Echo of Sails and Roar of Waves: A Close Look at the 2025 Hobie 16 Open North American Championships

The fourth day of the 2025 Hobie 16 Open North American Championships at the Pensacola Yacht Club was, without a doubt, a day of surprises and challenges. It emphatically announced its start with boisterous winds and lively sea state. Indeed, the wind held its grip throughout the day, edging some teams to their limits.

After weathering the three-day spell of shifty winds, sailors onboard took on racing day 4, the first of the final series, with significant gusts of 22 knots. Four spirited races were completed under challenging waves, worthy of an adventurer’s journal. However, as the day moved to its latter half, the winds started to fade. Yet again, the consistent winds morphed into breezy drafts, especially during the first three races. By the fourth race, the wind had calmed to a gentle breeze of 8-10 knots.

Each fleet progressed, bracing the waves and the wind that was to follow in the last day of the competition. Just like the previous days, gusty winds announced the daybreak, but later faded into serenity. The challenge on this day, after surviving the left-over waves from an overnight storm, was about staying in the breeze, and managing the favored shift. A suitable finish to an eventful championship.

After 16 nail-biting races spread over five days, the champions were declared. In the gold fleet, the Guatemalans, Jason HESS and Soniy PONCE, won the North American Championship. Coming after them were Venezuelan team Yamil SABA and Andrea SABA, and Puerto Rican team Enrique FIGUEROA and Irene FIGUEROA. The silver fleet was dominated by Miguel MILLET and Cipriano GONZALEX from Mexico. Jose Daniel MAYORGA and Juan Carlos CANIZALEZ from Guatemala, Bradley DAVIS and Erik VOLK from the USA filled the runner-up slots.

The excitement remains high as the upcoming competition is set to take place in Clear Lake, Iowa. May the upcoming showdown in the lake bring more unpredictable winds and high spirits.