(Marion, MA)– The thirteen teams representing their Regional Sailing Associations were challenged by the fast-paced action with varying conditions on Buzzards Bay over four days at the 2019 U.S. Adult Sailing Championship for the Mallory Trophy, hosted by the Beverly Yacht Club. This year’s “Mallory” proved to be a US Sailing National Championship to remember. After 48 total races including six races in Sunday’s Stage 3 Final, the winning team was determined by a tie-breaker!
John Loe (Highland Beach, Md.) and his team representing the Chesapeake Bay Yacht Racing Association (CBYRA) and the Annapolis Yacht Club earned the win on Sunday in a closely contested final round. The winning crew includes Jake Doyle (Annapolis, Md.), Jamie Gilman (Galveston, Texas), and Robbie Deane (Essex, Md.).
Loe and Trey Sheehan (Chagrin Falls, Ohio), of the Inter-Lake Yachting Association (I-LYA), each finished Sunday’s Stage 3 Final Round with 23 points over six races to place them in a tie atop the leaderboard. Loe earned the tie-breaker edge over Sheehan with their three first place finishes on Sunday over Sheehan’s one first place finish.
Crewing for Sheehan and the I-LYA this week was Brad Boston (Point Edward, Ontario, CAN), Curtis Florence (Ohio), and Tyler Black (Newport, R.I.).
The top eight teams started the Final Round with a point representing their Qualifying Place (QP).
This Championship was sailed using league racing, a fast and competitive format, featuring two flights with teams frequently rotating boats between races. Each team raced an equal number of races against the other competitors. Races were approximately 15 minutes in duration and race management ensured quick rotations with on-the-water judging.
Stage 1 included two rounds of racing for all 13 teams over Thursday and Friday (Day 1 and 2). Each team completed eight races per round with boat rotations. A total of 26 races were conducted over the first two rounds. Stage 1 determined the top four teams advancing to Sunday’s final Stage 3.
On Saturday, the Stage 2 Repechage round featured the remaining nine teams battling it out over six races to determine the next four teams, 5-8, advancing to Stage 3.
Strong winds with blustery conditions dominated the race course for most of Friday and Saturday, as remnants of Hurricane Dorian pushed north through the Atlantic Ocean. Teams raced in 15 to 20 knots with gusts in the 20s for most of Friday and Saturday. The breeze dropped considerably Saturday afternoon for the final two races of Stage 2. The wind was blowing in the low to mid-teens on Thursday.
John Loe (Chesapeake Bay YRA) commented on their winning efforts: “We were racing for my grandfather this week who is not feeling well. I wasn’t sure I was going to make it here. That’s who we were racing for and that’s why we are here.”
Trey Sheehan (Inter-Lakes YA) reflected on their silver-winning performance: “It was fantastic sailing this week and we had a great time. Race committee did a great job and the Beverly Yacht Club threw one heck of a party.”
Peter Levesque (Narragansett Bay YRA) had this to say about their bronze medal winning experience: “We approached every race like a new challenge in the variable, shifting conditions. The fleet was very tight. You could drop five places at any one of the marks. It was very hard to go the other direction.” For more US Adult Sailing Championship information Add to Flipboard Magazine.
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