America’s Schooner Cup Charity Regatta in San Diego - A Living History.
Each year in early Spring Silver Gate Yacht Club is host to a gathering of West Coast schooners in celebration of their American heritage, their beauty and their racing prowess. The next event will be held on Saturday, April 1, 2023 and is open to schooners of all sizes and construction. The event once again benefits the military families of the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society. From its inception as a San Diego match race between the famed wooden schooners, DAUNTLESS and BAGHEERA, the America’s Schooner Cup Regatta now welcomes all schooners and crew from all ports to participate in racing and reunion. All come with great expectation that any one of them can win this annual race and etch a new name on the iconic "Cup" trophy. This may not be the biggest regatta in town, but it is certainly majestic in spirit, and the America's Schooner Cup event is a leader in the area's charity boat races, with schoonermen and SGYC members raising over $150,000 in the last six years for military family relief. All proceeds in your purchase of the ASC’s annual Tidelines Calendar are further dedicated to the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society for such aid to our military families.
Planning for fresh springtime breezes on San Diego Bay, the America's Schooner Cup Race is designed for maximum public viewing in the harbor along Shelter Island - with the midday race start of three classes of vessels in front of Silver Gate Yacht Club. The public also has many options to participate in the race event themselves, as many of the racing schooners each year (including Californian, America, and Bill of Rights in the past) will be open to charter. The schooners of this event are possibly the most beautiful boats to watch race in Southern California but they're also historically exceptional - many are ageless examples of living history and many will be coming from distant ports to face each other perhaps for the first time in decades. In the past, this event has featured the 1907 Crowninshields-designed schooner MARTHA and Alden-designed DIRIGO II (2015 Cup Winner), both from Port Townsend, Washington. Past boats coming from the San Francisco Bay Area include REGULUS and MAYAN.