The Cedar Point Yacht Club OneDesign Regatta

Cedar Point Yacht Club completed the 2015 OneDesign Regatta at Cedar Point Yacht Club this weekend, producing winners in the J/109, J/105, Beneteau First and Soverel 33 classes.  CPYC’s annual OneDesign event for the first time was presented in two parts: the May 30-31 weekend featured races for boats 26 feet and over, following races for J/70s and other sport boats under 26 feet on May 16-17.  

Bill Sweetser, skipper of the J/109 Rush, sailing from Annapolis, MD, won in the J/109 class and accepted the Rex Marine Trophy for Best Overall Performance in the Regatta. 

Sailors from throughout the U.S. and overseas competed in the regatta – more than 40 boats and 300 sailors in the second weekend alone.  CPYC’s Race Committee got in four races over the second weekend, working around slowly building breezes and a massive thunderstorm and torrential rains that closed in on Sunday.  George and Alex Wilbanks of Westport finished 2^nd in the J/105 class, tying for 1^st on points but just being edged on the tiebreak.  Bob Zannetti of Weston came in 10^th in the J/105s.  Rick Lyall of Wilton came in 2^nd in the J/109s, among 17 boats competing in the class.  Alistair Duke of Wilton was 3^rd in the Beneteau First class, just ahead of Westport’s Peter Hurley, who finished 5^th.   

Overall class winners were: J/109 – Bill Sweetser, Annapolis, MD; Beneteau First – Lou Melillo, Atlantic Highlands, NJ; J/105 – Harald Edegran and Jeremy Henderson, Larchmont, NY; and Soverel 33 – G. Mark McCarthy, Westbrook CT.

The regatta, one of the largest on Long Island Sound, is a joint effort by Cedar Point's Cruising Class, Lightning, and J/70 racing fleets, and has become a national showcase for Westport sailboat racing.  In the first part of the regatta, on May 16-17, local sailors did well in the popular, fast-growing J/70s.  Kerry Klingler of Norwalk was 5th, Richard and Stephanie Swann of Westport were 10^th, Bill Walker and Allan Stern of Westport were 12^th, and the all-family team of Charlie and Sarah Neagoy and their daughters Grace and Evelyn of Simsbury finished 18^th.  Ched Proctor of Southport came in 2nd in the Lightning class. 

The 2015 regatta is presented by Quantum Sail Design, Fairfield County Bank, and McMichael Yacht Brokers. 

For more information, full results, and IDs of the competitors: http://www.yachtscoring.com. 

About the 2015 CPYC One-Design Regatta

Throughout its history, Westport's Cedar Point Yacht Club has held regattas in which sailors race against other boats of the same design and size. This encourages high-level sailboat racing among sailors as they are competing in almost identical boats, conditions, and courses -- the best sailors win.  This year’s CPYC One-Design Regatta will host more than 70 sailboats and hundreds of sailors in a series of races that take place simultaneously.  A third of the registrants are from Connecticut, and other sailors and their boats are traveling from as far away as Canada and Texas to participate in the two-day sailing event.  The Regatta is being supported by the work of nearly one hundred volunteer Club members.