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GRINS MELGES 24 WINS 2006 SAYRA CHAMPIONSHIP!

Photo courtesy of Charleston Race Week

10 APRIL 2006 • I know it sounds redundant but The Melges 24 class was again the largest fleet of boats in a major regatta. The best boats known to man represented 18 of the 150+ boat event. Charleston Race Week was an especially breezy event and we did have some carnage. By the end of the regatta we may not have been the largest fleet. But definitely the fastest. Yours truly, sailing When Pigs Fly, was on the last downwind leg of race #5 when another of the huge puffs came and we were screaming on a plane when the bow took a little nose dive. The pressure on the rig was more than the backstay could handle and in a blink of an eye our rig broke in half and we had a good regatta for us turn into a good reason for Dark and Stormies at the Goslings tent that night. The previous night's Dark and Stormy award winners had to be VC Rigging who raced well on Friday but had trouble on the way in after racing and lost their keel.

The top 3 boats were very competitive and each one Aced at least one race. The Burke brothers on Grins showed again why they do so well in this class. They were the most consistant boat out there and scored 5 firsts in 7 races but they were pushed by Charleston local Reggie Fairchild's Wireless with tactician Scott Nixon on board. John Lucas and Marc Durlach had a great regatta on Spray but in the big breeze on Saturday had some chute problems and ended the regatta in 3rd. Steve Jones and Eric Andrews from Tennessee on Sick Puppy were definitely good throughout the event handling the big breeze and pulled in a solid 4th for the event. 5th to 8th was seperated by only 1 point. Great competition from boats from all over the country.

The Grins boys have officially won the SAYRA Championship series that included the SEIC at Lake Lanier and this regatta. This is the 3rd event in the Southeastern Series that will continue in the fall and include at least Melbourne, Pensacola, and Kings Day.

The event this year moved to a new venue that really made this a great event. Thanks to Charleston Yacht Club who again allowed M24s to launch free and their were about 4 other options that we will try to fine tune for next year. The Harbor Hilton Marina took good care of the competitors and families enjoyed the great views from the shore.

The next big M24 event anywhere close to here is the Annapolis NOOD which always has a good M24 class. Make sure to sign up now as there is less than 3 weeks before that one starts. Bill Blank is the class coordinator and it looks to be another great event.

See you on the water,

Ryan Hamm
USA 419
When Pigs Fly