Melges 24 U.S. Nationals Get Underway

Charleston, SC (Apr. 7, 2017) – Twenty-four Melges 24 teams could not have asked for more spectacular racing conditions on opening day at the 2017 Melges 24 U.S. National Championship hosted by the Charleston Yacht Club (ChYC). Plentiful sunshine, a shifty 20-25 knots of breeze and relatively moderate seas allowed for three races to be completed.

Seven-time Melges 24 U.S. National Champion Brian Porter on Full Throttle (USA-849) blistered the race course with speed to win the first race of the day. As a number of individual recalls were announced, Porter put the pedal to the metal to lead at the top mark, then extended to win by a sizable margin, leaving Jason Rhodes at the helm of Kevin Welch’s Mikey (USA-838) and John Brown’s Blind Squirrel (USA-547) to fight for second place. Brown won the second slot, Welch came third, Steve Suddath’s 3 ½ Men (USA-526) was fourth followed by Bruce Ayres’ Monsoon (USA-851) in fifth.

Ayres’ extremely experienced Charleston Harbor Melges 24 team proved why they are back-to-back Sperry Race Week Champions (2015/2016) in Race Two. After being called OCS, he along with long time pal Porter, had work to do to stay in contention. With the breeze still pumping at an ideal 20-25 knots, Ayres made big gains on the right side of the course, on the final run, playing the current like a fine-tuned fiddle to take an impressive first place win. Brown was second, Peter Duncan’s Jigs In Space (USA-515) was third, and Porter recovered nicely to take fourth.

The final race of the day was a Course Five — and an absolute dogfight between Weisleder and Porter. The tough and very challenging conditions added to the spectacle of watching the Melges 24 revel in the breeze. Upwind and down, Weisleder and Porter were neck-and-neck, continuously trading lead positions. At the final gate, Weisleder secured the lead, less than a boat length ahead of Porter up the right side of the course to the finish. Weisleder held on for the win followed by Porter, Duncan, Wes Whitmyer Jr.’s SlingSHOT (USA-747), and Welch rounded out the top five.

Racing continues tomorrow with more sunshine and moderate breeze. The event concludes Sunday, April 9.

TOP TEN RESULTS (PRELIMINARY – After Three Races)
1.) Brian Porter, Full Throttle: 1-4-2 = 7
2.) Bruce Ayres, Monsoon; 5-1-6 = 12
3.) John Brown, Blind Squirrel; 3-2-7 = 12
4.) Kevin Welch/Jason Rhodes, Mikey; 2-7-5 = 14
5.) Wes Whitmyer, Jr.; SlingSHOT; 7-8-4 = 19
6.) Peter Duncan, Jigs In Space; 12-6-3 = 21
7.) Michael Goldfarb, Warcanoe; 8-5-10 = 23
8.) Travis Weisleder, Lucky Dog; 25/RET-3-1 = 29
9.) Brent McKenzie, EX-KAHN; 9-9-12 = 30
10.) Guy Mossman, Jack Mormon Coffee; 10-10-11 = 31

TOP FIVE CORINTHIAN RESULTS (PRELIMINARY – After Three Races)
1.) Brent McKenzie, EX-KAHN = 30 pts.
2.) Stuart Simpson, Team Barbarians = 34 pts.
3.) Zane Yoder, FNG Eelsnot = 40 pts.
4.) KC Shannon, Shaka = 40 pts.
5.) Jay Greenfield, Old School = 43 pts.

Event details – Scoreboard

Source: Joy Dunigan