International Crews Gather for Inaugural Melges 15 European Championship at VDLR
A host of excited foreign accents can already be heard on the waterfront as crews fly in for the Inaugural Melges 15 Europeans Championships which will be held on the Hyland Shipping course at the Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta.
Currently the fastest growing dinghy class in the World the arrival of 12 brand new charter boats for the Regatta has helped push the class through the 1000 boat mark. A wide range of ages from teens to retirees are set to compete in mainly mixed gender crews with family partnerships of some sort dominating the numbers.
Volvo Ocean Race PRO Bill O’Hara OBE will run the 9-race series in the Bay for the 33-boat fleet with the addition of new race technology; RaceSense by Vakaros helping to ensure fair starts, no general recalls, and millisecond updates to competitors. As sailors cross the line to start they will be watching carefully for a green light on their Vakaros tactical device indicating a clean start or the dreaded red light and OCS signal indicating that they started early.
The United States where the class originates make up 6 of the overseas entries with visitors also from The Netherlands, The UK, Spain and the US Virgin Islands. Ireland, where the class has grown rapidly since 2023, makes up the bulk of the entries. Looking at the form guide, the US teams will be expected to set the standard with the Haig family, where daughter Emily and father John arrive as the reigning US Midwinter series champions, having bested 180 teams again this March for a third overall win. Sister Dana Haig will also feature and has shown up at the top of various events at Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club in New Jersey. Sailing coach Esteban Forrer sailing with Jeremy Herrin, former All-American collegiate champions will also be coming into the event with victory as the target. Rob Britts and Jillian Aydelotte from Florida are expected to feature strongly for the American lineup and perhaps the title of top Master.
Closer to home, the Manta Sailing team from the Netherlands could be a surprise package with previous results in the SB20 class an indication of their talent. Multiple UK dinghy champions Simon and Katie Horsfield may get the British teams on the podium, but will need to get up to speed in the 15 quickly. Irish teams should feature strongly with a dream team line-up of the helm of the 2023 Irish Championships being crewed by the winning crew off the 2024 Irish championships expected to challenge for the title. Keep a close eye for this dream pairing of McCartin and Byrne at the top of the leaderboard. Class president Theo Lyttle crewed by his son Morgan are coming in hot, having won the last race at the recent East Coast Championships and husband and wife partnership Mike Huang and Scotia Ryer are firm favorites for the top couple prize as well as a decent outside bet for an overall win. Finally from the host club John Sheehy and his niece Katie having always been near the top of the fleet so will hope to feature by the end of the event.
Sailing starts on Friday with visiting competitors set to sample some Irish culture at the Guinness Storehouse on Wednesday night and a coaching day on Thursday led by Melges 15 expert Eddie Cox, who has flown direct from Colorado to help get the fleet up to speed.