For the first roll call of the 2018 Vallarta Race, it was clear that Peter Isler’s weather briefing the morning before had been spot on. “You’re going to have a banner evening with full moon and full breeze…” he advised.
Thus this from Marjorie Friday morning: “…Just as Peter promised – bright worm moon, building breeze and great sailing…”, and “…sacrificed 1 spinnaker in 21 knot gybe…”. Cabernet Sky chimed in with “…spin halyard separated just after sunset, fished A3 from under boat…”. And this from Tropic Thunder “…30kt gust took out full symmetrical sail…”!
The Vallarta Race 2018 is officially underway with the first 3 boats getting their start on Thursday. The rest of the teams can be found enjoying beer and tacos along with Mariachis provided by partner Bay City Brewing and Mexico Tourism at the San Diego Yacht Club for the Kick Off Race Party tonight as they gear up for their starts on Friday and Saturday.
The Helly Hansen National Offshore One Design (NOOD) Regatta will return to San Diego on March 16-18, 2018. Organized by Sailing World and sponsored by Helly Hansen, the NOOD is the largest national sailboat racing circuit in the United States. Although this is only the 20th year of the NOOD in San Diego, 2018 marks the 30th year total of NOOD Regattas around the country.
The three-day event, hosted by San Diego Yacht Club (SDYC) and Coronado Yacht Club, will feature sailing on three venues (two ocean and one south San Diego Bay), and one cruising course located in San Diego Bay. Back this year will be the North Sails Rally on Saturday for boats that do not fit in a one design class.
For the ninth year, San Diego Yacht Club and Newport Harbor Yacht Club hosted the 130nm Islands Race on February 16 and 17. Kicking off the 2018 offshore racing season in Southern California, many boats used this year's Islands Race as a tune-up for SDYC's Vallarta Race which will have its first start on March 1.
Islands Race competitors have experienced a variety of conditions since the event started nine years ago, ranging from so windy the course had to be shortened to so light that many boats had no choice but to drop out and motor home. This year's race fell on the lighter side, with the wind speed never exceeding 10 knots. In addition, with just a sliver moon, sailors were missing one of their favorite features: moonlight!
Sailors and spectators at San Diego Yacht Club were greeted by a fleet of Pac52’s and TP52’s med tied at the front dock from early last week through the weekend, and a fleet of Beneteau 36.7 boats, for the 2018 SCYA Midwinter Regatta. Racing was held on Saturday and Sunday with five races completed.
Nine boats sailed in the ’52 Class in a range of conditions from bumpy and windy on Saturday to smoother water, sunny skies and more moderate breeze on Sunday. The racing was tight as many lead changes occurred and finishes came down to a matter of seconds. Winning the regatta for the 52s was Tony Langley’s team of Land Rover/BAR Gladiator, with Langley on the helm and Sir Ben Ainslie calling tactics. The team from Great Britain is challenging for the America’s Cup, and is using the Pac52 class and also the TP52 SuperSeries as training grounds for their team.