COUNTRY’S TOP ONE-DESIGN SAILORS COMPETE AT
U.S. CHAMPIONSHIP OF CHAMPIONS
Olympic Hopefuls at US SAILING Mount Gay Rum Speaker Series Event on Friday, Oct. 27

Little Rock, Ark. (October 25, 2006) – This week, 20 of the country’s top one-design sailors are meeting on the race course off Grande Maumelle Sailing Club in Little Rock, Ark. to compete in US SAILING’s U.S. Championship of Champions. More than 30 different one-design classes applied to have their National or North American champion compete in the event, which is limited to 20. Selected skippers range from a 13-year old Flying Scot champion to a 67-year-old grand master. The one-design class champions are competing in Y-Flyers for US SAILING’s Jack Brown Trophy. Sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A., Inc., racing begins on Thursday, Oct. 26 and finishes on Saturday, Oct. 28.

On Friday, October 27, competitors and local sailors will have the unique opportunity to meet U.S. Olympic hopefuls Sally Barkow and Carrie Howe in person at the US SAILING Mount Gay Rum Speaker Series. Barkow and Howe, who along with Deb Capozzi are campaigning for a spot to go to China in 2008 in the three-person Yngling class, have a remarkable record sailing various one-design classes. Barkow, 2005 US SAILING Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, and Howe will talk about their sailing experiences, such as winning the Yngling Women’s World Championship and Women’s World Match Racing Championship in 2005, their recent trip to Qingdao in China (site of the 2008 Olympic Regatta), and much more. Tickets to this US SAILING Mount Gay Rum Speaker Series event, which will take place at the Little Rock Country Club, have already been sold out.

The competition at the U.S. Championship of Champions will be fierce, as these sailors are all reigning champions in their respective classes. Among the competitors are August “Augie” Barkow, C-Scow National Champion and Sally Barkow’s brother, 13-year-old Flying Scot Jr. Champion Mac Cady, and Etchells World Champion Bill Mauk.

Competitors who have been selected to race in the 2006 U.S. Championship of Champions, as well as the events through which they qualified are:

Paul Abdullah (Jacksonville, Fla.) - Interlake National Champion
August Barkow (Pewaukee, Wis.) – C-Scow National Champion
Matt Bounds (Commerce, Mich.) – Hobie 17 North American Champion
Matt Burridge (St. Louis, Mo.) – Lightning North American Champion
Mac Cady (Houston, TX) – Flying Scot Jr. North American Champion
Dave Ellis (St. Petersburg, Fla.) – Windmill National Champion
Alan Field (Los Angeles, Calif.) – Martin 242 North American Champion
Grant Frautschi (Madison, Wis.) – Inland 20 National Champion
Ernie French (Johnson Lake, Neb.) – Santana 23 National Champion
Will Hanckel (Charleston, S.C.) – Y-Flyer National Champion
Joe Kutschenreuter (East Troy, Wis.) – X Boat National Champion
Bill Mauk (Miami, Fla.) – Etchells World Champion
Fred Meno (Fort Worth, TX) – Force 5 North American Champion
Stuart Robertson (Huntington Beach, Calif.) – Lido 14 National Champion
Mitch Schroeder (Anaheim, Calif.) – Cal 20 National Champion
Chuck Sinks (San Diego, Calif.) – Naples Sabot Masters Champion
Ed Spengeman (Louisville, Ky.) – Highlander National Champion
Dave Spira (Denver, Colo.) – Buccaneer 18 North American Champion
Ryan Staszko (Cohasset, Mass.) – 210 National Champion
Newt Wattis (Surf City, N.J.) – Mariner National Champion

Inaugurated in 1976, the U.S. Championship of Champions is limited to 20 class champions selected by US SAILING from nominations made by their class associations. Eligible are current national or North American one-design class champions who normally sail in the U.S. and are members of US SAILING and of a club, class or association affiliated with US SAILING.

For more information on the U.S. Championship of Champions, please visit www.ussailing.org/championships/adult/CofC.  

The U.S. Championship of Champions is part of US SAILING’s National Adult Championships series, all of which are sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A., Inc. For more information about US SAILING’s National Championships, visit www.ussailing.org/championships or contact US SAILING’s championships manager Liz Walker at championships@ussailing.org.  

About US SAILING
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 National Championships, the US Sailing Teams and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Sailing Teams. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.  

(End)