ORC World Championship
After six days of competitive inshore and offshore racing within three classes, two new and one returning team have been crowned ORC World Champions at the New York Yacht Club Harbour Court. These three teams demonstrated an exceptional level of preparation, practice and eventual execution to prevail after six days of intense inshore and offshore racing among the 43 entries with top-level sailors from throughout the United States and around the globe.
Two North American Champion titles have also been awarded among Maxi class yachts competing in their own series as well as the entries that were originally planning to compete in a Class C but had to be folded into racing in Class B due to ORC Worlds class qualification criteria.
The final day of racing today was spectacular: 10-12 knots of northerly breeze in flat water and under sunny skies produced some of the closest inshore racing of the week, a fitting end to a highly competitive world championship regatta.
The new 2024 ORC Class 0 World Champions are those that raced on Victor Wild’s TP 52 FOX 2.0. This team dominated this new class – first introduced to ORC Championships this year – by winning five of seven races, enough to build an insurmountable 9-point lead overall. The Silver medal position went to Peter Askew’s Botin 52 WIZARD, and Bronze to Andrew Berdon’s TP 52 SUMMER STORM.
The FOX 2.0 team included Andy Horton, Harry West, Chris Hosking, Cooper Dressler, Dean Curtis, Graham Post, Jareese Finch, Kelvin Harrap, Maciel Cicchetti, Ignacio Postigo, Orrin Starr, Santiago Lange, Scott Nixon, Aidan Naughton, and Lucas Chapman.
Similarly, the new ORC Class A World Champion dominated their class through a similar long road taken to the top. Austin & Gwen Fragomen’s Botin 44 INTERLODGE IV managed to win all races but two among 19 rivals, the largest class in the event.
Silver medalists in Class A were Don Thinschmidt’s Ker 43 ABRACADABRA, and winning Bronze was Henry Brauer’sClub Swan 42 TIO LOCO.
The road taken by the Class B ORC World Champions was literally the longest of any team at this event – from Poland to Baltimore by ship, then to Newport – but was also nearly three years in the planning and execution and had the experience taken from winning their class in two prior ORC World Championships in Sardinia in 2022 and last year in Germany.
Victory was only assured by Marcin Sutkowski on his Grand Soleil 44P WIND WHISPER 44 after ensuring that their runner-up rival – John Brim’s Italia 11.98 RIMA98 – could not finish today’s final race with a score lower than the 2.5-point lead WIND WHISPER had going into today. So the two match raced the course, which drove both back far enough to use their discards yet retaining their top two places in the final results. Winning Bronze was Bill & Jackie Baxter’sJ/111 FIREBALL.
The remainder of the WIND WHISPER 44 team included Joan Navarro, Aksel Magdahl, Hugo Rocha, Stanisław Bajerski, Kacper Gwóźdź, Mateusz Gwóźdź, and Piotr Przybylski.
Meanwhile, the Maxis took advantage of the great racing conditions today by also having another inshore race, with another win scored by Jim Swartz’s Maxi 72 VESPER over Hap Fauth’s Maxi 72 BELLE MENTE and emerged victorious after 9 total races to win the ORC Maxi North American Championship title.
The ORC Class C North American title was won by Jeremy Alexis’s Melges 32 FLEETWOOD, and NEKA Sailing’smodified J/105 SLEEPER won the Class B all-amateur Corinthian Trophy. The Class A Corinthian Trophy was won by Bob Manchester’s J/133 VAMOOSE.
Overall Results:
Class 0 (6 boats)
1. Fox, Botin 52, Victor Wild, 2-1-1-1-1-4-1-(7/DNC), 11pts
2. Wizard, Botin 52, Peter Askew, 1-4-4-5-2-(6)-2-2, 20pts
3. Summer Storm 52, TP52, Andrew Berdon, 5-3-3-3-(4)-2-3-1, 20pts
4. Vesper 52, TP52, David Team, 6-2-(5)-4-3-1-5-3, 24pts
5. Final Final, Pac52, Jon Desmond, 4-(5)-2-2-5-3-4-4, 24pts
Class A (19 boats)
1. Interlodge 44, Botin 44, Austin & Gwen Fragomen, 2-1-1-1-(3)-1-1-1, 8pts
2. Abracadabra, Ker 43, Don Thinschmidt, 4-3-3-(8)-2-3-4-2.5, 21.5pts
3. Tio Loco, Swan 42, Henry Brauer, 6-4-4-(5)-1-4-5-4, 27pts
4. Impetuous, Swan 42, Paul Zabetakis, 5-7-2-4-5-6-3-(10), 32pts
5. Zammermoos, Swan 42, David Fass, 1-2-(13)-7-6-5-7-5, 33pts
Class A Corinthian Champion: Vamoose, J/133, Bob Manchester
Class B (13 boats)
1. Wind Whisper 44, Grand Soleil 44, Marc Sutkowski, 5-1-2-1-5-1-1-(14), 16pts
2. Rima98, Italia 11.98, John Brim, 1-2.5-1-6-4-2-3-(13), 19.5pts
3. Fireball, J/111, Bill & Jackie Better, 6-4-(6)-2-2-3-2-1, 20pts
4. Christopher Dragon XII, Italia 11.98, Linda & Andrew Weiss, 3-2.5-(5)-4-1-4-6-3, 23.5pts
5. The ROCC, J/112, Al Minella, 4-(8)-3-5-3-5-5-5, 30pts
Class B Corinthian Champion: Sleeper, J/105 (mod.) NEKA Sailing
Class C North American Champion: (sailed within Class B) Fleetwood, Melges 32, Jeremy Alexis
Maxi North American Championship:
1. Vesper, Maxi 72, Jim Swartz, (2)-1-1-1-1-1-2-2-1, 10pts
2. Bella Mente, Maxi 72, Hap Fauth, 1-2-2-(3)-2-2-3-1-2, 15pts
3. Temptation, Art Santry/Oakcliff, (3)-3-3-2-3-3-1-3-3, 21pts
More information nyyc.org/2024-orc-world-championship.
