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, fun sailing to the competitors.  The event was also the first event in Ireland to run a new Race Management technology, RaceSense, which, in essence, is an operating system for racing that pairs to the Vakaros GPS devices on all boats.  Four races were started and finished with the system with the technology adoption welcomed by the fleet. 

Saturday’s four races were three round Windward Leeward courses delivered in winds of 14-19 knots.  Race lengths were, on average, 40 minutes, giving sailors plenty of time to improve their positions on the track. Data off the units showed that on average each boat covered over 50km distance over the day with top speeds recorded of 17+knots.  No wonder everyone was tired returning to the shore late Saturday Afternoon.

Saturday evening saw the event dinner and AGM with members welcoming Theo Lyttle remaining as class President.  Events were discussed for next year with a consensus that the Irish South Coasts 2025 will be held in Cascais over Easter. The Irish Armada being keen to return to the Portuguese coast for some warm weather sailing and Portuguese cuisine.

Sunday morning saw PRO Richard Kissane assess the conditions afloat but it was not to be.  This pause in sailing gave everyone time to appreciate the spectacular drone footage and photos taken by top Portuguese drone photographer Goncalo de Melo of Bow Media.

After a 19-boat event with crews racing from 13 to 60 years of age, the Melges 15 sailors are already looking forward to next season, with strong rumors of more boats arriving as this new class of Irish sailing continues to expand.

RESULTS
1: Darragh O’Connor & Bryan Byrne
2: John & Katie Sheehy
3: Mike & Andrew Evans
Youngest Helm: Sarah McLoughlin (13yo)
Youngest Female Crew: Florence Knaggs Butler (13yo)
Youngest Male Crew: Will Cullen (14yo)

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 gambling; there wasn’t much rhyme or reason,” said Barclay.

“You had to guess what was going to happen,” added Alexander. “Hopefully, your guess was correct because there were a lot of shifts and significant changes in pressure and direction.”

After two days of tight racing, the bay was becalmed on Day Three, casting doubt on whether there would be any more competition. However, following a brief shoreside postponement and an impromptu class gathering led by Melges's Eddie Cox, the Race Committee headed out for two quick races in the building breeze.

Alexander and Barclay maintained a firm grip on first place, but the introduction of a throwout after six races reshuffled the top five. Top Youth Skipper Ryan Keenan, with crew Esteban Forrer, excelled in the light air, finishing 1st and 2nd and ultimately placing third overall.

Top Grand Master Scott Steele remarked, “The shifts allowed you to make big comebacks, so you were never really out of the race.”

“Each race saw a new leader at the front of the fleet. It speaks volumes about how competitive this fleet is,” Barclay added.

The next event on the Melges 15 calendar is the start of the 2024-25 Winter Series at the new Melges Watersports Center in Merritt Island, FL. The four-event series kicks off November 23-24, 2024, with clinics, charters, and the latest regatta technology.

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 15s.

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 winds forecast. With 13 Melges 15s based in Howth the local club will be optimistic of a home winner with the teams of Mike Evans and Cormac Farrelly showing good form in Howth's recent dinghy regatta. Late bolters Darragh O'Connor and Teddy Byrne will revel in the stronger conditions alongside Matthew Cotter's 'Wrong Trousers' team, fresh from a strong performance at the GP14 Worlds in Wales.

Family will be a strong theme amongst the visiting fleet with Husband and Wife Partnerships, Theo and Clodagh Lyttle and Mike Huang and Scotia Ryer coming off race wins leading up to the championships. Uncle Niece combo John and Katie Sheehy won a hard-fought RStGYC regatta this Summer with some consistent sailing, so we will also hope to feature.

Keep an eye out, too, for the Youth team of Peter Williams and Russell Bolger. Russell, a current Junior Helmsman's champion and former 29er ace, will add awesome spinnaker trimming to Peter's tactical acumen.

A banquet meal at the club on Saturday should revive the sailors after an expected four races while anticipation is building to see some great drone footage of the days action with top drone photographer Goncalo Melo flying in from Portugal to cover the event.

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 U.S. Nationals, making for an action-packed weekend of racing.

Back in the U.S., the Nationals marks the conclusion of the 2024 Championship Series, a concept designed to elevate the competition and support regional fleets. The Series featured four of the most hotly-contested regional events in class history attracting more than 130 teams over the course of the summer. 

In California, the Melges 15s represented the largest one-design class at Long Beach Race Week with Keiran Searle and Declan McGranahan winning the event and the prized Boat of the Week award. At the Inland Championship in Pewaukee, WI, 63 boats raced, marking the largest class event outside of the Winter Series. 

On the water for Nationals are several of the Class’s frontrunners including Emily and Dana Haig from New Jersey, Toby Sullivan from Minnesota, Michael and Jennifer Faugust from Wisconsin/Florida, and Melges’s own Eddie Cox. 

Practice racing in Michigan is scheduled for Thursday, August 22, with the main event running Friday, August 23-Sunday, August 25. Eight races are planned, with at least three races required to constitute a Championship. For more information and to follow the racing, visit melges15.com/nationals.

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 for racing. With the committee boat and marks also fitted with a device and GPS accuracy to the cm, the PRO can run race organisation from a tablet.

Timing is synced up from the committee boat, OCS detection is automatic and displayed on each boat, and General recalls are a thing of the past! Competitors are notified milliseconds after the start if they're over or not and when they have dipped the start to clear themselves, so it's easier than ever to restart and get racing.

With finish positions recorded and future upgrades to include mark zones and boundaries, the Irish class is excited for a taste of America's Cup-style technology to enhance their racing—not to mention the opportunity to brag about who was the 'Top Gun' recording the quickest speed of the day!

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 excess of 30 knots and it quickly became obvious that the clinic would have to move inside to a group chalk talk.  All wasn't lost though as about 30+ people joined us at the main clubhouse for a 1.5 hour briefing on the Melges 15s.  Topics included tuning, techniques, boat-handling, and even capsize recovery.  It was really well worth it, and this kind of a briefing speaks to the openness of the class and how friendly everyone is!

On Saturday, the storm had passed but we were left with very light and challenging conditions.  The Melges 15 fleet was in the middle of the Bay, sometimes racing in a light westerly while also getting teased by a sea breeze out of the south.  Sometimes both at the same time! 

In the first race, Brian and Allison Simkins jumped out to a nice lead and were able to hold off late charges by Luke Arnone/Cameron Giblin and Sara Morgan Waters/Kate O'Donell.  The second race was a bit wacky with the westerly and the southerly fighting each other. Boats took many different routes to the leeward mark with some going really high to try to get into the southerly, while others choosing the low side of the course to stay in the westerly as long as possible. The RC ended up shortening this race to a W3 in hopes of getting another score in the books and allow for a third race of the day. Emily Haig/Jimmy Muller progressed through the fleet to take the gun over Ron and Bonnie Steele. We were able to get one more race in on the last day in a little bit more of a stable westerly breeze. Luke Arnone and Cameron Giblin were at the front the whole time, followed by Mike Ehnot and Matt Priebe. Emily and Jimmy hung in for third. Day one ended with three light air, tricky races.  Luke/Cameron and Emily/Jimmy were leading the way with three consistent scores. Dana Haig dragged her father John Haig around the course with some consistent scores to also stay in the hunt. And Mike Ehnot put together a good day to be in the mix too. Many other sailors had some higher scores and were hoping for a throwout to get back in the mix.

The real reason everyone comes to the Down Bay is for the party, and this year did not disappoint. Dinner, drinks, and dancing made for a fun night.  Thanks to Andrew Mackessey and Stokes Carriagan, the 2024 Down Bay co-chairs, for organizing such a great party!

Day two arrived with glass on the water and a light forecast. Sometimes when it's glassy out, it's almost better because it allows for some breeze to build out of the correct direction. After a short postponement, the RC sent us out for an 11:15 start in a light SW breeze. Boats had a great start near the pin and flopped to port for most of the beat. Luke Arnone jumped out to an early lead, followed by Scott "Scooter" Barbano and, wife, Liz. Bobby and Maggie Koar were in the mix most of the day, and the father-son duo of Alan and Spencer Kriegstein were a rocket downwind. The breeze lightened up as the race went on, and Emily and Jimmy systematically picked off boat after boat to move to the front. They were winning at the last weather mark, but Luke and Cameron reclaimed their lead on the last downwind to take the race.  

The next race was a little more questionable as after the start the breeze died completely and filled from the left, leaving everyone on the right hung out to dry.  The Haig sisters took advantage of their speed and good fortune of being on the left to go 1-2.  Luke could only manage a comeback to 8th, leaving Luke and Emily tied heading into the last race.

The last race started in what looked to be a building seabreeze.  We sailed the first beat in the southerly before the breeze got a little weird on the downwind and totally shut off after that.  A fleet inversion, followed by competing breezes and pleas from the participants to "put us out of our misery and abandon the race" ultimately led to the RC abandoning the race and sending the fleet in.

All in all, it was a tough event with the weather.  We're all sailors and know that you can't control the weather, but with 41 boats all gathered at one location and eager to race, it was a bummer that the conditions were so trying.  That said, the cream always rises to the top, and Emily/Jimmy, Luke/Cameron, and Dana/John were clearly the three best boats this weekend and sure enough they finished 1-2-3. It was pretty cool to see so many different pairs playing at the front throughout the weekend too. The fleet is getting more competitive with each event.

Thank you to the Race Committee for giving us their best in the difficult conditions. And thank you to Little Egg and all of the volunteers for doing their best to make the regatta happen. We appreciate the efforts!

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 and sisters Sophie and Tilly Niemann Pewaukee rounded out the podium. A meager five points separated the second through fifth-place teams—a testament to the talent and consistency at the top of the leaderboard amongst the large fleet. 

The Inland marked Sullivan’s third Championship win of the season following the East Coast and Great Lakes. 

“I really love the Series and being able to travel to venues around the country. The conditions and competition have been different at every event,” said Sullivan. “Here, in Pewaukee, it was pretty light and swirly. The key to success was working to get to the puffs instead of waiting for them to come to you.”  

The weekend saw six races in challenging, light conditions and flat water. While the conditions held for two great days of racing, the wind didn’t show for the third and final day. 

“I’m thrilled we were able to get six quality races in; these were challenging conditions. Hats off to AJ Schweda and the Race Committee Team,” said Regan. “Getting through Friday was really tough because it was blowing across the lake. There were a lot of velocity differences between the puffs. So you had to determine, ‘Was I really getting knocked, or was I just going through my apparent?’ The guys who figured it out did really well.”

While Regan expressed his appreciation for the RC and local hospitality, he made no secret that his favorite part of the weekend was crewing for his daughter, Anna. 

“We’ve been sailing the Melges 15 together since 2021, and this was our last big event before I leave for college,” smiled Anna. 

The Melges 15 Class caps off the 2024 Championship Series in Traverse City, MI, August 23-25 with the National Championship. Seventy boats are registered for the season's final event, marking the largest Nationals of the Class’s short history. 

Results are available at melges15.com/results, and photos are posted on melges.smugmug.com.