Jaime Torres, owner and helm of Smile and Wave (Melges 24 #829) and longtime member of Davis Island Yacht Club in Tampa, Florida, spent the summer chasing fast winds and intense competition across the Great Lakes. From Muskegon to Tecumseh, Jaime and his crew immersed themselves in the Quantum Melges 24 Great Lake Cup Series, testing boat speed, teamwork, and strategy against top-level sailors. His journey showcases not only the thrill of racing but also the camaraderie, hospitality, and spirit that define the Melges 24 and the Great Lakes sailing community.

Four Melges 24 Events in the Great Lakes for a Florida Sailor
By Jaime Torres, Smile and Wave, Melges 24 829

There were several themes common to all the events:

Sailor-focused yacht clubs – like my local Davis Island Yacht Club in Tampa, every one of the hosting clubs focused on maximizing the racing experience of their members and guests. They had numerous performance sailboats on their lots, a good crane, and ample docking space.

All the regattas were very well run with spot-on RC work. The events that used the Vakaros RaceSense system were slightly better, but my experience with the one that did not use RS was almost as good because the RC team was sharp, catching OCS boats and keeping things going at the right pace. But the no-pinging, auto OCS and Autotiming are priceless!

The shoreside hospitality was off the charts. Not only great food and plenty of drinks, but also organizers and volunteers who cared about the competitors. I was particularly impressed with the kindness and friendly demeanor of the Midwesterners and the Canadians. My team was assisted in many ways and always well taken care of, so we felt appreciated for making the trip.

The conditions at the events we attended were good to excellent, and RC teams did a lot to take advantage of them. Never rushed, always on time, not a gust of wind wasted.

Spring Championship - Muskegon, Michigan
Muskegon has been hosting the Spring Championships for years, and it shows. Twenty-three boats made the trek to Muskegon and were rewarded with a regatta that went off without a hitch in phenomenal conditions, accompanied by great competition. The team of organizers went out of their way to get competitors and locals into the water fast and efficiently. The food at the MYC was outstanding!

The action on the water was intense. Steve Boho started the party with a bullet on race 1, with the USM24CA president following. That 2nd place will help at the end. Peter Mclennen bounced back with a string of first places but lost his mojo in the end. Steve’s The 300 won the 13-point tie breaker with Gamecock to take the event by the narrowest of margins. These two boats had half the points of the Corinthian winner Surprise. Dan Berezin has been on a tear with his seasoned team. He has been racing 626 all over the US, and his phenomenal light air boat speed and excellent boat handling have landed him on the podium once again.

Smile and Wave had a great regatta and lost the 5th-place tiebreaker with Bad Idea. His 2nd place in the first race earned him the spot. We are pleased with our improved speed, but unhappy about the few mistakes that held us back.

Shoutout to Peter and the Gamecock team for hosting a productive training camp on Friday. It was fun, informative, and helped lift the whole fleet.

Helly Hansen Sailing World Series - Detroit, Michigan
Team Smile and Wave planned and registered for this event as the 2nd regatta of our Great Lakes tour. Unfortunately, we had to cancel at the last minute due to a family emergency. However, many teams showed up for the great show the Sailing World folk put on. Conditions were very tough and windy, pushing the teams to the bleeding edge, producing some incredible images. Peter McClennen’s speed and polish were almost unchallenged, never finishing lower than 2nd in the 6-race, no throughout series. Dan Berezin continued to dominate Corinthian racing with his very strong 2nd place over John Shockey’s Wombats Racing. His two bullets secured his podium finish in the Open division and 2nd place in the Corinthian division.

Guardians of the Great Lakes Regatta – Traverse City, Michigan
This Great Lakes classic Melges 24 regatta had some fantastic teams. Not surprisingly, as nearby Harbor Springs will host the 2026 Melges 24 Worlds. Geoff Fargo came all the way from California and jumped into a fast borrowed boat to crush the competition. He is on his way to Italy for the 2025 World Champs and taking every opportunity to elevate his already high game.

Steve Boho’s team sailed a great regatta, getting better with almost every race. His scoreline landed him with good padding in front of the new team, Mustang. What a phenomenal class debut for Dick Kalow. A fast boat with a top-notch crew arrived and delivered a strong performance, highlighted by a bullet in the 2nd race. We are looking forward to seeing this powerful team down south for Nationals and the Bacardi Winter Series as a great addition to the class. Surprise in 4th but again the top Corinthian Team.

These guys are consistently delivering top finishes in the Quantum Great Lake Series all year. This was another strong race for Team Smile and Wave as we continue to build a solid foundation of speed and crew work. We lost another tiebreaker to Surprise. We are clear on who we are after as we work our way to the 2026 Worlds in Harbor Springs. Special thanks to Kent Sisk and his family for hosting us at their beautiful home! Midwestern hospitality at its best!

Canadian Nationals – Tecumseh, Ontario, Canada
So, SOUTH from Detroit across the bridge lands you in Canada and one of the friendliest Sailing Clubs I have been to. John Marentette, with the help of a great team of volunteers and no sponsors, pulled off an exceptional Nationals regatta for Melges 24s and Vipers 460. The RC canceled racing because of too much breeze on Friday (What!), but that led to two intense days of racing with a whopping eight races completed in everything from 5 to 20 knots (sometimes in the same race!).

Good vibes and delicious food were the icing on the cake at this well-run event. It was as if the RC wanted to prove that you don’t need Race Sense to put on an extremely efficient on-the-water experience for the sixteen 24s that showed up. The beautifully earned top spot went to Surprise. Berezin pulled it all together to take home his Canadian Championship. Last-minute entrant, Olympic sailor, and Melges 24 class benefactor, George Peet, sailed his Straight Arrow from across the border to take the early lead in the event. I could not be prouder that Smile and Wave put in a nearly flawless performance to end the first day in 2nd place. Good starts, on-point boat handling, and sweet boatspeed finally came together to close out day one with three first places, and wow, that felt amazing.

But the scoring was really tight. For day two, only a couple of points separated the top three places. We know what we had to do, but unfortunately, so did everybody else. Surprise just took us down with a picket fence scoreline on the last day, catapulting them to a class and overall win. We slipped down to 3rd by just one point, a very respectable result, nonetheless. Straight Arrow had to settle for a solid 2nd.

Needless to say, it was a fantastic summer of sailing for us. Never cold, always windy (or windy enough). Warm hospitality at every event. We are definitely coming back next summer and encourage Melges 24 sailors from all over the US to join us. My only regret is that there were not more events!

Racing the Great Lakes: Jaime Torres’ Summer in the Quantum Melges 24 Series