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A Brief History of the Delta Doo Dah

In the summer of 2009, the crews of 30 or so Bay Area boats joined in the inaugural Delta Doo Dah, a laid-back Bay-to-Delta cruising rally we dreamed up over a bottle of champagne at the company Christmas party. The idea was to get folks sailing in their own backyard, and it worked better than we’d hoped.

The next three Doo Dahs grew in size and scope, taking participants to a variety of destinations in every corner of the Delta, escaping San Francisco Bay's bitterly cold summer winds for some delightfully warm downwind sailing up-Delta.

The one downside about the event that bothered us was that we were forced to limit the fleet to 50 boats. While the Delta itself might be vast, its marinas and anchorages aren't. Every year, our waiting list grew with folks wanting to join in the fun; yet we had to turn them away.

Starting in 2013, we changed the structure of the event. Instead of restricting the entry list to just 50 boats and telling them when they have to leave, anyone can join and they can go whenever they want. There's no strict itinerary and no limit on fleet size. Best of all, there's no entry fee.

We dubbed this new format the “Delta Doo Dah DIY.” In 2014, we repeated the DIY format. In 2015-2019 we retained the DIY option, but added more opportunities for fleet members to sail and/or socialize with each other. Even during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 we managed some safe outdoor events. With 2022, we bring back an in-person Kickoff Party & Seminar, tentatively scheduled for Richmond Yacht Club on the afternoon of Saturday, May 21.

Sailing