Classic boat race sets sail tomorrow
Regatta's founder to retire this year
By Jim Bass Special to the Acorn

ON THE WIND- Cheerio II, a 56-foot yawl built in 1931 by Fellows and Stewart, slices through the water outside Channel Islands Harbor during last year's McNish Classic Yacht Race. The boat, captained by the regatta's founder, Dick McNish, will take part in tomorrow's race.

Come tomorrow, Dick McNish of Somis will try to do something he hasn't managed to accomplish in three decades: win the yacht race he created, the McNish Classic Yacht Race.

Sailed just outside Channel Islands Harbor, the race is one of four gingerly contested regattas on the western seaboard.

This year it will attract a mix of veteran and novice sailors from San Francisco to San Diego to compete with local skippers for an afternoon of classic racing.

Sponsored by the Pacific Corinthian Yacht Club, the race features boats built from designs created prior to 1952, the era of modern boat design. Contestants will sail sloops, cutters, ketches, yawls and schooners ranging in size from 17 feet to 82 feet.

Conceived in 1977, the race is sailed on a 17-mile triangular course designed so that each classic sailboat skipper- even those with only basic sailing and seamanship knowledge- can be competitive.

Using a handicap system specially developed for classic yachts, the race builds to an exciting finish with boats speeding toward the finish line together.

Besides bragging rights, the winning skipper will be presented with the Strathmore Cup and his weight in Mumms Champagne. Mumms is a race sponsor.

Will this be McNish's year to win? If so, it will be a family affair. Three generations of McNish's will be skippering Dick's boat, a 56-foot yawl named the Cheerio II. That includes son Jeff, daughter Leslie, granddaughters Alyce and Darby, plus a friend, Liz Maul.

The Cheerio II, built in 1931 by Fellows and Stewart from a design by Edson B. Schock, was once owned by actor Errol Flynn, most famous for his silver screen swashbuckling. A subsequent owner sailed it for 24 years and McNish for the past 20 years. "We don't really own them," he said. "We're just custodians."

McNish had the boat rebuilt in 1995. "Every plank, every frame and every deck was replaced," he said. "Recently we added GPS navigation."

But the soul of McNish's boat and all the others in competition is squarely in the past.

In the early 1950s fiberglass revolutionized boat design, producing boats that were sleeker, lighter and faster.

For example, today's boats have carbon fiber masts capped with titanium, whereas the classics have wooden masts capped with iron.

"Racing one of today's boats would be like racing a 1929 Chevy against a 2008 Corvette," McNish said. Just as there's something special about classic cars that makes people fall in love with them, the same applies to classic wooden yachts.

At 80, McNish is stepping down from running the annual event, although he has no plans to quit participating as a skipper. Does it bother him that he's never won his namesake event? "Not really," he said. "This event is more about renewing old friendships and enjoying the enduring beauty of these fine craft."

Anyone interested in watching the regatta's conclusion can get a close look from either side of the Channel Islands harbor inlet. The finish line is between the breakwater and the mouth of the harbor.

The winning yacht typically crosses the finish line from 3 to 4 p.m. depending on wind conditions.