Martin 242 North American Champion Wins
2006 U.S. Championship of Champions

Little Rock, Ark. (Oct. 30) - The last day of the U.S. Championship of Champions at Grande Maumelle Sailing Club in Little Rock, Ark., on Saturday determined a new U.S. Champion of Champions. The title now belongs to Alan Field, the Martin 242 North American Champion from Los Angeles, and crew Steven Hunt (San Diego, Calif.).

Augie Barkow (Pewaukee, Wis.), C-Scow National Champion, had been in the lead since day one, but when he finished 15, 13, 11 in races 9, 10 and 11 respectively on the last day of the regatta, the lead was up for grabs. Field and Hunt were happy to step up, winning races 10 and 11. From then on, their lead was sealed and with a pair of fifth place finishes in the regatta's two last races, the title was theirs. Barkow ended up finishing third overall, behind Matt Burridge (St. Louis, Mo.), Lightning North American Champion, who posted some solid top ten finishes including a pair of firsts in race 9 and 13 to finish second overall. “It was pond sailing today” said Burridge when describing his strategy and the light and shifty conditions on the final day of the regatta. “And don’t wait too late to consolidate,” he added.

Although neither Field nor Hunt have any experience sailing scows, they attribute their success to two factors: Field, besides growing up in a variety of one designs including Sabots, Lidos, and Thistles, sails in the ultra competitive Farr 40 fleet. “Both the Martin 242 and the Farr 40 are like big dinghies, where very small adjustments can reap large gains.” said Field. Crew Hunt admitted to tuning up his dinghy skills by sailing FJs with the Point Loma High School Sailing Team, which he coaches.

For complete results, photos and daily reports from the U.S. Championship of Champions, please visit the event website at www.ussailing.org/championships/adult/CofC. The event is sponsored by Rolex Watch U.S.A. Inc., as are all of US SAILING’s National Adult Championships.

The U.S. Championship of Champions is comprised of 20 class champions selected by US SAILING from applications made by their class associations. Applications are currently accepted for the 2007 event at www.ussailing.org/championships/adult/CofC.  The 2007 event will be hosted by Mission Bay Yacht Club in San Diego, Calif., and sailed in Snipes.

The U.S. Championship of Champions is part of US SAILING’s National Adult Championships series. 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.  

Final results (20 boats, 13 races, 1 throwout)
1. Alan Field (Los Angeles, Calif.)/Steve Hunt (San Diego, Calif.): 5-2-3-3-7-5-5-6-[13]-1-1-5-5, 48 points.
2. Matt Burridge (St. Louis, Mo.)/Paul Hanson (Glen Carbon, Ill.): 3-4-1-1-[13]-12-8-8-1-6-2-9-1, 56 points.
3. Augie Barkow/Jeffrey Niedziela (both from Pewaukee, Wis.): 1-1-4-4-9-4-1-3-[15]-13-11-2-8, 61 points.
4. Paul Abdullah (Jacksonville, Fla.)/Nick Turney (Toledo, OH): 5-5-7-12-1-2-4-[14]-9-2-12-3-2, 61 points.
5. Joe Kutschenreuter (East Troy, Wis.)/Colin Smith (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.): 4-7-[14]-9-11-8-9-2-3-3-7-1-10, 74 points.

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