Reid on Zingara captures big win at 2023 Melges 24 North Americans in Toronto
by International Melges 24 Class Association 20 Sep 10:56 PDT
September 15-17, 2023
Melges 24 racing on the Toronto lakefront! © Alina Heinrich
It was a very Canadian 2023 Melges 24 North American Championship in Toronto this past weekend.
Richard Reid's Melges 24 Zingara with tactician Brian Kamilar along with crew members Ian Sloan, Bill Gooderham and Serena Vilage won the highly-coveted International Class title by two points. Top Corinthian teams Dan Berezin on Surprise and Megan Ratliff's Decorum brought out the best in heavy competition finishing the event in second and third respectively.
Hosted by the National Yacht Club (TheNYC) in Toronto, Canada, teams enjoyed 3 days of world-class racing. "The event was extremely well organized. The NYC and its volunteers did a remarkable job," said Mike Gozzard, owner of Rush and defending 2022 Quantum Great Lakes Cup Series Champion. "Despite what appeared to be an unfavorable forecast, the race committee pulled off 10 high-quality races that provided some of the closest boat-to-boat action I have seen in a while. It really was tight sailing out there."
Consistency was definitely the name of the game. Every day, at every mark rounding, the leadership of the fleet changed, but in the end, it was Reid's string of top-three finishes that helped him get the overall win.
Both Berezin and Ratliff grabbed their share of race wins, which kept the overall competition on edge. Scot Zimmerman's Bad Idea and Robert Wigny's Notorious enjoyed a successful weekend of high-performance racing to finish in the top five.
Overall Results: (top three)
1. Zingara CAN853 - Richard Reid (Skipper), Billy Gooderham, Brian Kamilar, Ian Sloan, Serena Vilage - 3-2-4-2-3-1-3-12-[12/RET] | 21pts
2. Surprise CAN629 - Dan Berezin (Skipper), Rachel Harris, Denys Kalchenko, Alex Kapustin, Misha Mayevskyy - 2-1-3-5-4-3-1-3-[6]-1 | 23pts
3. Decorum USA805 - Megan Ratliff (Skipper), Nicholas Diephouse, Miro Kaffka, Steve Liebel, Hunter Ratliff - 4-4-1-1-6-[8]-2-4-1-6 | 29pts
Corinthian Results: (top three)
1. Surprise CAN629 - Dan Berezin (Skipper), Rachel Harris, Denys Kalchenko, Alex Kapustin, Misha Mayevskyy - 2-1-3-5-4-3-1-3-[6]-1 | 23pts
2. Decorum USA805 - Megan Ratliff (Skipper), Nicholas Diephouse, Miro Kaffka, Steve Liebel, Hunter Ratliff - 4-4-1-1-6-[8]-2-4-1-6 | 29pts
3. Bad Idea USA717 - Scot Zimmerman (Skipper), Bob Clark, Kevin Fisher, Andy Girrell - 1-3-7-4-2-4-5-2-[10]-7 | 35pts
2023 Melges 24 North American Championship Full Results
Awards were given for the Top 3 overall and the Top 3 Corinthian teams, with two Corinthian teams clinching two burgees each. The trophies were created by an Indigenous artist, Corinne Hunt, and are from the "Namwayut - We Are All One collection". These intricate platters and bowls are carved from recycled glass and can be displayed as an art piece or used as tableware. The first-place awards are entitled "Where Air Meets Water: The Eagle and the Orca."