Kennedy Cup contested in the Chesapeake Bay

by Nancy Haberland on 6 Nov 2012 The Kennedy Cup, Intercollegiate Sailing's Big Boat National Championship, was contested in the Chesapeake Bay on 2/3/4 November. Ten teams from around the country vied for the chance to become this year's winning crew. Although Hurricane Sandy delayed preparation and made travel difficult for many schools, all entrants were still able to make it to Navy for the event, which was finely run by PRO Wayne Bretsch and Head Judge Ken Morrison.

Two races were run on Friday with NW winds ranging from 12-25 knots. Cal Maritime demonstrated great comfort with the strong wind by leading the fleet with a score of 2-1. They were closely followed by the Naval Academy and NY Maritime.

On Saturday, sailors faced even colder and windier conditions. Temperatures reached only into the upper 40s and the wind speed increased throughout the day from 15 knots to near 30 by the end of the day. The crew from the Naval Academy sailed almost flawless races to lead the day with three first place finishes. Cal Maritime and Kings Point rounded out the top three places.

Sunny skies and gentler winds came in for Sunday’s two races. Genoas were used for the first time all regatta, which proved much to the liking of Mass Maritime who scored 3-1 to lead the day.

In the end, it was the team from the Naval Academy who was the most consistent throughout the event. Winning five of seven races, Navy ended up winning the Kennedy Cup National Big Boat Championship. With the victory, they earned the right to represent the US at the Student Yachting World Cup in France in 2013. Sailing for the Naval Academy were skipper Steve Jaenke, Charlie Johnson, Sam Ross, Kelsey Ragsdale, Sean Brown, Andy Beeler, Roscoe Thomas, and Ethan Madison.

Final Results are as follows:

1. US Naval Academy 1 - 3 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 – 4 12 points
2. Cal Maritime 2 - 1 - 2 - 2 - 4 - 7 – 3 21 points
3. Kings Point 3 - 5 - 3 - 3 - 4 - 2 – 8 28 points
4. NY Maritime 5 - 2 - 6 - 4 - 3 - 8 – 5 33 points
5. Maine Maritime 7 - 11- 4 - 4 - 8 - 5 – 2 41 points
6. Coast Guard Academy 4 - 4 - 5 - 5 - 9 - 6 – 9 42 points
7. Mass Maritime 6 - 9 - 9 - 9 - 7 - 3 – 1 44 points
8. U. of Michigan 9 - 8 - 11- 6 - 5 - 4 – 7 50 points
9. St. Mary's 8 - 6 - 8 - 10-10- 9 – 6 57 points
10. Army 11 - 7 - 7 - 7 - 6 -10- 10 58 points