2025 Snipe Western Hemisphere & Asia Championship at San Diego Yacht Club
by San Diego Yacht Club 6 Sep 2025 22:13 PDT
September 1-6, 2025
2025 Snipe Western Hemisphere & Asia Championship Regatta © Mark Albertazzi
San Diego Yacht Club welcomed Snipe sailors from nations around the world including Argentina, the Bahamas, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Japan and the USA to both the Snipe North American Championship August 21-24 and the Snipe Western Hemisphere & Asia Championship this past week. This is the second time SDYC has hosted the Snipe WH&A Championship - the first time being in 2014. After two days of measurements and a practice race on Monday, September 1 followed by the Opening Ceremony, racing officially kicked off on Tuesday, September 2 and concluded on Saturday, September 6.
The racing venues toggled between the Pacific Ocean course, Coronado Roads, located past Point Loma and off of Coronado Island, and the South Bay course, south of the Coronado Bridge in San Diego Bay. When describing the differences between the two courses, Principal Race Officer Jeff Johnson stated "The South Bay typically has 2-5 kts more wind and is generally more left in direction because of the land effect presented by the long strand of beach to the south. The Ocean, although only 2 miles as the seagull flies from the South Bay venue, is generally less windy due to winds dispersing across the Coronado Roads and from a more right direction because of Point Loma." Johnson went on to describe how the competitors viewed the two courses. "The first two days of the Westerns the venue was set in the South Bay. Some competitors appreciated the flat water, no kelp, breezy race course that South Bay offers. For Days 3, 4, and 5, the venue was scheduled in the ocean venue 2.5 nm southeast of Point Loma. This seems to be the overall favorite of the competitors. The start area was moved for Race 5 and 6 (Thursday) due to commercial and military ships anchored in or near the venue. But Race 6 and 7 (Friday), the venue was wide open. Competitors had clear water for miles in all directions."
Augie Diaz, two time Snipe World Championship (2003, 2005) continues to compete at a high level in the Snipe class, winning the 2nd race of the regatta and finishing 8th overall. Augie played a huge role in raising the bar for this regatta by bringing two dozen Vakaros Atlas 2 devices for competitors to borrow to ensure all boats were equipped with the RaceSense tracking technology. He is an early adopter of the technology, having sailed in a few classes with it and shared why he feels it's a great improvement for the sport.
"I recognized early on that in the Snipe class [RaceSense] is a very necessary system to control the fleet. The Snipe fleet is very competitive, the level is super high, everybody is always pushing the line. The Race Committee does their best to control the fleet, but it's nearly impossible. After 5-6-7, general recalls and a few black flags, and too many [sail] numbers posted, the committees are too gun-shy to put up more numbers, and it's not fair to the committee and the competitors. I believe this is the fairest way for what I would call an out of control fleet like we have with the Snipes. Where people are very aggressive on the line, this way at the start everybody knows if they are in or out. If they are out, they know immediately and they can clear themselves immediately. It's all so good. I'm against making the class more expensive. But the cost of implementing this technology is far outweighed by the benefit. I'm an early adopter (of Vakaros RaceSense), I've used it in the Star Class, and now I've used it a few times in the Snipe, and I'm very excited that the Snipe Class will be able to use this in the future to run great races, like you [SDYC] have done here. This regatta was so well run. It takes a guy like (PRO and SDYC Waterfront Director) Jeff Johnson to say we're going to run a great regatta, and we're also going to use RaceSense because it makes so much sense."
1st Place: Justin Callahan, Trevor Davis (USA)
2nd Place: Ernesto Rodriguez, Marina Cano (USA)
3rd Place: Arthur Blodgett, Grace Howie (USA)
Event chair, Aimee Heim, discussed her experience with Fleet 495, as well as overseeing the Snipe Western Hemisphere & Asia Championship. "Snipe Fleet 495 is a San Diego area fleet, with members from multiple yacht clubs. The class motto is "Serious Sailing, Serious Fun" - it's the great sailing, camaraderie and friendships that keeps us coming back. It has been an absolute pleasure to Chair this regatta at SDYC and to share this special place with the International Snipe Class. Thank you to all the sailors that made such an effort to get here. You were fantastic guests, and you showed us all what top-notch racing in two venues looks like - well done!"
Justin Callahan from Miami seemed well equipped to win it all. In 2024 Callahan won the Snipe Junior World Championship in his hometown, and the Snipe US National Championship in Beverly, MA. Justin is a Senior on the Harvard Sailing Team and was named the ICSA College Sailor of the Year in 2024. Trevor Davis, who crewed for Callahan, just finished second at the Snipe North Americans in San Diego as crew for Diego Escobar. Both Callahan and Davis appear to be at the top of their game and ready for more. When asked what their thoughts were on winning the 2025 Snipe Western Hemisphere & Asia Championship and their thoughts on competing in the 2026 Snipe Worlds in Spain, Callahan said "This is Trevor's and my first Westerns together. We could not be more ecstatic. A big thanks to the entire fleet for coming out and sailing against us and with us, and working together as a fleet to continue to get better. I would love to go to the Worlds in Spain 100%. I know it would be a great challenge to do that, so it's definitely on the horizon for sure." Davis followed up stating "We sailed just one regatta together each year and have gone off and done different sailing separately. To come back together for this and win was great. For Worlds? There's a lot of great contenders and we want to put the best team together that we can." Callahan and Davis had secured this regatta victory after race 8 on Friday, and still sailed the final race on Saturday finishing second despite the overall win already in hand.
Second place in the regatta went to Ernesto Rodriguez and Marina Cano who started the event with 3 of 4 races in the bottom half of the fleet. They quickly flipped the script winning the last 4 races outright to jump all the way to second overall.
Skipper Mario Tinoco from Brazil, who took 4th overall offered some insight into what racing in the Snipe fleet is like and how it prepared him for future opportunities. "The Snipe is a boat that offers a lot of learning. The boat has a very strong and high-level fleet. For me, the Snipe was essential for my entry into the big boats and for becoming a sailing professional today." Tinoco previously raced in the 2009 Snipe Worlds at SDYC and further stated "Being at SDYC after 16 years of competing at a high level is a huge pleasure. This further demonstrates the longevity that the (Snipe) class provides".
SDYC Commodore Steve Malowney shared, "It was an honor to welcome sailors from across the globe to our club for the Snipe Western Hemisphere & Asia Championships. The Snipe class represents the very best of international competition—where camaraderie, sportsmanship, and skill meet on the water. We are proud to host this prestigious regatta and to share our club's hospitality with competitors, families, and friends."
San Diego Yacht Club would like to thank regatta sponsors Maui Brewing Co, North Sails, Quantum Sails and the Port of San Diego for supporting this international championship. Daily photography credit goes to Mark Albertazzi. Finally, thank you to the international jury and our world class race committee for another incredible event.
Full results available here.