The 2026 iteration of the Championship of Champions took place this past weekend in Syracuse, Indiana at the Wawasee Yacht Club in E Scows. Peter Keck and his team of Finn Rowe, James (Jimbob) Hackleman, and Eddie Cox took top honors in a talented fleet of Champions. The sailing conditions were challenging at best with storm cells, many accompanied by lightning, passing through the sailing area almost every day of the championship reducing the intended 20 race championship to a 12-race event.
Representing the C Scow class, Keck’s team had scow experience on their side, and as a former winner of this event, Keck knew what to expect. The racing was close and going into the final day of racing, William Schroder, a 16 year old “wunderkind” fresh off the 2026 A Scow Nationals win, was leading the fleet. Five teams were in contention for the top three spots while the RC team patiently waiting for a weather window between storm cells. Two final races ensued where only a couple of points made the difference in standing on the podium.
The 28’ E Scow provided a high-tech platform with an asymmetrical spinnaker. Many teams enlisted the expertise of crew that had experience racing these boats especially if they were coming from keelboats, singlehanded boats, or other more conventional centerboard boats. Since acceleration rates are high on these scows, the event used Vakaros tracking units that helped sailors gauge distance to line as well as compass and time to start. Use of this technology meant that starts were close and sailors knew if they were over early, eliminating general recalls and maximizing time spent racing. When the breeze came up, so did the speed of the boats, and the excitement of the sailors on the water.
This event is entirely unique where the fleet is comprised of US sailors who have won a Worlds, Nationals, or North Americans in a one design discipline. We had sailors qualify from the sunfish ( USSCA), Lightning, Thistle, Ideal 18, J-24, Shields, MC Scow, C Scow, A Scow, Viper, Inland 20, Buccaneer 18, WASZP, Windsurfer, Y-Flyer, Bullseye, Viper 640, ILCA 7 and the Santa Cruz 27. Eight teams won one or more races. Racing was fast and furious with target times between 27 and 35 minutes per race. Consistency proved to be the decisive factor (top 3 teams averaging between 3.94 and 4.8 points/race) and, in the end, the top three teams on the podium were:
Gold (C Scow): Peter Keck; Finn Rowe; James Hackleman; Eddie Cox
Silver (Melges 15/VX one): Chris Alexander; Doug Wake; Kenny Wolf; Madeleine Baldridge
Bronze (Shields); Adrian van der Wal: Kytalin Hendrickson; Martha Hughes: Robbie McCutcheon
4th (A Scow): William Schroeder; marshall Schroeder; Sam Bartel; Will Huerth
5th (WAZSP): Gavin Ball; Aaron Tsuchitori; Noelani Velasco; Brent Penwarden IV
Many thanks to Wawasee Yacht Club, the host of volunteers that supported the event, and Casey Call, the event chair. Next year’s C of C is being held at Lavalette Yacht Club in New Jersey in Melges 15 in October 2027. The qualifying period is open now, so get yourself qualified and come join in the fun!