2017 SSS 3 Bridge Fiasco overall

by Erik Simonson on 30 Jan 2017 It seems like since forever that the sun has exposed itself for an entire weekend on San Francisco Bay, and no better a weekend to redeem itself than the largest boat volume regatta of the year. The forecast for sun, wind and relatively pleasant temperatures was welcome news for contestants and organizers alike, and 361 entries filled the Bay for yet another edition of the shorthanded sailing annual season opener.

With early morning offshore winds funneling out the Golden Gate in the 20 knot range and a building flood tide, the vast majority of the starters opted to set their kites at the start off the Golden Gate Yacht Club and ride the easterly breeze to Blackaller Buoy and then ride the magic carpet flood tide to Red Rock near the Richmond / San Rafael Bridge, before tackling the Treasure Island / Yerba Buena portion, a clockwise rounding, in sailor speak.

The small minority took a calculated risk on the counter-clockwise route, the would mean getting around TI/YB first then working north to Red Rock before heading back to Blackaller and finish, if they had not already incorporated Blackaller in the initial rounding. The stampede to Blackaller was nothing short of epic and the ensuing beat across the central bay was a rapid one, the lead boats reaching the northernmost point by 11:00 AM. Keeping in mind the reverse starting sequence in this pursuit style event, the clockwise fleet condensed rapidly by Red Rock and the majority of them rounded within 30 minutes of each other. The north easterly wind in the lower to mid teens stayed to the forecast and did not begin to ease for another hour. By noon, there were 300 or so kites flying between Red Rock and just south of South Hampton Shoal. It was sure to be a record fast run this year....

Meanwhile, on the Counter Clockwise course, a small miracle happened... The forecasted easterly had miraculously switch to a south westerly for a short while, giving the handful of takers a much welcomed , but unexpected boost. They were able to clear the Treasure Island / Yerba Buena gauntlet with minimal effort, and keep flying the kites up to and past the Berkeley Pier and into the flats...

The Transition Zone:
With the north easterlies now combating the south westerly, the area surrounding the Berkeley Circle became the “No Sail Zone' for both fleets around the 1300 hour, and the clockwise fleet sailed into a fleet wide park up, allowing the back of the fleet to catch up, creating a virtual restart which last for an hour or more. The new wind, a zephyr, moved slowly down the bay touching down first on the outside and transitioning back towards shore, allowing the fleet a very slight mobility against the now building ebb.

The CCW fleet caught another break as they worked their way up the Oly Circle with building breeze. One of the lucky ones was this year’s winners, Rufus Sjoberg and Dylan Benjamin on the Melges 24 Rufless 2.

'We had planned on CCW before the race started, and when the hordes all headed for Blackaller then Red Rock, we were happy to avoid the masses' Rufus explains ' We had no idea we would get the SW shift off the City Front and when we got past Yerba Buena, we knew we had a good shot!' Rufless would reach Red Rock just after the last CW boats had cleared and was then able to fly the kite all the way through Raccoon Strait doing 10-12 knots over the ground. But as luck would have it, outbound ship with military escort cut off their path and they were forced to cool their jets by Horseshoe Cove before recommencing the sleigh ride to Blackaller. 'We planed across the gate, crabbing like crazy in the 5-6 knot ebb, good times for sure' Rufless would go on to finish at 14:27:07....

Back at the Clockwise Fleet, the boats continued their southbound migration at a snail’s pace, leads would be gained and then lost over an over again. Even the big cats were having a tough go beating the 2 plus knot ebb east of Treasure Island. Last year's 3BF monohull winner, Bill Erkelens had upgraded from the Wylie Wabbit, Jack, he used last year, and was sailing on the Melges 32 Leenabarca. 'By the time the parkup started to release, it was good to be on a light, powered boat with some waterline. We sailed from one side of the fleet to the other, then ended going back to the outside and found a bit of an eddy close to the island. It wasn't much, but just enough to get us over the hump and finally under the bridge' Bill and crewmember Larry Gamble would clear YB and ride the ebb and breeze all the way to the finish (about 15:30ish) to get the wrong way booby prize...

Meanwhile, back with the pack, the majority of the Clockwise Crew reached the milestone that was the Bay Bridge en masse. An epic sea of humanity and brilliant nylon which must have appeared like some cult gathering by drivers on the bridge above. In the chaos which ensued, roughly half the fleet sailed deep to get around the Yerba Buena wind shadow and the other 1/2 taking a more direct path, closer to the USCG Buoy Dock and the lighthouse. Most managed a safe passage, but a handful of boat ended up too far inside, finding themselves without wind and in and adverse piece of current. We spoke with the owners of one boat that saw the writing on the wall, fired up the outboard and called the race deck to retire. A few others ended up swapping paint with the Buoy Tender Aspen, and ended up retiring with some battle tales to tell.

In general, most of the fleet was able to make it up to the finish before dark, and then begin the long ride back to their respective marinas after a fun packed, full day on the bay, this weekend with NO Rain!