Extreme Racing - 18' Skiffs Sailing in San Francisco

San Francisco - The new American Sailing League kicked off their highly-anticipated flagship event of the season at Pier 39 in San Francisco this past weekend. Saturday’s overcast skies and light breeze made for a nice practice session for the five 18’ skiffs participating, but the arrival of sunshine and moderate wind on Sunday kicked up some choppy seas which provided some fine spectator sailing.

An intimate crowd of sailing enthusiasts and tourists enjoyed the spectacle just off pier’s end, many unfamiliar with the 18 footers and the tactical skill and endurance required to sail these boats. Thankfully, the lively announcers kept all up to speed with a play by play of the short races, and delivered information about the skiffs and the men aboard putting on the show.

The five 18’ skiffs (and a handful of 29er’s running simultaneous races) strategically maneuvered between day sailors, dinghies, and ferry boats as they crossed the course and whizzed by just a few yards off the edge of the pier. The final race cracked off slightly ahead of schedule and did not disappoint those seeking the ‘extreme’ element the 18’ class is known for.

Team Cabot Cheese, the early favorite on Sunday suffered a broken bowsprit and were forced to retire. Next with the misfortune were Team Switch who had to call it quits after tearing their mainsail during a capsize. Team Harken with Patrick Whitmarsh at the tiller pulled it together flawlessly among the three remaining skiffs, and screamed across the finish line ahead of Team SkiffSailing.org with Team Natural Blues bringing up the rear with a torn spinnaker.

Directly following the race, the $10,000 check was awarded to Patrick Whitmarsh, Kevin Richards, and Joe Penrod of Team Harken with much fanfare. Nicely done, gentlemen.

- fred eagle for YachtPals

18 foot skiff Sailing Videos: 1) 2008 event capsize by Kenji Kato. 2) Racing 18 foot skiffs in the San Francisco Bay (filmed in '06 by E Franklin Tulloch).