Veteran heads for Etchells Worlds Lake Michigan

by Michelle Nolan / Bellingham Herald on 31 Mar 2008 John Pedlow, has never lost his love of intense competition, so he is headed for a world championship event at age 63. 'I can’t play golf with Tiger Woods or catch for the Seattle Mariners, but I can ‘play’ with these world-class folks,' he said, explaining why he’s so enthusiastic about qualifying for the 2008 Etchells World Championship.

Some 90 to 100 of the world’s greatest three-man teams in the Etchells Class of 30-foot sailboats will compete for six days late in June. They’ll run races of two to two and one-half hours on a closed course on Lake Michigan in the shadow of Chicago’s skyline.

Pedlow, formerly CEO of Broadcast Electronics, and his wife, Joyce, have had a love affair with sailing since the 1970s. They’re looking forward to what he expects will be his last shot at world-class competition. They have five grown children and four grandchildren.

This will be a 'businessman’s special' for skipper Pedlow and fellow Bellingham residents Tom Malone and Craig Cooper. Malone is CEO of Microgreen and Cooper owns Cooper Marine Services. Pedlow is semi-retired but still advises management teams in private equity-owned businesses.

'Our goal at the worlds is not to bozo it up,' Pedlow said with a grin. 'A top-third finish would be huge for us. We just want to make a good showing. We want to come out of these races knowing we’ve done the very best we could, and executed well. There’s a lot of expectation management at this level. It’s so intense, you have to constantly remind yourself that this is fun.'

At Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pa. — not far from where the legendary Jim Thorpe once cavorted — Pedlow lettered in football as a 190-pound interior lineman and as a fastmoving defenseman in lacrosse.

He has never lost his love of focused competition, which is why Etchells Class sailing appeals to him.

'With so many boats on the starting line, a good start is critical,' he said of the six-race championship, which is decided on points. 'the start is absolutely nerve-wracking. the competition is extremely tight.'

And what happens if they get off to a bad start? 'Then we’ll go out and try to pick off as many boats as possible,' he said, displaying the pride accomplished sailors seem to develop.

He especially enjoys that he’s still constantly learning with every race. 'I’ve learned more in the past five years than ever before,' he said. 'This level of Etchells Class is significantly higher than anything I’ve done before. 'It’s mentally and physically exhausting, and a great challenge. There are 100 ways to make these boats go slow if we’re not careful. Every time we go out, we learn something new.'

Pedlow, a member of the Bellingham Yacht Club, and his crewmates will have a lot of local friends pulling for them. They hope to return from Chicago with plenty of good stories. 'This is my second shot at worlds,' he said. 'I competed in the 2000 Etchells World Championship in San Diego with (Bellingham’s) Gus Hodge and Dave Steffan. We finished in the middle of the fleet and had a great time.' His 7-year-old 1149 Etchells is moored in San Diego, where he has been racing winter and spring. His older USA 552, coowned with Malone, is moored in Squalicum Harbor.

Pedlow, Hodge and Steffan won the Bellingham Etchells Fleet season championship four times. Pedlow, Malone and Cooper claimed the 2007 Etchells title. Pedlow loves the Etchells Class, which was named for designer and developer Skip Etchells in the 1950s. 'When we moved to Bellingham in 1995, I was pleased to find a small Etchells Fleet here,' he said. 'The International Etchells Class is active in 11 countries around in the world. In the United States, there are 28 active fleets with almost 1,000 boats sailing. Participants include Olympic medalists, America’s Cup Skippers and national fleet champions.'

Pedlow says he began sailing by crewing in his 20s. 'I was fascinated by it all — strategy, tactics, execution — and I love the ocean and the beauty of the competition.'

Pedlow can look back on numerous competitive accomplishments, including the Catalina 27 national championship in 1979 and two titles in the prestigious San Diego to Ensenada Race. He also skippered the Holland 41 'Tomahawk' to fourth place in the San Diego to Manzanillo Race, and competed in two MORC International Championship regattas.

His affection for sailing extends to high-level race management, including the Star Class North American and World Championship and in America’s Cup competition.

He was race committee chairman for the San Diego Yacht Club in 1993 and 1994, running more than 500 races and serving as principal race officer for the Star Class North American Championship in 1993 and Star Worlds in 1994.

In the America’s Cup, he served as on-the-water advisor to ESPN in 1988 in San Diego, and coordinated on-the-water press operations for the 1992 Cup. For America’s Cup 1995, shortly before moving to Bellingham, he managed on-the-water operations for the Citizen Cup Defender Selection Series, the International America’s Cup Class Worlds and the 1995 America’s Cup.