With new boats, destinations, programs, and the successes of our students, racers and members in 2019, Modern Sailing School & Club has much to celebrate!
Modern Sailing’s 2019 Top 10 Highlights
1) Leukemia Cup Regatta: 8 Yachts. 54 Pirates. $17,780 Raised for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
Although we haven’t ranked the other nine Top 10 highlights in any particular order, the Leukemia Cup Regatta deserves the first mention. In October, Modern Sailing once again joined the battle against blood cancers by organizing enrollments and donating the use of eight of our yachts for the annual Leukemia Cup Regatta. We are proud of our caring community and inspirational leaders Kevin Holden and Ernest Khirallah and are greatly appreciative to all who sailed and donated to raise funds for this worthy cause.
2) Four Fabulous Yachts Join Our Fleet
The addition of Phoenix and Kokomo (Catalina 320s), Liberty (Beneteau Oceanis 38.1), and Kanaloa (Fontaine Pajot Lavezzi 40) provide even more fresh, fast, and luxurious choices for our students, club members, Race Team, and Skippered Charter clients.
Our efforts to expand our fleet continue in 2020! MSC currently seeks a 30 – 32’ foot yacht newer than 5 years old to join our Silver Fleet. We’ll provide berthing and manage expert detailing, maintenance, and repair services for your yacht while you earn a share of charter revenue. To learn more about our Yacht Management Program, send us an email!
3) Coho II's Mexico Campaign
In November, Modern Sailing captains undertook their first Baja Ha-Ha Cruisers Rally aboard our beloved bluewater cruiser Coho II. A testament to the skill of her crew and the timelessness of her design, Coho II achieved an impressive 2nd Place finish in the “Huevos Rancheros” division. Her delivery to and from Mexico along the California Coast also provided several of our captains and staff with opportunities to gain valuable offshore sailing experience and log ocean miles towards earning their ASA 208 certifications. If you’ve deduced that ASA 108, Offshore Passagemaking will be added to our suite of ASA certification courses in the future, you might just be right!
4) Local and Global Destinations
Launched in spring of 2019, our weekend Half Moon Bay Trips served 21 sailors a savory sip of the cruising lifestyle within easy reach of San Francisco Bay. Thirty-nine sailors also enjoyed the wild beauty of Pacific Ocean sailing close to home by joining our long-renowned Farallones Day Trips.
In January, twenty-four sailors and captains set sail to explore the beautiful Caribbean islands of St. Lucia and the Grenadines. Among the participants' many glowing reviews, two flotilla sailors poignantly commented:
“This was my first flotilla trip and Modern Sailing was exceptional. From the trip stops, pre-planning, introducing the crew, getting to live, eat, sleep, and sail was amazing! I came away so grateful for such a beautiful experience and excited for the next flotilla! Well done Modern Sailing, for building such an amazing sailing community!” – Dinna D.
“The scenery, captain, crew and group experience were perfect! Very sad to say goodbye to everyone.” Cheryl D.
The spectacular September flotilla among the mystical islands of Tahiti similarly eclipsed sailors’ imaginations. Participants beamed with summaries such as:
“I enjoyed learning about the culture of French Polynesia as well as snorkeling in the most beautiful water I have ever seen. Great people aboard our boat and we shared fantastic food, drink, and a lot of laughs.” – Craig F.
“We were expecting the trip of a lifetime when we booked, this adventure exceeded our expectations.” – Bernard F.
After the Baja Ha-Ha, Coho II and Captain Blaine McClish welcomed four clients aboard for a 10-day tour of the Baja Peninsula and the colorful Sea of Cortez. Hopes are high and plans are brewing for a return to the Baja Ha-Ha and Sea of Cortez next November!
Where in the world is MSC Global Destinations headed next? This January, we’ll steer 22 sailors to discover British-Caribbean history and a tropical taste of France while cruising the islands of Antigua, Barbuda and Guadeloupe. By popular demand, a flotilla to Sail Italy and the Amalfi Coast with Modern Sailing is in the works. Enrollment opens in February 2020!
5) MSC Honors Dedicated Members & Students
In early March, we announced the winners of the 2019 MSC Ambassador, 2018 Top Student, and 2018 Top Charterer awards. Club Skipper and avid racer Nichole Ortiz helped to spearhead our Wind & Women sailing program and earned the votes of her fellow club members to be named our 2019 MSC Ambassador. Gregg Golembeski received 2018 Top Student honors and Michael Barrientos’ determination to practice and prepare for worldwide sailing adventures by chartering frequently earned him the 2018 Top Charterer Award. We admire the passion and dedication of these sailors and thank them for their contributions to the Modern Sailing community.
Voting for the 2019 MSC Ambassador Award nominees opens in February. Stay tuned to our weekly newsletter emails for the opportunity to vote and learn who the next award winners will be!
6) Recreational Race Program Successes
Our Recreational Race Program expanded and improved with the addition of Phoenix and Kokomo to the fleet and 24 Recreational Race Clinic graduates.
MSC's Overall Sausalito Yacht Club Season Results (Spinnaker C Class):
• SYC Chili Mid-Winters Series – Team Kele 5th Place
• SYC Spring Series– Team Kele achieves 1st Place, Great Expectations takes 3rd – fantastic improvement!
• SYC Summer Sunset Series – Team Kele 3rd Place
In the final race of the Summer Sunset Series, 5 Modern Sailing boats raced together for the first time – a new record!
The success of our Recreational Race Program depends on you! Learn more about our Recreational Race Program to find out how you can have fun while fast-tracking your sailing skills and help make our Race Team’s 2020 another year to remember.
7) Wind & Women Program – Women’s Race Team and ASA Courses
With Captain Kira Maixner at the helm of our Wind & Women Program, women's sailing on San Francisco Bay is gaining ground! Most races on our schedule provide one to two co-ed boats and a Wind & Women boat available for enrollment. More than a dozen women joined Wind & Women races in 2019, including the Red Bra Regatta. Our co-ed race teams and ASA courses are friendly and supportive to all, but for women, sailing with an all-female crew is a fun and empowering experience not to be missed.
In April, Captain Kira hosted a seminar on women’s sailing at the Pacific Sail and Power Boat Show. You can listen to the discussion on MSC club member Ben Shaw’s Out The Gate Sailing Podcast.
8) New ASA Course and Sailing Skills Clinics
Modern Sailing helped many sailors to prepare for epic sailing adventures and grow their skills and savvy by bringing ASA 107, Celestial Navigation and new in-house clinics Electronic Piloting & Radar and Night Sailing to our school schedule.
9) Corporate Challenge Regattas – More and more companies are discovering how sailing brings teams together!
The word is out! In 2019, event planners and local companies large and small trusted Modern Sailing to provide their teams with fun and unique team building events and celebrations. In regattas of 2 to 12 boats, Modern Sailing expertly hosted 11 Corporate Regatta Challenges in 2019 for companies such as Nike, LinkedIn, Facebook, Uber, and more! MSC members can enjoy a 10% referral bonus when their company books a regatta with us.
10) From Sailors to Sailing Professionals
MSC prepared and certified well over a dozen sailors to earn their USCG Captains Licenses or license upgrades and/or ASA Instructor certifications, and welcomed 4 new instructors to our school. MSC club members Kevin Holden and Robert Bivin graduated our ASA Instructor Qualification Clinics and became instuctors for Modern Sailing in 2019. Our newest instructors Mark Jordan and RIchard Jensen also took USCG Captains License courses and ASA IQCs at Modern Sailing. Welcome aboard, Captains! Here's to helping more sailors make their sailing dreams come true in 2020 and beyond!
