This Saturday South Beach Yacht Club kicked off their Island Fever winter series off of AT&T Park. One of the quirks of this series is the start in McCovey Cove. Only one division is allowed in the little Cove at a time because of the cramped space. The waiting divisions hover around outside until they are called in. They have five minutes to make their way in before their Warning signal, so the starts are actually ten minutes apart.  They’re allowed to motor until one minute before their start to avoid trouble in the usually light winds. The race committee does a great job, but it really helps to listen to the VHF and pay attention.

So why is it called ‘Island Fever’? The ‘Island’ part was apt this month because the divisions were sent around Alcatraz and/or Treasure Island, in either direction. The ‘Fever’ part came into play when boats bound for Alcatraz as their windward mark short-tacked along the Cityfront into a northerly to avoid the flood current, causing tacking crews to peel off jackets and reach for water bottles. (And the bright sunshine after the rain had them reaching for sunscreen.)

Once back into the South Bay, it was the foredeck crews’ turn to sweat as the wind got light and shifty and the boats clawed their way back into what was now an ebb. “The wind’s on the beam - no wait, now it’s on the OTHER beam - we gotta jibe.” “The wind’s gone forward - set the jib, douse the kite.” “Now it’s gone aft - set the chute, get rid of that jib!” You get the idea.

Just as the first boats were getting close to the finish, a typical westerly filled in, and the last bit turned into a beat. Dale Williams’ new Kiernan 44 Wasabi was the first to finish. They had gotten stalled out in the middle of the Bay trying to get to Alcatraz, but once the island let them get close, they made short work of the rest of the course. However, they rate -42, so John Lymberg’s new-to-him Flying Tiger Ninja corrected out to first in their division. You can find all the results at www.southbeachyachtclub.org.

The next installment of the Island Fever series will be on December 19. You can still sign up for the series or for individual races, which are only $15 each.