Team Yquem Wins Canada’s Cup Challenger Trials

The Challenger competition for the Canada’s Cup took place on July 7-10, hosted by Sodus Bay Yacht Club (official Challenger of Record) in Sodus Bay, New York. Team Yquem (Youngstown Yacht Club) overcame rivals Team Aluette (SBYC) and Team Natural (SBYC) to earn the right to challenge.

The team of Adam Burns, Flipper Wehrheim, Eric Voss, Jimmy Carminati, Ryan Suitor, John Goller and Jason Suitor must now wait until the completion of the Defender trials on July 15-17 to learn who they will face in the 2016 Canada’s Cup Championship series on September 10-14 in Toronto, ON.

After the first stage of Defender trials on July 1-3, Team Lafayette skippered by Terry McLaughlin was undefeated at 6-0 with Team Hollandia skippered by Bryan Gooderham at 3-3 while Team Gefion skippered by Richard Self was winless at 0-6.

Event details – Defender trials – Challenger trials

About the 24th Canada’s Cup
The Royal Canadian Yacht Club (RCYC) hosts the ultimate of North American match racing sailing events, the 24th Canada’s Cup challenge and the 120th anniversary of the Cup. It is an historic event that celebrates excellence in sailing and the rivalry and comradery of Canadian and American sailors on the Great Lakes.

This year the event officially marks the revival of the historic, classic and much-admired International 8 Metre (8mR) class, but in its most modern and developed form, called the Modern 8mR. The return of the 8mR to the Canada’s Cup has been longed for by Canadian and American sailors who have kept the class vibrant and alive since 1954, the 8mR’s last challenge for the Cup.

In the summer of 2016, the Canada’s Cup, sailed in the Modern 8mR, celebrates tradition and glamour along with a modern hi-tech look in head-to-head, match-racing-style competition for yacht-racing excellence of the Great Lakes.

Toronto’s RCYC is the current holder and defender of the Canada’s Cup. The defender is the yacht club who won the previous Canada’s Cup while the challenger of record is the yacht club who officially issues the challenge for the next regatta in hopes to win the coveted Canada’s Cup.

The challenger for the 24th Canada’s Cup is the Sodus Bay Yacht Club from New York State. The trials, or qualification series, take place in July for both the Canadian and US teams. Gefion, Hollandia, and Lafayette are the Canadian contenders while Aluette, Natural, and Yquem 1 are the US contenders. The winners will compete in the 24th Canada’s Cup on September 10-14.

About Royal Canadian Yacht Club
The Royal Canadian Yacht Club (RCYC) offers both a down town city club and an island yacht club. The RCYC’s Olympic calibre sailing facilities hosted the 2015 Pan American Games. RCYC was founded in 1852 to serve both as a yachting recreational club and, in the British tradition, as an unofficial auxiliary of the Royal Navy in the defence of the waters of Lake Ontario. Two of the primary objectives of the club are to promote yacht architecture, building and sailing; and to promote excellence in competitive sailing.

About Sodus Bay Yacht Club
Sodus Bay Yacht Club (SBYC) was founded in 1893 on Great Sodus Bay on the south shore of Lake Ontario halfway between Rochester and Oswego NY. It has long been a favourite location for 8mR regattas and has hosted the World Championship as well as many North American Championships. It is a home port for both modern and classic 8mR’s and is leading the revival of interest in the class on the south shore of Lake Ontario.

Report by Event Media