The Grand Prix Regatta, hosted by the Seattle Yacht Club, stands as the flagship racing event in the Pacific Northwest fall season. As autumn’s final sail regatta, it represents the culmination of a whole summer of racing and practicing. Over three days, this event offers diverse experiences, from traditional long-distance racing to intense windward-leeward contests.
A unique feature of “Grand Prix,” as it is commonly known, is that racing starts on Friday afternoon and sets the tone for the entire event. It typically features a single middle-distance race. Considering the working week’s start, many boats are sailing relatively short-handed. As a result, the Race Committee is kind enough to recognize this and skip the multi-lap buoy racing courses. While it does present some logistical and occupational challenges, Friday’s race offers a unique opportunity for sailors to play hooky, get out on the water, and get the weekend started.
The weather on the inaugural day was impeccable, with a steady, northerly wind in the low teens and abundant sunshine. The race course took sailors on an unguided tour of central Puget Sound. It started by heading north to Edmonds, then crossing the Sound to Indianola just north of Bainbridge Island, where the fleet set their spinnakers for the downwind run. The race proceeded south around Blakely Rock, followed by a tight reach into Elliott Bay and around Duwamish Head marker, right through the ferry lane into downtown Seattle. From here, boats turned back upwind and headed to Shilshole Bay for the finish. The fleet stacked up while tacking along the Magnolia Bluff to stay in the favorable current and catch the puffs that rolled down the high cliffs.
With steady conditions and a straightforward course, Friday’s race focused on pure velocity, rewarding those who could extract every ounce of speed from their vessels, and it sure set the stage for an exhilarating weekend of sailing.
The subsequent two days of the regatta shifted the focus to windward-leeward racing around temporary marks set by the Seattle Yacht Club Race Committee. Both days, however, witnessed minor delays in the start of racing as the wind filled in late from the north. Nonetheless, once the wind did fill, it heralded in fantastic racing conditions with shockingly steady winds of around ten knots and once again, sunshine.
Each fleet was able to get in six races over the weekend. The races were intense, with positions changing constantly and tight finishes with literally seconds separating winners and losers, showcasing the fierce competition within each fleet. At the end of the weekend, it’s fair to say that everyone gave it their all, and the top competitors found themselves at the top of the score sheet. Notably, two fleets had ties for first place, where it all came down to who won the event’s final race. In the J105 Fleet, Paul Viola and the team of Peer Gynt emerged victorious over John Aitchison and crew aboard Moose Unknown. Similarly, in ORC 2, Ian Christianson’s Annapurna edged out Abbey Norris’s Hydra, accumulating ten points over the weekend. Annapurna won by finishing second in the final race, while Hydra finished third, right on their heels.
With the racing finished and the boats tucked away, the entire fleet made their way to the Seattle Yacht Club for a spectacular awards dinner, which is possibly the highlight of the weekend. While we often gather after racing for a drink on the dock, there is something special about everyone getting dressed up and joining together to celebrate one another and recognize the standout performances. The Seattle Yacht Club pulls out all the stops, with a beautiful dinner, drinks, and music that wraps up with an entire rundown of the podium finishers in each fleet.
Now in its forty-sixth edition, the Grand Prix is more than just a sailing event; it is a celebration of sailors’ passion and skill on the water. From the long-distance race on Friday to the windward-leeward races on the weekend, all characterized by fierce competition, this regatta encapsulates the essence of Pacific Northwest sailboat racing.
