San Francisco Yacht Club Sails Inaugural “Sprint” Regatta
The Inaugural SFYC Sprint, held March 21–22 in the San Francisco Yacht Club’s (SFYC) fleet of RS21s, was a great success and a ton of fun for competitors! Regatta Chair Ethan Doyle developed the open sprint after competing in league-style sailing for Team SFYC last summer in Kiel, Germany, and after the success of the SFYC Youth Team that represented the USA and placed second in Spain in a similar format.
The basic concept of sprint- or “league-” style racing utilizes a matched fleet of boats like the RS21s on short windward/leeward courses, where two laps are completed in 15 minutes or less. More teams than boats are invited to compete — teams are rotated into and out of boats according to a schedule that allows for all teams to race each other the same number of times, but also for the heats to be mixed up. The rotation aspect is reminiscent of college sailing and allows teams on a “bye” to watch their competitors race.
The format is especially attractive to active racers who like competitive fleet racing, while being a more accessible option than owning and campaigning a one-design program. The racing is umpired by on-the-water judges who follow along closely. Protests are signaled from competitors with a flag, and judges assign penalty turns when they observe that a foul has occurred. This eliminates drawn-out protests back at the dock, making it much easier to leave any heated moments on the water and allowing for more enjoyable post-racing socialization.
The conditions this weekend were forecast to be light, but both days filled in with “champagne” sailing conditions: warm breezes of 12–18 knots and flat water due to the building flood. The flood made the downwind legs especially lively; in some cases crews were hoisting, jibing multiple times, and dousing, all within the three minutes it took to fly from the windward to the leeward mark. Ethan reflected positively on the weekend and remarked, “We achieved the mission of proving the concept that we can run an open sprint invitational that attracts top-quality sailors. The top three spots were represented by three different clubs, Richmond, SFYC, and Corinthian Yacht Clubs, and there was participation from six different Bay Area clubs.”
Fleet manager and regatta bosun Adam Corpuz-Lahne had the boats in top form, and the RS21s were on full display with brand-new race sails, ripping downwind with the Golden Gate highlighted in the background.
As the scoreboard reflects, Lucy Wilmot and her crew of Chris Weis, Sammy Shea and Hayden Stapleton sailing for RYC put up a commanding performance from start to finish, securing the win by 16 points over 20 races! Ethan Doyle and his crew of Ryan Lynch, Noah Barrengos and Harrison Doyle took second, sailing for Team SFYC. Nick Voss and Daniel Thielman traded off on the helm with crew Nicole Voss and Jenn Canestra, all representing Corinthian Yacht Club and rounding out the podium in third.
You can find the full results of the regatta here.