5th Annual Merrill Lynch/GMAC Bowl Regatta Sails at Fairhope Yacht Club

(FAIRHOPE, AL) –The Fifth Annual Merrill Lynch/GMAC Bowl Regatta will sail on Saturday, December 1, 2007. The regatta has been part of the GMAC Bowl’s activities since 2003 and is a part of the events throughout the area leading up to the football game.

Sailors of boats 19 feet and up are invited to race for GMAC Bowl game tickets, trophies and prizes on Saturday, December 1, 2007, at the Fairhope Yacht Club in Fairhope, AL.

“Merrill Lynch is sponsoring the sailing regatta this year and we are very happy to have them with us. This Regatta has become a highlight each year. Sailors compete for tickets to the GMAC Bowl game,” said GMAC Bowl Executive Director Frank Modarelli. “We are pleased that Merrill Lynch is helping us sponsor this event for the Gulf Coast area’s sailing community.”

The Fairhope Yacht Club has hosted this event from the beginning and, as a result, it has become a permanent winter sailing competition that is now part of the annual calendar. The turnout of sailors from Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi competing with Mobile area skippers the last four years has been more than expected by FYC officials and they look forward to a great turnout again this year.

GMAC is providing 100 tickets for sailors to attend the 2008 GMAC Bowl Game that will be played in Mobile on Sunday, January 6, 2008, the night before BCS National Championship Game. Football fans have experienced exciting games in the GMAC Bowl’s nine-year history. NFL quarterbacks who concluded their college football careers at the GMAC Bowl include Ben Roethlisberger with the Pittsburgh Steelers, David Garrard of the Jacksonville Jaquars and Byron Leftwich of the Atlanta Falcons.

Registration in advance may be made online at: r_matteis@yahoo.com or in person at the Fairhope Yacht Club, 101 Volanta Avenue, Fairhope, AL, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Friday, November 30, 2007. A Skippers Meeting will follow the registration Friday evening to review race instructions. Starting time will be at 11:00 a.m., Saturday morning with trophy presentations scheduled after all boats are in Saturday afternoon at the Fairhope Yacht Club.

Classes will be determined according to registrations. Sailboats 19 feet and longer are eligible to enter. PHRF and Portsmouth spinnaker and non-spinnaker classes will be accepted. Registration fee is $25.00 per boat for United States Sailing Association (USSA) members and $30.00 per boat for non-USSA members. Further information may be obtained by calling FYC at (251) 928-8888 and at www.fairhopeyachtclub.com.

For more information about the GMAC Bowl game and events, please visit www.gmacbowl.com or call (251) 635-0011.