Campbell takes the lead

As Quantum Melges 24 suffers an OCS in today's racing at Charleston Race Week

A windless Saturday morning was in store for 174 racing boats on Charleston Harbor today, but the warm sun more than made up for a little delay. Racers decided after a delay of more than one hour (due to the lack of wind) to start swimming and sunbathing.
Chuck Coyer, a mobile yacht rigger who is sailing Race Week with local hotshot Melges 24 team Blur said: “It was easy to get a little too relaxed - when the racing started it was extremely tough and mentally taxing, a real gear shift from working on a sun tan for two hours.” Blur sits in sixth position, the top local boat in the competitive grand prix Melges class, owned by Isle of Palms resident Steve Kopf.

The wind built earlier on the harbor courses than the offshore circles, where teams languished in the sun after an early attempt at a race was abandoned when the wind disappeared. “We were disappointed to see the race cancelled. We were winning at the time!” explained local sailor Will Schallor, trimming on the brand new Archambault 40 cruiser/racer Jubilee. “It's our first time racing the boat but it has been a great event already. We already feel ahead of the learning curve.”

Jubilee is locked in a tie with Charleston-based Dauntless, while both trail Teamwork, fresh off their success in the 408-mile Fort Lauderdale to Charleston Race.

Local Sailmaker Peter Durst also sails on Jubilee. “The amazing thing about our fleet is we have three boats deadlocked for second place, and we're all right there behind ‘Teamwork’ - it's just great competition,” Durst said.

In light wind, current dominates a racer's thinking, and today, the strong current did just that. “There's no sunbathing back home right now,” said Dan Cooney, the Marian, Massachusetts crew of J/80 Bob Dylan. “The wind is great here too, but when it's like today, you just can't relax for a minute - you have to worry all the time.”

Another Course 2 boat, the hot Melges 24 Quantum Racing didn't have any such trouble. The all-pro crew has been on an unmatched winning streak in thi fleet, winning last year's North American championship and currently training for October's World Championship. This crack crew also includes a local - Charleston's Amy Ironmonger, a hot commodity in the sailing world. “It was really a different game than yesterday, with lots of transitions,” she commented. The team is only one point out of first, and Amy is “pleased to see that our tuning and skill level is coming together so well as we get ready for Worlds.” Even after being over the line early in the final race of the day, Quantum was able to catch and pass 22 other boats and salvage a ninth place in the race.

Currents weren't the only obstacle either, as the Viper 640s, Laser SB3s, and Melges 20s on the busy Course 1 found out. Moise Splomon is sailing his first-ever regatta in his new Viper. “It was tough to set a good course, but the Race Committee did the best with what they had,” he said. A newcomer to Charleston Harbor, Moise isn't used to the tower and rock pile in the middle of the course. “The wind wasn't a problem, the rocks were,” he said. “Still, it's great racing and everyone is so friendly on the course and in the big Viper class, and no drama's turned up yet.”

Tomorrow's forecast calls for more wind and comfortable temperatures as the racers fight to win honors for their fleet and more than $10,000 in prizes from Raymarine, Gosling's Rum and the rest of Charleston Race Week's generous sponsors. “As far as I can tell, almost every fleet is still up for grabs tomorrow,” said Race Director Brad Van Liew. “No one is walking away with victory without a fight and once again, Charleston Race Week is providing great competition across the board.”

Preliminary Cumulative Results, Saturday, April 18, 2009

Viper 640
1. Black Mamba, Viper 640 21, David Guggenheim, Savannah, GA, USA - 3, 1, 2, 1, 2, 14, 3, [14] ; 12
2. Thin Ice, Viper 640 21, Stuart Hebb, Coral Gables, FL, USA - 2, 2, 6, 5, 8, 5, 1, [8] ; 21
3. Honour, Viper 640 21, Brad Boston, Point Edward, ON, CAN - 17, 3, 5, 3, 4, 9, 2, [17] ; 26
4. USA 94, Viper 640 21, Jonathan Nye, Old Greenwich, CT, USA - 6, 6, 7, 6, 5, 4, 16, [16] ; 34
5. USA 108, Viper 640 21, Bill Griffin, Stonington, CT, USA - 1, 9, 4, 12, 1, 11, 10, [12] ; 36

Melges 20 (One Design - 6 Boats)
1. USA 21, Melges 20 20, Marc Hollerbach, Grosse Pointe Park, MI, USA
- 1, 3, 5, 1, 5, 3, 1, [5] ; 14
2. SuperFly, Melges 20 20, Eric Wynsma, East Grand Rapids, MI, USA - 4, 1, 3, 4, 2, 1, 6, [6] ; 15
3. 102, Melges 20 20, Phil Sustronk, Mississauga, ON, CAN - 2, 5, 2, 3, 1, 2, 5, [5] ; 15
4. Simplified Sophistication, Melges 20 20, David Hammett / Linton Weiss, Rockville, MD, USA - 3, 4, 1, 2, 4, 5, 4, [5] ; 18
5. Shakedown, Melges 20, Geoffrey Pierini, Bernardsville, NJ, USA - 5, 2, 4, 7/DNS, 3, 4, 2, [7] ; 20

Laser SB3 (One Design - 6 Boats)
1. Boat, Laser SB3 20, Sean Fidler, Royal Oak, MI, USA - 2, 1, 3, 1, 1, 1, 2, [3] ; 8
2. The Claw, Laser SB3 20, Jackson Benvenutti, Charleston, SC, USA - 1, 3, 2, 2, 3, 3, 1, [3] ; 12
3. CIAO!, Laser SB3 20, Alain Fedensieu, Marseille, France - 3, 2, 1, 3, 4, 4, 4, [4] ; 17 4. Olympic Challenge, Laser SB3 20, Connor Brady , Hilton Head Island, SC, USA - 5, 5, 4, 5, 2, 2, 3, [5] ; 21
5. Foggy Notion, Laser SB3 20, John Fonseca, Newport, RI, USA - 4, 4, 6, 4, 5, 5, 6, [6] ; 28

Melges 24 (One Design - 31 Boats)
1. Rock N' Roll, Melges 24 24, Argyle Campbell, Newport Beach, CA, USA
- 5, 4, 2, 3, 5, 1, 12, [12] ; 20
2. Quantum Racing, Melges 24 24, Scott Nixon, Annapolis , MD , USA - 3, 1, 11, 1, 4, 3, 9, [11] ; 21
3. KO Sailing, Melges 24 24, John Kolius, La Porte, TX, USA - 1, 5, 4, 2, 15, 8, 2, [15] ; 22
4. Party Girl, Melges 24 24, Jens Altern Wathne, Loddefjord, NOR - 13, 7, 6, 7, 8, 2, 1, [13] ; 31
5. Blur-Pacific Energy Ventures, Melges 24 24, Steven Kopf, Isle of Palms, SC, USA - 10, 3, 10, 9, 3, 6, 11, [11] ; 41

J 80 (One Design - 9 Boats)
1. J Hawk, J 80 26, Kerry Klingler, Larchmont, NY, USA - 2, 4, 1, 1, 1, 4, 2, [4] ; 11
2. Lucky Frog, J 80 27, Ben Schwartz, Bay Shore, NY, USA - 1, 3, 6, 4, 3, 2, 1, [6] ; 14
3. Relentless, J 80 26, Al Minella, Greenwich, CT, USA - 5, 1, 2, 5, 2, 1, 5, [5] ; 16
4. Bob Dylan, J 80 26, Mike Sudofsky, Marion, MA, USA - 7, 2, 4, 6, 4, 8, 3, [8] ; 26
5. Raptor, J 80 26.3, Don Trask, Mooresville, NC, USA - 3, 8, 5, 2, 7, 6, 4, [8] ; 27

J/24 (One Design - 16 Boats)
1. Murder Incorporated, J 24 24, Chip Till, Wrightsville Beach, NC, USA - 1, 2, 2, 9, 2, 1, [9] ; 8
2. Tutakrnaut, J 24 24, Roger Dougal, Columbia, SC, USA - 2, 1, 17/ DNF, 2, 5, 3, [17] ; 13
3. Footloose, J 24 24, Maarten Zonjee, Sullivans Island, SC, USA - 3, 17/DSQ, 1, 1, 4, 7, [17] ; 16
4. Latte, J 24 24, Francisco Davila, Mount Pleasant, SC, USA - 8, 7, 4, 7, 1, 2, [8] ; 21
5. BASH, J 24 24, Ron Medlin, Goldsboro, NC, USA - 5, 3, 3, 3, 8, 11, [11] ; 22

J/105 (One Design - 5 Boats)
1. Dead on Arrival, J 105 34.5, Joe Highsmith, Bluffton, SC, USA - 1, 2, 2, 3, 1, ; 9
2. Big Booty, J 105 34.5, Patrick Eudy, Charlotte, NC, USA - 2, 1, 1, 4, 2, ; 10
3. High Visibility, J 105 34.5, Billy Bremer III, Savannah, GA, USA - 3, 3, 3, 1, 3, ; 13
4. Absolutely, J 105 34.5, Junius Grimes, Mount Pleasant, SC, USA - 4, 4, 4, 2, 5, ; 19
5. Revelation, J 105 34.5, John Demere, Savannah, GA, USA - 5, 5, 5, 5, 4, ; 24

PHRF A (PHRF - 9 Boats)
1. Teamwork, J 122 40, Robin Team, Lexington, NC, USA - 1, 1, 2, 8, 2, ; 14
2. Dauntless, Beneteau First 47.7 48.7, Don Terwilliger, Charleston, SC, USA - 3, 3, 1, 5, 4, ; 16
3. Jubilee, Archambault A40RC 39, Cal Huge, Summerville, SC, USA - 2, 4, 3, 4, 3, ; 16
4. Captivity, Farr 60 18.3 m, Sam Byrne, Manchester, MA, USA - 4, 2, 4, 1, 6, ; 17
5. EmOcean, J 120 AL 40, Will Hanckel, Charleston, SC, USA - 5, 5, 10/ DNS, 3, 1, ; 24

PHRF B (PHRF - 12 Boats)
1. X-Esse, Esse 850 28, Taylor / Linehan, Annapolis, MD, USA - 2, 3, 7, 1, 1, ; 14
2. Tangent, Cape fear 38 38, Gerry Taylor, Annapolis, MD, USA - 1, 1, 1, 10, 2, ; 15
3. IMP, Ron Holland 39 39, George Radley, Cork, IRL - 4, 2, 2, 3, 4, ; 15
4. Hoodoo, J 109 ODR 35, Ric Campeau, Summerville, SC, USA - 3, 5, 4, 6, 3, ; 21
5. Avalon, Soverel 39 mod 39, Steven Clark, Hanahan, SC, USA - 6, 8, 6, 2, 7, ; 29

PHRF C (PHRF - 11 Boats)
1. Seefest, J 29 MH 29, Ira Perry, Dartmouth, MA, USA - 1, 2, 2, 0, 3, 1, [3] ; 6
2. L'outrage, Beneteau 34 34', Bruce Gardner, Annapolis, MD, USA - 2, 1, 1, 0, 4, 3, [4] ; 7
3. Remedy, Donovan 27 27.5, Bert Carp, Annapolis, MD, USA - 4, 5, 6, 0, 1, 2, [6] ; 12
4. For Sail, J 29 MH 29, Jim Mackevich, Edison, NJ, USA - 5, 4, 3, 0, 5, 5, [5] ; 17
5. Breeze, Custom 28 28, Valeri Safiullin, Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA - 3, 3, 4, 0, 10, 8, [10] ; 18

PHRF D (PHRF - 7 Boats)
1. Slapshot, Tripp 26 26, Tom Freeman, St. Thomas, ON, CAN - 1, 1, 2, 0, 1, 1, [2] ; 4
2. Huntin' Tripp, Tripp 26 26, Treez Decker, Charlotte, NC, USA - 3, 2, 1, 0, 2, 3, [3] ; 8
3. Tantrum, Tartan Ten 33, Timothy Savage, Chesapeake, VA, USA - 4, 3, 3, 0, 5, 4, [5] ; 14
4. Red Hot Chili Peppers, B 25 25, Ryan Worobel, Austin, TX, USA - 2, 8/DNF, 8/DNS, 0, 4, 2, [8] ; 16
5. Crazy Bob, Evelyn 25 25, Robert Billings, Easton, MD, USA - 5, 8/ DNS, 8/DNS, 0, 3, 5, [8] ; 21

PHRF E (PHRF - 11 Boats)
1. Caribbean Soul 2, MAC 30 30, David McAleer, West Chester, PA, USA - 2, 1, 1, 0, 2, 1, [2] ; 5
2. Whisper, C&C 38 38, Tom Bell, St. Johns, FL, USA - 1, 2, 2, 0, 1, 2, [2] ; 6
3. Buena Vida, Sabre 362 36', David Rodarte, Columbia, SC, USA - 5, 4, 3, 0, 6, 5, [6] ; 17
4. Tohidu, Beneteau 423 42', Jay Cook, Hanahan, SC, USA - 4, 3, 4, 0, 8, 6, [8] ; 17
5. Andiamo, Beneteau 35s5 35', David Kowert, Mt Pleasant, SC, USA - 6, 7, 5, 0, 3, 4, [7] ; 18

PHRF F Non Spin (PHRF - 8 Boats)
1. Gone, J 130 43, Dick McGillivray, Jr., Charleston, SC, USA - 9/DNS, 1, 1, 0, 1, 1, [9] ; 4
2. Bliss, Alerion Express 38 38' 3, Randy Brooks, Cincinnati, OH, USA - 2, 3, 4, 0, 3, 3, [4] ; 11
3. Suwannee, Stevens C 50 50', Donald Michael, Mt. Pleasant, SC, USA - 9/DNS, 2, 2, 0, 4, 4, [9] ; 12
4. White Flash, Oyster 48.5, William F Hellings, Palm Coast, FL, USA - 1, 4, 3, 0, 9/DNS, 5, [9] ; 13
5. Pied-'a-Mer, Beneteau 411 41, Bernard M Schapiro, Charleston, SC, USA - 3, 5, 9/DNS, 0, 5, 7, [9] ; 20