Strong winds, and the crew to take advantage of them, helped Chris Rosenberg sail his Melges 24 "Marriott Frenchman's Reef" to the overall victory at the Vitelcellular St. Croix International Regatta Nov. 5- 7.
The four races sailed on Friday and Saturday challenged sailors with steady winds of 15 to 18 knots. A rain squall on Saturday brought gusts to 30 knots to the race course. Regatta co- director Doug Allen took the brunt of the high wind damage when his mast folded in half.
The small light Melges 24 boats, with six sailing in a class of their own, showed dramatic downwind speed in the fresh breezes.
"Having the type of wind that suits your boat certainly helps in the fleet scores," said Rosenberg, "and with the crew I had for this regatta, Robbie Hirst (BVI Olympic sailor), Morgan Avery (V.I. Challenge Match Race team), Chase Neal (V.I. Pan Am Games sailor), and Wally Bostwick, we were able keep our boat surfing on those downwind legs."
Puerto Rican sailor Stanley Lopez on his Melges 24 "Trust Bank" was second overall, and the young Stanton brothers of St. Croix broke the Melges group up with third place on their J-24 "Jersey Devil".
For complete regatta results, see the St. Croix Yacht Club website: www.stcroixyc.org.
