History
A graduate of the U. S. Naval Academy who served in the Civil War, Lloyd Phoenix was also a yachtsman who won the New York Yacht Club's "The Cruise Trophy" in 1909. The trophy was found in a storage locker in 1960 by the wife of Capt. Aubrey Engle.
Through Capt. Engle's efforts, it was renamed the Lloyd Phoenix Trophy and offered for sailing competition among Naval Academy Sailing Squadron (NASS) midshipmen and sailors from Chesapeake Bay yacht clubs.
In 1986, US Sailing conducted its first national championship for offshore yachts. The first competition was held at the U. S. Naval Academy and the NASS offered the Phoenix Trophy for the championship.
Fleet racing for the trophy is staged in offshore keelboats over a closed course, except for one long-distance race. One NASS team is always allowed to participate.