The 2025 Etchells New England Championship marked the final regatta of the sailing season featuring an overall win by Marblehead native and sailmaker Jud Smith of the Eastern Yacht Club and his teammates Steve Girling and Lars Ozell with 28 points.
Thirty boats were on the starting line at this late-season event hosted by the Boston Yacht Club and held Friday, Oct. 11 and Sat., Oct 12. Trimmed down from a three-day to a two-day event because of an approaching nor’easter, it offered surprisingly ideal conditions for racing after weather forecasters initially said the air would be light.
Smith and his team on USA 1111 Fast Mermaid took advantage of both the great breeze and clean starts to get the most boat speed possible and the strategy gave them three first-place finishes out of seven races. Second place finisher Tomas Hornos of Marblehead, Chris Lanza and Ezra Culver of the Coral Reef Yacht Club on USA 1368 Vertigo II finished with 42 point and third place finisher Don Dowd on USA 1397 Tar & Feathered of the New York Yacht Club with 44 points.
“Etchells is a very technical boat and during this event we were able to get clear air and good boat speed at the start, so one good thing led to another,” Smith said of his win. Smith’s teammate Steve Burley, who originally comes from England but has sailed with Smith in the past in both the national and world competitions added that, “I love coming to Marblehead and love sailing the Etchells because the standard of competition is so high. It is a big heavy boat that takes time and skill to get it to go well. However, once you get it dialed in and you know it, it is a great feeling.”
For second place finisher, sailmaker and Marblehead resident Tomas Hornos, he noted that interest in the fleet has grown and evolved as he is seeing a consolidation of former Etchells competitors returning to the fleet and new people joining up and Etchells are more affordable now.
“The competition here is very good and it is a testament to all the teams that came to the New Englands,” Hornos said. The Etchells is a very interesting boat in that it is easy to get around a racecourse on one and there is not a high barrier for entry. It is also a safe, stable boat, user-friendly and sails very well upwind. Yet, it is a long journey to sail these boats well and the competition here in Marblehead remains high.”
Principal Race Officer Karen Tenenbaum and the Boston Yacht Club Race Committee had the challenge of condensing a three-day event down to two. She chose to run four shorter, rapid-fire races on Friday and three longer races on Saturday. With a crowded starting line, what was crucial was there were only two recalls (when people were over the line early) and the cooperation of the wind and weather meant they could get in seven races in two days.
“It was a fantastic event and the wind cooperated. It was close sailing and we were determined to get in three races on Saturday after having four races on Friday,” Tenenbaum said. “The fleet was really great to work with, and we only had to make a couple of adjustments over two days.”
For overall results go here theclubspot.com/regatta/hx1cLuyyUg/results.
