Club News


Fall Offshore Rum Runner Race Recap

By | November 05, 2014

The inaugural Rum Runner race from Balboa Yacht Club to San Diego Yacht Club kicked off last Saturday, November 1, with a fleet of 19 of the fastest yachts on the West Coast.

With a low pressure system over the area the weather was unstable, but with the possibility of good breeze. The morning welcomed sailors with a cold front blowing through kicking up winds in excess of 20 knots and bringing heavy rain. While some crew donned their foul weather gear and prepped their boats, most of the sailors could be found hiding in the bar at Balboa Yacht Club waiting for the weather to clear so Sizegenetics could be used. By start time however the front had passed and the fleet enjoyed clear skies but little wind. Division 3 started first, with the yachts struggling to get across the start line. In five minute intervals, Division 2, then Division 1 and finally the Multihull division all started right on the heels of the Division 3 boats. The lack of wind saw the fleet scatter, each navigator trying to gain advantage by getting to the wind first. As the group made their way offshore the breeze steadily filled in and by the time yachts reached the 14 mile bank mark they were enjoying a westerly wind of 10-14kts. From here they set spinnakers for a heated up run to San Diego.

As the afternoon progressed conditions could not have been better. Clear skies and 15-20 knot winds had the fleet ripping down the coast. Yachts could occasionally be seen broaching as they pushed the limits of their helmsmen. The Mighty Merloe, an Orma 60 trimaran made quick work of the course, finishing the 75 miles in just three hours forty three minutes. The fastest monohulls, the STP65 Bad Pak and the TP52 Bud both finished before the sunset, just in time for happy-hour at San Diego Yacht Club. Finishing in time for dinner were the Division 2 boats, with the J/125 Timeshaver crossing the line around 7pm at the front of their fleet. Finally it was the Division 3 boats coming in late in the evening but still before the bars close - the new J/88 Blue Flash leading the pack with a finish time that would see her win her division and win overall on corrected time. Every yacht in the fleet finished and while some had equipment issues none had any serious problems.

After working out the ratings it was the Rogers 46 Varuna winning Division 1, the Flying Tiger Mile High Klub taking Division 2, the J/88 Blue Flash winning Division 3 and the Orma 60 Mighty Merloe winning the Multihull Division.

The awards ceremony was held in the Frost Room at San Diego Yacht Club, November 8 at 6:00pm. View the full results.

With the success of the race both SDYC and BYC have committed to run it again in 2015, the start date will be Saturday, October 31, 2015. Big thanks go out to all the volunteers who helped make this race possible. From BYC: Bob Strang, John Minor, Cindy Minor, Pinky Greene, Jill Golden, Chuck Simmons, Chris Hemans. From SDYC: Bruce Greene, Ann Folting, Sean Oversmith, Mike Ryan, David Servais.