YANKTON, SOUTH DAKOTA – The famous Louis and Clark Lark near Yankton, SD, will host the Hobie 16 and Hobie 20 North American championships from June 19 to 23.
The location is reminiscent of a past championship held in Iowa, where there was nothing but corn to block the wind. It was a piece of small town America, as is Yankton.
The Hobie 16 championship attracted over 50 teams. More than 20 will compete in the Hobie 20 class championship.
As the Hobie Class has very strict one-design class rule the racing will be about skill and boat handling and not on equipment.
The Hobie 16 Class Championship is always a tightly contested battle with many extremely skilled teams. In this group, starts are very crowded and every point counts. Teams that can keep the intensity up over five days, manage the traffic, and consistently finish well, end up at the top. Consistently getting good starts while avoiding large numbers on your scorecard is a challenge. Teams to watch will be three-time champion Francisco Figueroa/Jolliam Berrios and 12-time champion Enrique Figueroa/Francesca Valdes, both from Puerto Rico.
The Hobie 20 Class Championship, while not as large as the Hobie 16 Fleet, is no less contested. This year’s event is shaping up to be a battle as well. Teams to watch will be reining champion John Holmberg/Teri McKenna and past champions George Pedrick/Gene Harris and Mark Zimmer/Kim Zimmer.
Follow the action on Facebook at the Hobie Class Association of North America website.
