Charleston Race Week & Worlds 2011 Entry Deadline Both Fast Approaching
This weekend will see over 50 Melges 24s gathering for Charleston Race Week, the penultimate event in the USMCA's Road To Corpus series which culminates in the 2011 Melges 24 World Championship, hosted by Corpus Christi Yacht Club, Texas.
USMCA Communications Director Joy Dunigan will be bringing you all the latest news from the race course in Charleston at www.usmelges24.com and via the US Melges 24 Facebook Page as well as through the event website.
From Charleston the Melges 24 circus moves onto Corpus Christi where the top US Teams will be joined by more than a dozen of the leading international sailors for the 2011 Melges 24 World Championship from 11-22 May. The absolute final entry deadline for the World Championship is 22 April 2011 so if you haven't already registered now is the time to do so via the event website.
"Corpus Christi was a strategic choice of venue for the class." notes IMCA Media Coordinator Fiona Brown "The recession has affected the Melges 24 fleet in the same way it has affected so many others, but we are delighted to be seeing a resurgence of interest in the USA this season and as part of that initiative the class is keen to ensure that not only does it support its established fleets, but that it also encourages growth in new areas such as on the Gulf Coast and across the Southern States. Corpus is an outstanding sailing venue, the Corpus Christi Yacht Club has an excellent reputation and good experience in running major regattas and Texan hospitality is legendary so when an opportunity to support growth in this area via the placement of a World Championship was presented the IMCA World Council was excited to take up the invitation.
"Whilst this will not be a record breaking event numerically the quality of the competition will be exceptional. We have over a dozen of the top international crews attending from Europe and Australia including the reigning World Champions and they will be going head to head against the very best of the US teams so we can look forward to an extremely hard fought competition as well as some spectacular sailing.
"Alongside the top international teams we also look forward to welcoming some new faces to the Worlds fleet and we will be working hard to ensure that those new to top level competition in the Melges 24 are made welcome and fully supported, with representatives from the IMCA, the USMCA and Melges Performance Sailing plus many of the established "names" in the fleet all on hand to offer advice and assistance when ever needed."
Registration for the World Championship opens on Wednesday May 11th for those arriving early, and continues until Sunday May 15th, enabling those with limited leave to arrive on Saturday night or Sunday morning and still complete the registration process by 5pm on Sunday. There will be Pre-Worlds racing on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th May and the Championship will run from Monday 16th to Saturday 21st May. Keep up with all the latest news about the 2011 Melges 24 World Championship on the event website and via the Road To Corpus Facebook Group.