Jabin on Ramrod lifts 2009 Melges 32 Gold Cup

by International Melges 32 Class Association Media on 7 Dec 2009 Congratulations are in order for Rod Jabin (Annapolis, MD.) on Ramrod as he and his crew consisting of tactician Gavin Brady, Mike Beasley, Joe Gibson, Ted Kaczmarski, Kate Torgeson and Ray Wulff are the 2009 Melges 32 Gold Cup Champions .'We rocked it! We really didn't expect this.' said Jabin after racing. 'I love the downwind run in this boat. The feeling that you get while crossing boats at 15 knots is just incredible. This is pure exhilaration.'In second overall is Joe Woods (Torquay, UK) on Red and in third is current U.S. National Champion Andy Lovell (New Orleans, La.) on Rougarou.

Going into today’s races, Kip Meadows (Rocky Mount, N.C.) on roXanne led the charge by five points, followed by Jabin. A turn key moment in the regatta for Jabin was being given redress for Saturday’s first race after a collision with Edward Tillinghast (New York, N.Y.) on Dark n’ Stormy at the start. This put him within reaching distance of the Gold Cup title. With this decision, Lovell (New Orleans, La.) shuffled back to third while John Taylor (Jupiter Island, Fla.) on Ninkasi assumed fourth.

The Lauderdale Yacht Club rolled out the red carpet last night for the twenty-three teams. Prime rib, filet mignon and grilled colossal shrimp were all on tap as well as an exquisite wine selection. Teams enjoyed a world class dinner, while catching up on the day’s racing.

As usual, the final day of racing at the 2009 Melges 32 Gold Cup Regatta was intense. The weather, superb. Although a little cooler than desired, the Florida sunshine was quick to warm and was a welcome sight after the doom and gloom of last evening’s frontal boundary lined with thunderstorms and rain.

Racing got underway on time with a course bearing of 010, 8-10 knots with flat seas. Dalton Devos (Harbor Springs, Mich.) on Delta took charge almost from the very start. Lovell rounded the mark in first with DeVos, right on his transom. Downwind, DeVos put the breeze to his advantage passing through the gate, now commanding the lead. Lanfranco Cirillo (Tori, Italy) moved ahead to second while Lovell slipped to third. Jabin, Bob Hughes (Macatawa Bay, Mich.) on Heartbreaker and Taylor all challenged for the lead, but DeVos managed to hang on until the finish. Lovell recovered nicely to take second while Cirillo was third.

Things really picked up for race two with the breeze clocking an easy 15-18 knots. Great big, waves made for perfect plaining conditions as overnight leader Meadows looked to be back in the groove with a big win. Second place finisher Phil Lotz (Newport, R.I.) on Arethusa also got the hang of things with a great race and in third was Hughes.

Race three delivered another exceptional performance of the power and speed of the Melges 32 with International Class President Jeff Ecklund (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) on STAR out front from the get go leading the entire race for the win. Lotz got in on the action once more with a phenomenal second place finish, just ahead of Woods in third.

Top Ten Results:
1.) Rod Jabin, Ramrod - 1-2-[16]-7.14RDG-7-4-16-4 = 41.1
2.) Joe Woods, Red - 9-[19]-3-1-16-6-4-3 = 42
3.) Andy Lovell, Rougarou - 3-1-9-7-[14]-2-14-11 = 47
4.) John Taylor, Ninkasi - 6-3-8-3-[15]-8-6-14 = 48
5.) Kip Meadows, roXanne - 10-6-4-6-3-[20]-1-19 = 49
6.) Jason Carroll, Argo - 4-8-[12]-11-5-7-10-5 = 50
7.) Lanfranco Cirillo, Fantasticaaa - 16-4-2-4-[22]-3-13-12 = 54
8.) Jeff Ecklund, STAR - 8-7-15-[18]-4-14-9-1 = 58
9.) Bob Hesse, Lake Effect - 2-15-5-8-11-15-[20]-6 = 62
10.) Robert Hughes, Heartbreaker - [20]-16-7-12-8-5-3-20 = 71


An extra special thanks to the Lauderdale Yacht Club and a host of generous volunteers. Without you and your unwavering support this event would not be possible, most especially to Regatta Chair, Bob Meagher! As always, a very special thanks to all the competitors, especially those that traveled from abroad to be with the fleet in Ft. Lauderdale.

Special thanks to Ninkasi Racing Team as first, they supplied the beer at the end of each racing day. Not one person went thirsty. A very special thanks specifically to John Taylor as the 'Hops' tender enabled the class to bring everyone unable to attend news by-the-minute on the blog as well as provide hundreds of photographs of the event. Thanks to Ninkasi and to John!

The Gold Cup officially kicked off the 2010 racing season. Next up is Key West Race Week, where already an impressive 17 entries have been received. All teams are encouraged to get their entries in as soon as possible. The Miami Grand Prix on March 4-7 will round out the Melges 32 Winter Series. Mark your calendars as not only is an incredible Audi Sailing Series planned for 2010 in Europe, but the U.S. National Championship in Harbor Springs, Mich. is set to be spectacular and the 2010 World Championship happens in San Francisco, Calif. on September 22-25, hosted by the St. Francis Yacht Club.

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