3 Attachment(s)
111th Great Vallejo Race - May 1st & 2nd 2010 / SF to Vallejo - Party- & Return
A good race and a GREAT party...
But alas - no Ariels or Commanders are enrolled as of this posting.
- I might go out & join the melee as the boats approach the Vallejo Yacht club - then join the party. Or I might just watch the 'under-spinnaker bottleneck' at the entrance to the Mare Is. straights from above on the bluff with a few cold drinks...
Pictures from last year's gray and light wind-edition:
Picture 1: The bottleneck at the entrance to the Mare Is. Straights
Picture 2: Some of the fleet Rounding Point San Pablo in the distance. Participation was down due to a wet forecast last year. There were about 350 or so boats, if I recall.
Attachment: 2010 Edition Race Announcement Flyer
"A Brief History
According to our official history, as written by Club Historian Janet Evans in 2000 on the occasion of the club’s 100th anniversary, Vallejo Yacht Club (est. 1900) was a popular cruise destination for other clubs in the San Francisco Bay Area during the turn of the 20th century and the early years of our club.
It is commonly regarded that any two sailboats headed in the same general direction are “racing”. It can therefore be concluded that VYC has been a popular race venue among the yachting community in San Francisco for over a hundred years. The Pacific Inter-Club Yacht Association (PICYA) organized cruises to VYC in the early years of the century and we must assume that some of these involved racing.
The first mention of an organized race came in 1925, when PICYA organized a cruise to Vallejo on a Saturday, to be followed by a race back on Sunday. This is probably the official origin of the Great Vallejo Race, now reputed to be the largest inland regatta in the United States, drawing from 300 to 500 boats annually. Now under the aegis of the Yacht Racing Association of San Francisco Bay, it is a two-day race that marks the official opening of the Bay’s racing season.
The Race!
The race starts near the Berkeley Circle on Saturday morning, rounds a single weather mark near Alcatraz, and then heads to Vallejo, usually under spinnaker for the remainder of the race. The challenge is to maintain speed through the shadow of Angel Island, find the best combination of wind and current past the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge and East Brother Light Station and then avoid the mud shoals on the east side of San Pablo Bay. Depending on the day, the passage through San Pablo Bay can be a breeze (intentional pun), or a miserable drifter, complicated always by the currents, no matter its direction.
As the boats enter Carquinez Strait, they bunch together making the turn into Mare Island Strait where the fun really starts. Because of the topography of Mare Island, as well as the fact that it sits at the mouth of the Napa River, local knowledge (or many years of sailing the race) can make the difference as the yachts maneuver toward the finish line on the Vallejo city waterfront. Winds vary from light to heavy, and are exceedingly shifty. After the long run up the Bay many crews are lulled to sleep by the time they enter the Strait but a sharp crew can usually pick off several places with close attention to trim, wind, and current. Just be sure to check your charts and keep a close watch on your depth sounder!
More excitement ensues as the yachts maneuver into the club’s harbor for a massive raft-up. Good humor, steady nerves, and an intimate knowledge of one’s craft are useful in this exercise. Lots of fenders and dock lines help, too. Club volunteers guide each boat into her place in the raft, and secure her for the night.
The Party! -The most challenging part of the race...
Then the party begins. A band and a bar are set up on the South Dock to entertain in the afternoon. Dinner cooked by club volunteers is served in the club’s parking lot, as the number of diners far exceeds the club’s capacity.
Then the evening dance begins in the main room, and lasts until the wee hours of Sunday morning…
Sometime in this entire hullabaloo, the first day’s race results are posted. Skippers and crew alike pore anxiously over the lists, checking their standing and time differential against their nearest competitors. Crew meetings are held, strategies devised, victories celebrated, sorrows drowned and many old tales told.
Next morning, after breakfast prepared by more volunteers, crews wander (or stagger) back to their boats to prep for the trip home.
The Finish!
Sunday’s starting line is Saturday’s finish line, with just as many boats jockeying for position in the narrow confines of Mare Island Strait for a reaching start. Lots of hailing and maneuvering take place at the line as boats search for a favored slot with clear air yet not so close to the pin that they risk being luffed over the pin (sometimes it pays to sneak down low where the breeze is usually stronger and an early ebb can provide dividends – but watch out for the shoaling too!). Since the homeward run is often a beat into the prevailing westerlies, it’s commonly more strenuous, and wet and cold, than Saturday’s downhill run. Add to this mix the hydrographics of Mare Island Strait, the fact that the wind in the strait is no indication of what will be encountered San Pablo Bay, and the peculiarities of the currents, there is plenty of room for a good tactician on any boat. (it usually pays to stay high as you pass the old Coast Guard dock
and catch the early lift there – but don’t forget, you have to leave mark #1 to starboard!)
The race finishes near G-17, off the San Rafael Channel, just before the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. In all, the course is about 40 miles long, tests skippers and crew alike, and makes a grand, splashy start to the Bay’s racing season. Final results are posted on the YRA website within a few days.
Join the fun; don’t be left behind.
For specific information on entering this year’s race, consult the YRA’s website.
