It’s the middle of winter for most, but here in sunny San Diego, it’s 75 degrees every day. The San Diego Yacht Club knows exactly what to do with this formula and has been hosting the Women's Winter Invitational Regatta for the last 6 years and 2022 brought in an ever-growing interest from clubs and associations all across the US, including Hawaii and a team from Mexico. 24 teams were accepted to the slate and arrived for racing February 12-13th.
Twenty-four teams from around the US and Mexico made their way to San Diego this weekend for two days of competitive sailing in the 2022 Women’s Winter Invitational (WWI). Hosted by San Diego Yacht Club (SDYC), the J/22 regatta invites yacht clubs from all over the country to apply to send their best all-women teams for a series of racing in La Playa Cove. This year, over 80 talented women raced in a total of 58 races, but only one team took home the bragging rights for 1st overall. Coming from right down the I-5, California Yacht Club (Cal YC) sent team members familiar to the San Diego racing scene, Skipper Simone Staff and crew Beka Schiff and Melia Grasska.
The Etchells Fleet, one of San Diego’s most active and competitive fleets, has been gearing up this month in preparation for their biggest series in California, the 2022 Etchells West Coast Spring Series. Made up of four individual regattas spanning March to May, the series is known for its challenging racing amongst skilled sailors. Hosted by San Diego Yacht Club, the local fleet, Etchells Fleet 13 - San Diego, invites members and associates of the International Etchells Class to join them for the following regatta dates:
Pacific Coast Championship: March 5-6, 2022
Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series (Bill Bennett Memorial): March 25-27, 2022
Midwinters West: April 8-10, 2022
Orca Bowl: May 14-15, 2022
The Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series, formally known as the NOOD (National Offshore One Design) Regatta, returns to San Diego on March 25-27, 2022. Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series - San Diego is hosted by San Diego Yacht Club and Coronado Yacht Club and invites the following fleets to compete in South San Diego Bay and Coronado Roads: 29er, 505, F18, I14, Beneteau 36.7, Beneteau 40.7, Etchells, J/70, J1/05, J/120, Ultimate 20, and Viper 640.
US Sailing Announces the Shortlist for 2021 Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year Awards
Five men and four women have been shortlisted for US Sailing’s 2021 Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year awards.
Erik Shampain (SDYC) – 2021 was a year to remember for Shampain as his teams dominated major events across multiple classes and disciplines. Winning the J/70 Pre-Worlds event and then finishing 2nd at the Worlds Championship, Shampain’s teams also won the Etchells Midwinters West, finished second in the Midwinters East, and finished 3rd at the North American Championship. Additionally, Shampain was part of the Melges 24 National Championship team, the winning Congressional Cup team, a 3rd place Ficker Cup team, and placed 3rd in the Transpac Race.
Newport, RI (February 1, 2022) — With the 2022 racing season now underway, Bonnier Events continues to build on the rich tradition of the iconic brand of Sailing World magazine and its long-running racing series by introducing the rebranded Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series.
Featuring both a new name and event branding, the Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta Series will kick off its 33rd season in St. Petersburg in February. Formerly called the National Offshore One-Design Regatta, the format was an immediate success with its unique concept of racing level in larger production boats, its unrivaled post-racing social experiences and its professional race management. The Sailing World Regatta Series grew nationally and remains the most popular weekend racing series in the United States.
2021 was another successful year of Finn sailing for the SDYC Finn Fleet and SoCal Finn sailors up and down the California coast with a total of 33- Finns sailing for the SDYC Highpoint Champs and 44 Finns sailing for the Ironman Highpoint trophy. A special thanks go out to the participating Finn fleets from Mission Bay Yacht Club, Newport Harbor Yacht Club, and Alamitos Bay Yacht Club w/ Finn sailors continuing to travel north and south depending on the regatta schedule making for a lot of fun weekends on the water in a wide range of conditions. Also, a special thanks go out to our fine team of RC volunteers here at SDYC where they make it look easy- spoiling us with high-quality race management… Without their time on the water and commitment to running super races, these results would not be possible.
In December 2021, Ian and I had the chance to travel halfway around the world to a place we would never have thought we would travel to in order to participate in the Youth Sailing World Championships. The regatta was held in Mussanah, Oman in the Middle East and ran from December 11th to the 17th, 2021.
Our regatta started several days beforehand when we left our house to travel 36 hours to get to the venue. We drove to LAX and from there flew to Qatar, had an 8 hour layover and then flew on to Oman. It was quite confusing when we arrived due to the twelve hour time change and the fact that we had lost a day traveling. Luckily, we had a few days before the event to get used to the time change.
U.S. SailGP Team athletes CJ Perez and Andrew Campbell joined with the team’s #RacefortheFuture partner RISE to discuss how exploring our identities helps us realize the importance of diversity, and the core values that unite us on their latest "Champions of Change" podcast. It’s a privilege to work together with organizations like RISE as we continue to challenge our sport to change.
Listen Here: https://apple.co/3Ej6roS
A second-place finish at the Australia Sail Grand Prix presented by KPMG qualified the United States and event winner Australia, for the winner-take-all $1 million Season 2 Grand Final at the United States Sail Grand Prix San Francisco, March 26-27. The team includes two SDYC members: Jimmy Spithill and Andrew Campbell.
Per SailGP rules, only the top three overall teams at the end of the season will qualify for entry to the high-stakes, final race of the season.
Securing the team’s Grand Final berth sets up a dream comeback scenario for U.S. SailGP Team’s CEO and Driver Jimmy Spithill, who now looks to win sailing’s largest prize in front of the hometown, San Francisco crowd.