The Melges 17 is the latest in high performance one design racing brought to you from none other than Melges Performance Sailboats and the extraordinary design team of Reichel/Pugh.

Over 40 new boats have been sold with many owners already planning to attend the very first Melges 17 National Championship in White Lake, Michigan on August 27 & 28, 2005! Download a NOR (Notice of Race) today! More information about this Regatta will be available soon on melges.com and on the M17 Class Web site at melges17.com. See a full events listing below including the 2006 Melges 17 Midwinter Championship on March 10-12 in Eustis, Florida. Don't miss out on this very historic event.

M17™ fever is contagious and spreading fast. This incredible one design racer is definitely turning heads and building fleets quickly. It incorporates some of the most innovative sailboat engineering concepts such as the exclusive Melges Hands Free Kite System™ (HFKS) - one control line hoists the asymmetrical spinnaker, the bowsprit extends and your off! One pull of the douse control line and the kite collapses into the boat, the bowsprit retracts and upwind you go!

This boat truly offers the best of both worlds - guaranteed edge-of-your-seat racing excitement, equipped with all the modern conveniences of Melges know-how.

Martin Zonnenberg recently took ownership of a new Melges 17. Retrieved by his friend Chris Norman who traveled all the way to Zenda to pick it up, Martin is definitely addicted to speed and his brand new Scow.

"The M17 is a very fast and high tech racing dinghy (skipper and one crew) designed by one of the very best 'fast boat' designers Reichel/Pugh who among several other very successful designs, also designed the very successful Melges 24", Zonnenberg commented.

"It was a blast to sail the M17! Chris and I took the boat out for the first time on Friday afternoon, we were lucky and had a nice breeze 10-17 mph winds. The boat accelerates very fast, planes quickly even upwind. I believe that the M17 is going to be winner! These boats are tremendous: very well balanced, newest high tech materials used, strong and light weight, easy to sail, easy to keep upright, very fast, fast planing and very exciting. This is the real thing! One quick pull on a line and it will furl the jib out of the way, couple of quick pulls and the asymmetrical spinnaker and the bowsprit is set all with one line...

The M17 will give sailors the opportunity to feel the speeds of an A or E Scow on a much more manageable and affordable platform. This might exactly be the boat which will create lots of excitement for our hobby and will help in further promoting our One Design Sailing Club's future: The Melges 17 will certainly help to further establish our club's One Design sailing future."

For those of you lucky enough to get your hands on this hot Melges Scow, be sure the get new Custom-Fit Covers, Full Deck Covers, Envelope Trailing Cover as well as Rudder, Tiller and Rudder Head Travel bags today! These are must have items to keep your M17 safe and sound. Call Melges for pricing (262-275-1110). Be sure to check out the new Melges 17 Rigging and Tuning Guide downloadable from melges.com and onedesign.com, the official Web site for North Sails.