Fierce Competition Expected in All 14 Classes Competing in 30th Edition of Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point
Charleston/Mt. Pleasant, SC (April 16) - by Bill Wagner. Jeff Todd has competed in Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point many times over the years as crew aboard boats competing in such one-design classes as Melges 24 and J/70.
Todd, who was a longtime professional with North Sails, has always loved the regatta because it brought him back to the historic South Carolina city he came to love as a younger man.
He attended the College of Charleston and was a member of the sailing team for three years in the early 1980s. He remembers when the intercollegiate sailing program operated out of City Marina on the Ashley River as opposed to its current home at Patriots Point on the Cooper River.
Todd went on to become one of the most accomplished skippers in the J/22 class, having captured the East Coast Championship many times and the Midwinter Championship as well. He has placed third at the J/22 World Championships on two occasions.
Todd has been skippering in the J/22 class for 22 years and has never brought his boat to Charleston Race Week — until now.
Family ties have brought Todd and longtime teammate Chris Ryan to the 30th edition of Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point. Shelby Todd is a nurse at the Medical University of South Carolina Hospital, while Nicole Ryan is attending Medical School Roper St. Francis.
“Both of our daughters live in the Charleston area, so we decided we just had to do the regatta this year. We’re making it a big family trip to Charleston,” Todd said.
Todd brings pedigree to a J/22 class that has tended to be filled primarily by local boats over the years. He admits to not being familiar with the competition, but feels quite comfortable with the venue.
“I’ve done a lot of racing on Charleston Harbor over the years,” Todd said. “We’re the old guys, the class veterans. We’re here to have fun, spend quality time with our daughters and hopefully sail well, too.”
There are dozens of similar interesting stories among the 145 boats in 14 classes competing on five courses at 2026 Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point. This year’s 30th anniversary regatta got underway Thursday with the two classes contesting the ORC Sportboat North American Championship doing a distance race.
Friday marks the first day of racing for the other 12 participating classes with action continuing on Saturday and Sunday. While Todd is making his debut as a skipper here, Mike Palazzo is leading a J/24 entry for the 16th year.
Palazzo steered Jo Mamma to fifth place out of 14 boats last year, marking his best finish at Race Week. “I tend to be a mid-fleeter. Maybe one of these days we’ll have it all come together and find a way to win,” he said.
Among the pre-regatta favorites in J/24 class is Amy Woodard, who sailed J-Magikk to a runner-up finish a year ago. Eight of the 11 teams entered are based in the greater Charleston area and know each other well with Palazzo tabbing Woodard and Dan Rogge (Matadora) of Carolina Yacht Club as pacesetters.
“J-Magikk has been the top local boat for a number of years now, while Matadora is always a contender,” he said.
Ice Cube, skippered by Michael Quaid of Vermont captured the J/24 class in 2023. Palazzo did not know anything about the other two out-of-town entries.
Perhaps this is the year for Palazzo and his crew, which has been together for three years now. Circle 1, which consists of the J/22, J/24 and PHRF Inshore classes, is challenging because it is located at the convergence of the two rivers.
Charleston resident Will Monts will be looking to defend his PHRF Inshore crown, albeit aboard a different boat. He sailed a Kirby 25 to victory last spring, but now owns an Impulse 26 — a 1984 design he found on Facebook Marketplace and bought in August.
Monts has spent several months refitting his latest boat named Sitella and launched it for the first time on Thursday. He’s in a class that now features six of the new J/7 daysailers.
“I really like our chances. I’ve got brand new sails and a new bottom,” he said. “It’s a light to medium air design, which fits the average wind speed here in Charleston. We’ve never sailed the boat, but I’m sure we’ll figure it out.”
Charleston Race Week annually attracts a large number of grand prix caliber boats featuring professional crews. This year, most of those entries can be found competing in the ORC Sportboat North Americans along with the Melges 24 and J/70 classes.
J/70 has been a staple of Charleston Race Week since 2013 and several past winners are in this year’s fleet, which has attracted 31 boats. Dallas resident Bruno Pasquinelli sailed Stampede to consecutive championships (2021-22), while Massachusetts skipper Brian Keane led Savasana to the title in 2023.
Savasana is currently a team in transition as two longtime crew members — tactician Stuart McNay and trimmer Ron Weed — have jumped ship to a rival J/70 team. Keane, a Beverly Yacht Club member, has put together a strong temporary team featuring Olympic bronze medalist Ian Barrows (tactics) and three-time Boston College All-American Brian Kamilar (trimmer).
“We were out practicing today and it was one of the best first impressions I’ve ever had. I really liked the way the team communicated today,” Keane said on Wednesday night.
Keane comes to Charleston after leading Savasana to victory in the J/70 Winter Series held out of Davis Island Yacht Club. In assessing the competition, he said Pasquinelli has “a certain magic here in Charleston” while skipper Paul Green leads an up-and-coming program aboard Progress. Green, an Annapolis sailor, was runner-up in J/70 class at Charleston Race Week 2025.
Melges 24 is also loaded with big-time talent with a handful of talent spread throughout 24 entries. Among the many prominent skippers is Laura Grondin, the 2025 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year. It was a well deserved honor for the Connecticut resident, who became the first female skipper to capture the J/70 World Championship and placed second at the Melges 24 World Championship.
She has competed in Charleston Race Week in multiple one-design classes, capturing the Melges 24 championship as fill-in skipper for Travis Weisleder aboard Lucky Dog in 2023. She has posted multiple podium placements in J/70 class at CRW.
Grondin, a three-time finalist for the Rolex, has Lucas Calabrese aboard Dark Energy as tactician and Tomas Dietrich as trimmer. Calabrese claimed a gold medal for Argentina at the 2012 Olympics and was a key member of the American Magic campaign for the America’s Cup.
“I think the key to doing well here in Charleston is being able to shift gears and change modes quickly because the pressure goes up and down and the direction shifts,” Grondin said. “Understanding what the current is doing is always important here. There will be gains and losses based on the current.”
Newport skipper Peter McClennen led Gamecock to a runner-up finish behind Full Throttle (Brian Porter) in Melges 24 class at last year’s Charleston Race Week. Steve Boho (Crystal Lake, Illinois) and his team on The 300 finished fifth. War Canoe, skippered by Michael Goldfarb of Seattle, is another strong program.
Houston skipper Bill Zartler comes into Charleston Race Week with confidence after leading Deja Voodoo to victory in the J/105 Midwinter Championship. That regatta was held last month and hosted by Charleston Yacht Club.
This will be the fourth appearance at CRW for Deja Voodoo, which topped the J/105 class in the 2024 edition. Zartler has been racing with pretty much the same crew for 20 years now and has a long list of major regatta titles to his credit.
“It’s a very experienced veteran group and we know each other quite well,” Zartler said. “We sailed the boat consistently and cleanly during the Midwinters, so hopefully we can keep it going.”
Charleston Race Week has long been a favorite of the VX One class, which is wide open this year since two-time defending champion Jack Jorgenson is not entered. That makes the second and third place boats from last year — Bro Safari (Tej Trevor Parekh) and Far Side (John Porter) — the leading contenders.
Porter got into the VX One class specifically to compete in Charleston, which is a two-hour drive from his home in Savannah, Georgia. He was the 2023 CRW class champ and should contend again after capturing the VX One Winter Series in Miami.
Stanley Hassinger (Positive Action) has won the Southeastern Series two years in a row, while Tej Trevor Parekh was the North American champion in 2024.
“I think the key to any one-design racing is getting to the level where you can keep your head out of the boat. That might be even more important in Charleston,” said Porter, who will have Tom Hurwitch aboard as crew. “Most places you’re going to focus on wind strategy, but here in Charleston you’ve got a current overlay that you need to consider. You need to figure out the current strategy first then try to make the wind strategy work within it.”
There are five offshore classes and four are competing in pursuit style racing. South Carolina Yacht Club skipper Denny Manrique and his team on Island Flyer (Wauquiez 40) will try to defend their title in Pursuit Spinnaker A, while Charleston Yacht Club member Denny Smith and crew aboard Cheers (Santana 30) seeks to repeat in Pursuit Spinnaker B.
