Manhattan Regatta

Twelve J/105s competed in this year’s Manhattan Regatta under blue skies, good wind and of course a strong current. After a storm that passed through the day before, the ebbing tide was intensified by the river’s surge, making starts quite challenging. With the exception of one distance race, course legs were short (under a mile) which offered lots of quick action and lead changes. New owner Dennis Driscoll (Hornet) did not let the New York Harbor’s chaos rattle him, as his team took the lead on the first day with a couple of bullets in four races and held on to it Sunday to win the regatta. Overall second place goes to Mark Van Schalkwyk (Circe) who almost lost everything in the fifth race with an OCS but clawed his way back to a fourth place finish. A big welcome back and third place goes to Fairhope, skippered by Gareth Gaston. Fairhope snuck onto the podium spot in his first regatta since getting his boat repaired from Hurricane Sandy damage.