Locals win Hinman Masters Team Race

The host club’s dominance of the Hinman Masters Team Race continued on August 14-16 with a fifth-consecutive win in the 24th edition of New York Yacht Club’s oldest team race regatta. Seven teams competed in Sonars, with a minimum age for the skipper at 45 years and crew at 40 years.

The 3v3 title came down to a best-of-five 2026 championship series against Eastport Yacht Club from Annapolis, Md. After dropping the first race, New York Yacht Club Levesque roared back to win the next three races and claim the championship in Newport, RI.

“It feels awesome,” said Clay Bischoff, one of the three skippers for the NYYC Levesque team. “We had a great event from beginning to end. It was amazing competition, so we knew it was going to be tough. In the finals, we faced a really experienced and impressive team. We’re thrilled to win.”

Eastport and NYYC Levesque were the top two teams throughout the round-robin portion of the regatta, with Levesque’s crew winning 16 races against only two losses and the Eastport team, which is composed primarily of Naval Academy alumni, losing just four races while winning 14. Third place went to Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club from Centre Island, N.Y., with New York Yacht Club Kirkpatrick and Corinthian Yacht Club in Marblehead, Mass., rounding out the top five.

The only good thing that can be said about New York Yacht Club’s start in the second race of the championship series was that it wasn’t as bad as the first. The home team had kicked off the first race in the best-of-five tilt with one boat over early at the starting horn and another whistled for a two-circle penalty shortly thereafter. That devastating combo led to a comfortable win for Easport and the early series lead.

In the second start, New York again had one boat over the line early and picked up another penalty. But the net result wasn’t as fatal. Still, heading into Mark 1 with the favorable 2-3-4 combination, it looked like this might just be Eastport’s year. It was up to Bischoff’s crew, which were leading the race, to slow everything down and allow their teammates to climb back within range.

“We had current going upwind, so that allows the lead boat to do some damage on trapping,” said Bischoff. “My goal was just to create havoc and [Brian Doyle] and Pete maximized it. Pete drew a foul and BD passed a boat. You just got to be ready to jump on the opportunity. That was a turning point for the series.”

By Mark 2, against the odds, especially against an experienced team, New York had taken control of the race. By Mark 4, it was New York that held the powerful 2-3-4 combination which it carried to the finish.

The remaining two races were less dramatic. In the clincher, New York Yacht Levesque rounded the first mark in first, second and third. Levesque’s boat, in the trailing position, had the always enjoyable role of simply making life difficult for the opposing team while his teammates sailed off to the race win and the Hinman Masters Championship, which they did.

“The start was crucially important,” said Bischoff. “We were talking a lot about how the current would affect our starting line strategy and how the favored end would affect our strategy. In the last few races, we had strong right-hand position on the line, and that proved to be the unlock to get us to the first mark ahead of the other guys.”

For Bischoff, the win was particularly sweet. A week earlier he sailed for Larchmont Yacht Club in the Morgan Cup (no age limit), losing to Levesque’s crew in a best-of-five championship series.

“It’s a really special opportunity to sail with Pete and [wife] Caroline,” said Bischoff. “We’ve been friends and sometimes rivals going back 25 years. I know him very well. So it’s it’s awesome to compete against him, and even better to sail with him.”

“I concur,” added Levesque. “I’d way rather have Clay on my team than not.”

Doyle, the team’s third skipper, has enjoyed a remarkable run of success in this regatta, with a variety of teammates.

“Our boat’s been practicing for several years now,” said Doyle. “We’ve had a couple of changes in crew, but it’s mostly been consistent. Shane [Wells] and I have sailed together in the last five of these events and won all five.”

Winning Team: Pete Levesque (skipper & team captain), Amy Ironmonger, Bill Lynn, Kaitlin Potts; Brian Doyle (skipper), Whit Rugg, Shane Wells, Whitney Peterson; Clay Bischoff (skipper), Ernie Bourassa, Ben Gent, and Caroline Levesque.

Details: https://nyyc.org/2026-hinman-masters-team-race

August 7-9 – Morgan Cup Team Race (no minimum age)
August 14-16 – Hinman Masters Team Race (skipper, 45 years; crew, 40 years)
August 21-23 – Grandmasters Team Race (skipper, 60 years; crew, 50 years)

Source: NYYC