges 24 racing is still the best.

Bora Gulari, New England Ropes/West Marine Rigging - 2014 Melges 24 U.S. National Championship © 2014 JOY | U.S. Melges 24 Class Association

Early in the day, clouds covered the racing area and a light Northwest breeze allowed for two races to be completed. The tricky conditions gave way to huge areas of no wind on the course, followed by eight knot puffs and big direction changes. With tight racing from top to bottom, former U.S. National Champion Bora Gulari aboard New England Ropes/West Marine Rigging was able to navigate the minefields the best and take bullets in the first two races.

For the third race of the day, the clouds broke finally, then the breeze died and it looked the like the fleet might be migrating back to the dock. But just as the heat started to rise, so did the wind and without missing a beat, the 31-strong fleet of Melges 24s was able to complete three more races.

Brian Porter, Full Throttle - 2014 Melges 24 U.S. National Championship © 2014 JOY | U.S. Melges 24 Class Association

A steady breeze built sometimes touching the mid-teens and allowing teams if only for a moment, to put their bows up downwind and catch a ride. Brian Porter's Full Throttle won two of the three afternoon heats, while longtime Melges 24 veteran Bruce Ayres on Monsoon championed Race Four.

While the standings are tight overall, the real action is in the Corinthian fleet where Australian entry Kevin Nixon and his Accru+ team has locked horns with Roger Counihan's Just Add Water to maintain a slim two point advantage. With almost half the fleet qualifying as Corinthians (all-amateur), there will be plenty to watch on Day Two.

Kevin Nixon, Accru+ - 2014 Melges 24 U.S. National Championship © 2014 JOY | U.S. Melges 24 Class Association

Post racing, the fleet gathered on the lower level of DIYC to hold a debrief on what did and didn't work on the first day. The panel consisted Marty Kullman (helm on New Wave), Jeff Madrigali (helm on Mikey), Porter and Gulari, who helped spread their knowledge of how to sail these boats as fast possible. The forecast is for light wind the remainder of the weekend, but if there is breeze the fleet can expect a lot more racing.

Ryan Glaze, Gringo - 2014 Melges 24 U.S. National Championship © 2014 JOY | U.S. Melges 24 Class Association

Results:

Melges 24 (31 entries) Scoring: OneDesign

Position	Subdivision	Name	Boat Name	Race 1	Race 2	Race 3	Race 4	Race 5	Points
1	Open	Gulari, Bora	NE Ropes/WM Rigging	1	1	2	[4]	4	8.0
2	Open	Porter, Brian	Full Throttle	3	[5]	1	5	1	10.0
3	Open	Kullman, Marty	New Wave	2	3	4	3	[5]	12.0
4	Open	Welch, Kevin P	Mikey	6	[15]	6	2	2	16.0
5	Open	Ayres, Brucey	Monsoon	7	[23]	3	1	6	17.0
6	Open	Rhyne, Steve	Mojo	[21]	7	5	6	3	21.0
7	Corinthian	Nixon, Kevin	Accru	10	2	16	[18]	9	37.0
8	Open	Dietrich, Bent B	Kleine Rainbow	8	4	[21]	17	10	39.0
9	Corinthian	Counihan, Roger	Just Add Water	5	[25]	9	14	11	39.0
10	Corinthian	Glaze, Ryan	Gringo	9	18	8	[19]	7	42.0
11	Open	Boho, Steven	The 300	[18]	12	14	8	8	42.0
12	Corinthian	Schillebeeckx, Ian	Volleback	17	6	[27]	9	12	44.0
13	Open	Foxman, Scott	Relentless	12	17	11	7	[20]	47.0
14	Open	Schwarting, Gary	Obsession	4	16	[22]	15	13	48.0
15	Open	King, David	USA-505	13	9	15	[25]	14	51.0
16	Open	Haynie, George	Firewater	[19]	11	13	13	17	54.0
17	Open	Reid, Richard	Zingara	11	10	12	22	[23]	55.0
18	Open	Marisio, Sebastian	Il Mostro	16	20	7	16	[21]	59.0
19	Corinthian	Britts, Rob	Hot Mess	14	[24]	19	10	16	59.0
20	Corinthian	Hoye, David	Rocket Science	[22]	13	17	11	18	59.0
21	Open	Blouin, Joe	Wicked Witch	25	8	10	23	[26]	66.0
22	Corinthian	Shannon, Kc	Shaka	[24]	22	23	12	15	72.0
23	Corinthian	Kroetsch, Bob	Rogue	15	21	18	[24]	22	76.0
24	Corinthian	Schmiedl, Manfred	Brio	20	26	20	[29]	19	85.0
25	Corinthian	Davenport, Frank	Rippin'	28	14	26	21	[29]	89.0
26	Corinthian	Esfahani, Darius	Drunken' Donkey	26	19	25	20	[30]	90.0
27	Open	Picknell, Kent	Apex	27	28	[30]	27	25	107.0
28	Corinthian	Steyn, Marc	Vapour Trail	23	[31]	29	30	27	109.0
29	Corinthian	Team, Uvm Sailing	University of Vermont	[32/DNS]	30	24	28	28	110.0
30	Corinthian	Tulloch, Brian	Waternymph 3	30	29	28	[31]	24	111.0
31	Corinthian	Kalinski, Christoph	Zoo	29	27	[31]	26	31	113.0

Subdivision: Melges 24 Corinthian (15 entries) Scoring: OneDesign

Position	Subdivision	Name	Boat Name	Race 1	Race 2	Race 3	Race 4	Race 5	Points
1	Corinthian	Nixon, Kevin	Accru	10	2	16	[18]	9	37.0
2	Corinthian	Counihan, Roger	Just Add Water	5	[25]	9	14	11	39.0
3	Corinthian	Glaze, Ryan	Gringo	9	18	8	[19]	7	42.0
4	Corinthian	Schillebeeckx, Ian	Volleback	17	6	[27]	9	12	44.0
5	Corinthian	Britts, Rob	Hot Mess	14	[24]	19	10	16	59.0
6	Corinthian	Hoye, David	Rocket Science	[22]	13	17	11	18	59.0
7	Corinthian	Shannon, Kc	Shaka	[24]	22	23	12	15	72.0
8	Corinthian	Kroetsch, Bob	Rogue	15	21	18	[24]	22	76.0
9	Corinthian	Schmiedl, Manfred	Brio	20	26	20	[29]	19	85.0
10	Corinthian	Davenport, Frank	Rippin'	28	14	26	21	[29]	89.0
11	Corinthian	Esfahani, Darius	Drunken' Donkey	26	19	25	20	[30]	90.0
12	Corinthian	Steyn, Marc	Vapour Trail	23	[31]	29	30	27	109.0
13	Corinthian	Team, Uvm Sailing	University of Vermont	[32/DNS]	30	24	28	28	110.0
14	Corinthian	Tulloch, Brian	Waternymph 3	30	29	28	[31]	24	111.0
15	Corinthian	Kalinski, Christoph	Zoo	29	27	[31]	26	31	113.0

Subdivision: Melges 24 Open (16 entries) Scoring: OneDesign

Position	Subdivision	Name	Boat Name	Race 1	Race 2	Race 3	Race 4	Race 5	Points
1	Open	Gulari, Bora	NE Ropes/WM Rigging	1	1	2	[4]	4	8.0
2	Open	Porter, Brian	Full Throttle	3	[5]	1	5	1	10.0
3	Open	Kullman, Marty	New Wave	2	3	4	3	[5]	12.0
4	Open	Welch, Kevin P	Mikey	6	[15]	6	2	2	16.0
5	Open	Ayres, Brucey	Monsoon	7	[23]	3	1	6	17.0
6	Open	Rhyne, Steve	Mojo	[21]	7	5	6	3	21.0
7	Open	Dietrich, Bent B	Kleine Rainbow	8	4	[21]	17	10	39.0
8	Open	Boho, Steven	The 300	[18]	12	14	8	8	42.0
9	Open	Foxman, Scott	Relentless	12	17	11	7	[20]	47.0
10	Open	Schwarting, Gary	Obsession	4	16	[22]	15	13	48.0
11	Open	King, David	USA-505	13	9	15	[25]	14	51.0
12	Open	Haynie, George	Firewater	[19]	11	13	13	17	54.0
13	Open	Reid, Richard	Zingara	11	10	12	22	[23]	55.0
14	Open	Marisio, Sebastian	Il Mostro	16	20	7	16	[21]	59.0
15	Open	Blouin, Joe	Wicked Witch	25	8	10	23	[26]	66.0
16	Open	Picknell, Kent	Apex	27	28	[30]	27	25	107.0