Shannon snags win in Grade 3 Match Race Regatta at Oakcliff Sailing

Shannon snags win in Grade 3 © Oakcliff Sailing

Last weekend Oakcliff hosted another successful COVID-compliant match race event: a Grade 3 match race regatta. Seven teams faced off in Cold Spring Harbor in light winds across the board and a nice 7-12 westerly on Sunday, which allowed them to finish the round robin, consolation round, and finals.

Long-time Oakcliff match racer Doug Shannon took first place in a neck-and-neck finals race with Pearson Potts. Derek Webster, winner of last month's Grade 5, took third. See the full results here. (P.S. Derek is a happy father to a newborn baby girl).

"We had great upwind boat speed and our new tactician, Chris Poole, really helped us play the course right," said Doug Shannon, winner of the event. "I've also been able to pull together a consistent crew for the first time since I started sailing at Oakcliff, which was a huge advantage this weekend."

Shannon was also proud to have won a regatta with such a high level of competition. "I'm proud to share the podium with Pearson, who's ranked twenty third in the world match race rankings, and Derek Webster, who beat me out for the title in Oakcliff's Grade 5 last month," he said.

Oakcliff also used the Grade 3 as a beta test of our new onboard live streaming set up for the Match 40s. By securing a phone with live streaming capability to a media tower (made in-house with Oakcliff ingenuity!) on the back of the boat, viewers can watch a match race from on the boat itself, giving great insight into the minds of some of the country's best match racers (and some funny audio clips). We will continue to beta test the live streaming during this weekend's Grade 4, so make sure to check out Facebook page to see all the action. Doug Shannon will be back to defend his title, so it's sure to be action-packed.