2015 Great Vallejo Regatta - Dredge it and they will come

by Erik Simonson on 5 May 2015 169 boats registered for the annual YRA spring slide to Vallejo Yacht Club. After a several year cycle of sediment deposits finally removed, the good folks at VYC were happy to announce that deep water berthing was once again on the menu along with other enticement to sway the masses. 19 divisions with boats ranging from 20' to 52' loaded up with a wide variety of crew, from seasoned pros to the sometimes weekenders wandered out to the Berkeley Circle for the 11:AM first gun and the downhill, up river, 21.5 nm voyage to destination YRA Party Circuit #1.

The beauty of the Vallejo, is its simplicity. Pack the coolers and the sunscreen, invite friends and family who might otherwise decline a more labor intensive event, cross the start line within 15 minutes of your designated start time, a short jaunt to weather, set the kite and off you go! Okay, some divisions take it a bit more serious than that, but in general, the party atmosphere starts at the dock and continues through the day and well into the evening and into the next day. The forecasted flood for the AM was complimented with an increased SW onshore flow, just the right conditions for a fast transit to the massive raft up where crews could relax and enjoy the warm sun and warm company surrounding them.

This year's start saw 12-15 knots from the first gun, and 1/2 mile 'weather mark' turning buoy allowed for full on drag races on port, with the biggest decision on when to set. With the favorable current strongest in the deeper water, any inkling to dive deep early was dismissed and the majority of the fleet remained center channel, only bearing off when their particular kites would carry. Southampton Shoal seemed to be the litmus test for most, with sprit carrying asymmetric boat electing to set a tad earlier.

In an average year, the transit toward Red Rocks and the Brothers would be the weeding out zone, as wind typically lighten and switch to a more WNW direction until you have passed Point San Pablo. 2015 would prove different as the SW breeze not only refused to shift, it increased! The normal squeeze between the Brothers and Point San Pablo gave way to the majority of boats staying mid channel and enjoying the magic carpet ride and the full kites! While the lead boats settled into a tranquil 15 knot transit of San Pablo Bay in fast flat water, the masses from the rear were closing in!

As the day progressed, so did the pressure and the later starters were blessed with a nice extra push courtesy of Ma Nature with the remaining flood carrying the majority well past the Brothers. By 1:30 PM, the winds filtering onto San Pablo Bay were a steady low 20's and the smaller boats were well on their way to corrected time joy! The greatest joy might have been the Multihulls which in this race, start last but have plenty of increased navigational waters, allowing them to cut corners and sail deeper than their fixed keel counterparts and despite starting last, they were able to sail, through and around the other fleets to finish in the top four positions overall!

As mentioned earlier, the brevity of this event is a social one, and this year’s record pace allowed the raftup to start early and the first pu-pus to be passed before some boats had even broken out the lunches. Daniel Thielman's RP 44 Tai Kuai scooted across the finish line in just 2h:13m:08s and along with 13 other boats had completed the trip before 2:00 PM.

With the aforementioned dredging and some creative rafting in the harbor, boats that in years past happily tied up and relax as opposed to years prior where boats either turned and burned or spent the night with anchor set in the Mare Island Strait. The parade of spinnakers up San Pablo Bay and into the Napa River was a relentless stream with the majority completing the journey in the 2:00PM - 4:00 PM hours, with just a couple boats wandering across thereafter. Plenty of time to tie up and party down!