2023 Viper 640 North American Championship

The 2023 Viper 640 North American Championship was held September 22-24 in Ottawa, ON. Sailing on Lac Deschênes, 22 teams completed the 7-race series won by Jimmy Praley with Austin Powers and Max Vinocur.

A shore postponement on the first day delayed the start for an hour until minimal breezes filled in. One race was gotten off but the second one was abandoned due to a major wind shift – shifts would be the story of the event. Racing was also limited on day two to a single race despite the race committee’s efforts to relocate the course to various parts of the lake.

It wasn’t until the final day that there was wind, with an amendment to the Notice of Race to allow for five versus only four races a day. The RC maximized that option completing five races for a seven-race championship.

Throughout the regatta, the leader board’s top eight sailors traded positions from race to race, with two boats tied in first position going into the final race: six-time Viper 640 NA Champs Brad Boston (Sarnia, ON) and Jimmy Praley (Annapolis, MD). At that point, Boston would have taken a tie-breaker, but in the final race Praley finished third to Boston’s seventh, sealing the Championship results.

“The competition was top notch despite the first two days’ light winds. I kept my eyes on the sails and Austin and Max sorted out the rest,” said Praley. “Brad’s team sailed a great regatta and it was only due to catching some shifts in the final race that we were able to secure the Championship.”

In third place and the top Corinthian was 19-year-old Arden Carleton (Edgecomb, ME) sailing with her father Todd, her sister Charlie, and friend Class Mischok. Her two first place finishes broke a tie with Dave Nickerson, Moise Solomon, and Scott Leming in fourth. Nickerson and Solomin, who shared helming, also shared the Masters’ trophy.

Race details – Results – Facebook

Photo (from left): PRO BIll Visser – Austin Powers – Jimmy Praley – Max Vinocur – VIPER Chair Steve Chapman

Source: Buttons Padin