Regattas Galore in the Month of August

A Sampling of Races Around Northern California

The Melges 24 Pacific Coast Championship on August 3-4 (with a practice race on Friday the 2nd) will serve as a warm-up to the Worlds. Richmond Yacht Club will run the races in the Berkeley Circle area that San Francisco YC will use for the Melges 24 Worlds on August 20-24. As of this morning, 31 teams had registered for the Worlds, and 19 have entered the PCCs.

Sequoia Yacht Club invites local racers to participate in the annual South Bay Championship, incorporating the Open 5.70 North Americans on August 3-4. SeqYC intends to run five races over the two days. They’ll offer a South of the Border-themed party on Saturday night at their club in Redwood City. 

On August 3 Sausalito YC will welcome all-female and mixed crews for their Women Skippers’ Regatta.

The spectacle that is the Great S.F. Schooner Race and Belvedere Classic will return to SFYC on August 10.

Encinal YC’s Gracie & George on Sunday, August 11, will be a doublehanded, coed, women skippers’ race (Gracie drives).

SFYC will take advantage of a nearly full moon on August 17 with the 34-mile Midnight Moonlight Maritime Marathon, a pursuit race to the Carquinez Bridge and back.

Car-top your El Toro and head upslope for the “Worlds” on Pinecrest Lake, a high-altitude resort, on August 17-18. See www.eltoroyra.org.

Head over the hill to pastoral Tomales Bay for the International 110 PCCs at Inverness YC on August 23-25.

A Busy Time of Year at St. Francis

US Sailing and St. Francis YC announce the first-ever US Wingfoil Championship, to be held on August 9-11 in San Francisco. The heavy breeze conditions and challenging currents of San Francisco Bay will test skills in this up-and-coming class.

On August 17-18, StFYC will host the Phyllis Kleinman Swiftsure for Cape 31, Express 37, Folkboat, J/105, J/22, J/88, Knarr, Melges 24 and Moore 24 classes, plus ORC- and PHRF-rated boats. 

On August 29 (yes, that’s a Thursday), StFYC will start the Ronstan Bridge to Bridge Race for hydrofoil kites, windsurfers and wingfoilers at the Golden Gate Bridge.

Out the Gate

The Yacht Racing Association and the Singlehanded Sailing Society will join forces to organize the Drake’s Bay Race, with a leg from San Francisco to Drake’s Bay on Saturday the 10th, and a race back on Sunday the 11th. (Anchor out overnight — there are no docks!) Register for the YRA version and/or the SSS version on Jibeset.

Coastside

On the first weekend of August, Stillwater YC in Pebble Beach will host Santana 22s for Santanarama.

The Mercury fleet will sail on Carmel Bay out of Stillwater YC for their Labor Day Regatta, actually a week early on August 24-25. Update of August 9: This regatta was canceled, as the hoist at Stillwater Cove is out of order. 

From Our Friends to the North

On August 10, Hood River YC in Oregon will offer up the Double Damned Race, an often-devilish dash from the Cascade Locks to the Dalles.

San Juan Island YC will run the 54th Shaw Island Classic on the 10th. The race starts and ends in Friday Harbor, WA, and allows racers to circumnavigate Shaw Island in either direction. A hearty lasagna dinner and awards presentation will follow the race. The public can watch the race from the shores of San Juan, Orcas, Lopez and Shaw Islands, as well as from ferries transiting the course. The race is open to multihulls, unballasted centerboards, PHRF sailboats and cruising sailboats of all sizes and rigs.

In Southern California

On August 5-8, San Diego YC will host the Chubb US Youth Triplehanded Championship. The kids will compete for the Sears Cup in SDYC’s fleet of J/22s.

Balboa YC in Newport Beach will host the Laser (aka ILCA) Nationals on August 9-11. California YC in Marina del Rey will follow up with the ILCA (aka Laser) Masters North Americans on August 15-18. Charters are available. The entry fee discount will end tomorrow, Thursday, August 1. August 15 will be a prep and practice day, on land and on the water. Fleet member Emilio Castelli is providing complimentary wine. “I understand some of you may have concerns regarding our facilities following the recent clubhouse fire,” writes regatta chair Janice Pearson-Read. “Rest assured, the impact on your experience will be minimal.”

Labor Day Weekend Regattas

Labor Day Weekend will actually start in August this year. You’ll have a lot of races to choose from, so we’ll save those events for a special preview a couple of weeks from now.

As always, the above regattas are just a few of the events available to West Coast sailboat racers. For many more, see our Calendar in Latitude 38, coming out tomorrow, and the 2024 Northern California Sailing Calendar and YRA Master Schedule. Also feel free to give a shoutout to your faves in the Comments section below.