The North American Melges 24 Racing Teams arriving at the Kelowna Yacht Club This Week
June 22nd, 2016 - Kelowna, BC, Canada - The Land Rover Kelowna Melges 24 Canadian National Championship will be held in Kelowna, BC on June 24 - 26. The event is also Stage 1 of the North American Tour. Registration opens 9 am on June 22nd and boats will start arriving from all corners of North America to compete.
The course will be determined by wind direction and will be located in one of three general sailing areas. Some of the teams will be on the water as early as Wednesday, June 22nd joining in on Kelowna Yacht Club’s regular Wednesday Night Race from 6:00pm to 7:30pm. The official program starts with a racing clinic with Drew Mitchell between 1-4pm on June 23rd continued with a busy racing schedule during the 3-day races June 24th – 26th starting 10:30 am on Friday and 10:00 am the rest of the week. The daytime race schedule is followed by a Tree Brewing debriefing session a “Burgers in Paradise” barbeque evening, a Kelowna Yacht Club Banquet and the Awards presentations on the KYC Commodore’s dock after racing on Sunday June 26th.
“Our committee and volunteers are excited to welcome 29 Melges 24 boats to the Kelowna Yacht Club and facilitate an international level race in the most professional way possible. We thank Land Rover Kelowna and all the sponsors and donors who made this event possible and good luck to all the teams! ” says Marc Noel, president of the Canadian Melges 24 Class Association and Melges 24 Nationals’ co-chair.
The Three Stage North American Tour includes:
1. Land Rover Kelowna Melges 24 Canadian National Championship June 24-26, 2016
2. 2016 Melges 24 U.S. Championship, Lake Geneva October 7-9, 2016
3. Melges 24 World Championship, Miami November 26 to December 3, 2016
Members of the Land Rover Kelowna Melges 24 Canadian National Championship organizing committee and many volunteers are keeping our Mission and Vision in mind to deliver a first class event!
Mission Statement:
To host a high quality, first class yacht race experience with low environmental impact and engage a sense of community.
Vision:
1. To work collaboratively with our Partner Organizations towards delivering a first class event and honouring their contributions.
2. To support all volunteers toward our event goals.
3. To host an on budget, and respected event.
The organizing committee is very grateful for the generous support of many sponsors, donors and media that has made the Land Rover Kelowna Melges 24 Canadian National Championship possible!To our Sponsors and Donors: We Couldn’t do it Without You, Thank You!
The Land Rover Kelowna Melges 24 Canadian National Championship committee is very thankful for the generous sponsors and donors in support of this North American sailing race. The event is entirely volunteer lead and would not be possible without their support. Land Rover Kelowna offered their Title sponsorship for the event as part of Land Rover’s global engagement in the “Extreme Sailing series”.
The Kelowna Yacht Club continues to be a huge support to the Land Rover Kelowna Melges 24 Canadian National Championship event by providing the facilities, the moorage space, logistical expertise, membership engagement and media coverage to name a few. The event’s committee is very grateful to have this quality clubhouse, grounds and highly skilled staff to work with.
Dockside Marine Centre is supporting the entire on the water racing event by providing the Official Race Committee Boat, the Signals Boat (left) and the many mark boats used to set up the course for the event. Dockside Marine Centre has been serving western Canadian boaters since 1975. They are locally owned and operated, and are located on the Westside of the Bennet Bridge accessible via the Campbell Road exit.
North Sails has been a longtime supporter of many sailboat racing events both locally and globally. We are very thankful for their continued support, and for being a sponsor! North Sails Coach and racer, Drew Mitchells, will be on the water June 23rd coaching the boats during the Race Clinic 1-4pm. Their North U department’s touring seminars and clinics, teach top level racing to some of our best teams.
Pro racer Brian Hutchinson from Salt Lake City who has been involved with the Melges 24 class since its inception will be coaching the fleet on the water June 22nd too. We are fortunate to have such high level talent to prepare our team for a great week of racing! Brian and Hutchinson Sports is also a sponsor of the event.
Thank you to our grant donor, The City of Kelowna, for the generous support of our event.
And we would also like to thank the Province of BC and viaSport for their generous support of this event. Hosting BC grant funding was received from the Province of British Columbia through the Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development and administered by viaSport British Columbia.
For further information on the 2016 Land Rover Kelowna Melges 24 Canadian National Championship, please contact:
Marc Noel
Co Chair Land Rover Kelowna 2016 Melges 24 Canadian National Championship
woody1199@gmail.com
Media contact:
Pamela Miller
pamelaswork@gmail.com
The 2016 Land Rover Melges 24 Canadian National Championship Poster and KYC TV screen image was created by Nigel Hart.