Coastal
BlastBy Mary Swift-Swan
The Encinal Yacht Club “Coastal Cup” is a
well-organized fun introduction to long distance offshore
racing. If racing around the Bay, near and around the
Farallone Islands, has begun to pale as a means of challenge
and excitement, for an entry fee of $250, there is still
time to participate in the Coastal Cup. It is a coastal
blast.
The
coastal destination race is around 300 miles. It starts on
June 12th at noon in front of St. Francis Yacht Club near
the Golden Gate Bridge. Once outside the Gate, the fleet
turns left, avoiding the Montera wind hole, scoots down the
Big Sur coastline, then whips around the infamous Point
Conception, using all the tactical knowledge aboard to sail
to the finish off the quiet harbor of Santa Barbara. There
are a few oil derricks and ships to duck, fishing fleets to
watch for, and the rocket ride around Conception to survive,
but most years it is a race of clear sailing along the
beautiful California coastline.
After a warm welcome from Santa Barbara
Yacht Club members and staff, new arrivals tell tales of
whales and wild sailing moments of their adventure. The
awards banquet is held on June 16th. Following the party,
many leave at odd hours to catch Conception while she is
hopefully sleeping. The whole trip should only take a week,
allowing time to stop at a few harbors and anchorages along
the way. Those who have the summer off can choose to visit
the Channel Islands or cruise around Southern California
waters for a while before returning. With the race over, the
rest is summer fun.
To enter the race, stop by Encinal Yacht Club in Alameda, or
visit the electronic club (http://www.encinal.org) to fill
out an entry form. Steve Rienhart is organizing the race, so
call (415) 244-5960 for questions. The deadline is June 9th
to give the race committee time to prepare packets for all
skippers for the Skippers Meeting at EYC on June 10th. There
were 26 boats entered as of press time, ranging from the
sleek Andrews 77 “Alchemy,” an easy-to-sail Wylie Cat 30,
and wave-hopping Santa Cruz 27, with a bit of everything in
between. To those entered, have a safe and fun time creating
lifetime memories of sailing the edge of the Big Pond.