Ch-ch-changes

Non-Race Events

“Social considerations, the health and safety of our boat owners, show attendees, volunteers, staff of the Corinthian YC, and the general public have to be our priority at this time,” writes Bill Conneely. “So the MMBA Board has made the decision to cancel the Wooden Boat Show in 2020. The show will return in 2021.” Corinthian Yacht Club in Tiburon was to have hosted the show on June 21. “The MMBA Board is actively considering a number of social and sailing options to bring members together as conditions allow, and will plan and support such events if it is feasible. The date and location of the 2020 annual meeting is pending, and our Labor Day Cruise-in to China Camp remains on the calendar for the time being.” The MMBA was to have held their annual meeting on June 20 at CYC, in advance of the Wooden Boat Show. See www.sfmastermariners.org.

We heard from the California Delta Chambers that the Hilton Independence Day fireworks extravaganza has been canceled for 2020. “Look for it in 2021. The annual Taste of the Delta scheduled for August 8 has been canceled too.” These Delta Doo Dah events scheduled for August are still on.

California Regattas

Representatives from PICYA, EYC, SBYC, StFYC, RYC and SFYC met in early May to determine the fate of the PICYA Lipton Cup. “While the originally scheduled dates of June 19-21 are not feasible at this point, we did not want to give up hope that the event could still be held this year,” write co-chairs Ted Floyd of Encinal YC and Andrew Lorenzen of South Beach YC. “Therefore, we identified another date which currently works for the three host clubs.” The event uses St. Francis YC’s fleet of matched J/22s. “We are pleased to announce that the 2020 Lipton Cup has not been canceled yet, but instead rescheduled for August 7-9.”

Alameda Community Sailing Center has canceled the Chichester Regatta for Lasers that they had planned to host on June 6-7. ACSC is accepting summer sailing camp “waitlist” registrations.

The Fresno Yacht Club has canceled the High Sierra Regatta weekends at Huntington Lake in July. “We had hoped that a socially distant sport would be allowed to continue, but in the end, our insurance carrier advised they won’t provide coverage during a pandemic.”

World Championships

On Wednesday, May 13, World Sailing announced the cancellation of the 2020 Youth Sailing World Championships. Salvador, Brazil, had been slated to host the regatta on December 12-19, 2020. “World Sailing’s board of directors and the Confederação Brasileira de Vela agreed to cancel the event in anticipation of global travel restrictions and to ensure the health and well-being of athletes, coaches, parents, officials and suppliers.”

The Youth World Championships is a crucial point on the path of US Sailing’s Olympic Development Program sailors. As a result of the cancellation, US Sailing is reviewing the posted athlete selection procedures for amendments.

The J/111 Class Association and the Royal Ocean Racing Club have canceled the J/111 World Championship and Pre-Worlds, scheduled for September 2-5 and August 30-31, respectively, in Cowes, UK. “The strong consensus view is that even if yacht racing is permitted in September we are unlikely to get enough boats to make a serious event,” commented Simon Bamford, class captain of the Northern European Fleet.

The Pro Circuit

Early on, the GC32 Racing Tour canceled the GC32 Oman Cup, originally scheduled for March, and now this month’s event on Lake Garda in Northern Italy is postponed. The GC32 Riva Cup was set to be the second event of 2020, at the end of May. It’s now delayed to October. The GC32 Lagos Cup in Portugal has moved from its original June date to the end of August. The GC32 World Championship, due to take place in Villasimius in southeast Sardinia in mid-September, moves to 2021. So, this season, the GC32 Racing Tour will stage two stand-alone events:

• August 26-30, GC32 Lagos Cup, Lagos, Portugal
• October 14-18, GC32 Riva Cup, Riva del Garda, Italy