The Tennessee Valley Challenge Cup (TVCC) regatta was established in 1987 as a successor to the retired Wheeler Cup regatta. From 1976 through 1986, the Wheeler Cup was an annual competition between three sailing clubs: Wheeler Yacht Club, Brown’s Creek Sailing Association, and Muscle Shoals Sailing Club. Each club sent only one boat and crew to compete for the Wheeler Cup, making it a small regatta, akin to a match race but with just three boats.
After 1986, the Wheeler Cup Regatta was retired. In response, the three clubs created the TVCC in 1987 to broaden the interclub competition by including all interested crews and boats from the original three clubs. The significant increase in the number of boats and crews intensified the competition and enhanced the weekend festivities. The Wheeler Cup trophy was repurposed as the new TVCC perpetual trophy, awarded to the winning club.
The annual regatta takes place in the fall when the winds and weather are more favorable for sailing. Typically, the regatta consists of five races and two parties over a two-day weekend. The winning club is determined by scoring the best three finishes of boats from each club in each race. In the first four years, all boats raced together in a single large fleet. However, in 1991, the competition was divided into three fleets: Dinghy, Non-Spinnaker, and Spinnaker.
Over the first eight years, three additional sailing clubs joined the competition: Pickwick Sailing Association, Lake Guntersville Sailing Club, and Privateer Yacht Club near Chattanooga. This expansion led to a record 45 boats racing in 1996. Concord Yacht Club near Knoxville joined the competition in 2012 and hosted 43 boats in the 2018 TVCC.
The host location of the TVCC regatta rotates annually among the participating clubs, giving each club the opportunity to compete on its home waters and showcase its ability to host memorable parties.
Gar Bouse
