News

Guide to Winter Sailing at the Melges Watersports Center
The Melges 15 U.S. Winter Series has a new home at the Melges Watersports Center in Merritt Island, FL. Along with an exciting new venue, the series has added a fourth event in November! The Melges Team is committed to making it easier than ever to plan your winter sailing season. From logistics to sails, we’ve got you covered! Check out the updated guide to the Melges 15 U.S. Winter Series below. Don’t Miss Key Deadlines! Save on entry fees by registering early: November 22, 2024 : Last day to... Read more...
O’Connor and Byrne of the host club take out the Melges 15 National Championships
Originally Published on Melges Ireland Darragh O’Connor and Brian (Teddy) Byrne of Howth Yacht Club are the winners of the 2024 Melges 15 National championships held at Howth this weekend.  After four great races on Saturday, the 19-boat fleet kept fingers and toes crossed for sailing on Sunday, but with gusts of up to 30 knots and a difficult sea state, racing was abandoned for the day. This year's event was superbly pulled together by Cormac Farrelly of the host club, who led the event team well, delivering long, close,... Read more...
2024 U.S. MELGES 15 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS CROWNED IN NORTHERN MICHIGAN
Christopher Alexander and Hamilton Barclay are the 2024 U.S. Melges 15 National Champions. The racing was contested by 55 boats at Grand Traverse Yacht Club over the course of three days.  The first day of racing was marked by downwind thrills and significant wind shifts throughout the three races. A southwesterly breeze crested over the hills, creating large shifts and wind holes across Grand Traverse Bay. Conditions lightened on Day Two, but the prevailing southwesterly wind kept the shifts in play, gradually weakening as the day progressed. “Downwind was like... Read more...
19-Boat Fleet to Contest Melges 15 Irish Nationals at Howth Yacht Club
It has been a busy and exciting dinghy pen in Howth this week, with the green gate witnessing the departure of the many visiting Optimists to be replaced by the ad hoc arrival of Melges 15 s. Race Officer Richard Kissane and the team have also been spotted preparing to use the new Race Management software Race Sense . Various simulations of start  boats and marks are set up on the forecourt to check functionality and features. Competitors are looking forward to some fast, fun sailing with medium to strong... Read more...
Record Turnout for Melges 15 U.S. Nationals
The stage is set in Traverse City, MI, for the largest Melges 15 U.S. National Championship to date, with 62 boats registered for the regatta August 23-25, 2024. The Championship regatta has tripled in size since 2021, just a sample of the Class’s massive international success.  More than 900 Melges 15s have been sold worldwide, including fleets popping up all over the Emerald Isle after the launch of Melges Ireland in late 2022. This year, the Irish Nationals at Howth Yacht Club in Dublin are scheduled to coincide with the... Read more...
Innovative Race Management Software Debuts at Melges 15 Nationals in Howth, Ireland
Originally Published on Afloat Race Officer Richard Kissane and the team are getting ready for a new challenge as they prepare for the upcoming Melges 15 nationals in Howth on August 24th and 25th. The championships will see the Irish debut of RaceSense, a new innovative digital way to run racing. New technology solving old problems. Every  boat will be fitted with a Vakaros Atlas unit, a GPS device already popular in the class that displays headings, speeds, timing, and trims. Built into every unit is RaceSense, an operating system... Read more...
Down Bay Draws Record Numbers
By Clay Johnson, Colie Sails A record 41 Melges 15s attended the 2024 Down Bay Regatta August 10-11 at Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club in Beach Haven, NJ.  The weather this year was the big factor as the remnants of Tropical Storm Debbie passed by our area before the weekend. On Friday, sailors were invited to an informal clinic day.  It was intended that we would help with rigging, have a fleet debrief, and then go sailing for a few hours in an organized practice.  But Friday saw winds in... Read more...
Strength in Numbers - Inland Lakes Bring the Heat to Melges 15 Championship Series
The Inland Lakes Yachting Association and Pewaukee Yacht Club hosted the largest regional event of the 2024 Melges 15 Championship Series with 62 boats at the Inland Championship, August 2-4.  “The Melges 15 Inland was first contested by 30 boats in 2022; now the competition has doubled. We’re one of the strongest regions in the country and very proud of that,” touted ILYA Fleet Representative Tim Regan.  Toby Sullivan and Parker Ziegler from White Bear Lake, Minnesota, took home the title, while Owen Kohut and Mason Keane from Geneva Lake... Read more...
Melges 15 Breathes New Life Into Inland Lakes
The Melges 15 Inland Championship in Pewaukee, WI, boasts the largest turnout of the 2024 Championship Series, with 60 boats registered for the three-day event, running August 2-4. It is the final class-sanctioned event before the National Championship in Traverse City, MI, at the end of the month. Pewaukee Yacht Club started its local fleet in 2022 and now has more than 20 Melges 15s that race twice a week—casually on Wednesdays and as part of the Championship Series on Fridays. PYC Fleet Co-Captain Bill Goggins said, “We have additional... Read more...
Minnesota Team Triumphs at 2024 Melges 15 Great Lakes Championship
Photos by Betsy Lawless Rochester Yacht Club in New York hosted the 2024 Melges 15 Great Lakes Championship July 12-14 on Lake Ontario. The three-day event featured seven races in conditions varying from 6-10 knots in choppy waters. Jim Barnash, RYC’s Melges 15 Fleet Captain, cheekily added, “Even the chop-hardened Annapolitans were annoyed with Rochester's staircase-like wave sets from the local ‘navy.’”  Toby Sullivan and Ella Wisely from White Bear, MN, won the championship title. Two points separated the leaders from locals Barnash and Meredith Killion. Morley Flynn and, wife,... Read more...
Rochester Yacht Club Melges 15 Fleet Blends Competitive Racing & Family Fun
The large grey box trailer, fully adorned with Melges 15 sail numbers and Rochester Yacht Club graphics, is the harbinger of the New York-based fleet’s arrival at any regatta venue. “We originally got the idea from Chris Fretz and the New Jersey fleet. Then I wanted to jazz it up,” said Billy Farmer. “Jeff Sullivan, Travis Odenbach, and I did the build-out in Travis’s barn. My mom helped with the graphics—we wanted to capture the spirit of our yacht club and the boats.” The trailer, loaded with multiple boats, spare... Read more...
Melges Watersports Center Set to Bring World-Class Sailing to Florida's Space Coast
Melges Performance Sailboats is proud to announce the all-new Melges Watersports Center, the country’s newest sailing development and training venue located in the heart of Florida’s Space Coast.  The Melges Watersports Center is committed to broadening the base of wind and human-powered water sports through dedicated community programs and providing support for the development of future champions and Olympians.  “Our goal is to create the premiere North American sailing venue,” said Andy Burdick, President of Melges.   Located on the Banana River at one of its widest points, the venue offers a... Read more...