83rd Annual Midwinter Sailing Regatta

Hundreds of sailors and sailboats will participate this weekend in the 83rd Annual Midwinter Regatta, organized by the Southern California Yachting Association. SCYA was founded in 1921 to establish yacht racing rules and encourage people to enjoy sailing and sailboat racing.

In 1928, SCYA and the L.A. Chamber of Commerce sponsored the first Midwinter Regatta in Los Angeles Harbor as a way to promote winter tourism in sunny Southern California. Over the years, it has attracted some of the country’s finest sailors, male and female, and is one of the longest running regattas in the United States. 

SCYA's 2012 Midwinter Chair, Gary Green, says, "The Midwinter Regatta is the largest and most unique regatta in North America. Hundreds of boats compete at 27 venues from San Diego to Santa Barbara and east to Arizona. The 2012 Midwinter will be a truly memorable kick off to the 2012 racing season."

The participating yacht clubs and sailing organizations each host one or more specific sailboat classes. In Marina del Rey, the California Yacht Club will conduct racing for six popular one-design classes: Farr 40, Farr 30, Martin 242, Star, Open 5.70, and J/80. (One-design refers to the fact that each sailboat is identical in construction, rigging, sails, and all other equipment.)

The competition in each class will be heated and involves many of today's finest sailors. Among the racers will be the 2011 Rolex Farr 40 North American Championship winner, Jeff Janov, and his boat Dark Star (sail number 80808). The Open 5.70 from Open Sailing, a successful newcomer to the Southern California sailing world, will also be well represented, with nine boats on the water. Among the Open 5.70 skippers will be Tracey Kenny (USA 169), who placed second in the 2011 Open 5.70 North American Championship in Long Beach.

A regatta chairperson, such as CYC's Joan Chandler, coordinates all the support efforts needed for a successful regatta, including chase boats, mark-set boats, a large motor-yacht needed by the Race Committee, and the many volunteers manning those vessels. These volunteers  are essential to the success of each regatta and each yacht club

Santa Monica Windjammers Yacht Club is responsible for the PHRF A, B & C, Sport Boat, and Cruiser classes. Themis Glatman is SMWYC’s event chair. “PHRF” (“Performance Handicap Racing Fleet”) is a handicapping system that allows dissimilar sailboats to compete against one another. Also racing on Santa Monica Bay will be the Cal 20 fleet and multi-hulls, hosted by King Harbor Yacht Club of Redondo Beach, with Bruce Nelson acting as regatta chairman.

Youth sailors will also be participating.  Del Rey Yacht Club will host the Optimist class and conduct races on the bay and inside the marina. Tucker Strasser is DRYC’s event chairman. The Optimist is one of the most popular boats for teaching young people to sail, and DRYC, like other marina yacht clubs, has a very active juniors program. Small boat or dinghy racing will also take place in Westlake Village at the Westlake Yacht Club as well as at the Alamitos Bay Yacht Club in Long Beach.

Regarded by many as the season opener, for years the regatta was held exclusively in L.A Harbor. In 1973, Marina del Rey and King Harbor were added as venues, followed by sites in Arizona and Nevada. With more and more sailors and sailboats interested in this midwinter event, additional venues were added. Typically, 25 or more host clubs and more than 100 different sailboat classes participate.

Unfortunately, no one can guarantee good winds and fair weather, especially in Southern California in February. Conditions generally run the gamut from blustery conditions that sometimes force cancellations or postponements to a dead calm that grates on the nerves as boats drift on the bay. But it’s all part of the sport of sailing.

As SCYA’s fine website points out, torrential rain and blinding fog occasionally occur, but so do sunny days and warm winds. Many celebrities have competed in the Midwinter Regatta, including Humphrey Bogart, who finished a close second in 1947 in his classic sailing yacht, Santana.

One classic racing sailboat has participated in every Midwinter Regatta, the one-design Star. Sailed with a crew of two, it is easily identified by its sleek, sled-like lines and the distinctive red star emblazoned on its mainsail. 

Star sailboats have raced in every Olympics since the 1932 Los Angeles Games and many past and present Olympics Star sailors have competed in the Midwinter Regatta. This truly international sailboat is raced around the world and, if you come out to watch the races on the bay or to watch the boats leaving from or returning to Marina del Rey, you will see the initials of many nations on the mainsails. Keep an eye open for sailors like George Szabo III of San Diego, 2009 Star World Champion (sail number 8320). 

Over 80 sailing clubs and organizations are members of the Southern California Yachting Association. Besides racing, these clubs encourage youth sailing and the sportsmanship that goes with sailing’s “Corinthian spirit.” If you have the chance, come out this weekend and watch the many boats leaving Marina del Rey starting about 10 a.m. for the races on the bay and when they return around 4 p.m. You’ll see men, women, boys, and girls enjoying the camaraderie and competition of sailboat racing.