NHYC Wins Govenor's Cup again
Newport Harbor Yacht Club repeats as winner of the 42nd Governor's Cup! In the first race of the Finals between Newport Harbor Yacht Club and Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, CYCA won, giving NHYC their first loss of the Regatta.
'Tow out - Photo: Courtesy of Mary Longpre - Govenor’s Cup 2008'
The Newport team, with Michael Menninger at the helm, won the second and third races, becoming the top team for the second year in a row. As they crossed the finish line, all three crew members leaped into the water, letting the boat sail on its own way, heading toward the beach. It was rescued by standby support boats.
Don Becker, the Pro, (Principal Race Officer), announced each race with care, as the many spectator boats, filled with interested observors, waited for each update. The Umpire boats carefully watched each move of the two crews as they competed for the finals.
The top two teams, NHYC, which was undefeated and CYC of Australia, with a loss only to NHYC, were joined in the semifinals by third place Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, with Bradley Farrand at the helm, and Royal Yachting Association, skipper Andrew Shaw, in fourth. NHYC chose Royal Yachting Association of the second, third and fourth place teams for their first match in the Semi-Finals to be held on Sunday. The SemiFinals ended with RYA in third place, successful over RNZYS, fourth.
The seventh through twelfth place teams competed in another round robin, so each team had two more matches to complete on Sunday, finishing in the order shown below. Then they were able to stay to watch the Semi-Finals, the Petit Finals between the third and fourth place teams and the Finals between the top two teams. It proved exciting to watch.
The overcast burned off later in the day with light southwest winds up to 10 mph. The shifting of the winds meant waiting around as the marks were moved. Team members would have preferred stronger winds, but were patient while waiting between their matches.
A variety of support boats filled the area, including a repair boat. On Saturday, when one of the boats needed a repair at the top of the mast, Preben Nielsen, a student at UCI and BYC Racing Member, from Perth, Australia, strapped into a boson's chair and smoothly climbed the mast to make the repair, while it was rocking in the seas. Preben has become a valuable addition to racing crews since finding his way to BYC.
The number of volunteers involved in a major Regatta such as the Gov Cup is astounding. Over 100 members and friends have been involved, in addition to the amazing support of the outstanding Balboa Yacht Club staff.
The RESULTS:
1st Newport Harbor Yacht Club, Balboa, CA
Michael Menninger, Helm, Cole Hatton, Middle, Chris Barnard, Bow
2nd Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, Darling Point, New South Wales, Australia
Will Ryan, Helm, Ted Hackney, Middle. Sean O'Rourke, Bow
3rd Royal Yachting Association, Southampton, United Kingdom
Adnrew Shaw, Helm, George Yeoman, Middle, Dan Scheiber, Bow
4th Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, Auckland, New Zealand
Bradley Farrand, Helm, Scott Burling, Middle, Annaleisa Hammond, Bow
5th Southern Yacht Club, New Orleans, LA
Patrick Ryan, Helm, Norman Vallette, Middle, Thomas Meric III, Bow
6th St Thomas Yacht Club, St. Thomas, Virgin Islands
Taylor Canfield, Helm, Max Nickbarg, Middle, Tyler Rice, Bow
7th St. Francis Yacht Club, San Francisco, CA
John Heineken, Helm, Nick Dugdale, Middle, Ben Lezin, Bow
8th Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club, Cottesloe, Western Australia
Peter Nicolas, Helm, Jasper Warren, Middle, Tom Johnson, Bow
9th Balboa Yacht Club, Corona del Mar, CA
Gunnar Torre, Helm, Walker Banks, Middle, Brandon Wood, Bow
10th Iate Clube Do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Marco Grael, Helm, Thomas Low-Beer, Middle, Bernardo, Assis, Bow
11th San Diego Yacht Club, San Diego, CA
Jake LaDow, Helm, Max Hutcheson, Middle, Jake Reynolds, Bow
12th Mission Bay Yacht Club, San Diego, CA
Scott Hoffman, Helm, Evan Hoffman, Middle, Eric Alamillo, Bow
The event is sponsored by The Yacht Barn, builder of the Gov Cup 21's, The Newport Balboa Sailing and Seamanship Foundation, Tommy Bahamas Island Grille, CR&R Recycling and Waste Services, Taco Bell, West Marine, Niagara, Island Marine Fuel, Hurley and Barnacle Bills Underwater Yacht Maintenance.
Additional information, photos, and history are available on the balboayachtclub.com website.
by Nancy Mellon 
Thirroul, NSW
