With rain predicted and confusion about wind speed and direction, the 54 racers starting this year’s Vallejo 1-2 were relieved to see blue skies and consistent northwest winds.

This final race of the Singlehanded Sailing Society’s season, with boats singlehanding to Vallejo YC on Saturday then doublehanding back to Richmond YC on Sunday, has had a history of light starts and sometimes frustrating conditions. Except for the year of 20-plus knots on the nose both ways, most have been an easy way do get to know your boat in that intimate shorthanded way.

When we talked to Gordie Nash on his modified Santana 27 Arcadia two days before the race, he was contemplating the weather chances. “Lets see, with a front moving in and clearing skies on the morning of the start, maybe the southerly will spin around to the west, hopefully with still a good breeze. What do you think?"

After a lone rain shower doused them early on, the fleet moved along quickly in 5-15 knots with most boats finishing before 1400 on Saturday and 1600 on Sunday. Duking it out in the ‘Battle of the Chines’ were last year’s Singlehanded Champion Ben Mewes (whose 65th birthday coincided with the Vallejo 1) on the Black Soo Mirage, and Dylan Benjamin on the Dogpatch 26 Moonshine, both boats old vets in the sportboat class. Ben got ahead early on Saturday, but was looking over his shoulder all the way. "If the finish was in Benicia, Moonshine would have passed me. I thought I could relax, but here comes this young whippersnapper. I thought I'd better start working harder to keep him behind us." Dylan, trying his best Ben Ainslie imitation remarked, "I couldn't catch him. I pumped and pumped on every wave to get as much as I could but still couldn't catch him. Old age and treachery will always beat youth and stupidity."

Mirage heads up the Mare Island Strait. © 2008 norcalsailing.com

Race chair Max Crittenden remarked after it was all over and done, “No over earlies, maybe a few over lates, enough wind but not too much. At least it didn't rain. Oh yeah, I guess it did."

Complete results (currently provisional) are available at www.sfbaysss.org. Our photos are from Saturday’s finish in Vallejo.