2020 Season Champions Part 2: One Designs Plus the SSS
The 2020 racing season was certainly different from what everyone had anticipated, but it still took place, and for those who participated it still held an abundance of excitement and camaraderie. So here is Part 2 of Latitude 38‘s annual Season Champions spread.
Our Season Champions series of features is a bit shorter than in most years — but then so were the championship series themselves. We give huge kudos to the fleets that expended the extra effort it took to put together a racing season in 2020. The SSS in particular missed only one race — the Singlehanded Transpacific Race to Hawaii. We check in on them in this story, but first we visit a trio of one-design classes.
Doublehanded Express 27 — Peaches, John and Michael Rivlin, StFYC
“It was pretty sad to watch each race in our season get canceled after the March Shelter in Place order,” reports Express 27 fleet captain Lori Tewksbury of Hang 20. “We had no racing for a few months. But then Richmond Yacht Club started their beer cans, the YRA was able to schedule shorthanded (single/doublehanded) races, and SSS races were rescheduled. I was able to substitute those races for our canceled ones and have a modified, shorthanded Express 27 season.
“Prior to the Shelter in Place order in March, the fleet had done the Three Bridge Fiasco and the SSS Corinthian — both doublehanded already and races usually in our schedule. We also did RYC’s Big Daddy, our only crewed racing for the season. So we made Big Daddy a stand-alone with its own prizes (given out during Big Daddy) and modified the rest of our season (including Nationals) into a doublehanded season.”
“Nationals, on September 26-27, was changed because of requirements from RYC for it to not be called ‘Nationals’ AND to be doublehanded only, and boats were not allowed to launch from or stay at RYC unless the owners were RYC members. We were able to secure space close by using Scott Easom’s docks at Brickyard Cove and guest docks at Berkeley YC.
“The fleet adapted well — everyone was happy to just be out and racing. Many in the fleet were worried about having fully crewed racing (to the point that the fleet voted to do the Berkeley Midwinter races doublehanded), so this worked out nicely. We usually have several doublehanded races in our normal fleet schedule anyway, so we are used to shorthanding.”
Please go to Latitude 38 to read about more champions including, International 110 — Lady Bug, Brendan Meyer, InvYC; J/24 Fleet #17; SSS Singlehanded Monohull — Osprey, Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 349, Todd Arnold, SSS; SSS Singlehanded Multihull — Raven, F-27 Trimaran, Truls Myklebust, BAMA; SSS Doublehanded Monohull — Arcadia, Mod. Santana 27, Gordie Nash & Ruth Suzuki, RYC; SSS Doublehanded Multihull — ‘Round Midnight, Explorer 44 Trimaran, Richard Waltonsmith, BAMA.