Overview of the Grand Prix
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco is an annual sailing regatta in San Francisco Bay, California. It brings amateur and professional sailors worldwide to compete in multiple sailing classes.
The competition includes four days of racing, with over 20 sponsored events and lots of activities for spectators to enjoy.
In this article, we will look at the Grand Prix and what it has to offer.
History of the event
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix (USGP) dates back to 2011 when competitive sailing first hit the water in San Francisco Bay. This world-class, inshore regatta brings together the best sailors worldwide for a week of thrilling on-the-water action. This signature event, jointly hosted by San Francisco Yacht Club and St. Francis Yacht Club, challenges competitors with two stages—the Alpha Series and the Final Series—spanning over two days each with match racing and fleet racing events.
Since 2017, US Grand Prix teams have been competing for an invitation to the America’s Cup World Series where they can prove themselves against some of the top teams in sailing and potentially receive an invitation to compete in the America’s Cup itself. Racing occurs on one of 15 Elliot 7’s equipped with electronic measurement devices to record each position finish as its cross over either end of a line defining the finish area. The line also references penalty calls by umpires who make or adjust penalty decisions on-the-water during races.
The US Grand Prix is held over three successive days from May 24th through to 26th at a location chosen within San Francisco Bay each year, with twilight races taking place during later evenings leading up to it, providing plenty of excitement for both competitors and spectators alike!
What is the Grand Prix?
The Mubadala United States Grand Prix is an event featuring some of the world’s best sailors and showcases sailing in some of the world’s most famous locations. The regatta consists of three courses – San Francisco, Chicago and New York – and takes place in each city over six days during October. Competitors travel from around the globe to compete in one or more events at each location.
The regatta provides a format that tests competitors across all areas of sailing skill, from close match racing to high-speed spinnaker runs, and rewards team harmony and individual talent. Sailors compete on a series of identical J/70 yachts, provided by the race organisers for the entire season but are sailed and maintained independently by each team. Each course will have five daily races for six consecutive days per location to complete the regatta.
Location and Dates
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco will occur from May 1-3, 2021. It will take place in San Francisco Bay, California, in the United States.
This three-day event will feature sailing teams from all over the country competing for various awards and accolades. So come and join us for an exciting weekend of sailing and fun!
Where is the Grand Prix held?
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco will be held on the San Francisco Bay, California. This regatta marks the third season for this event, proudly presented by Sailing World and sponsored by the AkzoNobel Paint Company. The competition will take place from August 15-17, 2020.
The event will feature some of the world’s top sailing teams competing in up to 10 races per class over three days in SF Bay as a part of a winner-take-all annual tour. At least nine racing classes are expected to compete – 49er, 49er FX, iQFoil (Youths), Laser Radial (Masters & Women), Melges 20 (US Masters & Women’s), Nacra 17 “Wildcat” and Santana 22.
The 2020 regatta is organised by Principal Race Officer Phillipe Kahn and managed by Clipper Roundt The World Race Chairman Sir Robin Knox –Johnston and his highly experienced events team at Clipper Ventures Event Management with support from SailSFBay and St Francis Yacht Club who are providing event coordination and onsite race management expertise respectively.
Each race will be scored using the low point scoring system with no discards currently used at many regattas worldwide such as ORC International Grand Prix Series Races and World Championship Regattas. This scoring system provides more equal scoring opportunity for all competitors regardless of their position in a particular race leg granting evenstanding competition among all teams, thus creating exciting hull to hull racing for all spectator classes.
When is the Grand Prix held?
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco will be held from Thursday, August 22, 2019, to Tuesday, August 27, 2019. The venue for the event is located in the San Francisco Bay Area. St. Francis Yacht Club in partnership with World Sailing, the international governing body for sailboat racing hosts it.
During this six-day event, some of the world’s best sailors will compete on courses challenging their sailing skills. Spectators can watch from accessible public areas along the shoreline to get an up-close view of exciting race action.
Teams and Competitors
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco is a sailing regatta in San Francisco Bay, California. This event is hosted by the United States Sailing Association and is often featured in the U.S. sailing scene.
This event features the best sailors worldwide competing in various classes. But, first, let’s take a look at the teams and competitors that will be participating in this event.
Who are the participants?
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco is a sailing regatta annually in the San Francisco Bay. This grand prix event invites teams worldwide to participate in a challenging and competitive race. The event is organised by US Sailing, with sponsorship from Mubadala.
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco teams consist of both professional skippers and amateurs who have qualified for the event through regional qualifiers held throughout the year. Entry categories include Master, Coronet, Mainstay, M50+, N59+, Balboa, and Vintage. Each of these classes has their own set of regulations and requirements for competition registration.
In addition to individual team entry, several open series events are taking place each year as part of this grand prix event. In these series events all sailors compete together but with individual rankings within their respective divisions based on overall performance. These open series events feature a mix of competing professionals and amateur and junior sailors who have qualified through regional qualifiers over the past year.
All teams in any competition during this regatta will compete to win points towards US Sailing’s National Championship Series and qualify for entry into other major sailing events worldwide such as Europe’s M32 Series or Miami’s Etchells Series just to name two examples. At the end of this regatta, the highest ranked team will be declared the winner – so come on out and watch!
What are the rules and regulations?
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco, hosted by the St. Francis Yacht Club, is a fourth event of the 2019 U.S.-based grand prix racing circuit governed by the Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS).
To participate, all competitors must have their own valid and current International Measurement System (IMS) certificate. Competitors are required to declare their IMS rating for this event during online registration. The priority classes for this event will be Farr 40 Class, Grand Prix Classes and One Design Classes (see fleet division list below).
The racing format will be group-start windward/leeward courses with up to 2 non-discardable races each day and a maximum of 10 races over the two days of racing. Course length and start times may be adjusted according to changing weather conditions. A minimum of 1 race will constitute a series for scoring purposes.
Protest hearings will occur on shore immediately following each day’s racing with a specific time window announced before the start of play on both days via VHF channel 67 or posted announcement on the Race Office dock board. Any protests that are not resolved at these hearings shall be presented in writing at a post regatta protest hearing convened by US Sailing on Sunday at 7PM or as otherwise advised in advance by US Sailing staff members or Protest Committee members present during the regatta.
Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco competitors agree that no action, including but not limited to an action for libel, slander and false light against US SAILING will arise from any ruling made by or conduct engaged in by US SAILING Protest Committee Members or representatives acting under it provided all rulings and conduct can only be shown to have been made or engaged in without malice, negligence and bad faith effort concerning its adjudication procedures relating whereabouts as at this moment determined as part and parcel of participation agreement herein recognized before issuance of entry permit so obtained from St Francis Yacht Club organisers assenting to it such willful consent into this statement therein comprising precedent precedent agreement which forms full force part hereto at this moment acknowledged before release thereof provided all parties agree to it aforesaid herein above assumed from that place.
Spectator Information
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco will occur from August 23rd – August 25th 2019. This racing event will surely be unforgettable and an experience like no other.
Spectators will be able to enjoy the race from any of the designated spectator areas. This article outlines important information on how to view the race and what to expect.
How to watch the Grand Prix?
Spectators are welcome at the Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco! Spectators can easily keep up with the action and get a close-up look at the competition. The best way to follow the event is to book a ride on one of the official spectator boats or view from the shoreline of San Francisco’s Embarcadero.
Those who wish to witness the Grand Prix sailing can quickly reference an onsite spectator guide designed by US Sail and available upon arrival. In addition, spectators can sign up for one of US Sail’s spectator boats, receive an education on what is going on in each race, and learn tips from sailing experts to make spectating more fun and informative.
The spectator guide will feature downloadable maps that estimate the exact positioning of boats during races, schedules for racing, interesting facts about the race history, points behind each event, latest current standings in overall ranking, and information about skippers competing.
Spectators also have free access to join virtual reality events hosted by US Wingsail Racing for a fully immersive experience in between physical viewing on land or onboard a spectator boat. In addition, live streaming from onboard some competitors’ vessels before and after our race course will give viewers even more insight into this exciting world class series!
Where to find tickets?
Tickets for the Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco can be found through select retailers, including Sail World. Prices vary depending on the type of ticket purchased, such as general admission, family packs or VIP access. Tickets must be purchased in advance of the event and are available online. For those interested in engaging with the race on a deeper level, a range of corporate ticket options are also offered.
As well as in-person tickets, live stream access is also available for those who can’t make it to San Francisco but want to keep updated on all the race action and activities associated with this event. This streaming service can be used to watch from any digital device such as a smartphone or laptop computer. This streaming service supports all mainstream services, and subscribers also gain access to additional features such as onboard video and detailed data reports from across all areas of the racecourse.
Results and Awards
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco is an annual sailing event in San Francisco Bay. The event offers a unique challenge to the participants and includes four days of racing, with various awards given out to the sailors.
Let’s take a look at some of the results and awards given out this year.
Who won the Grand Prix?
The Grand Prix is an annual regatta hosted by the renowned sailing race management organisation, United States Sail Grand Prix (USGP). The 2019 regatta was held in San Francisco on May 8-12th, and the results are now available.
Bill Hardesty and Pascal Fantini, who represented Team Aqua, won the Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco. This duo sailed extremely well during the 4 days of the regatta, finishing ahead of their competitors from Team USA, Team Wylde and other teams to take home the victory. The team also went on to be awarded the prestigious Robert Haidinger Trophy for their performance in San Francisco at this year’s USGP event.
Also awarded at this event were trophies for second and third place competitions: Team Vela took home 2nd place honours with skipper Keith Swinton while Will Ryman secured 3rd place aboard his boat Mascalzone Latino Junior USA. These competitive sailors were all presented with trophies for their fantastic performances during the regatta. Congrats to all the teams that competed!
What are the awards?
The Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix / San Francisco is the largest regatta in the country, offering substantial prizes and awards to the top finishers. The competition handouts prizes and awards for fleet, division, class winners, and several other categories.
Prizes are awarded after each day of racing and the overall winner will receive a championship trophy after the regatta. Amongst many awards presented at this premier sailing event include:
- Fleet Awards: Overall winner receiving a perpetual trophy donated by an Alameda Yacht Club (AYC) member or benefactor.
- Division Awards: Overall series winner recognized with a perpetual trophy donated by either AYC member or benefactor; other divisions given as deemed necessary by sailing committee
- Class Awards: Overall series winner for each class with name engraved on permanent trophies; most of these are static trophy pools kept at AYC and presented yearly in perpetuity. Cash prizes may also be available for race winners—usually split between first-, second-, and third-place finishers within various divisions/classes.
- Weather Restriction Award: Monies provided from sponsorship(s) used to award race participants unable to sail due to extreme weather situations. If a class/division could not sail 5 complete races, they receive back 50% of their entry fee—monies being raised through event onsite sales, not direct sponsorships.
- Team Racing Award: An aggregate score based upon accumulated results during team racing matches over one day or weekend; monies coming from donations only.
- Top Female Sailor Award: Point system of aggregating results with bonus points awarded after each completion of certain designated races; prize money coming from donations only.
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