Champions Crowned in 14 Classes of Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point
Bae Safari, Warrior Won and Cheers earn perpetual trophies for 30th anniversary event
Charleston/Mt. Pleasant, SC (2026 April 19) by Bill Wagner - Tej Trevor Parekh has been competing in the VX One class of Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point for many years and loved every aspect of the event except his results on the water.
That’s because the native of Quebec City, Canada has endured what he described as “bridesmaid status” here in the Holy City. Parekh and close friend Marc Farmer have been runner-up a total of three times, including the previous years behind Jack Jorgenson.
Farmer was not available to participate in the “regatta unlike any other” this year, forcing Parekh to scramble to find crew. He did quite well to land a couple local ladies in Madeline Baldridge and Abby Goodness.
That trio came together quite quickly and achieved a strong level of performance in sailing to an impressive victory in VX One. Baldridge steered, Parekh trimmed and Goodness worked the bow as Bae Safari won four of nine races in posting a low score of 22 points — five better than the second place boat.
“I must say that this is a big relief. It feels really good to finally win this great regatta,” Parekh said. “Victory has been in our hands the last three years and we’ve given it away. This time, we managed to finish the right way.”
Parekh led fellow class veteran John Porter by four points going into Sunday and saw that margin cut in half after Race 8. It came down to the last start of the three-day regatta and Bae Safari closed it out in style by crossing the finish line in first place.
“Our strategy going into the last race was to play it safe, play it by the book — just stay with the competition and keep things close,” Parekh said. “We knew a top two result would get us the win. I wouldn’t say it was an exclamation point as much as it was confirmation of how focused we were and how well we executed the game plan.”
In previous appearances at Charleston Race Week, Parekh skippered an entry named Bro Safari because of the tight bond he shared with Farmer. He renamed the boat Bae Safari this year in recognition of having a co-ed team.
“I have to commend the two ladies I sailed with for doing an excellent job,” Parekh said. “Madeline is a really top level sailor. I was very impressed with her ability to step in on the helm.”
Bae Safari also posted a pair of thirds and trio of fourths on the way to earning the prestigious Charleston Race Week Cup for top performance among one-design classes.
“Being a new team together, we decided to focus on the basics. We were very diligent about checking the conditions and adjusting the boat settings — just doing all the little things right,” said Parekh, whose breakthrough victory adds a new level of loyalty to Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point.
“I freaking love Charleston and everything about this regatta. The city, the venue, the parties, the night life — the whole package is just the absolute best, which is why I keep coming back.”
Texas skipper Bruno Pasquinelli feels the exact same way about Charleston Race Week, which celebrated its 30th anniversary in style by welcoming 153 boats across 14 classes. No class was more competitive than J/70, which was the largest of this year’s regatta with 30 entries and featuring numerous fully professional teams.
Pasquinelli added another chapter to his impressive history of top tier performance at Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point by capturing the J/70 championship for the third time. The Dallas resident steered Stampede to first or second place in five of nine races in totalling 21 points — seven less than skipper Paul Green and the Progress team.
“I think the key to my success here over the years is that I’ve always sailed with Charleston locals,” Pasquinelli said.
That was certainly the case this year as former College of Charleston All-American Jackson Benvenutti was aboard as tactician while area resident Patrick Wilson slotted in as trimmer.
“Patrick and Jackson have sailed here hundreds of times between them and their experience was very valuable because a lot of local knowledge was required this week,” Pasquinelli said. “It was really hard sailing the entire regatta. It seemed like understanding the current was really important in this regatta. The last five-years was more of a wind-driven event, but this year was more current-driven.”
Pasquinelli has multiple relatives in the greater Charleston area and has been coming here every summer for years and years. Perhaps that close connection to the city is why he has so many podium placements here.
“Charleston is very dear to my heart and has always been one of my favorite places to sail. It’s a special place and to do well here brings me a lot of joy,” said Pasquinelli, whose repeated prowess at Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point is well known by other skippers in the class.
“Maybe we have developed a mystique about this regatta that puts fear into our competitors before racing even begins,” he said.
Melges 24 class was also loaded with pro crews at the top end of a 24-boat fleet with skipper Laura Grondin and Dark Energy setting the pace from start to finish. Lucas Calabrese called tactics for the reigning Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, who sat atop the standings at the end of all three days of racing.
Dark Energy placed second in five of the six races held Friday and Saturday before breaking through for a bullet on Sunday. Grondin discarded a fifth absorbed in the final race of the series to finish with 19 points — four clear of skipper Michael Goldfarb and the War Canoe crew.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had so many twos in my life! It really did feel good to finally win a race because we had been in front and not brought it home in prior races,” Grondin said. “As someone on the dock said to me: the power of consistency is crucial.”
It marked the first Melges 24 victory at Charleston Race Week for Grondin’s Dark Energy program. She previously captured class honors as fill-in skipper for Travis Weisleder on Lucky Dog.
“It feels pretty darn good to win this regatta with my own boat and team. This is a very challenging venue with a lot of ups and downs, so the minute you think the boat is going well it’s time to think about changing something,” Grondin said.
Calabrese, an Olympic medalist from Argentina who was a key member of the American Magic campaign, filled in for regular tactician Taylor Canfield and fit in nicely with the veteran crew of Ted Hackney and Ian Liberty.
“My team was awesome. Everyone on the boat is a great sailor in their own right, but they also work very well together,” she said. “Everyone understands what their role is on the boat and we’re very diligent about sticking to those rules.”
There was a regatta within a regatta this year as Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point welcomed the ORC Sportboat North American Championship. Organizers expanded the regatta to four days for the inaugural event, which drew 18 boats in two classes.
A distance race around Charleston Harbor on Thursday was followed by three days of short-course, windward-leeward competition. It was a stiff test for participating teams with skippers Joost-Olan Sheehan and Mike Beasley emerging as the first North American champs.
Sheehan and his talented team aboard Warrior Won counted all top three results in topping ORC A, which consisted of six Cape 31 and five Melges 32 designs. Accomplished professional Zeke Horowitz dispensed tactical advice for Sheehan, who placed first in two windward-leeward races after posting a second in the distance race.
“I’m incredibly excited and honored to win this great regatta,” the Larchmont, New York resident said. “Charleston Race Week as a whole was fabulous; I thought the race committee did an excellent job and it was absolute champagne sailing in terms of conditions.”
Warrior Won learned some valuable lessons while finishing in the bottom half of ORC at the Southernmost Regatta off Key West in January. Sheehan shipped the boat to Charleston and the team spent considerable time practicing in advance of race week.
Horowitz put together a solid crew that included Charleston local Reed Baldridge as strategist, Brady Stagg, Tyler Woodworth, Javier Amezcua, Pete Dill and Patrick Farrell.
“I have to give all the credit to our team. We put in a lot of hours, a lot of work, a lot of thought and a lot of strategy,” Sheehan said. “Everyone did an incredible job of being extremely specific about the roles they were responsible and accountable for doing. Everyone did a great job of executing their specific jobs in order to make the boat go faster. We had great team chemistry.”
Warrior Won closed out the regatta with a pair of third place finishes on Sunday to beat fellow Cape 31 Tequila Mockingbird by four points. Sheehan was presented with the Palmetto Trophy as top performing champion among handicap classes at Race Week.
“Between the boat-handling skills and my steering, we really worked well together and were in sync the whole way. Zeke and Reed teamed up to make some excellent calls and that was a big part of our success,” Sheehan said. “Obviously, the shifty winds and current are key factors in Charleston and I thought we handled those really well.”
Black Sheep was at a perceived disadvantage as the smallest, slowest entry in ORC B, but Beasley put together a top-notch team that sailed extremely well from the back end of the eight-boat fleet.
Joe Gibson trimmed and called tactics for his longtime friend as the J/80 won the distance race as well as three of the windward-leeward starts in amassing 13 points — six clear of the GP 26 Rattle-N-Rum.
“For what it’s worth, prior preparation prevents poor performance. We put a lot of time in beforehand just getting the boat ready and there are lots of people I need to thank,” Beasley said. “I’m just so proud of the whole team. We got better every day and just sailed consistently strong. When you have a team that is so committed to winning it means a lot. I think friendship builds speed.”
Gibson and Beasley, longtime industry professionals from Annapolis, have now teamed up to secure class honors at Race Week five times. They’ve had previous success sailing a Farr 280 and the exact GP 26 that finished second this year.
“We certainly know the lay of the land down here and Joe Gibson is just an incredible machine. He’s so darn good at trimming sails and making the boat go fast,” Beasley said.
Jacob Boertlein, Diane Bevington and Lydia Jabin completed the crew aboard Black Sheep, which placed second in three windward-leeward races with a low result of third. Beasley praised shore manager Kate Chaney for handling all the minute details that lead to on-water success.
US Sailing president Henry Brauer competed in Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point and was the wire-to-wire winner of the PHRF Inshore class aboard Riever, one of six J/7 daysailers entered. Ryan Squires trimmed the main and Olivia Lowthian worked the bow for Bauer, who was on fire in winning six of nine races.
“We certainly had a very good series. I thought the team did a tremendous job,” the Marblehead, Massachusetts resident said. “I thought we did a really good job of reading the wind in advance and putting ourselves in position to catch the next good shift or increase in velocity. We were also able to position the boat well as far as the influence of the tide and current.”
Squires and Lowthian, former collegiate sailor at Miami-Ohio and Salve-Regina, respectively, teamed to provide Brauer with wind and tactical advice. It marked the first class victory at Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point for the former Tufts University sailor, who has previously skippered entries in J/70, J/80, J/111 here.
Amy Woodard has raced in J/24 class at Charleston Race Week a dozen times and finally came away with a win this year. The Charleston resident and her all-female team on J-Magikk counted all top five finishes in nipping Ice Cube (Michael Quaid) by two points.
J-Magikk features five owners in Woodard, tactician Mary Corbett, Jennifer Hayes (bow), Gina Shaw (pit) and Katie Johnson-Williams (spinnaker).
“We didn’t have the best racing day, but we managed to maintain our lead. I have to say it feels pretty good to finally pull it off,” Woodard said. “It really was all about consistency. We didn’t have as many bullets as I would have liked, but we also didn’t have any bad scores. We sailed pretty even every day and kept the boat in the top half of the fleet.”
Jeff Todd is one of the most renowned skippers in the history of J/22 class and has a long list of notable accomplishments on his resume. The former North Sails professional can now add Charleston Race Week to his championship trophy case.
Todd has competed at CRW in a wide range of classes over the years, but had never before brought his own boat. The Annapolis resident and longtime teammate Chris Ryan made the trip because both of their daughters now live in the area.
Todd, who is 65 years old and on the verge of retirement, showed a fleet of 10 boats how it’s done by winning six of nine races for a low score of 11 points. Mount Pleasant skipper James Pine and the Saltline team did an impressive job of keeping pace and finished just two points astern in second.
“Old guys can still get it done. We were going against the younger generation and managed to edge them out,” Todd said. “It was a good experience all around. We were able to go sailing during the day and spend time with the family when we were off the water. We were treated to beautiful weather and good hospitality here in Charleston.”
There was a terrific battle in J/105 class between skipper Bill Zartler and the Deja Voodoo crew and Zephyr, a College of Charleston entry captained by senior John Polek. Deja Voodoo entered the final day of competition with a narrow one point lead on Zephyr, meaning it was all on going into the last two races.
Tactician Ryan Glaze closed out a strong regatta of dissecting the shifty winds and tricky currents as the Houston-based entry closed the door by winning Race 8 and placing second in Race 9.
“We came out and did exactly what we needed to do today. We were able to figure out the start in that massive current and get the jump on [Zephyr]. They pushed us the whole way, but were able to hold on,” Zartler said. “This crew has a lot of experience together on the 105, so it’s kind of second nature and a real quiet boat. Everybody just does their job.”
Skipper Martin Zonnenberg led Quickdraw to first place in the third and decisive race of Pursuit Spinnaker A class on Sunday. This was the Charleston Race Week debut for the St. Petersburg-based J/111, which used this regatta as preparation for the Newport-to-Bermuda Race.
It was a tight battle between Quickdraw and Keelforce, a J/120 owned by Rick Moore and skippered by close friend Ryan Hamm — two of the founding fathers of Charleston Race Week. Quickdraw crossed the line first in Friday’s race after Keelforce ran aground, but Hamm and crew turned the tables on Saturday by winning a downwind spinnaker duel into the harbor.
Zonnenberg acknowledged that north-northwesterly winds that steadily increased from 6 to 10 knots favored the J/111 on Sunday.
“We had a lot of upwind sailing today and our crew did an amazing job. We put in 44 tacks while hugging the jetty and shore going into the finish,” he said. “The current started ebbing just after we started and we saw as much as four knots at one point. We did a good job of staying out of it.”
Quickdraw earned the Palmetto Trophy that is presented to winner of the most competitive of the four pursuit classes.
“Scott McGregor deserves special credit as tactician, but it was a total team effort,” Zonnenberg said. “This whole event has been a lot of fun. The racing conditions were excellent and the course management was outstanding.”
Charleston skipper Jim Smith had a tough start in Pursuit Spinnaker B class, placing fourth in Friday’s race after misreading the course directions and having to sail back to a rounding mark.
That was the only slip-up for the Santana 30, which won the Saturday and Sunday starts by overtaking Soulshine — a Beneteau Oceanis 38.1 owned by Eric Bicknese of Johns Island.
“We had no anticipation of winning today until the tide caught most of the other boats. We’re old school Charleston sailors and we know how to manage the tide better,” said Smith, who was the defending class champ. “Getting around that last buoy was very difficult, but we had a greta gameplan for the finishing leg. We tacked right down the side of the jetties and didn’t go out in the middle with the current.”
Skipper Matthew Schaedler led Blitzkrieg to a dominant victory in ORC A class, which raced windward-leeward courses offshore. The Toledo, Ohio resident claimed his second class victory in four years at Charleston Race Week by winning six of eight races. Rick Rothenbuler served as tactician on the J/122, which was coming off a strong performance at the Southern Ocean Racing Conference “Islands in the Stream” series.
“We have a fast boat and a strong crew. We’ve been sailing together all winter and have a lot of time on the water,” Schaedler said. “We had outstanding boat speed and were making our numbers almost all the time. We were fast going upwind and downwind.”
