Racing Ahead Into 2026

Literally Sailing into the New Year

The new year won’t be more than a few hours old when these races welcome 2026:

• The San Francisco Vanguard 15 fleet will sail a New Year’s Day Regatta out of Alameda Community Sailing Center, on the Bay side of the island.
• The Master Mariners New Year’s Day Regatta will start east of Treasure Island and race/cruise to Point San Pablo YC in Richmond for a Chili Cook-off.
• Coyote Point YC’s Brrrr Rabbit kicks off that club’s 2026 regatta series on the South Bay.
• The New Year’s Day Race is a favorite tradition in San Diego. It’s free!

Sadly, the Bay Area forecast calls for rain this Thursday (and a few other days this week). San Diego’s forecast calls for thunderstorms on the First. So we’re guessing that precipitation will put a damper on (or at least dampen) the sailing.

More Midwinters Jump Aboard

Many Northern California midwinter series began in November, and a few more got underway in December. But even more wait for the new year to hit the starting line. Compiling January’s monthly Calendar, we’ve added the following to the list:

• Oakland Yacht Club will ring in the new year with the Sunday Brunch, starting on January 4. Register on Jibeset.
• Coyote Point YC’s Winter Sails will begin on Sunday, January 11, and run twice a month through the end of March. The club is based out of a marina in a Bayside county park in San Mateo.
• The Corinthian Midwinters will occupy two weekends, January 17-18 and February 21-22. The club in downtown Tiburon is going with a Valhalla on the Bay theme in 2026. They promise “great courses, tricky winds, and some splendid parties. We’ll have a band after each Saturday of racing, a Dark ‘n Stormy drink special, and a racer’s buffet. We’ll help you get rafted up in the harbor so you can enjoy free dockside beer and pizza immediately after the racing.” They offer PHRF and one-design classes, for spinnaker and non-spinnaker entries. “Heck, we might even run a multihull division if you want.” See https://race.cyc.org/mids26. How will the winter currents affect the races? Kame Richards will speak at CYC on Thursday evening, January 15, at 7 p.m. about “The Unique Tidal Currents that Define the SF Bay.”

Three Bridges, One Big Puzzle to Solve

New Year’s Day races will launch us into January, and the Three Bridge Fiasco will close out the month on Saturday the 31st. The biggest keelboat race west of the Mississippi allows only singlehanders and doublehanders in a wide range of boats. The slowest will start first; the rest will pursue them around the Bay, rounding marks at three bridges. The puzzle pieces include which direction to start, which mark to round first, and how to tackle the midday ebb current. Accept the challenge and sign up on Jibeset.

About Your Northern California PHRF Certificate

The Yacht Racing Association advises that PHRF renewals submitted by January 2 will be processed by January 16, assuming a straightforward renewal that does not need to go to the committee to be reviewed, or a new boat that has been previously rated and is in its stock configuration. Renew on Jibeset. For significant changes or a fresh application, go here. The next scheduled PHRF committee meeting will be on Monday, January 26. To be included in that meeting, submit your application by January 22.

Migrating South

The 2026 California Dreamin’ match racing series will kick off in San Diego on January 24-25. San Diego YC will host this first of four stops.

South of the border, our amigos at Vallarta YC in Riviera Nayarit will run the Vallarta Cup on January 10-11 and 17-18.

The 2026 Sailing Calendar came out alongside the January issue of Latitude 38; the New Year’s break is a great time to plan your sailing schedule for the year ahead. Happy New Year, readers!