“Gracie and George, the female skipper, male crew race was sailed in perfect summer conditions on Saturday, August 15,” reported race organizer Margaret Fago. “After half an hour delay waiting for the wind to fill, a pleasant, warm, 5-10 knot westerly allowed the small (seven starters) but enthusiastic fleet to sail the 8.6 mile South Bay course in just over two hours with a neck-and-neck downwind finish in front of Encinal Yacht Club on the Alameda/Oakland Estuary. Javelin, a J/100 skippered by Joan Garrett and crewed by Norman Davant, was first to finish, but Uno, a Wyliecat 30 sailed by Karen Flick and Steve Wonner, was hot on their heels and corrected out not only first in fleet but also first overall.”

Two boats sailed a shorter course than the rest of the fleet. Confusion over the mark descriptions sent the five other boats on a play-it-safe short extra leg around 2NAS, a red buoy in the South Bay. But the mark description read, “Temporary orange YC buoy near Alameda Naval Air Station Channel Mark R “2” Fl R 4s.” Javelin and Stink Eye, a Laser 28, headed for an orange inflatable buoy, not particularly close to 2NAS, but ‘near’ is a relative term. Funny thing was, when they got to that mark, the Encinal YC Boston Whaler on station nearby was a different one than had started the race. You see, EYC ran three races in the South Bay on Saturday, and that mark and boat must have been for another race. But with no other fleets in sight, and a line-up of the mark with the Estuary entrance, it was only logical to round to starboard and continue on down to the Estuary. Gracie and George had been moved from August 8 to avoid conflict with a YRA ODCA-HDA race that day, but with such a packed calendar, conflicts are inevitable.

At the Estuary entrance, racers who had spinnakers were allowed to set them. Four out of the seven did so. That nice 5-10 knot breeze died completely just before the rock wall at the entrance began. Fortunately, no ships were coming or going from the Port of Oakland, and the boats were able to creep forward on the beginning of a flood. The light air made shorthanded sail handling easy in some ways, and challenging in others - one of the challenges being the sweat dripping your eyes. Once past Jack London Square, the hot sailors were cooled and accelerated by the usual side-blasters - more like side-whispers actually.

Once back at the club, at least one George cooled his overheated brow with a dip in Encinal’s swimming pool. The racers were treated to nachos and Margaret’s awards ceremony, which she describes as ‘performance art’. A Gracie and George would not be complete without a shopping trip to Chinatown and multiple prizes for every single boat. The ‘podium finishers’ were gifted with a choice of Margaret’s wonderful watercolor paintings of nautical subjects. Toys, silk purses, and original artwork beat a plaque any day! 

For complete results, see www.encinal.org. Thanks to Fred Fago for the fabulous photos!