Fourth of July Regatta set for this weekend

by Rich Roberts on 4 Jul 2013 The Alamitos Bay Yacht Club will draw to a close this holiday week with its annual Fourth of July Regatta this Saturday and Sunday. Entries of all ages from throughout Southern California will compete in various classes from Naples Sabots to A-Class catamarans.
Online registration is available. Racing outside on the harbor inside the breakwater and inside on the bay is scheduled to start at noon each day, conditions permitting.

The event is one of ABYC's four traditional holiday sailfests, along with the spring's Memorial Day Regatta and the Labor Day and Turkey Day (Thanksgiving) regattas yet to come.

In tune with the holiday, the Fourth of July Regatta has been known to produce its own fireworks, as in last year's vigorous Lido 14 competition inside on the bay. Veteran Bruce Golison, who last month finished third in the Etchells class North American Championships at Newport, R.I., outfought his brother Mark and the always exigent Stu Robertson.

Robertson seized the lead on the next-to-last lap of the final, decisive race but thought it was the last lap and, at the top of the leg, turned right toward the finish line instead of left to the windward mark, sailing himself out of the fight.

Later, it didn't matter when he and Mark Golison were both disqualified on their protests over a port-starboard collision earlier in the race. Although the jury ruled that Mark was wrong as the port-tack boat, Robertson also was DSQ'd for not trying to avoid a crash.

The weekend weather forecast is for sun, wind of 7-8 knots and a high temperature of 75F.

2012 class winners

(one discard)

Formula 18s (12 boats; Area J Multihull Championships)---Bill Westland/Alex Westland, ABYC, 2-1-1-(4)-2-1-1, 9 points.
CAL 20 (8)---Stan Gibbs/Chuck Clay, ABYC, (5)-1-2-2-1-1-1, 8.
Coronado 15s (5)---Vincent Paternoster/Vadim Mantelzak, South Coast Corinthian YC, 1-1-1-1, 4.
Lido 14-A (12)---Bruce Golison/Dina Corsi, ABYC, (3)-1-3-2-2-3-1, 12.
Lido 14-B (4)---Butch Michel/Melody Wong, SSC, 1-1-1-1-(2)-2-1, 7.
Naples Sabots-A (9)---Sawyer Gibbs, ABYC, 5/scoring penalty-1-2-6-1-(10/DSQ)-3, 18.
Naples Sabots -B (13)---Cole Pomeroy, Newport Harbor YC, 1-1-1-1-(8)-2-3, 9.
Naples Sabots -C1 (18)---Erik Hou, NHYC, 2-(17)-2-2-3-7-1, 17.
Naples Sabots-C2 (11)---Joshua Means, Bahia Corinthian YC, 2-3-1-2-3-1-(4), 12.
Naples Sabots -C3 (7)---Hailey Horton, NHYC, 2-1-(4)-4-1-2-2, 12.
Event website