Three teams from Colorado yacht clubs showed up to the second event of the Melges Winter Series hosted by Sarasota Sailing Squadron over the weekend of February 26-28, 2021.
A Blast to Sail
The Melges 15 Winter Series in Florida takes off!
BIG NEWS - Colorado has a fleet of 13 boats!
Join the Melges 15 Movement!
Cherry Creek - Denver Sailing Association, 2 boats so far…
Union Reservoir - Union Sailing Club, Longmont, Colorado, 2 boats so far…
Grand Lake, Colorado - We have a fleet of 9 in 2021, maybe more.
The first Melges 15 fleets are popping up across the country with boats being delivered weekly. Dirk Richter from Longmont, Colorado, Union Reservoir sent in this cover photo to Sail World
Advantages of the Melges 15
Performance and Stability
Big enough for two adults or adults with kids.
High boom so it’s friendly for casual sailing. Modern rig and hull shape so very fast too.
Ergonomic cockpit
Very sporty when you want it to be with an asymmetrical spinnaker.
Single-Pull Spinnaker SystemGnav Vang
Tapered Aluminum Mast
Aluminum Foils
Flip-up Rudder
Light and compact so much less to worry about for storage.
Simple to rig
Melges 15 fleets are starting to pop up coast to coast! The design is ideal for one-design racing as well as a teaching and club sharing platform.
The M15 is gaining in popularity in Colorado! We had a very successful demo in Grand Lake, Colorado over the summer of 2020. In the spring of 2021, there will be 9 new Melges 15’s coming to Grand Lake. Melges is hosting a 2-day clinic for all new owners and current M15 Colorado owners. Hopefully, by then we will have less of an issue with COVID. Learn more about the Melges 15 >>
If you’re interested in knowing more about Melges events in Colorado contact Richard Allen / richard@180marine.com
Authorized Rocky Mountain Melges Dealer for Melges 14, 15, 20, and 24
Richard Allen / CEO 180 Marine
ABOUT MELGES PERFORMANCE SAILBOATS:
Melges is a leading performance sailboat and powerboat supplier that has proudly delivered high-quality boats around the world since 1945. Headquartered in Zenda, Wisconsin, the three-generation family business is proud to be celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2020. Innovation, performance, quality, and passion are the hallmarks of the Melges brand. For more information about Melges, visit www.melges.com.
“This event really shows what’s possible here on the Bay with the Melges 15"
Beach Haven, New Jersey / October 10-11, 2020
A little more than four months after the world debut of the Melges 15, twelve boats gathered at Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club (Beach Haven, NJ) for the inaugural Melges 15 Invitational.
Pioneered by local, Chris Fretz, LEHYC is home to Melges 15 Fleet #1 after taking delivery of six privately-owned boats in June. Fleet 1 now has nine boats and is looking forward to continued growth and helping establish other fleets on Barnegat Bay.
“This event really shows what’s possible here on the Bay with the Melges 15. When you have sailors from 18-80 years old ripping around at 15 knots together, there’s really nothing else on the market that has this level of accessibility and fun! I think every club in the BBYRA (Barnegat Bay Yacht Racing Association) needs these boats!” said Fretz.
Sailors were greeted by a steady 15-20 knot wind and some nasty chop on Saturday. Five races where completed on the first day of the event all sailed back to back. The day was won by Clay Johnson and Kelly McGlynn who transferred their E Scow knowledge into an excellent performance. The biggest highlight of the day was the battle between Johnson/McGlynn and the father-daughter duo of Emily and Johnny Haig in the final race of the day. Neck and neck coming into the leeward mark, each doing in excess of 15 knots, they traded gybes and swapped the lead several times until Haig was able to gybe on Johnson and sail into better pressure to seal the win.
Additional highlights included Butch and Walter Lenhard, who nailed a pin-end start to lead the fleet up the first leg of Race 4. Butch and Walter are a father-son team who got into the Melges 15 class to race together and with their kids and grandkids.
After racing, sailors debriefed onshore and had some socially distant beverages. The common themes of the day included: “We were going really fast out there” and “I don’t feel like we did FIVE races!”
After looking like the fleet would be in for some light air sailing on Day Two, the forecast and reality seemed to be out of sync. With Johnson and McGlynn heading back to Toms River, the regatta came down to a tiebreaker between the Haigs and Kyle and Alissa Rogechenko. The last race brought the action to a climax with the Haigs needing to place in the top two to clinch the win. On the last run it looked like Emily had the regatta well in hand, but a missed layline at the bottom of the final run allowed Kyle to move into the lead and put the pressure on Emily to hold onto second. Some conservative sailing up the last beat helped the Haigs hold onto second place and win the regatta.
With the inaugural Melges 15 regatta in the books, the Melges 15 Class is looking forward to continuing its exponential growth around the country. The Melges 15 Class wants to help your club build a fleet!
If you’re interested in knowing more about Melges boats or events in Colorado contact Richard Allen / richard@180marine.com
Authorized Rocky Mountain Melges Dealer for Melges 14, 15, 20, and 24
Richard Allen / 180 Marine