Newport Regatta

Newport, RI, USA, July 13, 2025

by SnipeToday 07/13/2025

Newport Regatta Image — Sail Newport Regatta

Newport, RI, USA, July 13, 2025.

Snipes the Biggest Fleet at 2025 Newport Regatta

by Carol Cronin

25 Snipe teams raced this year’s Newport Regatta, the highlight of the growing Narragansett Bay Fleet 17’s season. With a course set just outside the harbor, the daily “commute” was short and the race committee managed to fire off seven races in light but stable southeasterlies. The biggest challenge was figuring out and navigating across multiple current lines and eddies, which meant that no lead was ever safe until the finish horn sounded.

Arthur Blodgett/Grace Howie won for the second year in a row, while the rest of the top five represented the impressive range of competitive ages and locations that we love about the Snipe class. In second place, Trevor Long/Corinne Poitras were the only other team to post all single-digit scores; Bradley Adam/Thomas Walker ended the regatta with a race win to solidify third. Augie Diaz/Madeline Baldridge had an impressive second day with no finish worse than third, climbing up to fourth overall ahead of Jim Bowers/Julia Rabin.

Arthur also repeated as the winner of the Robin Wallace trophy, awarded for the best performance of the regatta. With eight other classes racing, this “individual” honor is also a huge testament to our fleet size and depth. In addition, District Governor Nikki Bruno designated this regatta as the D1 Championships so Arthur gets to babysit the “Stanley Cup” for the next year.

Sail Newport provided after sailing food and drinks, with a live band on Saturday. The balance of Serious Sailing, Serious Fun at this regatta is one of the reasons Fleet 17 has doubled its numbers since 2024, and we’re already making plans for next year. Meanwhile, we encourage anyone who’s in the area to join us for casual Monday night racing.

Final results after 7 races (1 discard):