Newport was a town of many races and parties as the 4th Annual Newport Safe Harbor Race Weekend took place August 9th-11th 2024. There were a series of races and events at various points throughout Newport as crews joined together for a competitive and fun weekend of sailing.
There was racing on Narragansett Bay from just outside Fort Adams to the area off New England Boatworks. The evenings were topped off with crew parties at both Newport Shipyard and New England Boatworks with the final prizegiving on Sunday evening.
The race weekend kicked off with a Round the Island race of Prudence Island. The racing committee decided on the round Prudence Island route due to the winds predicted to be in the 20’s gusting to over 30 in the bay so it was thought to be safest for all concerned to race in the bay.
Sixty Three teams in two divisions battled it out for 3 days of racing concluding on Sunday. There was one division for the PHRF, ORC and IC37s and the other was for PHRF Performance Cruising teams.
Friday’s Round Prudence Island race proved challenging for many as the winds were shifty and gusty. A couple of boats ended up starting out fast but conditions got the best of them and they ended up blowing spinnakers.
Dudley Johnson’s Marten 49 Pugilist, which led its three-boat class each day to win Division 2’s PHRF Performance Cruising 1.
Victor Wild’s TP52 Fox won every one of its four races in Division 1’s five-boat ORC A.
James Phyfe’s J/44 Digger won Division 2’s PHRF Performance Cruising 2.
For more information on individual boats and the complete Yacht Scoring results visit 2024 Safe Harbor Race Weekend on Yacht Scoring
