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| 2007 AUDI MELGES 24 U.S. NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP MEMORIES LINGER | |||
Instead of icy gales, teams sailed in 70-degree water that, at times, looked more like Key West than Detroit. Filmmaker Peter Crawford and his crew from Penalty Box Productions were on hand to capture the action, and now competitors and fans of extreme sportboat racing can order their action-packed DVD of the event at www.penaltyboxproductions.com/orderfilm.htm. The Nationals disc is bundled with incredible footage from the 200 Fullpower Melges 24 World Championship, held this past May in extreme conditions on the wind-swept waters of the Pacific Ocean. An exciting, four-minute preview of the film is available on the internet at www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xXq_zMgRHU. DETROIT VENUE A "SURPRISING" SUCCESS The quality of the event surprised many first-time visitors to one of the Midwest's premiere racing hosts, Detroit's Bayview Yacht Club. "We didn¹t know what to expect at all," said Erik Shampain, a sailmaker based in Santa Ana, California. "We certainly didn't expect such a beautiful lake, and such a wonderfully organized event. Warm weather and clear fresh water combined with 3 great days of racing...how could anyone complain? We spent the entire ride to the airport talking about what a fabulous weekend it was."Shampain, along with the rest of the crew of Alan Field's well-prepared Melges 24 WTF? certainly turned heads at this star-studded event, winning two races and placing third overall behind Scott Holmgren's Rosebud and new U.S. Champion Brian Porter's Full Throttle. Event Chairman Paul Hulsey, while disappointed in his overall results after a blistering start to the event, wasn't surprised at all about the success of the event, although he was immensely pleased at the record turnout. "We are happy to have had the chance to showcase our lake, and the incredible people and support we have at Bayview, to all these amazing teams," Hulsey said. "We feel privileged that they traveled so far to race with us, and it's a real testament to the regard that the rest of the Class holds for the skill and enthusiasm of the Detroit fleet. We are going to keep growing, and we're looking forward to more big events over the next couple of years." Over three days, Lake St. Clair introduced visitors to the shifty winds that she is famous for, although PRO Tim Rumptz managed the course with skill and patience. Eight races were the maximum allowed by the event, and by Sunday noon, the eighth was finished, with Porter as the new National Champion. It was an amazingly tough road to victory for Porter. At the end of the first day of racing, it looked like the four big teams driven by Californians would make short work of Full Throttle and the other Midwestern boats. David Ford's Newport, RI-based two-boat Lightwave team held all the cards after three races, with team drivers Bill Hardesty (San Diego) and Mark Ivey (Huntington Beach) owning the course. '07 World Champion Dave Ullman (Santa Ana), helming Rosebud, was looking fast in third place, while L.A.-based WTF? nipped at his fellow Pacific coasters' heels. The skill level at the front of the fleet was startling; the résumés of the sailors aboard these four teams read like a who's who of competitive sailors today; college sailors of the year, dozens of World, National, and North American championship winners in numerous classes, America's Cup racers, match racing standouts, even distinguished shorthanded ocean racers and this on just four boats. The rest of the fleet wasn¹t much less talented, studded as it was with more Melges 24 World and National champs, European and North American Olympians, and even a crew of Extreme 40 Cat sailors. Porter' s crew came to win though, and on the second day of racing, they showed the fleet their mastery of lake winds and rocketed to the top of the scoreboard. Saturday's racing started out with 12 knots of breeze, with oscillating shifts that played right into the hands of the inshore sailors. Full Throttle's speed and tactics surprised no one. A former National, North American, and Pacific Coast Champion in the Melges 24, Porter had his brother John trimming sails, fresh from his own National Championship victory this year in the brutally fast A Scow. Full Throttle's tactician was Melges Performance Boats President Harry Melges III, a past World Champion in the Melges 24, and winner in countless other boats. Melges VP Andy Burdick rounded out the crew, with a World Championship and numerous other big wins to his credit. This A-Team scored two bullets on day 2, and led going into the final day, with a forecast for very light wind. Fortunately, the lake had its own idea of a forecast, and 6-8 knots of breeze greeted the sailors as they arrived at Bayview to tune their rigs on Sunday morning. With just two points separating the top two boats and one point between third and fifth place, there was little room for anything but perfection for the eventual winner. South Carolina's Blur, with Olympic 470 hopeful Michael Miller calling tactics for Steve Kopf, showed blistering pace in the first race to take a 2nd place finish, while Max Skelley helped drive USA 511 to the race win. The locals stepped up their game, with Marc Hollerbach's Fu and Chuck Holzman's Flyer scoring single-digit finishes, but it was too little, too late for the Detroit fleet to finish in the money. Rosebud and Full Throttle sailed conservatively for both races, trading tacks and leads while staying out of trouble. This left the door open for WTF?, who capitalized with a 3rd and a 1st, vaulting over Lightwave Nano and Gannet to take third for the regatta. The desperate Rosebud crew tried to break away from Throttle, but Porter worked hard to protect his slim, two-point lead in the final race, crossing just seconds ahead of Ullman to become the new U.S. Champion a sweet victory, given his heartbreaking loss at Worlds to Ullman in the final leg of the final race just a few months back. The Detroit fleet wouldn't go home empty-handed though, as Bora Gulari, helming Chuck Holzman's Flyer, put together the second-best score line of the day and clinched the Corinthian (all amateur) Championship. SURPRISES CONTINUE OFF THE WATER If the racers were pleasantly surprised on the water, they were equally surprised by the atmosphere on the banks of the Detroit River. Audi of America helped to liven up the backdrop with their jaw-dropping, carbon-fiber supercar, the Audi R8, along with a half-dozen other eye-catching Audis that the racers test-drove all weekend. Physical Therapists sent by the DMC's Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan were in high demand, with sailors lining up to receive massages, renewing their energy to enjoy the live music until the wee hours. The organizers and sponsors provided unique engraved trophies and prizes, including a full set of Brian Hutchinson's must-have Melges 24 accessories, RejeX high performance hull polish, trophies for the top 5 overall and Corinthian winners, and special prizes for the top performers of each day. Rock City Marine presented their high-tech RockBox GPS performance tool, while Sailinganarchy.com and Moosejaw Mountaineering awarded clothing to the boats with the most female crew and for the dubious honor of having 'won' the party. NATIONALS JUST THE BEGINNING The Melges 24 was designed to travel easily, and for many teams, the U.S. Championship was a starting gun for the full season of racing ahead. Porter has already returned to his home in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to beat 30 other M24 teams during the Fall Classic, in the birthplace of the Melges 24. Many of these programs will travel to the Northeast District Championship at Eastport Yacht Club in Annapolis on October 19th-21st, and they will be taking notes - the 2008 North Americans and the 2009 Worlds will happen there, and both events are expected to be the largest ever of their kind in the United States. Forty or more boats will race for the Atlantic Coast Championship in Jacksonville in November, and then it's on to Key Largo before the granddaddy of all big-air regattas, Key West Race Week. With fleet numbers growing all over the US, it will be an exciting winter for Melges 24 racers. FULL RESULTS ABOUT AUDI OF AMERICA, INC. Audi offers a line of premium vehicles through a network of 270 dealers including the Audi A3 compact; the sporty A4 sedan, Avant and Cabriolet models; the high performance S4 sedan, Avant and Cabriolet models; the high-revving RS 4 sports sedan and Cabriolet (November 2007 launch); the all-new S5 coupe (November 2007 launch) with 354 hp; the design-leading A6 sedan and Avant; the V10-powered high performance S6 sedan; the Audi Q7 performance SUV; the new all-aluminum Audi A8; the S8 with V10 power; the all-new 2008 TT Coupe and Roadster models; and the all-new all-aluminum R8, one of the most exclusive sports cars in the world. ABOUT THE 2007 AUDI MELGES 24 U.S. NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP The 2007 Audi Melges 24 U.S. National Championship is hosted by Bayview Yacht Club, with the support of Sponsor/Partners Audi of America, Inc., the Detroit-Area Audi Metro Dealers, Barefoot Wines, Yachtscoring.com, Latis Yachting Solutions, the Detroit Medical Center’s Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan, Rock City Marine, RejeX Corrosion Technologies, Tim Wilkes Photography, and Penalty Box Productions. The Melges 24 is designed by Reichel Pugh and considered the most unique one design sportboat in the world as well as one of the fastest-growing classes of high performance yachts. More information can be found at the Official Web site of the U.S. Melges 24 Class Association (USMCA), the International Melges 24 Class Association (IMCA) and at the Midwest Melges 24 Regional Web Site. EVENT PRESS OFFICER Alan Block (248) 563-0657 - mobile (248) 808-4086 - office U.S. MELGES 24 CLASS ASSOCIATION (USMCA) PRESS OFFICER Joy Dunigan, USMCA Communications Director (912) 398-5776 - mobile |
International Melges 24 Class Association
©2008. U.S. Melges 24 Class Association. All Rights Reserved.
