SHORT TACKS & REGATTAS Sarasota Bay Sailing Association Boat of the Year Event, April 17 & 18, 2020 Bird Key Yacht Club and Nautical Gin are presenting the 2020 Nautical Gin Sarasota Bay Cup on Saturday, April 18 on Sarasota Bay. PHRF and One Design courses will be setup. Festivities will begin Friday April 17, at 18:00 with complimentary hors d’oeuvres, keg beer and non-alcoholic beverages. At 19:00 the PRO’s for One-design fleets and PHRF fleet will review sailing instructions, courses and respond to your questions. PHRF race will be a pursuit format. Saturday (casual dress), a cocktail party will begin at 18:00 followed by dinner, the awards ceremony and live music until 21:00. Registration at www.negattanetwork.com/event/20291 or at BKYC Friday 1700 – 1800 prior to festivities.
St. Augustine Race Week, March 14-21, 2020 St. Augustine Race Week, March 14-21, 2020 is an eight-day regional sailing regatta featuring three days of offshore races, two days of inshore races and a two-day youth regatta. All events are PHRF. The youth regatta and demonstration dragon boat races will be held in full view of spectators along the downtown St. Augustine Bayfront. Racers, spectators and the general public are invited to two nights of downtown after-race parties featuring live music, food and adult beverage vendors and awards presentations. First Coast Sailing Association is the sponsor. Proceeds benefit the JDM Youth Sailing Scholarship Fund. Website is www.staugustineraceweek.com. Facebook address is www.facebook.com/SARaceWeek. For information contact Dan Floryan at dfloryan1@comcast.net.
featuring 10 person teams paddling wildly to the beat of a drummer in the bow of these slender Chinese-inspired racing vessels. It’s something few local people have ever seen. The popular Party Tent with live music, food vendors and adult beverage sellers is back once again and open to the public as always. It’s located downtown by the Municipal Marina and open for entertainment on Thursday and Friday of Race Week. The general public and spectators are also invited to enjoy the exciting action of youth sailors competing in 420 dinghies right off the sea wall between the Castillo and the Bridge of Lions. A live onshore announcer will be calling the action and educating the audience about the intricacies of sailboat racing. Proceeds from the 8-day regatta are used to fund the John Daniel Meehan Youth Sailing Scholarship fund named for the man whose vision and active support transformed Race Week into a regional event that embraces the entire city and attracts competitors from Charleston to Daytona. The fund pays tuition for local youth from 8 to 18 to attend summer sail camps and join competitive sail teams at yacht clubs and sailing organizations in Jacksonville, St. Augustine, Smyrna Beach and Daytona. In 2019 more than 40 youngsters were enrolled in the program. In addition to money generated by entry fees and the sale of regatta apparel, the life blood of St. Augustine Race Week is sponsorships from a broad variety of local businesses and organizations. At the head of the list of donors each year are the St. Johns County Tourist Development Council and Meehan’s Irish Pub, where Manager Reggie Maggs carries on the tradition of financial support begun by his former boss John Meehan. Other sponsors are currently being solicited. Up-to-date information about scheduled events, racing classes sponsors, registration and Race Week history can be found at www.staugustineraceweek.com. For information contact Dave Montgomery at dave-writes@comcast.net
St. Augustine Race Week Expands an Already Great Event St. Augustine, FL – What started as a little three-day offshore race for local sailing clubs has blossomed into a wildly popular regional sailing regatta encompassing eight sailing clubs, three live bands, dozens of sponsors, hundreds of spectators and thousands of dollars raised for youth sailing scholarships. For the 2020 edition of St. Augustine Race Week, co-chairmen Dan Floryan and Guy Anderson announce a major scheduling change that expands the format from six days to an eight-day week of racing. By moving the inshore series to Tuesday and Wednesday of Race Week they have given each major racing series its own set of days without interference by other classes. The new schedule is now Youth Regatta - Saturday and Sunday March 14 & 15; Inshore Series Tuesday and Wednesday, March 17 & 18 and, Offshore Series Thursday, Friday and Saturday March 19, 20, 21. What about Monday the 16th you ask? On that day, downtown spectators will be treated to exciting dragon boat races 12
March 2020 S O U T H W I N D S www.southwindsmagazine.com
