Rolex NYYC Invitational Cup: Marcus Eagan's Southern YC team seals the deal with a bit of match
NEWPORT, RI – Racing has just concluded on Narragansett Bay on the fifth and final day of the Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup. Congrats to Marcus Eagan, Johnny Lovell and the rest of the team representing one of the USA's oldest and most esteemed yacht clubs, Southern Yacht Club (New Orleans). They finished second in today's only race to win this prestigious corinthian regatta by fully 12 points over the second-place team from Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron (AUS, Sydney, Guido Belgiorno-Nettis skipper). SYC had a comfortable eight-point lead going into today's race, and just had to have a decent start and keep their noses clean, and stay within seven places of RSYS.
SYC had a nice start all alone at the leeward end of the line – contrary to one of the commentators who made a bold pre-race prediction about how they would be nervous and stuff the start; if anything it was Royal Sydney who had a bad start, late to the line and in somewhat dirty air. RSYS tacked to the right side of the first leg, and SYC wisely and nicely covered them without much concern about the rest of the fleet, were ahead of their arch rivals at the top mark, and it was all but over.
Notably the SYC team also had one of the oldest competitors, one of the youngest, and was one of only a handful of teams that had a female competitor (as did the RSYS). See the crew lists, link below.
You can watch a replay of today's race on the regatta Facebook page. In the meantime the wedding bells are ringing at Balboa YC this afternoon for our good friends Chris Bretschger (an IT'S OK! teammate) and Cassie Fausel, so we will have a fuller report and more nice Daniel Forster photos for you Sunday morn.
Parade of teams on the way out to today's final race on Narragansett Bay north of the Pell-Newport Bridge. Photo by Daniel Forster courtesy of Rolex.
Nice crowd watching the Facebook Live stream and cheering their winning team on today at Southern Yacht Club, one of the USA's oldest and most esteemed clubs.