'Big boats' head for San Francisco

St Francis YC's top regatta kicks off this week

Later this week the 43rd Rolex Big Boat Series will take place on San Francisco Bay and the regatta known around the world for its challenging and exciting racing conditions will welcome 112 boats for four days of racing. Hosted by St. Francis Yacht Club over September 13-16, over 1,000 sailors will compete in either IRC-handicapped racing or in one of the five one-design classes: Express 37, J/105, J/120, 1D35, and Melges 32. At the conclusion of the four-day regatta, specially engraved Rolex timepieces will be awarded to the St. Francis Yacht Club's six Perpetual Trophy winners.

John Siegel (San Francisco) has the distinction of having won four straight Perpetual Trophies. In 2006 his Wylie 42 Scorpio won its class and took home the City of San Francisco Perpetual Trophy. "We're very much looking forward to Rolex Big Boat Series and hope to continue our streak," said Siegel. "This year's regatta will be huge with nearly 40 boats participating under IRC. The competition should be stiffer." Siegel will have his work cut out for him as the team is not competing on the first race day. Scorpio took second place at StFYC's recent Aldo Alessio Perpetual regatta.

The IRC fleet continues to grow each year. As one of the leading yacht clubs to establish and support IRC racing in the U.S., StFYC has made IRC racing a priority and the increase in entries reflects that initiative. The largest boat to enter is the custom 73ft Velos, owned by Kjeld Hestahave (Temecula, Calif.).

Each year, the Rolex Big Boat Series serves as a test for new boats. This year is no exception with the new STP65 Rosebud, owned by Roger Sturgeon (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), making its West Coast debut. "The San Francisco Bay produces some of the best challenges for sailboats: the changing currents, the consistent afternoon high winds, and the density of traffic create logistical problems for all fleets," said Sturgeon. "It tests the capabilities of the boats as well as the crew. I think this series will quickly elevate our learning curve on the new Rosebud and will show any weaknesses we will need to overcome."

Also competing is the new TP52 owned by local resident John Kilroy called Samba Pa Ti. Like the STP65, the TP52 is a box rule built boat that favours conditions like those on San Francisco Bay. Principal race officer John Craig and the StFYC race committee are planning to send the IRC boats "outside" the Golden Gate Bridge toward Point Bonita Lighthouse where large swells are common.

For more than half of its 43-year history, the Rolex Big Boat Series has counted among its competitors Sy Kleinman (Saratoga, Calif.) Known for his onshore antics and on-the-water pre-eminence aboard a series of custom-built boats named Swiftsure, the octogenarian enthusiastically recounts his triumphs. "This will be our 27th year," said Kleinman. "However, we have only sailed 26 of those 27 since the 2001 Big Boat was cancelled. Most of the crew comes back year after year. Some have been around so long it's like they're glued onto the boat." Swiftsure II will sail in the IRC class where Kleinman and crew hope to best last year's third-place finish. His sailing record is impressive; however a personal achievement that might surpass it is that Sy along with his wife Phyllis recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.

Another multiple Perpetual Trophy winner, Steven Madeira (Menlo Park, Calif.), will return to competition in the J/120 class with his Mr. Magoo. "It is hard to imagine the racing being any closer than it was last year," said Madeira, who has won three Perpetual Trophies. "However, I expect that it may be. This season to date has been characterized by exceptionally close racing with many races seeing four or more boats essentially overlapped at the finish, and several regattas being decided by tie breakers.."

When asked about expected competition in the closely-fought J/120 class, Madeira summarised: "Barry Lewis on Chance has been by far the most consistent and will, barring something bizarre, retain the season championship. Frank Glassner is our newest competitor having chartered the J/World boat and his climb up the ladder has been swift. I fully expect him to be in the mix. Add to that the marked improvement in both Desdemona and Grace Dances along with the class stalwarts like Dayenu, Twist and Jolly Mon and one could easily conclude that it is anybody's regatta to win." Also adding to this exciting class is a Japanese crew who has chartered OuiB5. "I hope we are rounding into form," concluded Madeira. "After some early season struggles, we have finally started to show some consistency and have been sailing well in the last month. It never gets any easier in this fleet, but we feel like we can compete."

What may be the most competitive fleet is the J/105 fleet. The fleet has grown due to an infusion of out-of-town boats preparing for the 2008 J/105 North American championship to be held at StFYC in August 2008. Currently there are 33 entries, including returning champion and multiple Perpetual Trophy winner Good Timin', owned by brothers Chris and Phil Perkins (San Francisco). Along with Dave Wilson, the crew is rounded out by renowned sailor Melissa Purdy and her husband Tom. "We hope to be competitive and if we sail well we hope to win!" said Chris Perkins. "We took a year off this year. We are shaking off the cob webs for this regatta. We sailed a regatta two weeks ago and were second to Tim Russel ( Aquavit). He is sailing very well this year and will be tough to beat. Scott Sellers ( Donkey Jack) is also going nicely, but he has not been sailing as much. It should be a really fun series."

Prizes for the fleet are six perpetual trophies - Richard Rheem, St. Francis, City of San Francisco, Atlantic, Keefe-Kilborn Memorial and the Commodore's Cup. The fleets competing for each will be announced at Wednesday evening's Rolex Commodore's Reception.