2026 -Cal 25 Nationals Regatta Summary
By Art Melendres
The 2026 edition of the Cal 25 Nationals Regatta took place in Annapolis, MD , September 18,19 & 20th, under the direct control of Chesapeake Bay Fleet member Alisa Finney and her volunteer crew. The controlling authority was the Eastport Yacht Club and the Principal Race Officer (PRO) was Sharon Hadsell.
2026 Cal-25 National Champions
#1 One More Time
Melendres Family
Ms. Finney and crew did an outstanding job organizing and running the regatta. Especially considering that leading a bunch of Cal 25 sailors and crews is much akin to “herding a bunch of cats.” Ms. Hadsell was one of the finest PROs I have seen in my forty plus years of racing. She was faced with a significant challenge every day of this regatta. She prevailed with excellence.
The regatta was supported by eleven entrants; eight local, two from Detroit ( John McAllister’s “Patriot”, Susan Scoville’s “TheHotness” and Art & Scott Melendres’ “One More Time” from Long Beach, CA.
Wind velocity and sailing conditions were all over the place:
1. Friday-8 to 12 knots out of NNW
2. Saturday – 6-8 knots out of ENE, diminishing to less than 5 and varying consistently in direction
3. Sunday -13-18 knots, gusts 18-23 Knots with rain, squalls and diminishing to a steady 13-15 later in the day.
On to the racing:
Saturday saw four races completed without difficulty. The winds were steady, consistent in direction and the ocean was reasonably flat. Such conditions were right in One More Time’s wheelhouse.
Race #1: The first start was clean and completed without the normal yelling and machinations. One More Time found a hole, darted into it, was able to get clear air before anyone else and thus moved to the front. She was flying her five year old (used only twice) Ullman Grey Pentax Fibre Path 150. This sail is lightning fast and very easy to drive. We were first around the weather mark by a comfortable margin and were able to hold that position for the following three legs for a “bullet” in the first race. We were followed by Patriot, The Hotness and Fahrvergnugen in that order. An interesting part of this race was that in the final drive to the finish OMT and Patriot were neck and neck. This was a replication of a few years ago when the same phenomenon occurred in three races and Patriot won all three by inches. Not this day however as OMT prevailed and even helped Patriot by informing them of the proper side of the race committee boat to finish.
Race #2: Race two was pretty much a replica of the first one. OMT again got a good start and bolted to the front. They remained there throughout and finished in first place securing their second bullet of the day. Patriot again took second, followed by The Hotness and Fahrvergnugen.
Race #3: Race 3 was a bit different. Fahrvergnugen (Fahrv) sailed their best race of the regatta and finished handily in first place. OMT tried their hardest to catch them but to no avail. “Fahrv” beat off every challenge and won with ease. One More Time took second, followed by “The Hotness” and “Patriot” in fourth.
This fourth place finish put the hurt on Patriot in terms of their standing.
Race #4: This race was a duplication of races 1 & 2. OMT got a clean start, was first to the weather mark and never relinquished the lead.
Patriot was the runner-up followed by the Hotness and Fahrv. At the end of the day One More Time was in the lead however precarious it might be.
Race 5: Day two was totally different. The wind velocity took a crap and never got above five knots. The course was the same, two laps with one mile legs. Patriot, The Hotness and Fahrv and the rest of the locals love this stuff. One More Time does not. Everyone struggled mightily to make headway and Patriot did the best. The RC wisely shortened the course so that only one upwind leg was completed. The finish had Patriot winning, The Hotness taking second, OMT took third followed by Fahrv and Arctic Tern. The most interesting part of this race was OMT was able to tack across the finish line only a few mere feet in front of Fahrv and Arctic Tern. This third place finish would come in handy later.
Due to total wind absence the Race Committee wisely postponed racing hoping for a wind resurgence that never came. After two hours of floating and baking in the sun Ms. Hadsell charitably concluded racing for the day with the monumental statement, ”We feel we’ve tortured you enough for one day.” A skippers meeting was held ashore and it was agreed that Sunday’s schedule would be altered to include additional races.
Life is a lot of things for Chesapeake Bay sailors but “boring” isn’t one of them. Sunday’s weather came out with a vengeance. Winds were upwards of 18 knots with gusts exceeding 23, accompanied by heavy rain. The Race Committee wanted to get in three races, if possible, due to the importance of the regatta. We all agreed with their decision but I knew we were going to be in for a grueling day. I was right. To make matters even more confusing the wind dictated that the course was turned around necessitating sailing in the opposite direction as the previous days.
Race # 6: One More Time was last off the line mostly due to me falling mid-sequence necessitating someone else grab the tiller and try to make things right. Once things got underway and settled the race wasn’t too bad. Patriot sailed clean for the win followed by The Hotness, Fahrv and OMT. Surprisingly the four top finishers were extremely close at the end.
Race #7: One More Time had another lousy start and had to throw in a gybe to cross the line on port tack, finding herself in dead last place. Everyone went left and we were forced to go right. Following the fleet wouldn’t have gotten us anywhere. As it turned out, going right was the way to go and it paid off big. At the weather mark we found ourselves in first place by a comfortable margin. We were able to hold that advantage throughout the race and garnered another bullet, followed by The Hotness, Fahrv and Patriot.
Race #8. The final race of the regatta. The wind subsided significantly to 13-16 knots (felt much lighter) and the rain stopped. My tactician (Scott) called for a sail change from #2 to #1. Everyone else had made the change but they had done it sooner. You have no idea the anxiety that a skipper experiences when he’s watching his foredeck man change sails during the middle of the starting sequence. It’s a helpless feeling. At any rate he got it done and we got a decent start. At the weather mark on the final leg Hotness was in the lead, OMT was second, Fahrv in third and Patriot in fourth.
Counting up the scores we found we had a suitable points lead. All we had to do was finish the race without sinking. We decided to stay in the moment, consolidate our position and finish the race.
We did exactly that and won “The Nationals.”
In retrospect it was an extremely satisfying victory: a victory over some very skilled sailors, by an 86 year old skipper, a tactician (my son Scott) second to no one, a crew consisting of entirely family (one son, three grandsons and an adopted son), a 62 yr old boat, and a round trip of 5,240+ miles of towing.
Great friends, Great food, Great memories. Life is good.
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