Reigning Champ San Diego Yacht Club Shines Again in Lipton Cup Challenge

The Sir Thomas Lipton Challenge Cup is back with its 109th sailing challenge, which pits different yacht club teams against each other in San Diego.

San Diego Yacht Club (SDYC) is the reigning champion in the challenge, which began Friday and is named after Lipton, a yachtsman and tea baron.

This year’s roster includes Balboa YC, California YC, Club de Yates de Acapulco, Corinthian YC Marblehead, Coronado YC, Long Beach YC, New York YC, Newport Harbor YC, Pensacola YC, San Diego YC, San Francisco YC and Southwestern YC. 

Saturday’s action included four races and Friday’s five.

San Diego YC’s skipper Jake La Dow continued his impressive performance during the challenge’s second day, holding onto the top position with a near-flawless series. New York Yacht Club, with skipper Pete Levesque, surged, securing enough top five finishes to boost their ranking, narrowing the gap with San Diego.

Coronado, skippered by Scott Harris, prevailed in the sixth race – Saturday’s opener – while consistent performances from Newport Harbor Yacht Club and San Francisco Yacht Club kept them in the running.

Races seven and eight were a showcase for New York YC’s strategic maneuvers, bringing them closer to San Diego YC.

In race nine The final race started off with aggressive positioning from a couple of teams which resulted in penalties. New York YC made it to second place overall and Newport Harbor YC made a leapt from fifth to third place.

San Diego YC had a big day Friday as competition began, coming from behind to take first place over Corinthian and California YC. The second race was all San Diego YC, making it first around every mark and again finishing at the top.

The third and fourth race saw Coronado and Long Beach respectfully take first place. 

The fifth and final race of the day followed a similar path to the first two races, as San Diego led the entire way and earned a third first place finish on the day, as well as first overall.

Each morning began with postponements due to tricky conditions, leaving the Race Committee to shift the course multiple times as winds varied. For instance, on Saturday the day started with angles between 270 and 310 degrees, and the committee had to adjust back down to 255 degrees, creating an unpredictable environment.

Updated 8:45 p.m. Oct. 26, 2024