On the Harbor: 88th Flight of Newport

Photo by Tom Walker

By LEN BOSE

This week was the 88th Flight of Newport Beach, which is a sailboat race around the harbor in the middle of a summer weekend. Not only are the skippers challenged with the competition but there are many obstacles on the course.The Flight of Newport Beach has a long history with a tradition of bringing out our harbor’s best along with everyone else who wants to be a part of our harbor’s history. The Harbor 20 fleet had 40 boats entered this year, which allows the sailor to catch up with all their friends that they haven’t crossed tacks with this year. I had a chance to see my friends and say hello to Mary Bacon, Brett Hemphill, Gator Cook, Charlie Boukather, Brad Wheeler, Matt Campbell, and Kari and Peter Bretschger, along with so many others. Going through the different fleets while waiting for the starting sequence left me with a peaceful feeling inside.

Then the starting sequence begins and everyone must put on their game faces while coming up with a game plan to get away from the starting line and out of the crowd. This race is won and lost at the start if you are fortunate enough to be in the top 10 to break away from the pack. If you get swallowed up by the crowd then you might as well open up that cold beverage, and if you don’t drink…it can become a very long race. Should you be fortunate to be within the top 10 off the starting line, a huge sigh of release overcomes you.

Now you have to travel through the harbor while looking forward to the hazards and behind you, not to be overtaken by the pack. While heading forward, look for people enjoying the summer day – this can be anything from a 100-ft. boat to a standup paddleboard. If you have been on the harbor long enough, you can recognize who is in a rental boat. Rental boats can be challenging because you never know when they might do a “Crazy Ivan” to port or starboard.

On the racecourse while sailing upwind in the Lido Channel, you can fall behind your closest competitor and sail into their disturbed air, forcing you to sail an extra distance or on the wrong tack. Another challenging area on the racecourse is close to the finish as you reach the end of the Balboa Peninsula, sailing towards channel marker number 6 where the wind gets very challenging. I have seen huge leads evaporate quickly here.

This year was a good year for me, as I was sparring with my good friend Justin Law on the first half of the course for fourth place. I lost fifth place to Argyle Campbell while sailing up the Lido Channel, but I was still fighting for inside room around channel marker 6 with Campbell. Sailing in the same ZIP Code as these two leaves a huge boost to your ego. The three of us finished about one minute behind the Bissell Family finishing in third, with John Bubb in second and Alex Curtiss placing his name on the perpetual trophy again.

I am very pleased with my finish, although there is another part of me that feels next year I should throw my competitive edge overboard and bring the family, including the dog and some rosé, and just breathe while enjoying the summer day like my friend Brad Wheeler did.

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An observation from this past month: Did you know that people in the rental boats are not insured and the odds are pretty good that they have no idea that if they run into the side of your boat and do substantial damage they pay for the damage? The rental company’s insurance policy does not cover renters. Talking to Craig Chamberlain of NOVMAR Marine Insurance, I found out this is a problem across the country. In Florida, this has become a big problem, so the state now requires the rental companies to offer additional insurance to their renters, very similar to a car rental. Chamberlain also informed me that there is an underwriter that offers a new program, and it only takes a couple of minutes to enroll. I brought this observation forward to the powers that be, and I am hoping action will be taken fairly quickly.

Sea ya.

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Len Bose is a yachting enthusiast, yacht broker and harbor columnist for Stu News Newport.