U.S. NAVAL ACADEMY WINS U.S. OFFSHORE CHAMPIONSHIP

Annapolis, Md. (October 31, 2005) - The Midshipmen of the U.S. Naval Academy competing in US SAILING’s U.S. Offshore Championship enjoyed a great weekend, coming out with a bang on the first day of racing last Friday to take the lead and never give it up. The Midshipmen displayed outstanding sportsmanship and fair play throughout the Championship, withdrawing from Saturday’s long distance race and sacrificing a second place finish because they were uncertain if they had honored a mark. On Sunday, the team, skippered by Midshipman 1/C Greg Storer, added the US SAILING Lloyd Phoenix trophy to their already impressive trophy case. Annapolis Yacht Club finished in second place just two points behind the winners, followed by Hampton Yacht Club just one point further down. Rolex Watch U.S.A. sponsors the U.S. Offshore Championship and all other US SAILING Adult National Championships.

A total of 11 teams of eight sailors from across the country competed in Navy 44s for the U.S. Offshore Championship. After three races on Friday, the team of Midshipmen representing the U.S. Naval Academy held a commanding nine-point lead over Sled Shelhorse's team from Hampton Yacht Club, Va. For sure, experience in the Navy 44 boats was to the Navy crew's advantage but the other teams were scaling the learning curve quickly.

Day 2 on Saturday featured one buoy race followed by a 24-mile point to point race. Navy won the early heat and finished second in the distance race to John Seigel's crew representing the St. Francis Yacht Club who had showed excellent form in the building breeze. However, the Race Committee had amended the course by inserting a safe water mark to keep unfamiliar skippers clear of potential shoal water near the rhumb line of the final leg. And once ashore, a competitor pointed out to the Navy crew that it appeared Navy had passed this mark on the incorrect side. Although no protest was filed, Navy was uncertain they had honored the mark and decided to withdraw from the race converting their second place finish into a 12th.

Additionally, a race 4 protest decision involving St. Francis Yacht Club awarded them average points for this race. After the dust settled Saturday night, Navy held a slim 3.25 point lead. St. Francis was second with 21.25 virtually tied with Hampton who had 22.

Conditions for the final day on Sunday were again ideal with a moderate west/northwest breeze coming out of the Severn River. At the start of race 6, both Navy and St. Francis crossed the starting line early. Annapolis Yacht Club's skipper, John White, seized the opportunity and played his local knowledge to perfection winning the race by a large margin. Navy made a strong comeback to finish fifth, one place ahead of Hampton while St. Francis had their worst race of the series and dropped from contention.

For the final race Navy retained a seemingly comfortable five-point lead over both Hampton and Annapolis who had made a big move up the leader board. The Race Committee set a six-leg course and the fleet started safely, generally evenly spread on the line. Hampton, Navy and Annapolis all sailed out to the left side of the first beat. Skipper Tom Wheatley and his Seal Beach Yacht Club crew played middle right to lead at the first mark. Navy rounded second followed by Annapolis and Hampton close behind.

Annapolis played the first run well passing Navy to move up to second. On the second beat, Annapolis went left while Navy and Hampton split right. Left paid big with Annapolis passing Seal Beach to lead at the second weather mark while Navy fell to 4th now also behind Hampton. Navy lost another boat on the second run and was now running 5th. With Annapolis up front, the regatta was truly up for grabs.

Up the third beat Navy sailed frantically to hang on to their fifth position while Annapolis could only hope another boat or two would get by the Midshipmen. At the final weather mark, Navy misjudged the layline, squandering a few lengths of gain and making for an exciting run to the finish. Navy managed to just get around the top mark and held off St. Francis by one length for a final race 5th place to secure the Championship.

Besides skipper Greg Stores, the U.S. Naval Academy team consisted of 1/C Jeff Parker, 1/C Jon Casilio, 1/C Colin Chandler, 2/C Leigh Loesel, 2/C Jared Webster, 2/C Nick Goddard, 3/C Tim Clarke and 4/C Mark Picinich. Navy's U.S. Offshore Championship win follows their victory the previous weekend at the Intercollegiate McMillan Cup, also hosted at the Academy.

For complete results, photos, and daily reports from the event, please visit the event website at www.ussailing.org/championships/adult/usoffshore.  

The United States Sailing Association (US SAILING) is the national governing body for sailing and sailboat racing. Headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, the organization’s mission is to encourage participation and promote excellence in sailing and racing in the U.S. US SAILING offers training and education programs, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including the US Sailing Teams and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Teams. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.  

(End)