Scott Harris Claims Victory at the 2026 Don Trask International Masters Regatta
by Karina Sandhu, SDYC 27 Oct 17:35 PDT
October 23-25, 2026
Skipper Scott Harris of Coronado Yacht Club, along with crew Gary Weisman, Chuck Sinks, Jon Rogers, Al Pleskus, and Peter Van Waay, emerged victorious at the 2026 Don Trask International Masters Regatta, holding off a talented fleet of 12 skippers after 10 races over three days on South San Diego Bay.
Hosted by San Diego Yacht Club, the annual invitational regatta, which requires skippers to be 60 years of age or older, brought together accomplished sailors from across the country and Mexico for a weekend of tactical racing, shifting breeze and tight competition in J/105s.
Harris finished with 48 points, just three ahead of Bill Menninger of Newport Harbor Yacht Club, who took second with 51. Mark Foster, representing Lake Canyon Yacht Club and Storm Trysail Club, secured third with 55 points.
The regatta opened Friday, October 23, with light, shifty conditions that kept the race committee on its toes. The first race was abandoned as the breeze proved unreliable, eventually returning from an unusual direction before shifting again and fading. After further adjustments to the course, two races were completed. Menninger took the opening race, while Jack Franco, representing Lido Island, Lakewood and Texas Corinthian Yacht Clubs, claimed the second.
Saturday brought a more established southwesterly breeze, generally settling between 245 and 265 degrees, though a warmer breeze from beneath the Coronado Bridge briefly complicated the picture. The race committee relocated the starting area farther south to find the prevailing wind, and four races were completed.
Eliane Fierro of Acapulco Yacht Club opened the day with a win in Race 3 before Franco captured Race 4. Mary Brigden Snow of San Diego Yacht Club took Race 5, followed by Scott Steele of Eastport Yacht Club in Race 6. With four races on the board, the fleet had little room to settle in, and changing conditions continued to reward sharp decisions and adaptability.
Sunday's final day began with a 30-minute delay as the breeze filled in from the southwest. Four more races followed, bringing the series to 10 completed races. Tracy Usher of St. Francis Yacht Club won Race 7, while Franco added another victory in Race 8. Menninger claimed Race 9, and Usher closed the regatta with a win in Race 10.
Harris remained firmly in the hunt throughout the weekend finishing in the top four in six of the 10 races and avoiding the costly results that can quickly unravel a series. His performance held up against Menninger, who opened with a race win and continued to post strong finishes, including a second in Race 2 and a second in Race 7. It came down to the wire with Harris and Menninger starting the final race almost tied - Harris with 41 points and Menninger with 42. When asked how he felt going into the last race being that close in points, Harris said, "It was so close, but I knew we could win. I'm sailing with Gary Weisman, Chuck Sinks, John Rogers, Al Pleskus, and Peter Van Waay. They are the brain trust. I also had a picture of my dad who recently passed with me the whole time. I know he was looking out for us. Conditions were all over the place, but we made it work." Menninger mused on the final showdown stating, "It was great that it came down to the last race. We were to the weather of Scott (Harris) with a little bit of a pin. And if we had just sailed all the way to the beach, we could have just kept them pinned. But we decided to tack because we were overstood. And Foster, who was in 3rd place, tacked on us. As soon as he tacked on us, that was the race. But, it was a lot of fun. Everyone worked well together and we had a great time."
Foster also put together a solid series, with a second-place finish in Race 8 and a third in the final race helping secure his place on the podium. The race for 3rd was also tight with 3 teams going into Race 10 - Foster with 52 points, Franco with 54 points, and William Abbott of Sarnia Yacht Club with 54 points - in contention for a podium finish. When asked how he achieved his third place win after spending much of the year out running races, Foster said, "I just remembered what I used to do. We had a great team which made all of the difference. They were always there taking care of everything. All I had to do was drive the boat."
The competition extended well beyond the top three. Franco delivered three race wins across the weekend, including back-to-back victories in Races 8 and 9, ultimately finishing fifth overall. Usher finished the regatta tied on points with Snow, with Usher taking sixth and Snow seventh on the published standings. Usher's two Sunday victories capped a strong final day, while Snow's Race 5 win was a highlight for the host club. Bill Abbott of Sarnia Yacht Club finished fourth overall, just three points outside the podium.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Boat Name | Skipper | Owner | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | R8 | R9 | R10 | Pts |
|---|
| 1 | HAR | Scott Harris | Coronado YC | 7 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 48 |
| 2 | MEN | Bill Menninger | Newport Harbor YC | 1 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 3 | 9 | 51 |
| 3 | FOS | Mark Foster | Lake Canyon/Storm Trysail YC | 4 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 9 | 3 | 55 |
| 4 | ABB | Bill Abbott | Sarnia YC | 5 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 58 |
| 5 | FRA | Jack Franco | Lido/Lakewood/TxCorinthian | 6 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 62 |
| 6 | USH | Tracy Usher | St. Francis YC | 10 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 12 | 11 | 1 | 65 |
| 7 | SNO | Mary Brigden Snow | San Diego YC | 3 | 12 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 9 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 65 |
| 8 | CLA | Kyle Clark | San Diego YC | 8 | 10 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 7 | 12 | 70 |
| 9 | JES | Don Jesberg | San Francisco YC | 2 | 11 | 10 | 5 | 9 | 6 | DPI | 11 | 8 | 2 | 71 |
| 10 | RUH | Rob Ruhlman | Pymatuning/Lakeside YC | 11 | 6 | 7 | 11 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 6 | 73 |
| 11 | STE | Scott Steele | Eastport YC | DPI | 8 | 11 | 9 | 11 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 81 |
| 12 | FIE | Eliane Fierro | Acapulco YC | DPI | 4 | 1 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 11 | 87 |
"Thank you to all of the volunteers, boat owners, and participants for making the 2026 Don Trask International Masters Regatta a huge success," said SDYC Commodore Alli Bell. "This is one of our club's favorite events and we're always incredibly thrilled to host it. Thank you to event chair Dave Vieregg and his team, the 13 J/105 owners who graciously lent out their boats to this regatta, race committee, umpires, and competitors from all over the world. We hope to see you again next year."
The Don Trask International Masters Regatta continues a tradition founded by Don Trask in 1979, celebrating the skill, sportsmanship and friendships that keep sailors coming back to the racecourse. SDYC thanks the competitors, volunteers, race committee, umpires and boat owners who made this year's event possible. With another hard-fought series in the books, the club looks forward to welcoming the Masters fleet back to San Diego Bay next year.
San Diego Yacht Club thanks its sponsors, Quantum Sails, Chipz Happen and Helly Hansen, for their support of the 2026 Don Trask International Masters Regatta.
More information at masters.sdyc.org