Competition Info – Page 6 – San Diego Argonauts

2025 AMYA ODOM National Championship – San Francisco (Sep 6&7, 2025)

The 2025 ODOM National Championship was hosted this September 6th & 7th at the iconic Spreckels Lake in San Francisco. The weather, venue, hosts, and camaraderie of competitors came together to make it a truly memorable weekend of racing.

Eighteen skippers lined up for a total of 23 races over two days, testing their skill against the famously shifty Spreckels winds. True to form, many found themselves “Spreckeled” more than a few times by the unpredictable shifts—but that’s part of the charm of this storied venue. With the sun out and temperatures hovering at an ideal 70–72 degrees, conditions couldn’t have been better.

The San Diego Argonauts sent four sailors north for the event, and proudly brought home four of the top five spots:

Jess Atkinson – 1st place, with a consistent and commanding performance
George Pedrick – 2nd place
Larry Grant – 3rd place
4th – Chris Davidson
5th – Kerim Baran

This strong showing was aided in part by the outstanding race management of the San Francisco Model Yacht Club. Several of SF’s top ODOM sailors chose to volunteer instead of race, and their professionalism elevated the event.

Each mark rounding had two dedicated judges, as did the start/finish line, in addition to the PRO and race director. The result was a regatta that ran with remarkable efficiency, fairness, and clarity.

The setting at Spreckels Lake was as picturesque as ever, with the historic San Francisco Model Yacht Club Boat House adding a timeless backdrop. Competitors and spectators alike enjoyed not just the high-quality racing, but also the sense of community that makes events like these special.

Congratulations again to all competitors and a big thank-you to our gracious San Francisco hosts – Dick Hunter, Rob Weaver, and team.

Additional photos are included below—including the stunning images captured around the historic Boat House.

Photo credits: Rob Weaver, Ed Gilbert, Chris Davidson, Kerim Baran

Chuck Black IOM Masters Regatta Results (Aug 30, 2025)

This regatta marked the third event in our new Legends of the Argonauts 12 Race Series, launched earlier this year by Jess Atkinson.

Seven of our top competitors went head-to-head in a day of tough racing under beautiful conditions at the Pond.

Top 3 Finishers:
1. Dennis Rogers (18)
2. Larry Grant (26)
3. Chris Davidson (27)

Check out the results, videos, and photos below:

DF95 Team Challenge – Round 2

The Second DF95 Team Challenge of 2025 was held at Mason Park in Irvine on Sunday, August 17th, 2025. Seven 2-Boat Teams competed in the Team Management System (TMS) run event. Just as in Round 1, Teams were organized via seeding in an attempt to even the competition. A shortened ‘reverse-hourglass’ course was sailed in shifty, light to moderate winds (with more than a few holes) under sunny skies. The 7-Team Matrix begins with a Round-Robin Stage where the top 3 teams advance directly to the Finals. The remaining 4 teams race a single-elimination ‘Wild Card’ bracket with the winning team joining the top 3 in the Finals which consists of a 4-Team Round-Robin. This racing format keeps every team ‘in-the-hunt’ for the championship until at least the 22nd Race (out of 30 total Races) and guarantees every Team gets to race at least 7 times.

There were a couple minor changes to the rules in the running of Round 2: Proper course between boats on different legs was emphasized and enforced, and ‘Instant Umpiring’ was adopted. Under RRS Appendix D Team Racing, an Umpire’s involvement after waiting for a voluntary single penalty turn requires a 2-Turn penalty. In Round 2, the Umpire called single-turn penalties immediately but reserved the ability to specify more turns if appropriate. This helped competitors know exactly where they stood following an incident and took the guess work out of protests and fouls. Results follow:

Congratulations to Team Red (Jim Sears & Angelo Greco) who sailed a near perfect regatta; losing only a single Race to 2nd Place Team Green (Larry Grant & Richard Diamond)

Thanks to the Orange County Model Sailing Club and Amya President, DF95 National Class Secretary, and all-around ‘good guy’ Len Bose for setting up the event and making it all possible.

Special thanks also to Jim Sears who rigged a YUUUGE ‘boom camera’ to take live aerial video of the event (drones are not allowed at Mason Park). We’re looking forward to more of his color commentary when he (hopefully) posts his videos on Youtube.

2025 AMYA ODOM R8 Championship Results (Aug 2nd, 2025)

The sun was shining, sky was blue, we ran a race or two.
The water was warm, and skippers were here, too.

Times are tough, we are low on parts —
So here’s your sailing salute… on a scorecard!

= = = =

It was just another beautiful day at the San Diego Model Boat Pond for this year’s Region 8 ODOM Championship. Eleven competitors raced in near-perfect conditions. The wind was from the West, with oscillating gusts and shifts from NW & SW.

Top 6 Finishers – ODOM Region 8 Championship

Jess A (Sail #56) – Net: 16
Smooth, steady, and fast—Jess sailed a near-perfect regatta.
Kerim (Sail #714) – Net: 19
Kept it clean, calm, and consistent for a well-earned second place.
Larry G (Sail #85) – Net: 29
Tactical and consistent—always near the top.
Gerry W (Sail #591) – Net: 46
Sailed strong with guts and grace, edging into the top tier.
Chris D (Sail #69) – Net: 50
Kept the pressure on—smart lines and consistent sailing paid off.
Tom W (Sail #19) – Net: 51
Sneaky starts and crisp mark roundings, quietly slipped past boats

Thank you to Dennis Rogers, Ben Reeve, Jess Atkinson, Chris Davidson, and all others who helped put together this regatta—and to Bob Williams for serving up his legendary Pond Dogs that kept the fleet fueled and smiling between races!

Scenes from NAMBA District 19 POWER BOAT Series

100+ boats competed over 2 days of the NAMBA District 19 POWER BOAT Series with speeds exceeding 50 miles per hour.

Here is a compilation of some of the best scenes and photo shots from the event (Thank you, Tom Warren, for this production!):

Here are some scenes from Day 1:

And some scenes from Day 2:

2025 AMYA ODOM CLASS REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP (Aug 2nd, 2025)

San Diego Argonauts will be hosting the 2025 AMYA ODOM Class Regional Championship at the San Diego Model Yacht Pond on August 2nd, 2025.

To register, send an email or call Jess Atkinson (details in the NOR document below). An entry fee of $15 will be collected at the Pond on the day of the event. Notice of Race & Sailing Instructions are below.

2025 AMYA Odom Regionals @SD2 Download

2025 DF95 Region 8 Championship: Regatta Report & Final Standings

The San Diego Argonauts hosted the AMYA 2025 Dragonflite95 Region 8 Championship Regatta May 17^th-18th. 21 Skippers from 4 different states including 2 past DF95 National Champions competed.

Friday afternoon began with check-in and practice-racing. Technical Committee Chairman Steve Ross and PRO Chris Staiger performed check-in and measurement and distributed logo hats, while Commodore Pat Nevitt took customized sandwich pre-orders for Sunday’s lunch. (Special thanks also to Pat for his tireless efforts in having the city dredge the reef and make our ENTIRE pond useable once more!)

Saturday morning saw the remaining skippers and boats checked-in under drizzly cold conditions (improved somewhat by hot coffee and donuts provided by Purser Gil Jansky.) PRO Chris Staiger set 6 marks: an inside leeward Gate, a Start/Finish Line, and two windward marks. The standard long course, which was used for every race in the regatta, consisted of: Start, two windward marks, inside leeward Gate, two windward marks, inside leeward Gate, Finish. Depending on the winds, the windward marks were rounded either to Port or Starboard. The HMS with 2 Fleets and 4-Boat Promotion/Relegation was utilized, resulting in 12/13 Boat Heats throughout the event. Finishes and Scoring were recorded by Steve Delva. Following the Skippers Meeting, competitors were faced with shifty south to south-westerly winds which required constant relocation of the windward marks and shifting of the Start/Finish Line. Even so, most races on Saturday consisted of long port tacks up the pond with only occasional short starboard hitches. Saturday’s successful skippers managed to dodge the biggest holes and take advantage of the fingery puffs to keep their sails full and their boats moving. Skippers were treated to Bob Williams’ famous grilled hotdogs for lunch. Bob also provided beverages and ice throughout the weekend.

By the end of the day with 8 races completed, past Champion Mark Golison, led with 11 points, followed by Gary Boell (15), Chris Davidson (17), Jim Sears (20), Kerim Baran (24), with Jon and Dennis Rogers rounding out the Top 7. Following the racing, skippers were treated to a pond-side Café-Med style barbecue prepared by Chris and Pam Staiger. Opa!

Sunday morning began with more promising conditions: Coffee, donuts, warmer temperatures and 5 – 8 knot winds a bit more westerly than the day before. Marks were adjusted and after a few heats, the breezes filled in and trended more westerly allowing starboard roundings at the windward end to resume. Jan Nevitt provided custom-ordered sandwiches for lunch as the sailing conditions improved. The sun emerged and racing was completed in classic San Diego conditions: 8 – 10 knots of wind straight down the pond under sunny skies and warm temperatures. By the time the dust settled, Mark Golison had held solidly onto 1^st, while Jim Sears leapfrogged into 2^nd and Chris Davidson fought past Gary Boell to take 3^rd by a mere tenth of a point. The Rogers Brothers (who have a habit of finishing adjacent to each other) took 5^th (Jon) and 6^th (Dennis).

Skippers were given secret ballots to vote for the one competitor who best exemplified sportsmanship both on and off the racecourse: They chose Jon Rogers to receive the Corinthian Spirit Award.

Thanks to Chairman Gil Jansky, Bob Williams, Jack, and Keith Sturgess who handled site setup and takedown and Tom Warren who manned the rescue boat. Special Thanks to all the Argonauts who worked so hard clearing weeds, algae and debris to restore full use of our Pond!

Final Results:

Day 1 Results:

Day 1 Videos (Thank you, Dan Shier!)

Day 2 Videos (Thank you, Dan Shier!)

2025 SDA 12 Race Series – Sailing Instructions

Fellow Argonaut Jess Atkinson has been the driving force behind our robust and exciting Calendar of Events.

Jess has been diligently working on a new series of 12 Race Events to be hosted at the San Diego Model Boat Pond, designed to honor both past and present Legends of the SoCal RC Sailing Community.

The first four events in this prestigious series are scheduled as follows (also available on our Calendar):

– Bob Debow Masters Trophy (ODOM) – March 29, 2025
– Pete Jefferson Challenge Trophy (DF95) – July 5, 2025
– Chuck Black Memorial Trophy (IOM) – August 30, 2025
– Filippo Busalacchi Trophy (Soling 50) – October 18, 2025

The Sailing Instructions for these events can be accessed in the document below.

2025 SDA 12 Race Series – Sailing Instructions Download

Category: Competition Info