Fishing Bay is hosting the 76th-annual Hampton One Design National Championship August 20, 21, and 22. The Hampton Class is returning its Championship to the club for the first time since 1948.

Organizers are expecting about 20 boats from various yacht clubs, including PRSA, HYC, NY&CC, TAYC, BBSA, CYC and WRYC. The competitors will include some of the top dinghy sailors from around the Bay, including collegiate all-Americans, past Optimist National Champions, Collegiate and Interscholastic sailors and Coaches, sail makers, and good-old-fashioned class stalwarts like Norfolk’s Charlie McCoy who will be competing in his 52nd (fifty-second) consecutive HOD Nationals. FBYC will be represented in the competition by Latane Montague, Mike Toms, Kenney Cobb, Walter Bundy and others. Walter Bundy sails one of the newest Hamptons #728 which was built on Gwynn’s Island last year by renowned local boat builder David Judson. The PRO for this year’s event is Rick Klein. For details, check out the HOD website at: www.hamptononedesign.com

Fishing Bay YC has a long history with the Hampton class and founded Hampton Fleet #3 back in 1939. The FBYC Hampton fleet was formed shortly after the fleets at HYC and NY&CC by club members who wanted to compete head-to-head in one-designs against the best sailors from the bay’s other most active yacht clubs.

The first National Champion from FBYC was Lloyd Emory who won the Nationals in 1947 (and later won Chesapeake and Central Atlantic ladder championships that were the predecessor to the Mallory Cup). Emory and FBYC helped establish the Class tradition of allowing the previous year’s Champion to select the venue for defending their title. Willis Martin of arch-rival Annapolis Yacht Club (Hampton Fleet #5) won the 1948 Championship regatta hosted by FBYC and it has not been back since. FBYC-member George Roper won the 1954 Championship on his way to winning the FBYC Hutcheson Memorial Trophy. Latane Montague won last-year’s 75th Anniversary Nationals at HYC emphatically with 5-straight bullets, and with it, the opportunity to bring the regatta back to Deltaville after a 62-year absence.