SIGHTINGS the fate of a
sf social sailing
continued on outside column of next sightings page Page 64 •
Latitude 38
• June, 2018
The strange case of a boater who overstayed his welcome at Aquatic Park has drawn to what many feel is an overdue close — for now. In late April, Bryan Pennington was convicted in federal court of anchoring without a permit, surprising no one — he had been on the hook in Aquatic Park for over eight months. He drew the ire of the tight-knit swimming community by anchoring in the swimming lanes and dumping raw sewage, and confounded the nexus of law enforcement agencies
ALL PHOTOS MONICA GRANT
Brothers Frank and Giovanni Marcantoni are your typical 20-something-year-old millennials full of energy, enthusiasm and great ideas. But rather than aiming to take on the world of technology and startups, these young men, originally from Baltimore, are using their skills to help break down some of the traditional barriers for people who would like to sail, but never have. "I realized there was a space between young people who were lucky enough to have sailing lessons when they were younger, and then slightly older people who had enough money to really get into the sport," Frank said, adding that there are lots of people in the 20- to 40-year-old range who want to get into the sport. "So we created this program where, over five weeks for three hours each weekend, we go out on a J/24." SF Social's Sailing League, which operates out of Treasure Island Sailing Center (or TISC), is ideal for people who are interested in learning to sail but don't want to commit to joining a yacht club, or lack the John Super has been a fixture at Treasure confidence to take a class on a larger boat. "I feel young people are so inIsland Sailing Center for years. terested, but there's not an outlet for them that's easy." Frank explained. "And actually, sailing is more welcoming than people give it credit for." More than just a 'learn to sail' class, the league actually functions a bit like a yacht club (or any other social sporting group) with a mix of competition and hangout time. Sailors enjoy friendly rivalries on short race courses, and, at the end of the session, gather to share their experiences — because what's racing without dissecting it at length afterwards (known in some circles as 'yachtie karate'). And although the emphasis is on fun, Frank assures us that by season's end, the crews have also learned basic sailboat competence. The Sailing League started in the summer of 2016 as a follow-up to Frank and Giovanni's first program which they started in Baltimore with US Sailing affiliate: Downtown Sailing Center. Since then, the league has been on the Bay every season except winter. "Mostly because they pull the docks out at Treasure Island," Frank quips. While sailing is Frank's passion, he said he wasn't raised as a sailor. "Our grandparents were big powerboaters; my grandfather was a big sport fisherman, and they were members of the BYC [Baltimore Yacht Club]." But over the years, Frank found his true calling on occasional sailing trips with his grandparents' dock-neighbors. "I always grew up on and loved the water, but somehow I missed the motorboat and really liked the sailing," he said. Years later as a college student living aboard a friend's Mainship 36 in Baltimore, Frank had the opportunity to spend the summer crewing aboard a racing maxi-yacht. Afterwards, he worked as delivery crew up and down the East Coast. "It was a lot of fun and a brand-new experience for me, racing on big sailboats. So I kind of missed the middle part. Like, where you learn on Lasers and then make your way to big boats." Now Frank sails on San Francisco Bay nearly every weekend. He said that while new sailors are enthusiastic, there are plenty of people who remain apprehensive and "find it intimidating to step into something they're not familiar with." But after doing a season with the Sailing League, many newcomers face their fears and go on to sign up with local sailing schools, become regular members of the sailing community, or simply do another Sailing League season.
