Winners at the Knickerbocker Cup

Phil Robertson and Taylor Canfield and their respective crews were the big winners at the 2010 Knickerbocker Cup.

Robertson and his crew on Waka Racing (NZL) won the 2010 Knickerbocker Cup Sunday. The win gives Robertson and his team – Garth Ellingham, Sam Bell and James Williamson – automatic entry into the Argo Gold Cup, one of the stops on the World Match Racing Tour, Oct. 5 through 10 in Bermuda. 

Meanwhile, Taylor Canfield and his crew on Team ISV (ISV) won the very first East Coast Trifecta, a series of three Grade 2 back-to-back match racing events at the CMRC Chicago Cup, the Toyota International Match Race for the Detroit Cup and the Knickerbocker Cup. This win gives Canfield and his team –with crew members Matt Clark, Tod Reynolds and Dave Shriner – automatic entry into the Congressional Cup, the only Grade 1 Match Race in the United States, taking place in Long Beach, Calif, on March 21 through 26, 2011.

The Knickerbocker Cup is a 28-year-tradition, attracting some of the best known skippers, including Olympic competitors and America's Cup contenders. It was founded in 1982 by the late Ed du Moulin, a former commodore of the now defunct Knickerbocker Yacht Club. Du Moulin created the cup in response to Congressional Cup organizers who regularly sought East Coast competitors. In 1997 and 1998, the KCup was sailed in New York Harbor. In 1999, the competition moved back to Manhasset Bay, where it has remained ever since. Once the Knickerbocker Club closed in 2009, however, the event moved next door to the Manhasset Bay Yacht Club.

Giving the award and the invitation to the Argo Gold Cup to Robertson and his team were Sue Miller, Manhasset Bay Commodore, along with Ted Weisberg, Manhasset Bay Yacht Club member and a director of both the Match Racing Association and the World Match Racing Tour.

Kirk Brown, umpire and representative from the Congressional Cup, Long Beach Yacht Club, was on hand to present Canfield his invitation to the event. But Canfield had already left the event to return to Boston College. 

Conditions on Manhasset Bay were disappointing Sunday. One early morning match between Robertson and William Tiller of Full Metal Jacket (NZL) was a turning point for Robertson.  Having lost his Saturday match against  Tiller, Robertson needed a freshening breeze to propel him to victory. As a result, Robertson won both the match, and ultimately the Cup.

"The biggest strategy was always being in a position to win – getting ahead early on," Robertson said about the race. "The breeze here is so unpredictable. You need to win the Full Round Robin because you never know what the wind will be."

The KCup racers sailed on Colgate 26 boats, with which Robertson is well familiar, this being his third KCup event.

"We had a bit more passion this year because when we lost to Dave Perry [Team Perry (USA)] last year it was gut wrenching because we thought we could beat him," Robertson said. "Passion and determination…..that was the difference this year."

Find more information about the race by visiting www.manhassetbayyc.org and
www.sailgroove.org.

Knickerbocker Cup FINAL RESULTS:

1. Phil Robertson (NZL)   Waka Racing
2. Eugeniy Neugodnikov (RUS) Synergy
3. Bill Hardesty (USA) LineHonors.com
4. William Tiller (NZL) Full Metal Jacket Racing
5. Anna Tunnicliffe (USA) Gus
6. Taylor Canfield (ISV) Team ISV
7. Sally Barkow (USA) Team 7 Racing
8. Dave Perry (USA) Team Perry
9. Sergey Musikhin (RUS) Rusteam
10. Henrique Haddad (BRA) GIGA
11. Reuben Corbett (NZL) Black Sheet Racing
12. Nicolai Sehested (DEN) TRE-FOR Match Racing

East Coast Trifecta FINAL RESULTS:

Taylor Canfield (ISV) Team ISV