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Newport Harbor Yacht Club Hosts First SoCal 52 Class Regatta

IRC Grand Prix Racing Takes Shape in Southern California

Newport Beach, CA -- Newport Harbor Yacht Club hosted the inaugural SoCal 52 Class Regatta on September 26th & 27th. Five races over two days were held in the waters off of Newport Beach, CA. David Team’s TP52 “Rebel Yell”, the former 2005 “Med Cup” Champion, “Pisco Sour” won the event, leading Jim Madden’s TP52 “Stark Raving Mad V” by one point, with Ernie Pennell’s “Cazador” placing 3rd, one point behind SRM.

Conditions were very challenging with fog and light breezes. Though races were started in 5 knots or more of breeze, the race course presented many holes of 4 knots or less and shifting winds. In several races, wind shifts of up to 40 degrees during the race quickly swapped out leaders. Competitors had to use GPS to find the weather mark in the first two races on Saturday where fog enshrined the starting line and the course. Clearing skies arrived for the last race of each day with breezes up to 9-10 knots.

The SoCal 52 class was inaugurated earlier this year and is composed of TP52s racing under owner defined rules. The owners evaluated various rating systems and determined IRC as the preferred rule for the class due to its international use for grand prix events and it growing adoption for major US events.

NHYC hosted a class event on Saturday night under tents with music and over 80 crew and guests attending. Awards were presented after racing on Sunday afternoon.

The next event for the SoCal 52 Class is scheduled for Oct. 24-25 and will be hosted by the San Diego Yacht Club.

For more information on:
Race results: www.nhyc.org/files/09%20SoCal52%20Results.htm

US IRC: www.us-irc.org

SoCal 52 Class: www.socal52.org

Interested in using IRC?

Owners and Organizing Authorities wishing to adopt IRC for their events should contact US-IRC Executive Director Luiz E. Kahl for help with the process luiz@us-irc.org.

The US SAILING Offshore office administers the IRC rule in the US. Yacht owners should contact Eric Baittinger at irc@ussailing.org for help with certificate application or with rating questions.

For all US-IRC latest news, events and seminars check out the US-IRC web site at www.us-irc.org and go racing with us.