(Perth Amboy, NJ)- On its 151st anniversary, the Raritan Yacht Club,
located in Perth Amboy, NJ, hosted the 70th annual Red Grant Regatta in
Raritan Bay approximately 10 miles South of the Verrazano Bridge. The
regatta continued its tradition as the largest keelboat regatta in the
New York Harbor and New Jersey region. Forty-six boats raced in various
windward/leeward and point-to-point races, including a competitive
ten-boat J/105 division. Competitors benefitted from steady breezes in
the 15-knot range and good weather. There were 3 races on Saturday in
warm cloudy weather with 10-15 knots out of the Southeast. In the J/105 class, Paul Beaudin’s LOULOU took 2 bullets and a 6th to lead Paul Zajac’s SKAL by a point and Mark van Schalkwyk’s CIRCE by 2 points in close racing.
On the second day of the regatta, a front came through along with a fresh Northwest breeze. SKAL pulled ahead in the first race with Ann & Gary Myer’s MAGIC taking a bullet and moving up to within 3 points of SKAL and tying LOULOU. LOULOU showed its real potential by coming back to clearly win the last race to take the regatta.
In fact, the last race produced a very compressed fleet, very close racing with all finishing within a few boat lengths. SKAL got lost in the mix by finishing 9th and MAGIC finished 6th. In the final results, LOULOU won with 16 points. MAGIC won the tie breaker over SKAL, both with 22 points. CIRCE and Marcus Wunderlich’s STRATOS finished just behind with 22 and 25 points, respectively.
The regatta and charity auction proceeds benefited the US Coast Guard Foundation, and Goslings was the primary sponsor. For more Red Grant Regatta sailing information
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