Competitor Profile: John Porter Back to Defend VX One Title
After sweeping the VX One class in his boat Far Side in 2023 to finish with a massive 25-point lead over second place, John Porter is back in town ready to do it again. Porter (Savannah, GA) grew up sailing in the Charleston area with a bunch of buddies on Sunfish. "We were ten-year-old kids racing around with our moms freaking out! " Porter laughed.
Porter, who competed in three U.S. Olympic trials and is a two-time U.S. National, North American Champion and a four-time U.S. Sailing Team member heading into the 1996 Olympic Games, is still very much racing around, having enjoyed solid midwinter racing this past season on the VX One in Florida taking a lot of seconds.
Warrior Sailing Fields Two Teams at Charleston Race Week
A cool benefit to Charleston Race Week's new location aboard the USS Yorktown at Patriots Point is that the event now has plenty of space to expand its activities on board the ship including representation from community-based sailing organizations such as Charleston Community Sailing, Veterans on Deck, and the College of Charleston Sailing.
On the beautiful Charleston Harbor, community sailing is also having its day in the sun during Charleston Race Week. The organization Warrior Sailing has two boats competing in the Pursuit class fielding a team in Pursuit Non-Spinnaker racing on a Jeanneau 43, and in Pursuit Spinnaker B a second team competing on a J95, for a total of twelve veterans from around the country sailing on the two boats.
Warrior Sailing is a nationwide program that teaches wounded, ill, or injured veterans how to sail; people with any sort of disability from cancer survivors to spinal cord injuries who have served in the US military can attend.
Racing begins Friday in the 28th edition of Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point
Growth across one design fleets draws top level sailors
Charleston, SC - April 15, 2024 - Sailors, boats, families, and friends are rolling into town for their first major regatta of 2024: Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point. In some one-design classes where competitors have lined up against each other during winter racing, CRW is often a time for retribution and to set the wheels in motion for the 2024 racing season.
Trevor Parekh, on the VX One Bro Safari has been chasing John Porter on Far Side, in the Florida winter series after losing to Porter at CRW last year. Parekh, who races with his best friend Marc Farmer, said, "We went back and forth with John all winter, and after taking second last year, we are totally prepared to apply what we learned and take it to the limit. There's only one option for us, and that's to win! I absolutely love Charleston Race Week; I love the city, I love the complexity of the racecourse, I love all my friends, and I love the Goslings after-race party – it's an all-in-one for me."
With twenty-eight boats signed up, Porter knows it's going to be tough to defend his title. Last year, he raced with his Olympian training partner David Himmel (Finn, 1992), and this year he'll be racing with his son Collin, 24.
WHAT'S NEW
- Event Tickets available on site starting Thursday
- Special Accommodation Rates
- 2024 Event Schedule
- 2024 Registration
- 2024 Launch, Haul and Trailer Storage
- Sail Repair Services
- Web App Installation