Message from IM24CA Chair Laura Grondin - Best to you for your health, safety and fast sailing!
November 24, 2021 - Message from IM24CA Chair Laura Grondin to the class on Thanksgiving 2021.
Dear Melges 24 sailors,
At this Thanksgiving in the US, I am grateful for the opportunities that we have had this year, despite the pandemic, to go sailing and to race the boat that all Melges 24 sailors love!
A good friend recently said to me that it is hard to be down when being grateful. I plan to carry this idea with me as we celebrate the holidays and welcome the new year.
In 2022, we will have a World Championship for the first time since 2019 in Italy. The warm air and waters of Fort Lauderdale and the awesome hospitality and planning of the Lauderdale Yacht Club will welcome us. For more details, please see the attached with the details. There is a demand for charter boats and I know that the US class is working on this – IF you have a boat in the US that you are willing to charter, please let us know! We will be grateful.
The winter season of racing will kick off shortly with the first Bacardi Series event in late December – I hope to see many of you there. And, for the second year in a row, we will have a European Championship in 2022 and Yacht Club Italiano in Genova, Italy will be our host.
We will end 2021 with robust attendance at the Europeans in Slovenia, the European Sailing Series and the US National Ranking Series. National championships were held in Italy, Hungary, USA, Norway, Canada, Sweden, Denmark, and, by our newest national class, Croatia.
I am grateful to our Executive Committee and our National leaders for their efforts to make this the best year that it could be!! And, I am grateful to the sailors for their perseverance, positive attitudes and flexibility.
Happy Thanksgiving!!
Laura Grondin,
IM24CA Chair