Harbor 20 Class Championship

Patrick Shannon, Harbor 20 National Class President

Newport Harbor, CA (March 3, 2019) -- The Harbor 20 National Class Championship was held in Newport Harbor, CA, this past weekend with great representation on the water from Annapolis Yacht Club and Fleet 5. AYC had two full teams competing and an additional participant on the crew of a Newport Fleet 1 boat. Hosted by the Newport Harbor Yacht Club (NHYC) in their recently-renovated facilities, the Championship consisted of a full day round-robin qualifying round on Friday, March 1, where 30 boats raced to determine placement in the Gold and Silver Fleets for the final two days of Championship sailing. The Club hosted a welcome reception on Thursday, a sit-down dinner on Saturday, and the awards reception on Sunday afternoon.

The team of Skipper Bell Hughes Carty and Crew Member Margaret Bonds Podlich finished 7th overall among 30 boats and was placed in the Gold Fleet. The team of Skipper Walter Laird and Crew Member Bill Sutton were seeded in the Silver Fleet after the qualifying races, resulting in Fleet 5 members being in action competing for top honors in both fleets. David Shaeffer participated as Crew for Walter Johnson of Newport’s Fleet 1 and was seeded in the Gold Fleet. AYC also was represented off the water by Harbor 20 National Class President Patrick Shannon, and Heather Laird and Brenda Shaeffer who travelled to cheer on their spouses.

With all scoring reset to zero after the qualifying round, Saturday’s racing commenced in uncharacteristically cold, blustery, and rainy weather, with wind conditions approaching 20 and choppy waters challenging all of the sailors throughout the day. Sunday’s racing took place in more typical March weather for southern California, but it also brought some of Newport Harbor’s unique obstructions into play (e.g., Duffy boats, paddle boarders, party yachts), leading to some interesting moments on the course.

The Carty-Podlich team finished 7th out of 15 in the Gold Fleet, an outstanding accomplishment given the local knowledge of the top Harbor 20 sailors in Newport. Our all-women team scored a 2nd, 3rd, and 4th among the 10 Championship races with strong, consistent performance throughout the Championship. Team Laird-Sutton also finished 7th out of 15 in the Silver Fleet, another strong performance for our Fleet 5 sailors among the Fleet as evidenced by their consistency in finishing in the top half of the competitors for all races. David Shaeffer helped Walter Johnson to secure third place in the Gold Fleet and enabled AYC to be represented on the podium at the awards ceremony.

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