Verve Cup Offshore Regatta final wrap-up

Chicago, IL (August 11, 2013) – After daily postponements due to light winds, competitors got to enjoy some decent breeze and solid racing on the final day of the Verve Cup Offshore Regatta at the Chicago Yacht Club.

Race Chairman Martin Sandoval said the decision to start the race an hour later today ended up serving the competitors well.

“There was a little bit of a wait time, but once the wind filled in, the conditions allowed the Race Committee to get two races in today,” Sandoval said. “For the racers, the winds averaged 6-8 knots for both races – they were shifty, which made it challenging, but that’s part of the fun, figuring out the puzzle that Mother Nature gives you and making something out of it.”

Lynn Lynch, a Race Officer on Circle B, said it was a light weekend but today’s racing made up for it.

“Racing went very well, 100 percent better than expected. I did not think we were going to get a race in, and we ended up getting two races in on time,” Lynch said. “Everyone always wants at least one heavier day and we didn’t get it. But racing on Friday and today was good. I’m still surprised we got seven races in for the event, so I’m very pleased about that.”

Principal Race Officer Helle Getz said she was thrilled with the racing that took place. “To come up with a total of seven races for the weekend, in the kind of conditions that we had was great. All the way around, I believe that the sailors were very happy. It was a good, successful regatta,” Getz said.

Congratulations to all of the Verve Cup racers, including overall Verve Cup Trophy winner Honey Badger, a T-10 owned by Thomas Kane of Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club.

Winning the Distance Race in the ORR Division were Liberty2, a C&C 115 owned by Thomas & Virginia Blasco of the Chicago Yacht Club in Section 1; On Edge, a T35 owned by Steve Dorfman of the Chicago Yacht Club in Section 2; and Providence, an Erickson 35 MK II owned by Jerry and Greg Miarecki of the Chicago Yacht Club in Section 3. ORR section winners will get their names on the 8 Mile Buoy Trophy.

New to the Verve Cup Offshore this year was the J/109 North American Championship, which started Thursday and finished today. Winning the J/109 North American Championship Trophy was Rick Lyall’s Storm. Lyall is a member of the New York Yacht Club and the Storm Trysail Club.

Also taking place at this year’s Verve was the Beneteau 40.7 North American Championship, with first place going to Vayu, owned by Ron Buzil of Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club.

Click here for the full results.

This year 135 boats took part in the Verve Cup Offshore Regatta. The event features a three-day offshore course race on Friday through Sunday, as well as a one-day distance race, which took place on Saturday. As one of the largest course-racing regatta in North America, Verve Cup has developed as a world-class event, attracting national and international sailing competitors. During the regatta, Chicago Yacht Club welcomes over 1,800 racers, spouses and guests at their Monroe Station clubhouse.

Competitors participate in multiple races, and boats sail either with a rating handicap or a one design so that boats of different size and character can compete against one another in one of the 18-plus racing sections. Overall prizes are awarded to the top finishers in each section, with one offshore boat winning the perpetual Verve Cup Trophy. The Verve Cup trophy dates from 1893 and is Chicago Yacht Club’s oldest trophy. Overall prizes are awarded for each class of boat.

Thank you to our co-sponsors Audi and SLAM, as well as Boston Beer, Karma Yacht Sales, Mount Gay Rum and West Marine. A special thank you to Chris Bedford, Chief Meteorologist at Sailing Weather Service, LLC, for his daily weather forecasts.

Next year’s Verve Cup Offshore will take place August 8-10, 2014.

Photo credit is Michele and Steve Almeida, MISTE Photography.

Click here for reports from all three days.

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Media Contact:
Rachelle Treiber
Communications Director
communications@chicagoyachtclub.org