Strictly Sail Pacific Boats, Gear and Inspiration

by Cynthia Goss on 1 Apr 2008 When Strictly Sail Pacific opens its gates at Jack London Square on April 16, the largest sailboat show on the West Coast will showcase the latest in sailboats and equipment, as well as five days of inspiration: sailing experts and personalities travel to Oakland each year to bring their knowledge and passion for the sport in seminars that run all five days of the show.

'Showgoers who come to this year's show will not only see an extensive marketplace, but also gain a great deal of information and inspiration,' said Kevin Murphy of show organizer Sail America. 'Weather experts, round-the-world racers, cruisers who lead lives of bluewater adventure: they all make this event a unique mix of products and personality.'

Among the sailors joining the over 200 companies exhibiting at the show are:

§ Lin and Larry Pardey, who have voyaged under sail together for some 40 years, completing East-about and West-about circumnavigations and capturing the record for sailing the smallest boat around the world's southern capes against the prevailing winds; the Pardeys, who travel to the show from New Zealand, have encouraged many others to follow in their wake through their many books, videos, and appearances;

§ Clipper 07-08 Race crew and organizers, who come to Strictly Sail to talk about a round-the-world contest where teachers, doctors, farmers, students, homemakers, corporate executives and others take a sabbatical from daily routines to compete in this global adventure. The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race—the brainchild of legendary solo sailor Sir Robin Knox-Johnston and the only round-the-world yacht race for non-professional sailors—is due to arrive in Santa Cruz during Strictly Sail Pacific, after the fleet's departure from Qingdao, China, in February;

§ Adventurer and photojournalist Mike Harker, who stops at Strictly Sail to tell the story of his 11-month circumnavigation aboard his Hunter 49 Wanderlust III. After nearly being killed in a hang-gliding accident in the late '70s, Harker endured a ten-year recovery before becoming an offshore cruiser;

§ Bluewater voyager Barbara Marrett, who has sailed long distances in cruising and racing boats, with voyages in the North and South Pacific, the Caribbean, Europe, and the Inside Passage; Marrett also teaches ocean-passagemaking skills aboard the 65-foot sail-training vessel Alaska Eagle for Orange Coast College's School of Sailing and Seamanship;

§ Marine meteorologist Lee Chesneau—a former weather analyst and forecaster for government and private industry, including 18 years as senior marine meteorologist for NOAA/National Weather Service's Ocean Prediction Center—who founded Lee Chesneau's Marine Weather to pass his knowledge about meteorology on to seafaring mariners.

Strictly Sail Pacific is designed for sailing enthusiasts of all levels of ability—even those who have not yet stepped foot aboard a sailboat. Free with the price of admission are half-hour sailing excursions with an experienced skipper with the Discover Sailing Program, a national program coordinated by show organizer Sail America and designed to introduce more people to the sport.

Several boats are making world, national, and West Coast debuts at the show. Pacific Yacht Imports of Alameda will showcase the first Tayana 54 ever built, a 54-foot deck salon/center cockpit design well suited to coastal passagemaking and blue-water voyaging.

Passage Yachts (Pt. Richmond and Alameda) will debut the Beneteau First 45 and the Beneteau 31, and Cruising Yachts (Alameda) will debut the Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 49i Performance.

Other designs making first-time appearances at Strictly Sail Pacific include the J/122, which competed in the Rolex Big Boat Series on San Francisco Bay last fall, the Beneteau 37, the Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 45 DS, and the Hunter 45DS. The Alerion Express 28, which has a strong San Francisco Bay following, also makes its first appearance at a West Coast boat show.

Making a return appearance at Strictly Sail Pacific is the environmentally friendly 65-footer Derek M. Baylis, designed by pioneering Californian naval architect Tom Wylie and built in Watsonville (Calif.). The boat was designed to give marine researchers and educators access to the ocean while leaving a minimal footprint on the environment, and in the world of marine research vessels, this sailboat is like a hybrid car—tapping both the power of the wind and that of an auxiliary diesel engine.

Fitted with an innovative double-masted, cat-ketch rig, the boat consumes a fraction of the fuel used by research vessels driven by engines alone. The Derek M. Baylis takes passengers aboard for a first-hand look at how man's actions can affect the health of the ocean, and the boat stops at Strictly Sail Pacificto extend its environmental education to showgoers who step aboard.

Strictly Sail Pacific at Jack London Square is open on Wednesday,
April 16(12 noon to 7 pm); Thursday,
April 17 and Friday, April 18 (11 am to 7 pm); Saturday, April 19 (10 am to
7 pm); and Sunday, April 20 (10 am to 5 pm).
Adult ticket prices are $12 on weekdays, $15 on the weekend; junior sailors aged 15 and under, accompanied by an adult, are free.

For more information on the show and to purchase tickets, visit www.strictlysail.com.
Strictly Sail Pacific is organized by Sail America, the trade association for the U.S. sailing industry.