57th Governor's Cup Day 1: Last year's finalists, Petersen (USA) and Tapper (Aus), shine
by Susan Kenney 24 Jul 2024 18:16 AEST
July 22-27, 2024
Jeffrey Petersen (USA) at helm with crew Daniel Pegg and Enzo Mendotti - 57th Governor's Cup © Tom Walker
With all four semi-finalists from last year back in town, it should come as no surprise that two of them — last year's winner Jeffery Petersen (USA), and runner-up Cole Tapper (AUS) — are currently tied for the lead on six wins (and no losses) each.
Featuring light but manageable 5-7 knot winds off Newport Beach, CA, the 57th Governor's Cup International Youth Match Racing Championship had a challenging opening day for the twelve teams from five countries.
The "GovCup" is the oldest and most prestigious youth match racing championship in the world, and is sponsored again this year by Terry Causey, Call of The Sea, Dr. Rob Ray, DISC and the Croul Family.
Racing got under way today with the first six matches of Round Robin 1 completed under the superb Balboa Yacht Club race committee led by Dr. Don Becker. Round Robin racing continues Wednesday and Thursday. At the end of RR2, the top four yachts advance to a best of five semi-finals series on Friday and Saturday, with the best of five Finals set later Saturday afternoon.
The other two 2023 semi-finalists, Justin Callahan (USA) and Morgan Pinckney (USA), had mixed results. Pinckney went 4-2 while Callahan only managed one win. Meanwhile, Josh Hyde (NZL) and Daniel Kemp (AUS), both went 4-2 while Marcello Torre (AUS) went 3-3.
If there was ever any question about the importance of a good crew work, Jeffrey Petersen's team with crew Daniel Pegg and Enzo Menditto were near flawless — including a textbook penalty exoneration "spin" right before the finish with their match with Robbie McCutcheon (NZL) who ended the day on 2-4. Just before the finish line, Team Petersen managed a perfect spinnaker dowse followed by a quick set to ensure a win and keeping their win-streak alive.
Another example of excellent boat-handling was Daniel Kemp's win over Justin Callahan. Kemp passed Callahan after their boat had a poor jibe, allowing Kemp, to windward, to roll them. Both boats were on port, and at exactly the right moment Kemp did a quick jibe onto starboard forcing Callahan to do a rush jibe to keep clear of Kemp as the right-of-way boat. Kemp's superb boat handling through the jibes gave them better boat speed, and they went on to win the match.
While many match racers have gone on to win a major championship after a poor first day, Justin Callahan team has an uphill battle. However, in a post-race interview Callahan said they remained confident, saying, "You'll see us in the semi-finals with 5 losses, what I had today."
The first of four live "Pre-RaceMorning Shows" produced by GovCup TV begin Wednesday morning and run through Saturday morning, every day at 0900 PDT / 1600 UTC. Watch them live on on the Balboa YC YouTube channel and the GovCup Facebook page, or a replay on demand afterwards. Live coverage of the racing airs on Friday and Saturday at 1130 PDT / 1830 UTC. Friday's press conference with the four semi-finals will also be covered live at 1900 PDT / 0200+1 UTC. Saturday's final press conference and awards ceremony will also air live beginning at 1700 PDT / 0000+1 UTC.