Sailing at Newport Beach : New Zealand Yacht Club Wins Governor’s Cup

Newport Beach sailor Chris Karjala, 18, said it was tough to be angry after his team lost to New Zealand in one of the match races of the 23rd Governor’s Cup in Newport Beach.

After all, the New Zealand team was staying at Karjala’s house.

“You’re not friends when you’re out there racing,” said Karjala, one of 36 top teen-agers who competed Thursday through Sunday. “But when you get back to the dock, it’s different.”

The Royal New Zealand Yacht Club finished first in the round-robin competition among the 12 sailboats with an 11-1 record. Richamond Yacht Club in New York, last year’s winner, also finished 11-1, but placed second because it lost its race against the Royal New Zealand Yacht Club.

Balboa Yacht Club was third at 8-3. St Francis of San Francisco also was 8-3 but finished fourth because it lost its race against Balboa. Newport Harbor Yacht Club, the other Orange County representative, was 4-7.

Karjala, Tom O’Toole, 17, and Geoff Becker, 19, represented the Balboa Yacht Club. Geoff Garrison, 18, Darren Sutherland, 17, and Steve Olsen, 18, represented the Newport Harbor Yacht Club. The regatta, sponsored by the Balboa Yacht Club in Corona del Mar, is one of a half-dozen major junior sailing competitions in the United States. This year’s event drew sailors from across the country and as far away as New Zealand, the only entry from outside the U.S.

Other out-of-state teams included entries from Chicago, New York and New Orleans.

Each three-person team sailed Santana 20s, provided by Balboa Yacht Club. Races were held just off the Newport Beach pier.

For the sailors, the races represent weeks of preparation and involve four intense days of competition. “It’s a lot harder than people think,” said O’Toole. “It involves strength, endurance and stamina to sail that many races in one day.”

Match racing also requires a different strategy than fleet racing, according to Garrison. “You are sailing to beat just one boat,” he said. “Of course, it’s a round robin and eventually everyone races everyone--but one boat at a time.”

GOVERNOR’S CUP JUNIOR MATCH RACING REGATTA

Balboa Yacht Club

Santana 20

1. Royal New Zealand Yacht Club; 2. Richamond Yacht Club; 3. Balboa Yacht Club; 4. St. Francis.