FORT WORTH, Texas (June 18, 2017) – Sunday marked the conclusion of a successful and fun five day event at the Fort Worth Boat Club, host to the 2017 U.S. Youth Match Racing Championship for the Rose Cup. This US Sailing Championship was exceptionally special for David Wood (Corona del Mar, Calif.) and his Southern California based team comprised of Max Brennan (Newport Beach, Calif.), Catherine Reynolds (Costa Mesa, Calif.) and Jeffery Petersen (Santa Ana, Calif.).
Despite placing in the middle of the standings following stage one’s round robin, Wood and crew picked up momentum through the Knock-out rounds to win the championship. Wood was ranked fifth out of 10 teams following the round robin and defeated fourth ranked Jack Reiter (San Diego, Calif.), 3-0, on Saturday. They went on to up-end number one ranked Porter Killan (Newport Beach, Calif.) Sunday morning in the semifinals, 3-1, after dropping the first race of the series. Wood blanked Jack Parkin (Riverside, Conn.), 3-0, in Sunday’s final series. Parkin’s second place team includes crewmates Robbie Nicholls (Houston, Texas), Christina Sakellaris (Milton, Mass.) and Wiley Rogers (Houston, Texas). Final Results
#rosecup17 @FWBoatClub David Woods team WINS the rose cup !!! pic.twitter.com/b9Lb50GNZ3
— US Sailing (@ussailing) June 18, 2017
Wood receives an invitation to the 2017 Governor’s Cup on July 17-22 at the Balboa Yacht Club in Corona del Mar, Calif. and qualifies for the 2017 Oakcliff Halloween Invitational on October 28-29 at Oakcliff Sailing in Oyster Bay, N.Y. The Nick Scandone Sportsmanship Award was awarded to the team of Porter Killian, John Horton (Newport Beach, Calif.), Robert Garrett (Newport Coast, Calif.) and Victoria Thompson (Newport Beach, Calif.), after receiving votes from their fellow competitors.
In the round robin, each team raced six or seven matches on Friday and completed the stage on Saturday. Killian took control of the number one ranking with eight points through nine races. The top eight teams advanced to the quarterfinals.
Teams raced in 10 mph winds from the South/Southwest for most of Friday, with diminishing breeze in the afternoon on Eagle Mountain Lake. On Saturday, winds were in the 10-12 mph range with gusts exceeding 15. Conditions on Sunday morning were in the 6-8 mph range with gusts reaching 15 early in the afternoon.
In its brief, yet impactful history on the match racing circuit this invitational event for 16 to 20 year olds has served as an outstanding training ground for young sailors who are passionate about match racing and focused on competing at the next level.
Ten teams of four, consisting of at least one female crew per boat, raced in the J/22 this week. Coaching and instruction played a major role in these sailors’ experience this week in Fort Worth. Five-time U.S. Match Racing Champion, Dave Perry, along with Mike Pinckney and two-time Rose Cup winner Christophe Killian conducted a North U Advanced Match Racing Clinic on Wednesday and Thursday of last week. The Clinic included long days of training on the water, presentations on all aspects of match racing with video debriefs.
“This was by far one of the best youth match racing events I’ve ever seen,” said Perry. “The Fort Worth Boat Club did its usual amazing job, the race management was perfect, and the 40 competitors, including 11 girls, competed at a high level.”
Originally known as the Rose Cup, this event was founded by members of the Balboa Yacht Club and the Newport-Balboa Sailing & Seamanship Association (NBSSA), and was started as an invitational youth match race event in 2010. The mission is to promote youth match racing in the U.S. and improve the skills of racers from around the country in national and international competition. In 2015, US Sailing elevated the Rose Cup to an official US Sailing National Championship.
This regatta was the first of two US Sailing National Championships in the match racing discipline this year. Oakcliff Sailing will host the U.S. Match Racing Championship in October.
Media & Coverage
- For final results and standings, list of competitors, Twitter updates, photos and more information from the 2017 U.S. Youth Match Racing Championship, please visit the event website.
- For breaking news and race results, follow us on Twitter at #RoseCup17 to participate in the conversation.
Social Media Highlights
#rosecup17 @FWBoatClub SF 5 Flight 1 start pic.twitter.com/fhabH7kes2
— US Sailing (@ussailing) June 18, 2017
#rosecup17 @FWBoatClub Final Day of Racing Rose Cup 2017 at the Fort Worth Boat Club. Wind SSE 4 mph gusting to 13 mph. 80 degrees
— US Sailing (@ussailing) June 18, 2017
#rosecup17 @FWBoatClub Day 2 pic.twitter.com/EWn8mQSueN
— US Sailing (@ussailing) June 17, 2017
#rosecup17 @FWBoatClub Semi Finals – wind conditions really picking up SSE 23 gusting to 29 !! 94 degrees. North Texas Sailing!
— US Sailing (@ussailing) June 17, 2017
#rosecup17 @FWBoatClub Hiebert VIP Spectator Boat Qtr Finals Day 2 #andyrose #balboayachtclub #olpitts pic.twitter.com/j7f3YJ6OAQ
— US Sailing (@ussailing) June 17, 2017
Photo Gallery
US Sailing’s “This is what we do” series: Dave Perry on Match Racing
The U.S. Youth Match Racing Championship is sponsored by Gill North America. This US Sailing National Championship is a Sailors for the Sea certified Clean Regatta.
US Sailing Contact: Jake Fish, Communications Manager, jakefish@ussailing.org
On-Site Contact: Kim Chaumont, Event Chair, kim@sbc-ltd.com
About US Sailing
The United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for sailing, provides leadership, integrity, and growth for the sport in the United States. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, US Sailing is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. US Sailing offers training and education programs for instructors and race officials, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, issues offshore rating certificates, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including National Championships and the US Sailing Team. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.
About Gill North America
Gill NA, with headquarters near Atlanta, GA is the exclusive importer and distributor of Gill-brand foul weather gear in North America including Caribbean, US and Canada. Gill is a worldwide apparel and accessories brand serving the marine industry with over three decades of experience. Gill specializes in high tech, breathable waterproof clothing. The company develops and markets a variety of performance-oriented, award-winning apparel and accessories for virtually every type of boating activity with product lines that include foul weather gear; interactive layering systems; footwear; gloves; bags; junior gear; scholastic gear and team wear. Gill products are available through hundreds of independent dealers and select West Marine Stores. For further information, please contact: Gary Barker at 941 505 2111 or gary.barker@gillna.com.