US Junior Championships - Another dazzling performance

by Jake Fish on 11 Aug 2012 The final day of racing at US Sailing’s Chubb US Junior Championships on San Francisco Bay proved to be a climactic finish for all three talented fleets.

The Sears Cup and the Bemis and Smythe Trophies were up for grabs in what was truly a great day for these young athletes.

The J/22 fleet turned in another dazzling performance on the water. In the end, the team of Jack Barton (San Anselmo, Calif.), Sam Barton (San Anselmo, Calif.), Corey Lynch (Tiburon, Calif.), and Sammy Shea (Kentfield, Calif.) overcame a two point deficit going into today’s final three races to win the Sears Cup. Finishing second and just one point behind the winners was Michael Madigan (Newport Beach, Calif.), Jimmy Madigan (Newport Beach, Calif.), Jack Thompson (Newport Beach, Calif.), and Johannes McElvain (San Diego, Calif.). Barton and crew got off to the start they needed with a win in race nine. They added fifth place finishes in races 10 and 11. Barton’s throwout was his fifth place. Madigan and crew got off to a rough beginning to their day with a 12th place/OCS in race nine. They bounced back with fourth and third place finishes to close out the championship, but it was not enough to catch Barton. Madigan had won five of the first six races of the event.

Christopher Ford (Millbrae, Calif.) and Daniel Ron (Belvedere, Calif.) continued their amazing regatta with two more wins in the C420 doublehanded fleet today to capture the Bemis Trophy. They won six of the 10 races conducted this week, including the final three. In second place, and nine points behind the winning team, was Kristopher Swanson (Kentfield, Calif.) and Alex Moody (Tiburon, Calif.). Swanson and Moody finished second and third in today’s races. They moved up from third to second on Friday.

This was only the second regatta Ford and Ron have sailed together, with the first being the Qualifier. 'We haven’t sailed together much, but we have sailed against each other a lot,' said Ford. 'We communicated really well about the state of the waves, the breeze, and were effectively able to keep the boat flat.'

Addison Hackstaff (St. Petersburg, Fla.) continued to excel on the singlehanded Byte CII course to win the Smythe Trophy by a six point margin. Hackstaff held off Clay Broussard (Houston, Texas), who was also very successful this week. Hackstaff and Broussard each posted finishes of first and second in today’s two races. The winning skipper won seven of 10 races in the regatta.

'I had no prior experience in the boat, so the key was to get it figured out as soon as possible,' said Hacskstaff.

The San Francisco Yacht Club, St. Francis Yacht Club, and Tiburon Yacht Club were outstanding hosts for US Sailing’s oldest championship.

Event website here