#keywestraceweek – It's basically a battle for second place in the Melges 24 class as Irish skipper Conor Clarke and his crew aboard Embarr have built a commanding 18-point lead. However, the runner-up position is very much up for grabs with Canadian skipper Richard Reid and his crew on Zingara holding a two-point lead over Mojo (Steve Rhyne, Kemah, Texas) and Team RRH (Jan Frederik Dyvi, Oslo, Norway).

Clarke takes up the story for Afloat.ie: 'Day 4 at Key West was the best yet. 3 races in good breeze, lots of planing and a return to the physical side of the Melges 24. Today we worked very hard and hiked as hard as we could but we were rewarded with a first in the first race, second in the second and first again in the third race. It allowed us extend our lead over Zingara and Mojo who are tied on points for second. The second race was the big battle and despite getting a second was maybe our best performance.

We had what looked like a decent start and hit the line, one boat up from the pin end at decent speed but conservatively back a metre or two(we are being conservative on the starts because we have a decent lead in the regatta and shouldn't risk being over the line) This allowed another boat lee bow us off the start and forced us to tack away very earl meaning we had to duck the whole fleet. On top of that it forced us away from our preferred left side and we got pinned out by some boats who tacked out with us as we tried to clear our air. We really struggled on the right side and didn't even start our recovery until we got back over to the left on the second half of the beat. By then we were well back from the front,, maybe even last. The second half of the beat was better and we picked a few shifts and hiked like crazy to get speed up and cross boats. These little things are the difference. We rounded in third (I think it was 3rd) and set off down the run like a scalded cat with Prof trimming, working up a sweat, powering us over waves and moving us around the boat to stay flat. Mojo had the measure of us in this race though and they held us off with some great tactical calls and very fast modes especially in the last downwind leg. A second in that race was very welcome indeed.

Sparkling conditions all day, just what the brochure promised.

There is some debate about whether there is 2 or 3 races tomorrow but we will be out there either way trying to finish just as strongly as the rest of the week'.

It probably won't be a late night on Duval Street for the sailors competing on Division 2 and 3 at Quantum Key West Race Week 2015. After doing three races in strong winds on Thursday, there are no doubt a lot of sore muscles, aching bones and tired bodies.

Not that anyone was complaining. Light winds on Wednesday led to just one race on Division 2 and 3, and organizers with Premiere Racing were keen to make up for that on Thursday. So the six classes competing on those two courses were sent out an hour early so the race committee could take advantage of east-southeasterly winds that held steady between 10 and 15 knots.

"The wind was absolutely gorgeous, and also quite stable. We never moved a mark during a race all day," said Wayne Bretsch, principal race officer for Division 3. "It was just a beautiful day for sailboat racing. The only way I would have enjoyed myself more is if I was racing."

Bradley Faber, skipper of the J/111 Utah, said it was a long day on the water and the crew aboard his boat enjoyed every minute of it.

"It was an exceptional day out there. Classic Key West conditions," Faber said. "We came here to go racing so the more, the better."

Utah got the gun in two of three races on Thursday, finishing third in the other only because of a blown out spinnaker. That strong performance earned Utah the Industry Partner Boat of the Day award and also enabled the Michigan entry to put pressure on My Sharona, which has led the J/111 class at the end of each day's racing.

Skipper George Gamble and his team on My Sharona takes a four-point lead into Friday, which is forecast to have similar wind conditions as Thursday. Race organizers plan to hold two races on divisions one and three and they should reach the 10-race series that was scheduled. Division two can have as many as 12 races and they will come close to that with an earlier start and three races planned for Friday.

"We had a really great day. The boat and the crew both performed very well," Faber said.
"We still believe we can win this thing. We're ready to do battle with My Sharona and see what happens."

Faber said Wally Cross, a professional with title sponsor Quantum Sail Design Group has made a big impact on his program. "We have a pro onboard who has really helped us a lot on how to sail the 111. Wally is doing a great job of teaching us the dynamics of the boat," Faber said.

Light winds that had predominated during the regatta were frustrating for Teamwork, the J/122 that has struggled to save its time on the smaller, lighter Farr 280s in PHRF 1. Skipper Robin Team was thrilled to see the breeze pipe up to double digits then went out on the water and took full advantage. North Sails professional Jonathan Bartlett is calling tactics on Teamwork, which won all three races on Thursday.

"Heavy air resuscitated us! The conditions we saw today were a definite advantage to the 122," Team said. "It feels extraordinarily good to have a day like this."

Teamwork jumped from fourth to second in the overall standings thanks to the three bullets. Red, a Farr 280 skippered by Joe Woods of Great Britain, still holds a commanding 11-point after placing first or second in all five races held Monday through Wednesday.

"It's mathematically possible for us to win, but we would need a lot of help from the other boats in the class," said Team, who won PHRF 1 in 2013 and finished second in 2014.

It was surprising to see reigning J/70 World and North American champion Tim Healy sitting in 15th place two days into the regatta. Perseverance skipper Bennet Greenwald predicted that Healy would battle back to be there in the end and he was spot on.

Healy and his crew aboard Helly Hansen have steadily climbed into second place in the 54-boat fleet, making a major move on Thursday thanks to a tremendous score line of 2-2-1. Tactician Geoff Becker, trimmer John Mollicone and bowman Gordon Borges comprise the crew aboard Helly Hansen, which trails class leader Calvi Network (Carlo Alberini) by three points.

"Our starts weren't great and some things didn't go our way," Healy said when asked about the slow start. "We've dug our way back by doing a little better job of playing the shifts and passing boats."

Healy, president of North Sails One-Design, captured J/70 class at Quantum Key West in 2013 and 2014. The veteran professional said the fact he had to fight back into contention is further evidence the fleet is getting deeper and stronger.

"People are learning the boats while the crews are getting better with more experience," he said.

Heavy air made for some spectacular racing in the GC 32 class with the foiling catamarans simply flying up and down the course. French skipper Erik Maris said his boat achieved 25 knots of speed while foiling downwind.

"These are the most fun boats I've ever sailed because of the incredible speed," Maris said. "When you are up on the foils and going 20-plus knots, the feeling is incredible. We go by the mini maxis like they are dead in the water."

Maris steered ZouLou to results of first and second on Thursday to take the overall lead away from skipper Jason Carroll and the Argo team. Those two entries both have 16 points, but ZouLou wins the tiebreaker based on posting the most recent first place finish.

"I've had many, many sailboats and this is just the best. It is very different than anything I've ever been on before," said Maris, who resides in the city of Junal les Pins. "It is a totally new dimension because of the speed, which can be a bit scary."

Flavio Marazzi, skipper of the Swiss entry ARMIN STROM Sailing, said Thursday's winds were not quite enough to enable the GC 32s to foil upwind. However, Marazzi said the high-speed cats can easily fly a hull and hit 14 knots of speed while sailing the same similar angles as the maxi monohulls. Competition within the class continues to develop and on Thursday there was only 30 seconds between the first and fourth finishes.

Competition in IRC 1 class tightened up before the three mini maxis left the dock on Thursday. Bella Mente, the Judel-Vrolijk 72-footer skippered by Hap Fauth of Minneapolis, had received redress from the International Jury on Wednesday night after running aground on a shipwreck.

That redress hearing was reopened on Thursday morning and new facts were presented that prompted the Jury to reverse its decision to award average points to Bella Mente for Races 5 and 6, reinstituting the did not finish and third place results the boat originally posted and propelling Numbers into a tie for the overall lead.

Bella Mente and Numbers remain tied after both posted a first and second on Thursday. Gunther Buerman, a resident of Highland Beach, Florida, has chartered Numbers for this regatta and is very pleased to be battling for the victory going into the last day of racing.

"It's very exciting to be here and the racing has been quite fun," said Buerman, who has fuor-time America's Cup champion Brad Butterworth as tactician. "The racing has been very, very close and every second matters. What happens tomorrow will depend largely on the breeze and the length of the courses. There are a lot of factors with these boats and the results can be very weather dependent."

Things have come down to the wire in Melges 32 class as well with Bermuda skipper Alec Cutler and his crew on Hedgehog maintaining the lead for the fourth straight day. However, Michigan skipper Dalton DeVos and the Delta team are just three points astern and those two boats will duke it out for overall victory for the second straight year at Quantum Key West.

"It is very similar to last year. Alec is a great sailor with a great team and that boat doesn't make many mistakes," said Dalton DeVos, a 23-year-old college student. "We just have to go out and sail our own race, go as fast as we can and try to make sure we are on the right side of the shifts."

Tonnere 4, the Ker 51 skippered by Peter Vroon of The Netherlands, held onto first place in IRC 2 with a pair of bullets on Thursday. Tonnere 4 is getting pushed hard by skipper William Coates and his team on the Ker 43 Otra Vez, which was second in both races on Thursday and trails by two points in the overall standings.

"We have a little bit of an advantage because we are the biggest boat in this division so we are able to get clear air and have control of our closest competitors," said Kevin George, tactician aboard Tonnere 4, which leads Otra Vez by four points in the HPR sub-class.

#keywestraceweek  – Irish skipper Conor Clarke and his crew on Embarr posted a pair of bullets to seize the early lead in Melges 24 class, which has attracted 13 entries. Texas skipper Steve Rhyne, who has Mojo in second place after putting up a fourth and a second, said the Dublin-based Embarr had an extra gear when going downwind.

"We started well today and I thought we had good upwind speed, but we had a little trouble on the runs," said Rhyne, who has previously raced a J/109 and Melges 32 here in Key West. "We're new to the class and still figuring out the best way to sail the boat."

Clarke told Afloat.ie "Key West was good to us today. Two races in fairly light shifty conditions and we won both of them to lead overall. The result flatters us because we fought hard in each race and it's clear that a number of boats will be presenting a serious challenge this week.

In race 1 we started well and went left at first but realised that boats on the right were making better ground so we crossed to cover. There was a ding dong battle with Mojo most of the way.We rounded the top mark in first but closely followed by Zingara and Mojo. Tricky downwind tactics and ginger movements on board left us rounding with the Canadians on Zingara but having split tacks with them upwind we had some great tactical calls from Huzie and Stu and also great speed allowing us drag away from them to lead into the last leg and also extend our lead to the finish.

Race two was a different story. We fluffed the start and ducked the fleet on port tack to get out into clear air from the back of the pack. We were pushed right and away from where we wanted to be. Eventually we took our first opportunity to go right and for a while looked as if we were in very poor shape indeed. I looked like we might be well into the second half of the fleet but slowly we noticed that our call to get left was going to pay off and the boats out to the right started to fall back. We rounded the top mark in a close 3rd and managed to dig our nose into a slot to windward of the lead boats, Tramp and Mojo. From there we were able to get a tad lower with speed and direct events from there. It was more nervy than it sounds but we managed to round the leeward mark in first and, again, more nervily than it sounds, extended our lead from there to the finish.
A really good days work but we have much more to do. 4 more days to defend our position"

There is no better sight than a steady stream of racing boats either sailing or motoring out of the Historic Seaport harbor around 10 a.m. on Monday. That's a sure sign that the annual race week held off Key West is starting on time and with enough wind to get the regatta underway.

Quantum Key West Race Week 2015 got off to a strong start with the principal race officers on all three divisions able to complete two good races in 8-14 knot northeasterly winds.

"It was a good day of racing. Conditions were ideal and the courses were good," said Hap Fauth, skipper of the mini maxi Bella Mente.

Fauth had reason to be happy as Bella Mente was atop the standings in IRC 1 after the opening day of action. Tactician Terry Hutchinson played the shifts well as the Judel-Vrolijk 72-footer posted results of first and second.

"Terry did a good job of putting us in sync with the puffs and our maneuvers were good," said Fauth, who is breaking six new sailors into his crew of 18.

Hutchinson wasn't happy about losing the lead in Race 1 as Bella Mente sailed into a patch of choppy air, which allowed the 66-foot Numbers to win on corrected time. Bella Mente must beat Numbers, which is being chartered by Florida resident Gunther Buerman, by just over three minutes in order to save its time over the smaller boat.

It was a very good day on the water for skipper William Coates and his crew aboard Otra Vez. The Ker 43 leads both IRC 1 and the High Performance Rule sub-class after getting two good starts and displaying superb upwind speed.

"We have a good boat with a great crew and we did a lot of preparation to get ready for this regatta," said Coates, a resident of Houston, Texas.

Otra Vez made its debut at Quantum Key West 2014 and Coates said the program got better as the year went along, capturing class honors at the New York Yacht Club Annual Regatta. Mike Buckley, an All-American sailor at Washington College, is calling tactics for Coates.

"This boat was designed for IRC racing, which is why we're kind of surprised to being doing well in HPR," Coates said. "Our motto is never give up. We were really deep in that second race and gained it all back on the last lap just by staying in phase with the shifts and puffs."

Skipper Jason Carroll and the boys aboard Argo are the early pace-setters in the GC 32 class, which is making its debut in Key West. Winds weren't quite strong enough for the high-performance catamarans to foil upwind, but they were easily able to rise out of the water going downwind. Cameron Appleton, tactician for Alex Jackson on Leenabarca, said staying up on the foils downwind and flying a hull upwind make all the difference in this class.

"This is the first time we've ever sailed the boat and the learning curve is steep," Appleton said. "In relatively light and fickle conditions like we had today, it's tricky to keep the boats moving at top speed. We made improvement from Race 1 to Race 2 so that's a positive."

Appleton, who has competed in just about every monohull class out there, said succeeding in getting these state-of-the-art catamarans into perfect sync is quite rewarding. The GC 32 is capable of reaching speeds of 35 knots while foiling downwind. "These boats are quite sporty and it's very exciting sailing," he said.

Bermuda skipper Alec Cutler got off to a good start in his bid to repeat as Melges 32 class champion. Cutler, who has Canadian professional Richard Clarke calling tactics, placed second in both races on Monday.

J/70 is the largest class in the regatta with 54 boats and the goal going into the first day was to avoid that deep finish that could prove costly. "You can't win the regatta on Monday, but you sure can lose it," Heartbreaker skipper Robert Hughes said. "You don't want to sail your drop race on the first day."

After finishing 11th in Race 1, San Diego skipper Bennett Greenwald got the gun in Race 2 and is the early leader while also earning City of Key West Boat of the Day honors. Hughes, who trails Greenwald by three points and leads Carlo Alberini (Calvi Network) by one, had a similar day with results of 13th and second. In fact, the top five boats on Monday all had one result of fifth or better and another result of 11th or higher.

"We almost had a great day," said Hughes, who lost seven places on the final leg of Race 1. "I'm pleased with our speed. We have new sails and have made some changes to the rig setup. This is the best this boat has ever gone."

Red is another boat that returned to the dock on Monday afternoon as the leader in two classes. British skipper Joe Woods corrected to first place in both races within PHRF 1 and thus also leads the Farr 280 sub-class.

"It's an interesting and tricky boat to sail. It's a 28-footer that feels bigger," said Woods, who previously raced a Melges 24 in Key West and has just three days of practice under his belt aboard the Farr 280.

Gerry Taylor captured class honors at Quantum Key West 2013, but had to miss last year's regatta due to work commitments. The Annapolis resident and his team on Tangent picked up right where they left off two years ago, winning both races in PHRF 2 on Monday.

Skipper Iris Vogel steered Deviation to victory in both races within J/88 class while fellow New York resident Robert Hesse is the early leader in J/111 after notching finishes of first and fourth.

 

#melges24 – Today we lost the Melges 24 World Championships writes Irish skipper Conor Clarke. We were in third and were adamant about going for the win rather than defending our podium place. We prayed for wind today when it seemed like it might not happen. With 15 minutes to go before the 3pm time limit the race organisers got us off up the course. We felt sluggish on Embarr, usually we are able to poke out ahead of the fleet at the start with better boat speed and while we did beat some of those close to us we were not leading the pack up the course.

This meant we had to contend with some traffic and find lanes. We were forced away from our favoured side by Australians and hit by the Brits at the top mark both of which meant punishment for us in terms of boats passing. We clawed back and had a really good last downwind leg to get us back to the top 10. Again, we were hit right on the finish line by an American boat and this time had to protest to get back the points we lost.

We finished fifth. It is a good result and we are mixing with an exceptional standard of sailors in this Melges 24 fleet. However, it seems poor reward for the effort over the last 3 years we have been together as a team and to tell the truth we are all gutted.

Thank you for reading these rants and please keep an eye out for us...

Embarr

Event reporting below 

Sperry Top-Sider Melges 24 World Championship

San Francisco, CA, USA: American Brian Porter on Full Throttle took fourth in the final race of the Sperry Top-Sider Melges 24 World Championship 2013 today to finally lay claim to the title he has been trying to win for many years.

Porter snatched victory by three points from 2013 Melges 24 European Champion Italian Flavio Favini at the helm of Franco Rossini's Swiss entry Blu Moon who had led by a single point going into the final day.

Favini didn't give in without a fight however, recovering from a fifteenth place first windward mark rounding to pull back to sixth at the finish - just two places away from snatching back overall victory.

A second place in today's race for Denmark's Kim Christensen on Soffe 2 elevated him from fourth overnight on to the podium into third place.

A win in the final race for American Bora Gulari on West Marine Rigging/New England Ropes - his second of the championship - moved him up one overall place to fourth. A tenth today for Nathan Wilmot on Conor Clarke's Irish entry Embarr dropped him from third to fifth overall.

In the Corinthian Division a seventh for American Don Jesberg on Viva was good enough to see him crowned 2013 Melges 24 Corinthian Champion by three points from second placed fellow American Loren Colahan on Lounge Act. A Corinthian race win today for Canadian Michael Bond on Recidivist earned him the final podium place.

Overall top ten after nine races:

1. Brian Porter, USA, 39 points
2. Flavio Favini, SUI, 41
3. Kim Christensen, DEN, 47
4. Bora Gulari, USA, 48
5. Nathan Wilmot, IRL, 53
6. Giovanni Pizzatti, ITA, 53
7. Riccardo Simoneschi, ITA, 54
8. Terry Hutchinson, USA, 56
9. Harry Melges III, USA, 75
10. Andrea Racchelli, ITA, 83

Full results (PDF): melges24worlds2013.files.wordpress.com

#melges –  There is lots of news today...the good news first, Prof (Maurice O'Connell) and Suzie had their second child, a bouncing baby girl of 9lbs and 11oz. We had some champagne to welcome Josephine and Prof and Suzie were the toast of San Francisco Yacht Club this afternoon writes Conor Clarke.

Bad news today too... Embarr was in a collision today but unfortunately we were not the only ones and our crash was very minor compared to our friends Argyle Campbell and the team on Rock'n'Roll. They were in a major collision with a larger yacht at a mark rounding during the second race today. What we have heard is that two crew members, including Argyle, were taken to hospital and that the boat is severely damaged. Argyle and team have been getting quicker and quicker and are one of the top US teams. They are serious contenders next week and we really hope they are all well and get back in the water in time to compete at the World Championships.

For Embarr there were some difficulties too. After two false starts and general recalls the Melges fleet finally got away but just at the start we were hit on the bow by another boat. The entanglement that ensued meant we were last off the line and trailed the fleet up the beat. When we hoisted the kite for the downwind leg we found it impossible to keep up with other boats and boats that we had passed already were able to simply drive by seemingly effortlessly. We could not get the boat going at all. We finished in 21st and immediately crawled forward to inspect the bow where the impact had occurred. We found that the pole exit was smashed and far more damage had been done than we had originally thought. The impact to the pole slowed us down considerably and we had to back ashore to repair the damage.

We will be out on the water again tomorrow for the last two races of the Rolex series and more practice. Hopefully we can stay out of trouble but above all we really hope Team Rock'nRoll recover and are able to make it back on the water in time. We wish you well Argyle.

#melges24 – Ok, We are back on the road again, this time back in San Francisco for the Melges 24 World Championships writes Irish skipper Conor Clarke. It's been over two years since we started out as a team at the Worlds in Corpus Christi, May 2011. We managed third by hiking our guts out and some famous flashes of brilliance. Straight line speed has always been ok for us but going round corners presents challenges for a team that gets together a few days before each event twice or three times a year.

Most of the top teams will either have been together consistently during this season or will have been in San Francisco practicing for some weeks. We now have a week to get it all together.

Everything else is done. The team badgered me into a new boat and we now have a shiny 2012 Melges still smelling of the chemicals used to make it. It should be stiffer than the old red rocket because it is simply newer. This means it will be the shape it was intended to be and stress from tensioning the rig won't deform it as much. It should mean better speed and acceleration in the same conditions. These are nano differences but we have to leave no stone unturned. Poking a nose out in front at a start rewarding the hiking gives you rights and lets you dictate to the boats around you. As crew hiking, hiking, hiking watching a boat off the start just above you. Gauging speed compared to them and watching their bow cut through the waves hoping ours looks just as intimidating. Starting to see their bowgirls arms outstretched and see more of her and the rest of the crew as you pull forward and ahead of them. Faster. Higher, This is death for the boat above. It's a psychological win even more important than the distance gained. Inside you're going woo hoo but you have to stay calm because it's unseemly and, more importantly you know that, next time, you will be on the receiving end.

These nano differences all add up and give the edge needed. For Embarr now the week will be all about getting those same nano differences out of the team. Slick, fast kite hoists allowing us drag away a millisecond ahead of the boat beside us. Reliable gybes that mean we can cross the course as we please and turn knowing we will be up to speed again faster than the boat inside us. Kite trimming downwind, not just responding to puffs and shifts but anticipating them and knowing what the next one will do before it arrives and trimming to it as it hits. This is what is in store for us in the week ahead until racing starts in anger on Monday morning the 30th.

The team is the same as before but we have Shona Wilmot back on board. She has a new baby this time to add to the teams domestic situation. We haven't seen Shona since August last year when she was pregnant and she is really enthusiastic. Profs partner Suzie is expecting a baby during this week, an impressive effort from him to be here with us probably missing out on the birth of his second child. Some extra motivation for us. Hughesie has been getting back to his roots in a 470 this summer and is rushing back to a US Olympic 470 shindig immediately after we finish.

Nathan, well.... In frenzy of domesticity on a day off racing in Italy last week, our hero, Nathan Wilmot washed his passport with his clothes. He now has to go to London to get a new one. He won't live this one down.

More updates tomorrow, I hope not too boring. We will be out with the AC boats, keep an eye out for us on the telly.

Embarr

#melges24 – Ireland's Embarr finished fourth overall at the Melges 24 Pacific Coast Championships and we are very disappointed not to have clocked up a better score writes skipper Conor Clarke.

#melges – More practice today, not quite as foggy as yesterday and probably a bit more windy. More boats have arrived for the Pacific Coast Championships so the Hedgehog and Embarr teams (new bff’s) had some new people lining up with us today. We’re happy with our new jib and the rig settings we have been working on, also the new white PZR reacher kite is working well in these conditions so all in all we’re happy with the set up. We always find that once we are racing seriously things look different though so let’s see what tomorrow brings. We had some looseness appear in the rudder today, we repaired it this evening but it always makes us nervous because rudder issues cost us dear in Corpus Christi and we raced a day with the rudder held together with some spare spectra. That was the old boat though, I hope this new one is ok.
 
I mentioned yesterday that we can get emotional on board sometimes… well today, while planing downwind in 22 knots or so, our back office team had a slight disagreement over control of the main sheet. The GoPro caught it all and Kate found it edited it and put it on YouTube for your entertainment (above)… 
 
One of the boats who was out with us practicing today, Mikey, lost a couple of people out the back in a hairy jibe, there are some great pics of the incident taken by Anna Cutler here…   no-one was hurt and all crew were recovered safely.
 
Racing starts in earnest tomorrow. 3 races in heavy breeze will be tough going.

#melges – So the Embarr team is back on the water with a new boat writes skipper Conor Clarke. Those of you who have followed us in the past will be familiar with the old Red Rocket which we sailed to a few decent results, well she is now in Australia and we hear won her first regatta with a series of bullets. No pressure! The new boat is pure white, not as easy to spot in pics but should (had better!) be stiffer and quicker. We will see!

Truth is we had her out in Chicago a few weeks ago and spent a lot of time re-working settings and trying to optimise and learn. Boring stuff but has to be done.

Today, in San Francisco, we sailed out to the Golden Gate but we decided not to go out under it because that whole area of the bay was completely blocked out by fog, thick fog that lives even in 25 knots of breeze. Bizarre and especially when, about 5 miles away, in our host San Francisco Yacht Club, it was sunny, warm with a light breeze. This is a weird place for weather.

Anyway, we went out with the Bermudans on Hedgehog to line up against them and practice. They are an excellent team, we were lucky to beat them into fourth overall on the last day of the Worlds in Corpus, they are very slick boat handlers and very fast on all points.

We had some fantastic downwind blasts with them then some gut thumping upwind slogs as well. Some other boats joined in too later in the afternoon. We practiced our manoeuvres and played with sails and settings all day. We had GoPros on board so maybe we can show some video clips when we have them edited, some of the sound won't be fit for public consumption though, sorry. There's a practice race tomorrow and the Pacific Coast Championships start properly on Saturday. It's cold and windy so it will be fast and wet. Emotional too as always on Embarr, even working the Velocitek had its dramas with us today, imagine when we start actually racing! I hope the GoPros caught some of the domestics!

We will keep you updated here on Afloat.ie and post some pics and maybe even videos, we promise to try to keep it interesting too.

The Embarr team is Nathan Wilmot, Dave Hughes, Maurice / Prof O'Connell, Kate Sheahan, and Conor Clarke

#melges24 – Irish skipper Conor Clarke has finished second overall at the North American Championships but is disappointewd with the result because errors cost the Irish boat the title. Here Clarke talks through the final stages of the event.

Two races on the last day of the North Americans dished up more of the same conditions as the previous two. It felt lighter on the way out to the race area but it soon filled in and we swapped over for the white reaching kite before the start of the first race. 5 points behind the Aussies and they were discarding a 3 so we had to get some boats between us and them in the first race just to stay in with any chance. Also, we were just two points clear of the 3rd placed boat and there were some very capable teams within easy reach of our 2nd place so we had to fight on two fronts.

First race start was ok, we got away in the pack and stretched away heading left up the beat. We had great speed and were outpacing anyone who came close. The Aussies were on the other side of the beat though. We arrived at the top mark close enough to touch them and rounded just behind them almost in contact and a length or so clear of 3rd placed Full Throttle. Good hoist and we tore off downwind at 15 to 17 knots. We got inside the Aussies going deeper and matching them for pace but had a poor gybe and allowed them through on the turn. Gained back again so we both passed the leeward gates together. Similar story for the next leg but Full Throttle with Harry Melges on board got back on top of both of us on the beat. Again, we had speed on the run but overstood slightly and allowed the chasing Aussies and Americans an easier path to the finish line and we wound up a gut wrenching 3rd.

That meant the Aussies could go home without fear of being beaten in the last race. We had to stay out and race to protect our second overall. We were gutted, again the mood on board was very dark. Tough to watch the Aussies congratulate each other and sail away from the race area triumphantly.

The second and last race was a different matter. Someone ashore after described us as demonic and it reflected how we felt. We fluffed the start and had to duck the whole fleet on port and yet again go the wrong way. We crossed back though and picked off boats one by one hiking and cursing all the way. At the top mark we had made it back to second a couple of lengths behind a US boat. We had a good hoist and we came tearing down the run at a much deeper angle than they could manage and simply overtook the US boat to leeward. A good gybe this time and he was left well behind. We extended our lead for the rest of the race with similar power downwind giving us some comfort in our second place with a final race win.

A frustrating regatta. Second in this fleet at this level is excellent but we felt like we lost the win through errors that we should not have made so we were disappointed. A good practice in San Francisco though in preparation for the 2013 World Championships there. Watch this space for our next outing.

Additional report from Melges 24 association:

Rooklyn and Jesberg Win Melges 24 North American Championship

San Francisco, California, USA: The 2012 Melges 24 North American Championship came to a spectacular close in San Francisco today with two final races to complete the eight race series, and an outstanding victory by Warwick Rooklyn and his team from Australia sailing Bandit. The Berkeley Circle kept its best conditions for last with clear skies, warm sun and a glorious 15-18 knots ensuring champagne sailing all the way.
Going into the day Rooklyn held a five point lead over fellow Australian Nathan Wilmot, helming Embarr for Ireland's Connor Clarke, and in the early stages of race seven it looked like Embarr might be capable of closing that gap. The two boats were neck and neck around the first leeward gate, but on the second lap Rooklyn held his nerve whilst Wilmot struggled to stay on the pace, ultimately dropping back into third behind Full Throttle. On the line Bandit's crew double checked the points and were happy to confirm they had won the regatta with a race to spare - the first all southern hemisphere team to claim a Melges 24 continental championship.
In the all amateur Corinthian Division the victor's laurels went to Don Jesberg of San Francisco Yacht Club, sailing Viva with Andrew Holdsworth, Steven Marsh, Eric Baumhoff and Andrea Cabito. Fellow SFYC member Shawn Bennett, sailing Melges 49 took second place and Scott Holmgren of Oklahoma, sailing Rosebud, completed the Corinthian podium lineup.
Final top ten:
1. Warwick Rooklyn, AUS, 13 points
2. Nathan Wilmot, IRL, 18
3. Alan Field, USA, 25
4. Flavio Favini, SUI, 27
5. Argyle Campbell, USA, 27
6. Brian Porter, USA, 32
7. Ian Sloan, USA, 51
8. Donald Jesberg, USA, 58
9. Bruce Ayres, USA, 63
10. Derek Ratteray, GBR, 70

#melges24 – Irish Melges 24 skipper Conor Clarke admits it has been a tough few days  for the sole Irish boat at the Melges 24 North Aemrican championships in San Francisco.

A really difficult day on SF bay today in so many ways. Our starts were poor, we even had to tack and duck the fleet in the last race because we were not laying the pin, we had two incidents at top marks, the Swiss got pinged by the jury for one of them, we overlaid a downwind mark and had to claw back with the kite, we seemed to forget how to gybe and some other basics of sailing. A very gloomy day all round.

The good news is we have held on to second place and we are now only 5 points off the Aussies leading instead of the 6 points we were behind yesterday evening.

We started well with a 2nd behind the Swiss in the first race after a pretty ragged start and rounding the top mark quite deep in the fleet. We seemed to like this 6 leg race that gave us time to pick our way back. Second race was again a non spectacular start and we clawed back to second again but lost two places in the last run. Third start was disastrous, we could not lay the favoured pin end and wound up reaching across the back of the fleet on port and got pushed out to the right away from where we wanted to be. Top marks were a battlefield especially with short 1.2 mile legs which didn't leave much of a spread in the fleet.

Day two of hiking is harder again than day one, you lose your appetite very quickly and wind up living on Gatorade, painkillers and energy jellies. The mood gets low on board when we're not winning and we do work very hard to recover from our mistakes. We hike harder than any other boat in the fleet (we have been watching closely) and we push ourselves harder downwind we believe. We really could do with more time together as a team on the boat to eliminate the mistakes but the real world intervenes and allows us only a few regattas per year.

Two more races tomorrow hiking and pushing even harder, we want to get past those Aussies so much...

I hope tomorrows final report is more joyful.