Photo Courtesy of CRAB
Drew Fleming of Weems and Plath and Paul Bollinger of CRAB announce the award
Photo Courtesy of CRAB
Annapolis— The 2024 Triple Crown of Charity Sailing competition enjoyed outstanding participation and fundraising efforts from our community. The number of skippers competing for the Triple Crown Trophy (sponsored by Weems & Plath) doubled this year. Skippers and crews had to participate in the Maryland Cures Cancer Regatta, the CRAB Cup, and the Hospice Cup while raising funds for all three charities.
The scoring for the Triple Crown of Charity Sailing Trophy is based on the amount of money raised and the placement of each boat in the respective three races. Each of the three events is calculated individually, and the totals are then combined to determine the ultimate winner.
This year, the collaborative efforts of Chesapeake Region Accessible Boating (CRAB), Maryland Cures Cancer Regatta, and Hospice Cup resulted in a remarkable turnout of 251 boats, with more than 1,000 skippers and crew, raised a total of $572,000. The incredible support for the three charities created a special atmosphere at the awards ceremony held at the CRAB Annapolis Adaptive Boating Center, on Friday, November 1st.
This year’s Champion of the Triple Crown is someone who has been near the top of the scoring system for many years. Sometimes, it’s the race results, and sometimes it’s the fundraising that keeps a skipper from earning the trophy. This year, John Dodge and his crew were clicking on all cylinders on the race course and raising funds. Congratulations belong to John Dodge and Team Kobayashi for a Cure for winning the Triple Crown of Charity Sailing Trophy. See John Dodge’s full acceptance speech at: https://fb.watch/vFYQFKS83y/
In addition to recognizing John Dodge and his team, one team's exceptional fundraising efforts stood out above all others. Roger Mason’s Tradecraft Team raised $33,925 for charity, nearly $10,000 more than the closest skipper. While fundraising is not the sole determinant of the winner, the creation of the Rainmaker Award underscores the importance of these contributions. Kudos to Tradecraft and Roger Mason’s team for winning this inaugural Rainmaker trophy from Weems & Plath.
The Triple Crown of Charity Sailing Trophy was created in 2018 to promote greater race participation and to enhance fundraising support for all three charity races. Representatives from the three charities presented the trophy and permanent trophies to the winners. The Triple Crown Trophy is a stunning, repurposed trophy, formerly the Power Squadron of Baltimore’s Navigation Trophy. It is on permanent display at the CRAB Adaptive Boating Center. Winners of the Triple Crown of Charity Sailing Trophy have their names permanently engraved on the base of this beautiful trophy.
