Helly Hansen NOOD Regatta returns to Marblehead Race

by Evily Giannopoulos on 28 Jun 2017 The largest national sailboat racing circuit in the United States, the Helly Hansen National Offshore One Design (NOOD) Regatta series, returns to Marblehead, Mass., for its final stop of the season during Marblehead Race Week, July 27-30. The event is organized by Sailing World and hosted by Corinthian Yacht Club.

Hundreds of local and visiting sailors in nearly a dozen classes of sailboats will compete for individual trophies and the top prize: an invitation to race in the Helly Hansen NOOD Caribbean Championship Regatta, presented by Sunsail in the British Virgin Islands in October.

The annual four-day event features one-design racing, where teams compete in races against identical boats. Points are accumulated based on finishing position in each race, and the team with the fewest total points at the conclusion of the regatta wins its class.

Regatta organizers then calculate an overall winner based on the strongest individual finish in the most competitive class. The overall winner earns a berth in the championship regatta, held Oct. 22-29 in the British Virgin Islands. In addition to winners from each of the five NOOD events this year, interested sailors can charter and compete against the overall winners at the championship.

As part of Helly Hansen’s commitment to the sport, a select team of local teens will be selected to compete against the pros as part of the Helly Hansen Junior Crew.

The Helly Hansen NOOD Regatta is a spectator-friendly event. Races can be seen from private yachts along the racecourses. Race start times are dependent on wind and weather, but racing is scheduled to begin at noon each day.

For the third consecutive year, Helly Hansen—a global leader in technical sailing apparel with more than 135 years of experience protecting professionals on the water—continues as title sponsor for the elite sailing series.

Operating since 1988, Sailing World’s National Offshore One Design Regattas, known as the “NOODs,” are the longest-running and most popular sailboat racing series in North America. Every NOOD regatta attracts regional, national and international talent to compete against the local community on their home waters.