The Resolute Cup is widely considered the most competitive amateur regatta in the country. The regatta features 24 of the country's best yacht clubs, sailing short course races in regatta provided and equalized Sonars and RS21’s. The Resolute Cup is held every other year by the New York Yacht Club with racing taking place on Narragansett Bay, RI.
The Resolute Cup is sole qualifying regatta for a US yacht club to earn an invitation to the biennial Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup - The most competitive and prestigious amateur regatta in the world.
The San Diego Yacht Club won the Resolute Cup in 2018 and placed 2nd in the 2019 Rolex Invitational Cup and 3rd in the 2021 Rolex Invitational Cup. The Resolute Cup was not sailed in 2020 due to COVID-19.
The Resolute Cup attracts top tier “amateur” talent (all sailors must be Category 1 sailors, as defined by World Sailing), with the field stacked with former Olympians, America’s Cup Sailors, World Champions, and College All-Americans, all vying for an invitation to the 2023 Rolex NYYC Invitational Cup.
This year, SDYC was represented by Nick Martin, Max Hutcheson, Kayla La Dow and Tyler Sinks.
The regatta format consisted of two days of qualifying racing, where the fleet was split into two groups of 12 teams. Each group sailed half of each day in the Sonar, and the other half in the newly designed RS21. After the second day of the qualifying series, the fleets were split into Gold and Silver based on the overall finishes in the qualifying series. The championship series would be the final two days of the regatta, with the scores resetting. The championship series was sailed exclusively in the RS21 and there would be no discarded races (no “throw out races” – all races counting towards a team’s score).
The qualifying series saw strong west, north-west winds in the 8-15 knot range. The sailing was very shifty, but SDYC did a great job of sailing consistently and managed to take second place in the qualifying series and secure a spot in the championship series.
The championship series was sailed in the RS21, a boat that our team had never raced before the Resolute Cup, so our learning curve was very steep. The RS21 is like the Melges 20, with a large asymmetrical spinnaker and the ability to plane in the right conditions. Unfortunately, the weather forecast had been deteriorating throughout the week, which meant the championship series would be sailed in light, shifty conditions, and strong tidal currents – less than ideal racing conditions
The championship series saw many races go “inside out”, or when the fleet becomes inverted due to dying breeze at one of the fleet and a building breeze at the other end. Despite the very challenging conditions, SDYC maintained composure and managed to avoid big scores. After the first day or racing, SDYC sat in second place, just two points behind Marblehead’s Corinthian Yacht Club.
The team was excited about the opportunity to race for the championship on the final day.
The final day of racing was challenging to say the least. With barely enough wind to race (4-6 kts), strong Narragansett Bay currents, multiple long-postponements due to lack of wind (including a two-hour postponement onshore) and ultimately a 180-degree wind shift, the sailing was truly all over the place. Our team sailed extremely well in the final three races, unfortunately Corinthian Yacht skippered by Wade Waddell, sailed a tremendous event, and managed to hold onto their lead and take the win. SDYC finished a strong second, a very respectable finish given the high-level of competition and challenging conditions.
This incredible opportunity would not have been possible without the tremendous support from the SDYC Board of Directors, Commodore Jeff Tadder, and the Competition Fund. Thank you for making these opportunities possible.