Tight Race to First for C420 Nationals
By Katelyn Montero
San Diego, CA (July 18, 2014) “For the last day of a national championship, it can’t get much better than the tight racing we’ve had going into today and certainly into the last race, John Vandemoer, Executive Director of the Club 420 Class Association said as he watched the competitors gear up for the tenth and final race of the regatta. With one more race left in the regatta, only four points separated the top three teams, and in the words of Vandemoer, it was anyone’s game. Ultimately, it was locals Scott Sinks and Rebecca McElvain from San Diego Yacht Club who were able to nab the title of national champions. In the final race, their third place finish in the final race gave them a score of 43 and secured their overall win of the regatta.
Barely trailing behind them, Max and Ian Brill finished second with a score of 45, separated from the third place team of Romain Screve and Jackson Ritter by only one point. With scores as close as these and the drama of an exciting finale, it’s tough to believe that the regatta had originally gotten off to such a slow start.
The first race took place on Tuesday, July 16, but it wasn’t until two general recalls that the actual racing began. Light winds and poor sailing conditions made for long races and difficult starts. Originally hoping to hold four races each day, PRO Jeff Johnson and the rest of the Race Committee was only able to get in two races for the day. Cassie Obel and Annika Garrett took the early lead as the day one winners, but were unable to keep their fast finishes up throughout the rest of the regatta and ultimately finished in 6th place.
The second day of racing took place in quintessential San Diego conditions, with sunny skies, 75 degrees and 8-12 KTS. The racing was fierce and the day was long with a total of five races taking place on Wednesday alone. By the sixth race of the regatta, competitors were qualified to drop their lowest score. It was the third place overall team Screve and Ritter from San Francisco Yacht Club who won the second day of racing, and the stage was set for a close fight to the finish on the third and final day.
Conditions on Thursday were primed for a great final day, and the regatta was able to get in three races for the day with about 10-12 KTS and clear skies. Sinks and McElvain finished the last race of the day in third place, giving them the win for the regatta. Crew McElvain is no stranger to national championships, having won on the Point Loma team at the high school level. “It feels pretty good,” McElvain said of her new first place championship. “I’m just happy to be able to win with my skipper.” The skipper, Scott Sinks, is also SDYC Commodore’s son, and was happy to be able to win the regatta on home waters.
The 2014 Nationals was not just an exciting regatta to watch, but also one for the history books. With the largest registration for the C420 class on the West Coast, Class Director Vandemoer is hopeful that the class will continue to grow.
Final, full results can be seen here: http://www.club420.org/results/14UL420%20Nationals%202014%20results.pdf