Feature

A Journey Back in Time with Peter Lynn at the 2026 Resolute Cup

By NEW YORK YACHT CLUB · 7 October 2026 · 6 min read

Peter Lynn, who won the Resolute Cup together with his father when he was just 13 years old, embarked on a different journey when he returned to the event 16 years later.

Interview and photos courtesy of New York Yacht Club

Competing for Eastern Yacht Club at the Resolute Cup for the first time in 2010, Peter Lynn highlighted what a great experience it was. Saying that being part of such an event at the age of 13 was a very special feeling, Peter recalled the past: “My dad and I won that year, and that was really cool. It was a pretty incredible experience. It was a really incredible year. I think I was in eighth grade and I missed the entire first week. Obviously, that’s not a very normal thing for a 13-year-old to do. All my classmates were wondering where I was while I was sailing at the Resolute Cup.”

Peter Lynn racing with his father at the 2010 Resolute Cup — Peter Lynn, aged 13, racing for Eastern Yacht Club with his father Bill at the 2010 Resolute Cup. Photo: Dan Nerney / NYYC

A tough race in very windy conditions

Returning to the Resolute Cup 16 years later, Peter assessed the racing: “There was a lot of wind. It was really, truly tough conditions. Probably some of the windiest conditions you could sail a Sonar with a kite. So we put a huge emphasis on boat handling and being able to go fast in a straight line in big breeze. I think we held up pretty well in terms of speed. We’re a little bit of a light team, and weight definitely helps a lot on a Sonar in windy conditions. So we tried to do the best we could in terms of speed, and then from there, we tried to sail well tactically.”

Close racing in the Sonar fleet off Newport at the 2026 Resolute Cup. Photo: Paul Todd / Outside Images

A family rivalry

The Resolute Cup brings a different kind of rivalry for Peter this year. Racing for New York Yacht Club together with his father this time, one of Peter’s rivals is his sister Hannah and her husband Alden, who are competing for Eastern Yacht Club. Saying that it has become a real family affair between the New York and Eastern teams, Peter said: “There’s a little bit of rivalry. But at the same time, we’re all Eastern members. So we try to do our part to not hurt them. We want both of us to be at the top. So we’re not really trying to put each other in a really tough spot.”

Every point matters

Emphasizing that they have generally had a decent regatta, Peter said: “I think we’re in the group. We’re probably not as close to the top of the leaderboard as we’d like to be, but every point matters in this event. So we’re trying to climb up from here. Even today probably wasn’t our best day, but I looked at the results and the points are still really tight. There’s still a lot of racing, there’s still a lot to play for. Especially with the medal races at the end, everything is still wide open. So you’re just trying to keep your head in the race. After a bad race, you shake it off and move straight on to the next race. It hasn’t been our best event so far, but we’re still looking forward.”

Connecting with different generations

Peter described the experience he has gained from his first race at the age of 13 to today: “At that age, you’re sailing a lot of Optis, maybe you’re sailing 420s, and you’re racing a lot against people your own age. But being able to race against people who are a generation or two older than you is really a huge privilege. A lot of kids don’t get that opportunity. Getting to meet a lot of the people my dad raced with in college and afterward, and racing against that generation, was really exciting. At the same time, it allowed me to build relationships with a lot of people from different generations that still continue today. Even though I’ve sailed the Sonar quite a bit, I’m still learning a lot. There are still some conditions I haven’t sailed in very much. Yesterday was definitely tough in the big breeze.”

Small mistakes are very costly

Saying that they entered the regatta believing they had a chance at the podium but had not yet reached where they wanted to be, Peter said: “But we had a good day today and moved up a few spots. The biggest thing I’ll take away from this event is that every point matters. Every mark rounding matters. Small mistakes are very costly. So your preparation for the event has to be at the highest level. You have to come prepared not to make mistakes, and when you do make a mistake, you have to be able to recover from them really well. That’s what the best teams do. They’re just consistent. When you do 23 races, when you have a regatta with this many races, which we don’t do at any other regatta besides the Resolute Cup, it really puts a huge emphasis on consistency.”

“Every point matters. Every mark rounding matters. Small mistakes are very costly.”

Bill Lynn: “Sailing is a big part of our lives”

Saying that the race he competed in with his son 16 years ago was a lot of fun, Bill Lynn said that Peter was doing the twings that year and was quite knowledgeable. Emphasizing that the family loves sailing very much, Bill concluded: “My oldest child who doesn’t sail isn’t here, but yes, there are definitely a lot of family members here. Sonars and New York Yacht Club have been a big part of our lives for a long time. All the kids are also New York members. Alden, now my son-in-law, he was 22 during that first one [Resolute Cup] and he sailed with me. So I’ve known him longer than my daughter has. We love the one-design stuff, especially when the boats are exactly the same. This and the IC37 stuff. They do a ton of IC37 sailing as well. There’s a lot of just great racing going on here and this regatta is a big part of that.”