{"id":75263,"date":"2023-05-07T22:37:35","date_gmt":"2023-05-08T02:37:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/?p=75263"},"modified":"2023-05-09T15:01:06","modified_gmt":"2023-05-09T19:01:06","slug":"finishing-strong-in-annapolis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/regatta-series\/finishing-strong-in-annapolis\/","title":{"rendered":"Finishing Strong In Annapolis"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"J\/30 <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n Bruce Irving and his teammates on the J\/30 Shamrock celebrate their regatta win and selection for the Helly Hansen Sailing World Caribbean Championship<\/span>\n Walter Cooper<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

One point. That was the winning difference for Bruce Irving\u2019s teammates on his J\/30 Shamrock<\/em>, champions of the J\/30<\/strong> East Coast Championship at the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series in Annapolis.<\/a> Through three days of extremely challenging light winds, strong currents and an ultra-competitive fleet, Shamrock<\/em>\u2019s young crew persevered to not only take home the class title, but also the regatta\u2019s overall title as the top team, which earns them a berth in the Regatta Series\u2019 Caribbean Championship this fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Irving, who painstakingly rebuilt his 39-year-old cult-classic keelboat to perfection over the past six years attributed his team\u2019s win to great teamwork, patience and a calmness on the boat that took away the stress of the weekend\u2019s stressful conditions. They went into the final day\u2019s races with a tenable 2-point lead, started the day with a win and closed with a third, which was enough\u2014just\u2014to beat their friendly rivals on Bob Rutsch and Mike Costello\u2019s Bebop<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday, we had more shifts that we could take advantage of and very decent wind during the first race,\u201d Irvin says. \u201cWe focused on getting in phase, powering the boat up and getting boatspeed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jimmy Praley\u2019s old coach from Tufts University would have been proud of his former Jumbo sailor heeding his advice enroute to winning the Viper 640<\/strong> class title. Praley, his tactician Austin Powers, and forward crew Max Vinocur were 3 points shy of the lead when the day\u2019s first race got underway in a light easterly breeze. All day long, Coach Ken Legler must have been whispering in Praley’s ear: \u201cStart where the others are not. Tack and win.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"2023 <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n The J\/30 fleet compresses on the run on the light-air final day in Annapolis.<\/span>\n Walter Cooper<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

With Legler\u2019s sage advice imprinted in his mind, Praley’s squad on Robot Flamingo<\/em> made their move to the top of the scoresheet with a big win in the day\u2019s first race. \u201cThe goal was to try and stay close to our closest competitor,\u201d Praley says, \u201cbut once we put some points on them in the first race we decided it wasn\u2019t worth the risk to do anything but sail our own race.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robot Flamingo<\/em> won four of seven races over the weekend and was the most consistent of the 13-boat fleet. Still, they closed the three-day regatta with only 2 points to spare over their second-placed rivals on Martin Casey\u2019s Life of Riley<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"Robot <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n Jimmy Praley’s Robot Flamingo<\/i> made its move on the final day to win the Viper 640 fleet.<\/span>\n <\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

\u201cIt was nearly impossible to be consistent this weekend, but we just did our best,\u201d Praley says. \u201cFleet management was a big thing, and we were always optimizing our ability to get to the favored side of the course. Our biggest thing was to be as conservative as much as possible but not be afraid to take a flyer if we had to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brad Julian and his team Yard Sail<\/em> also capitalized on a strong Sunday finish. Yard Sail<\/em> moved into first place in the J\/22<\/strong> fleet after an intense weekend of back-and-forth lead changes. Starting the day 5 points behind Aden King\u2019s Rhythmic Pumping<\/em>, Julian and team closed the regatta with a 3-point lead, but it wasn\u2019t easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSticking to our game plan and putting ourselves in a place where we could control our own destiny was the key to winning today,\u201d Julian says. \u201cIt was a tough day. The first race had reasonably stable conditions and a pretty clear need for a course strategy, whereas the second race was much more of a crapshoot. The big lesson was to never give up\u2014we were mid-fleet at the first mark of the second race after a tricky start, and we just kept grinding.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"J\/22 <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n J\/22s set off on one of two light-air races on the final day of the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series in Annapolis.<\/span>\n Walter Cooper<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

TC Williams and his crew on the Alberg 30<\/strong> Argo<\/em> won their fleet for the sixth time at the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series, narrowly beating the second-place Firestorm\/Laughing Gull<\/em> by 1 point, a victory decided in the final race. As this weekend\u2019s top Alberg 30, Argo<\/em> also earned the class\u2019s coveted Maple Leaf Trophy, which has been awarded annually since 1965.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have great chemistry on board, my wife Elizabeth was trimming the jib and my son Austin was on board doing bow for the first time,\u201d Williams says. \u201cKeeping the boat moving through the current was crucial. We always went left on the start, went left downwind, but the shifts were there and you had to find a way to keep the boat moving when the wind went away.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"Alberg <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n TC William’s Alberg 30<\/i> sails to the Maple Leaf title for the sixth time.<\/span>\n Walter Cooper<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

Pete Kassal and his crew on J\/24<\/strong> Spaceman Spiff<\/em> won their fleet with 16 points across nine races. \u201cBeing consistent was the key to winning the regatta,\u201d Kassal says. \u201cBeing the first boat to get out of the current, which was definitely worse on the right, and not stalling the boat was important. I just got my boat together on Thursday, so I was very happy to be out there. The J\/24 fleet saw intense competition, with four of the five competing boats winning a race.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Competitive would be an understatement for the J\/70<\/strong> fleet, which had a dramatic end to its series when Sunday\u2019s final race was finished mid-way through the race as the wind died altogether. With the front of the fleet crawling toward the leeward gate, fighting adverse current, there was a maddening slow-motion scramble to cross the finish line. The morning\u2019s leader, Brian Keane\u2019s Savasana<\/em>, was stuck in the traffic and could only manage a 13th. Douglas Newhouse\u2019s team on Yonder<\/em>, however, crawled across with a fifth, to give them the victory on account of winning the tiebreaker with Cate Mueller-Terhune\u2019s second-placed Casting Couch<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis weekend, we had to fight for every inch we could get,\u201d says Jeremy Wilmot, the team\u2019s tactician. \u201cThe light, shifty weather was not our strength\u2014we are definitely a heavy air team, and we came to Annapolis to work on our light air.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"Spaceman <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n Pete Kassel’s Spaceman Spiff<\/i> in fine form enroute to winning the J\/24 fleet.<\/span>\n Walter Cooper<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

Bryan Stout and Lizzy Chiochetti narrowly won the Melges 15 fleet, finishing 2 points ahead of the second-place team of Britton and Heather Steel. \u201cToday, we had to sail the boat with what we had and not what we wanted,\u201d Stout said. \u201cA lot of the time, especially when we were around other people, if I could just focus on the telltales and make my boat go fast, we would have a lot of success.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John and Mary Driver were the Wayfarer<\/strong> team, topping the fleet by 6 points after winning three of six races. \u201cOur goal was to sail as well as we could,\u201d says Mary Driver. \u201cI was really afraid of trimming the spinnaker because I\u2019m used to asymmetric sails so this was a little different, but I felt like after practice, it went very well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"John <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n John and Mary Driver, Wayfarer Class champions for the class’s first Regatta Series appearance.<\/span>\n Walter Cooper<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

The Distance Race fleet was especially challenged with much longer racecourses that stretched across the Chesapeake Bay. Today, simply finishing was the order of the day, as it was on Saturday when only three of 11 entries completed the race before the time limit expired. Ben Capuco and his Aerodyne 38 Zuul won the ORC<\/strong> fleet, finishing second in both of its races. \u201cToday was about redemption\u2014we missed a 30-degree right shift on the weather leg but had great speed once we were off the wind,\u201d Capuco says. \u201cIt was nice to be off the wind and having the right sails to win on the reach leg.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While most standings were contested in the final races, there were a few teams that dominated their respective fleets over the weekend, including Matt Lalumiere\u2019s Cash Money<\/em>, which topped the Etchells<\/strong> fleet by winning four of its five races.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"2023 <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n Matt Lalumiere’s team on the Etchells Cash Money<\/i> ready to set and carry on to a class win.<\/span>\n Walter Cooper<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n


\u201cWe were in a very old boat that is hard to keep moving through the current, so keeping speed and communicating with each other as we were going through the gear changes, and making adjustments when we had to was super important,\u201d says Mitch Powell, the team\u2019s bowman. \u201cWe had some nice breeze and a square course, so there was great racing today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ray Wulff and his teammates on the J\/105<\/strong> Patriot<\/em> won the J\/105 fleet by 9 points, winning four of seven races, including the last three. \u201cConsistency was the secret to winning the weekend,\u201d Wulff says. \u201cNot doing anything stupid and staying fast when we needed to be fast was imperative. The most important thing was not getting in any trouble. We had a 23-boat fleet and staying out of the congestion helped us a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mike Beasley and his teammates on the J\/80<\/strong> Black Sheep<\/em> were the most dominant of the weekend, topping their fleet by a whopping 18 points after winning seven of eight races. \u201cTuning was key,\u201d Beasley says. \u201cWe put a lot of time into boat setup and understanding what the demands were from the sails we had and what we were trying to achieve with upwind speed,\u201d Beasley says. \u201cWorking as a team was a highlight of the weekend; we had a guy from the youth team. On Friday, he was a little ropey, but he was a machine today.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It was a high-stress finale for the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series in Annapolis. But these winners kept their cool.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":75257,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"BS_author_type":"BS_author_is_guest","BS_guest_author_name":"Dave Reed","BS_guest_author_url":"","hydra_display_date":"","hydra_display_updated":false,"_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"157","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Winners across the board at the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series in Annapolis on the final day of the regatta.","_yoast_wpseo_title":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","arc_story_id":"","arc_website_url":"","custom_permalink":"","arc_subtype":"","arc_exclude_from_feeds":false,"sponsored":false,"sponsored_label":"Sponsored Content","sponsored_display_label":false,"sponsored_image":false,"post_right_rail":true,"post_right_rail_ad_1":true,"post_right_rail_ad_2":true,"post_right_rail_ad_3":false,"post_right_rail_ad_4":false,"post_right_rail_recirc":true,"fixed_anchor_ad":true,"post_top_ad":true,"post_off_ramp":true,"post_taboola":false,"labels":true,"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":"","ad_targeting":"","ad_settings_ads_on_this_page":true,"ad_settings_automatic_ad_injection_into_the_content":true,"sponsored_url":"","social_share":true},"categories":[157],"tags":[181,309],"class_list":["post-75263","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-regatta-series","tag-helly-hansen-sailing-world-regatta-series","tag-helly-hansen-sailing-world-regatta-series-annapolis"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75263","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75263"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75263\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75257"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75263"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75263"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75263"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}