Three of the YRA associations held races on Saturday. The Wooden Boat Racing Association (WBRA), sailed around inflatable marks near Southampton Shoals with a Richmond YC race committee, while the Handicap Divisions Association (HDA) and the One Design Class Association (ODCA) started out on the Berkeley Circle and had courses leading them out into the Central Bay, with race committee duty provided by South Beach YC.

Windspeeds at the start (XOC) and the beat out toward the Central Bay hovered in the mid to upper-teens, lightening up as boats returned from their outer-most point to the Berkeley Circle. Passing Angel Island on the downwind leg the breeze dropped to the 9-10 knot range. While some crew complained of the cold temps and high overcast, one couldn’t fault the sailing conditions: the steady - not gusty - breeze, light currents, flat water and decent visibility were ideal for typical Bay racing boats, unlike the last Saturday of YRA racing, two weeks ago, when fog and mayhem dominated the Cityfront.

Over on the Richmond Riviera, the sun did come out in the afternoon, but the wind conditions were still good for the WBRA fleets. The race committee reported 15 knots. The Birds didn’t show up to play, leaving the course to the Folkboats, IODs, and Knarrs. We were fortunate to get some photos of the Folkboats to share with you.

Not all the Folkboats are wood; like in the Knarr class, some modern fiberglass ones race alongside the woodies. Besides racing with the WBRA, they have a very active fleet organization in the Bay Area, the SF Bay Folkboat Association, which has been supporting the pretty little Swedish design for more than 50 years, facilitating its continued success here. See www.sfbayfolkboats.org for lots more info.

For all the YRA race results, see www.yra.org.