It was a busy summer for RS sailors with several North American championships. Here is a recap of some of the key events in North America:
RS Feva North American Championship (New York, July 17th – 19th 2023)
For the first time, RS Feva North Americans was held as part of Larchmont Junior Race Week. Over 50 RS Feva sailors competed, coming from all around the tri-state area. Exceptionally light conditions resulted in only one race being sailed. The pair of Mark Wermuth and Gavin Manegio took home first with Mason Colgan and Ian Alustiza coming in second and Ethan Beery and Alec Gerster coming in third. Unlike many other junior events, Larchmont Junior Race Week was unique in that it also featured a dance for competitors – offering sailors a chance to have fun on and off the water!
RS Tera North American Championship (Utah, September 8th – 10th 2023)
This was the first time the championship was hosted outside of the West Coast and was a celebration of the RS Tera Class in the mountain region.
Ran by Park City Sailing, the championship was sailed out of the Lake View Center which looks out over the water and dam in Jordanelle State Park. The RS Tera North American Championships featured tight racing with two days of 10-15 knots of breeze! Henry Richter from Union Sailing Club took first spot in the RS Tera Sport and Keira Faye of Sausalito Yacht Club took home the gold in the RS Tera Pro. Sailors travelled from Utah, California and beyond to take part in the event.
2023 has been a year of pioneering growth for the RS Tera North American Class, which has seen over 50 RS Teras join the sport, particularly in Utah and Colorado.
The Sears Cup (Texas, August 10th – 13th 2023)
Designed for junior teams, aged 13 to 18, the Chubb U.S. Youth Triplehanded Championship is US Sailing’s national championship that competes for the Sears Cup.
This year, the championship doubled in size from 11 teams to 22 teams. This allowed the Area Qualifiers to showcase the best of their talented junior athletes, sending two teams each. Overall, 19 yacht clubs were represented, with teams travelling from around the country. Competing teams included Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club, Corinthian Yacht Club of Seattle, and even Kaneohe Yacht Club from Hawaii.
Exceptionally tight racing kept things interesting but in the end the team from Kaneohe Yacht Club/HYSA claimed the title. The podium was rounded out by the teams from The San Francisco Yacht Club and Austin Yacht Club respectfully.
RS21 North American Championship (Texas. September 30th – October 1st 2023)
The RS21 North American National Championship at Lakewood Yacht Club featured big breeze, plenty of waves and a thrilling tie-breaker finish for first place.
Teams competed in crews of 3-4 people and raced in the club’s 12-boat fleet of RS21s. Big breeze was seen both days with 8 races completed. In the end, it was team ‘Shake ‘n’ Bake’, helmed by James Brock, who secured the victory with a final total of 13 points.
RS Aero North American Championship (Connecticut, October 5th – 8th 2023)
The Fabbrica RS Aero North American Championships were held at Cedar Point Yacht Club in Westport. This was the final event of the RS Aero North Eastern Race Week that began on September 30th with CPYC’s annual One Design Fontelieu Regatta.
The RS Aero North Americans had a total of 41 registered entries across the four rig sizes, and each rig size was treated as its own fleet. There were racers from Ireland, Canada and all over the USA; most of the big RS Aero US fleets were well represented including; Seattle, California, Indiana, Texas, Louisiana, and Alabama.
Each fleet got 9 races in on trapezoid courses with big breeze featuring 20+ knot gusts. Competition was fierce with 4 different boats winning bullets and the regatta was decided on the last race with Madhavan Thirumalai of CPYC beating Keith Hammer of Seattle Yacht Club. Boris Mezhibovskiy of CPYC and 15 year old Dylan Williams of Bellport Bay Yacht Club duked it out in the RS Aero 9s, with Boris ultimately prevailing. Hank Saurage from Pontchartrain Yacht Club in New Orleans dominated the RS Aero 6s, and Sally Sharp from Mascoma Sailing Club in New Hampshire won in the RS Aero 5s.
These events represent only a small portion of the sailing that took place in North America this summer; there was no shortage of local, junior and frostbiting events throughout the rest of the year. 2023 has been exciting, and there are no signs of slowing down any time soon. Check with your local club and RS Sailing Association pages to learn about upcoming events and how you can participate!
