Please select your home edition
Edition
Melges 15

Melges 20 Winter Series Event 1 at Coconut Grove Sailing Club

by Melges Performance Sailboats 17 Dec 2019 06:17 GMT 13-15 December 2019

The Melges 20s converged for an iconic Miami, Florida weekend for the first event of their Winter Series. Coconut Grove Sailing Club hosted the fleet December 13-15 and fired off eight races in conditions varying from 3 to 20 knots of breeze.

Vladimir Prosikhin's NIKA came from behind to beat out Igor Rytov's Russian Bogatyrs in a tiebreak at 24 points. "When we finished the last race, we expected to be second and we were very happy with that," Prosikhin explained. "It was truly a surprise! The fleet is very strong with a few boats who can win any regatta."

"It's a true testament to the Melges 20 Class to be sailing the Winter Series for more than a decade," said Keiran Searle, North American Class Manager. "Regardless of whether you treat the series as training for the Worlds or a reprieve from the winter, there's always top-notch competition at these events."

NIKA displayed their light air prowess on Day One winning two of the three races. Robert Hughes's Heartbreaker won the first race. "We had a good start and our tactician, Michele Ivaldi, picked a couple good shifts on the first beat. We got to the top mark in second or third and did a nice job getting past the other boats. We were able to do that thing that you love - when you get out in front and extend while letting everyone else hammer each other in the back."

Miami upped the ante on Day Two with planing conditions in gusts up to 20 knots. "When people ask why we sail the Melges 20, it's days like this," smiled Jennifer Canestra, Shimmer.

"They were classic, epic conditions for the Melges 20," agreed Race One winner, Robert Wilber, Cinghiale. "If you were doing poorly one leg, you could do well the next and catch right up - classic Miami." The key to success on the second day proved to be breaking away from the pack for clear air and avoiding high-speed chaos at the leeward mark. "We were able to get away from the group immediately. We tacked out right after the start and just went for it," said Wilber.

The final day of racing opened with a challenging postponement in rising temperatures and a beating sun while Race Committee waited to meet the class's minimum wind requirements. Fearing short-lived velocity, Race Committee set up a battle royale-style course at a meager.6 miles. Heartbreaker once again snagged the first blood of the day. Thankfully the wind peaked to slightly over 10 knots after a second postponement rewarding the racer's patience and anticipation. Despite their light-air showings on Day One, this was NIKA's most disparaging race of the weekend. Things got off to a rough start after getting picked off on the boat end and being forced left while Russian rival, Rytov, took off to the right. Luckily, the left proved fruitful, but they were unable to recover while underdog, Shimmer, led the fleet for the first two legs and Cinghiale played Pied Piper on the final downwind for the win.

"We rounded the mark third and that was our mistake - we didn't sail our own race," said Prosikhin. "We started match racing with Russian Bogatyrs and finished poorly. The race was hard and tactically not perfect." NIKA originally discarded nine points from in Day Two's big breeze, but that was displaced by their tenth-place finish in the final race. NIKA plans to return for all the World League events in 2020. "It's a pleasure to come from St. Petersburg, Russia to race against such a strong fleet here in the US," added Prosikhin.

The Winter Series event also served as the Melges 20 World League Finals won by Igor Rytov's Russian Bogatyrs. The World League Series featured 15 events across Europe and the US. "We're really happy to win the World League once again," said tactician, Besputin Konstantin. "The next event we can improve and finish even better."

The Melges 20 Winter Series continues with two more events February 7-9 and March 13-15.

Full results available here.

Related Articles

Zhik Womens Sprint Series announced
Sailing Melges 20s at Middle Harbour Yacht Club This new regatta offers a series of short races with a round robin and final series in Melges 20 lightweight sportsboats. Posted on 2 Oct
Keiran Searle on Melges 20 class news
A Q&A with Keiran Searle on the latest developments in the Melges 20 class Sail-World checked in with Keiran Searle, class manager of the Melges 20 class, via email, to get the latest downloads from this fast-and-fun One Design class. Posted on 14 Dec 2023
Melges 20 and Melges 32 World League GP
Puntaldia, Sardinia, sees conclusion of second round The second seasonal Grand Prix of the Melges World League for the Melges 32 and Melges 20 classes ended today on the Sardinian regatta field of Puntaldia. Posted on 29 May 2023
Melges 20 and Melges 32 Worlds day 3
Brontolo and Pippa II lead into the final day Only one race separates the leaders of the respective fleets Melges 20 and Melges 32 from the title of World Champion but the verdicts are still to be written with only one race left for tomorrow which can mean everything. Posted on 23 Sep 2022
Melges 20 and Melges 32 Worlds day 2
Four teams within one point in the 32s, head-to-head between Nika and Brontolo in the 20s The second day of racing in Puntaldia begins to outline the rankings in both classes of the Melges 20 and 32 World Championship 2022. Posted on 22 Sep 2022
Melges 20 and Melges 32 Worlds preview
Fleets to battle off Puntaldia, Sardinia Melges returns to the Puntaldia race course (after the 2019 and 2021 events) bringing with it the most important titles of the 2022 season for the Melges 20 and the Melges 32 classes. Posted on 20 Sep 2022
Melges World League - Tuscany Grand Prix overall
Happy ending for the second event of Yacht Club Isole di Toscana racing season A happy ending with NW fresh breeze for the second event of Yacht Club Isole di Toscana racing season. Dario Lev'is Fremito D'Arja gets the 1st place among Melges 20 and Mario Aquila's Vanité XXS leads the Melges 14. Posted on 11 Apr 2022
Melges World League 2022 schedule
Three classes and eight appointments for the best of one design sailing The launch season of the competitions dedicated to the Melges 32 fleet, to which the Melges 20 and Melges 14 fleets have been added over time, the regattas organized by Melges Europe have continued in constant growth and with important evolutions. Posted on 14 Feb 2022
Learn to love sailing in heavy air
If sailing in breeze isn't your strong suit, you are not alone When I was about ten years old I starting racing sailboats on Cape Cod and the sound of the wind whistling overnight through the pine trees outside my bedroom would make it hard to sleep. Even the next morning I'd have a knot in my stomach when I woke. Posted on 21 Dec 2021
Keiran Searle on the 2021 Melges 20 Worlds
An interview with Keiran Searle on the 2021 Melges 20 World Championship regatta I checked in with Keiran Searle, North American class manager of the Melges 20 class, via email, to learn more about the 2021 Melges 20 World Championship regatta. Posted on 8 Dec 2021