An Array of Regattas Comes Our Way in May
Yacht Racing Association Regattas
Today (until midnight) is the deadline to register for this weekend’s Great Vallejo Race on April 30-May 1. Don’t miss the run to Vallejo YC, the raft-up and party, and the race back on Sunday. Sign up through the YRA’s Jibeset page. As of this morning, 113 boats had entered.
The YRA’s new 150-mile Bluewater Bash ocean race will take place on May 6-8. Registration is already closed, with 28 boats entered. This inaugural edition will honor Jocelyn Nash.
You can still sign up for the next OYRA race, May 14’s Duxship (Duxbury Reef Buoy and the Lightship are the rounding marks).
The YRA’s Sunday Shorthanded Series will continue on May 15. The next YRA Summer Series race day will be May 21 on the Cityfront.
Calling Women Skippers and Crew
SFYC will host the second annual Anne McCormack Women’s Invitational Cup. The regatta is open to all-women crews and will sail on the Knox racecourse on May 7.
On May 14-15, San Francisco YC will host the Elite Keelboat Regatta. J/105, J/88, J/70, Express 37, Express 27, Melges 24, SF Bay IOD, Knarr and RS21 classes are invited.
St. Francis YC and J/105 Fleet 1 will present the S.F. Bay J/105 Women Skipper Invitational regatta May 21-22. “Fleet 1 is inviting qualified women with competitive sailing experience to sample the fun action these boats enjoy while racing on the windy San Francisco Cityfront race course — as skippers,” writes Nicole Breault of the J/105 Arbitrage.
Most of the boats will come staffed with their usual (coed) crews, and all will have an owner’s representative aboard. There may be a boat or two with flexibility for the guest skipper to bring along her own qualified teammates. Saturday will include an optional practice followed by dinner and a panel discussion on the history of the J/105 Class, women in sailing, and some go-fast pointers. Three races are scheduled for Sunday’s regatta. If you are an interested woman with helming experience, or if you are a J/105 owner who would like to participate and is seeking a skipper, please contact Nicole Breault at [email protected].
More May Regattas
Santa Cruz YC will host the Moore 24 PCCs on May 13-15.
StFYC invites one-design dinghy classes to the Elvstrom/Zellerbach Regatta on May 14-15.
Richmond YC will host the Express 27 National Championships on May 20-22.
The next race in the SSS series will be the Singlehanded Farallones on the 21st. The deadline to register is May 18.
Memorial Day Weekend
The Master Mariners Regatta will kick off the three-day weekend in grand style on Saturday the 28th, with spectating from the S.F. Marina and Crissy Field, the Golden Gate Bridge, and (for the finish) the east side of Treasure Island. Most of the entries will end up rafted up at Encinal YC in Alameda.
Alamitos Bay YC will host a Memorial Day Regatta in Long Beach, and Whiskeytown Sailing Club welcomes the trailer crowd to their Memorial Weekend Regatta, both on May 28-29.
With the border between the US and Canada reopened, Royal Victoria YC can bring back the Swiftsure International Yacht Race on May 28-30.
California Offshore Race Week will run May 28-June 2. The first leg, the Spinnaker Cup, will take sailors from San Francisco to Monterey on May 28. The Coastal Cup will sail from Monterey to Santa Barbara May 30-31. An in-port race hosted by Santa Barbara YC will follow on June 1. The SoCal 300, from Santa Barbara to San Diego, will start on June 2.
So many regattas pepper the calendar this spring that we can only post a sampling of them here. For many more, see the Calendar, coming out in the May issue of Latitude 38 this Friday, April 29.