RNZYS on top

William Tiller's team claims the Governor's Cup youth match racing against international line-up

The Governor's Cup teams arrived on July 14 from nearby and as far away as Australia, New Zealand, Bermuda and Britain. In amazingly ideal conditions throughout the first four days of racing, the schedule of races went off smoothly. Many years, the winds have been too light to complete the busy schedule. On the first day, six flights of 11 races each were held. Four flights were completed on the second day. Then on the third day, the final flight of the first round robin was completed, as well as six flights of the second round. On Saturday, the second round robin was completed. Sunday arrived with light winds that seldom reached over five knots, so the racing required patience and real observance of the conditions and wind shifts.

The final standings at the end of the two Round Robins:
1st Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, 2nd Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, Men, 3rd Newport Harbor Yacht Club, 4th King Harbor Yacht Club, 5th Royal Yachting Association, 6th Mission Bay Yacht Club, 7th San Francisco Yacht Club, 8th Long Beach Yacht Club, 9th Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club, 10th Balboa Yacht Club, 11th Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, Women,12th Southern Yacht Club

The top four teams raced in a Semi-Final Knock-Out series. The first place skipper, William Tiller, of the RNZYS, Men's team chose which of the other three to race against. His choice was the team from King Harbor Yacht Club, led by Dillon Lancaster, and was able to defeat them in two races. The remaining two teams raced each other. Each defeated the other in one of their races, requiring a third race, which was closely contest but ended with Newport Harbor YC winning the final and deciding race. The first team to score 2 points in each match participated in the Final Knock-Out. The winner of the Petite Final Knock-Out, CYCA, placed third with KHYC in fourth.

Will Tiller and his expert crewmates, Harry Thurston and Shaun Mason won the best of three final series against defending champion Newport Harbor YC. In the finals between NHYC and RNZYS, the close competition was exciting to watch, as the boats rounded marks only seconds apart. RNZYS won the first race, but in the second, NHYC prevailed after they won the start and rounded some of the marks ahead of RNZYS, despite having to make a penalty turn. There were a couple of lead changes in that race, keeping everyone on their toes and the spectators enthralled. In the last and very exciting race, William Tiller won the start, but was passed by Andrew Mason, who led at the first mark, but Tiller was able to pass him, and led by 21 seconds at the second weather mark, and won the title by 20 seconds.

At the Trophy presentation, Tiller gave full credit to his crew and opponents, stating that they has to be “at the top of their game” to beat Newport. The 2009 team joins a remarkable group of racers. Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron helmsmen and their teammates have been winning the Governor's Cup since the competition was opened up to other countries in 1988. Mark Christensen in 1989, Kelvin Harrap in 1990, Andy Estcourt in 1995, and Simon Minoprio in 2001.

At Sunday's Award presentation, the top three teams received silver bowls. The team and skipper names will be engraved on the 43 year old Governor’s Cup. Each racer received an engraved silver frame with a photo of their team in action during the racing. In addition, each racer in the regatta will receive a cd with a collection of photos from the event, as well as their team photo from Mary Longpre, the official photographer. Tom Purcell presented the Chet Purcell Good Sportsmanship Award to the Royal Yachting Association for their cooperation and help during the event. Tom's father, Chet, was the original organizer of the event in 1967. Then-Governor, Ronald Reagan donated the Cup only a few months after taking office.

The skippers finishing fifth through 12th qualified for a Consolation Round, in which the first to win two races becomes the victor. Five and six raced each other with the winner placing fifth. Seven and eight raced each other for seventh place, nine and ten for ninth and 11th and 12 for 11th place.

In the first race of the Consolation Round, Southern YC, with Michael Levert at the helm, won their race against the RNZYS Women’s team. The Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club, with Lance Fraser driving, defeated the host team, BYC under the direction of Caitlin Ybarra. Sam Goodchild of The Royal Yachting Association led his team to a win over Mission Bay Yacht Club, led by Scott Hoffman. At the end of the Consolation Round, BYC had defeated RHADC, the RNZYS girls won two races of three against SYC and RYA was the victor over MBYC.

The final standings at the end of the Regatta:
1st - Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron
2nd - Newport Harbor Yacht Club
3rd - Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, Men
4th - King Harbor Yacht Club
5th - Royal Yachting Association
6th - Mission Bay Yacht Club
7th - Long Beach Yacht Club
8th - San Francisco Yacht Club
9th - Balboa Yacht Club
10th - Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club
11th - Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, (girls)
12th - Southern Yacht Club

The exceptional skill of these young racers was evident throughout. Due to the 15 volunteer on-the-water Umpires, there were no protest meetings necessary, as all conflicts were decided as they happened. In the first Round Robin, the Royal New Zealand Men's team was undefeated. In the second, the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia was undefeated, handing the RNZYS team their first defeat of the regatta. However, CYCA had lost three races in the first round, to Mission Bay YC, RNZYS, Men, and Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club, so they entered the final phase in second place. Kieran Searle, bowman of the CYCA team, stated "We adjusted to the boats. Our speed and handling of these boats improved through round two."

In a special Saturday evening awards ceremony, Commodore Alan Andrews of Balboa Yacht Club, the designer of the Gov Cup 21 boats used in the regatta, presented preliminary awards, with the help of the Regatta Co-Chair, Judi Gorski. With two women skippers in the competition, Caitlyn Ybarra of BYC and Susannah Pyatt of RNZYS, were unusual in the event, although not unprecedented. In 2005, Silja Lehtinen, the skipper of the Nylandska Jaktklubben team from Helsinki, Finland reached the Final Four, and then the Final Two, but was defeated in the third race by the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club team that included Thomas Spithill and Murray Gordon, two famous names in sailing. Silja attended Newport Harbor High School as a foreign exchange student, so had local knowledge.

One of the sponsors this year chose to honor the more successful female skipper and her team with beautiful Kaenon Polarized sunglasses. Caitlyn and her Balboa Yacht Club team of Walker Banks and Brandon Wood were honored to receive them. The first place team at the end of the round robin series, William Tiller, Harry Thurston and Shaun Mason of the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, also received Kaenon sunglasses.

The top two US teams in the final Governor's Cup standings will be invited to New Zealand in February for the International Youth Match Racing Series at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, the home base of the team in the lead for the Gov Cup. Newport Harbor Yacht Club and King Harbor Yacht Club are the top two US teams, since the other two teams in the final four are from New Zealand and Australia.

For 43 years, Balboa Yacht Club has invited competitors, all under the age of twenty, to compete for the Governor's Cup in the oldest Junior International Match Race. Raced in the ocean off of beautiful Newport Beach, California, the race is "one of the most prestigious regattas amongst our sailing age group," as stated by one of the competitors, Taylor Holland, one of the members of the all girl team from New Zealand. Kieran Searle of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia commented: "The Gov Cup's probably the funnest event I've ever been to." “The Best Ever Gov Cup” was often heard around the Yacht Club on the final day.