International youth match racing

Teams from around the world pitch up in Newport Beach for the Balboa's Governor's Cup

Yacht clubs from the US and overseas will be sending their top Junior sailors to this year's Balboa Yacht Club Governor's Cup. The event is held on the ocean off Newport Beach, from July 17-22, 2006.

Each year, Balboa Yacht Club, as host of the Governor's Cup, chooses 12 teams of three Junior sailors each to match race identical yachts for five days of intense round-robin competition. This year will be the 40th annual running of the event.

A highly competitive group of sailors, including local teams from Balboa Yacht Club, and Newport Harbor Yacht Club will be joined by teams from nearby California Yacht Club and King Harbor Yacht Club. In addition, Annapolis Yacht Club and Southern Yacht Club from the New Orleans area will be a part of the event. From England, the Parkstone Yacht Club in Dorset will send their team. From Australia, the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club, and the Royal Perth Yacht Club will be joined by teams from New Zealand including the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron and Sandspit Yacht Club.

The 2006 Governor’s Cup Teams arrived at Balboa Yacht Club for registration today with a variety of stories to tell.

From New Orleans, the Southern Yacht Club team was missing their helmsman who had missed his flight from Chicago. Baker Potts would arrive later in the evening, but would be unable to practice in the Gov Cup 21 boats provided by Balboa Yacht Club. He is an experienced sailor who had won the Sears Cup in Chicago two years ago, so will be able to become comfortable after some time in the boat. The team from Southern Yacht Club is used to difficulties, having lost their clubhouse in a fire as a result of the hurricane last fall. Many of their small boats were saved, since they were across a canal that broke. Norman Vallette and Michael Levert, traveling with Michael’s father, Edward Levert, were able to try out the Gov Cup 21 while waiting.

It is the first matchracing event for the SYC team in contrast to the teams from New Zealand and Australia, where match racing is the norm. The team from Royal Perth Yacht Club in Western Australia includes three young men who have been racing together as a team for four years. Robert Gibbs, Kinley Fowler and Jonathan Clough have raced in boats from ten feet to 50 feet in length. Amazingly they get along well and enjoy racing together.

The team from Sandspit Yacht Club, sponsored by the New Zealand Teams Racing Association, had traveled from racing in Italy where their teams were very successful, coming in first over strong Italian teams. However, when they landed in Los Angeles on July 13, their luggage was missing. They visited Walmart for clothing as well as Disneyland for fun, but were delighted to have their luggage delivered to them at Balboa Yacht Club today. Rachael Basevi, one of two girls entered, is a part of the Sandspit team from Warksworth, New Zealand.

Two of the teams include girls, both from down under. Nina Curtis is from Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club from Newport, New South Wales, Australia. This week she will be racing with Thomas Spithill who has been part of the winning team for the last two year. Last week, she raced in the Mayor’s Cup in Long Beach with Thomas’s sister, coming in second after a strong last minute surge from the French team.

Racing begins tomorrow afternoon and will continue through Saturday in a series of match races, providing many opportunities for exciting sailing.

The 2006 Governor's Cup is presented by Boatswain's Locker, and co-sponsored by Bank of the West, Barnacle Bill's, Inc. Underwater Yacht Maintenance, Daily Pilot, Island Marine Fuel, Gerard Signs and Graphics, Quiksilver, Ullman Sails, West Marine and XSEnergy Drink.