The historic South Bay Yacht Club
proudly presents the 122nd (ish) annual
Opening Day on the South Bay
SKIPPER
INSTRUCTIONS
Saturday
May 24, 2025
Welcome to the South Bay Yacht Club's 122th
(ish) Opening Day on the South Bay
Tides
| May 24 |
, 2025 Sat |
11:35AM |
7.3 |
10:55PM |
10.9 |
6:12AM |
-0.3 |
5:43PM |
1.6 |
5:50 |
8:19 |
 |
SOUTH BAY YACHT CLUB
OPENING DAY ON THE SOUTH BAY
https://www.southbayyachtclub.org/events
Saturday May 24, 2025 @ 1200 hours
Alviso County Marina to the South Bay Yacht Club
“Generations on the South Bay” <Dean note: do we want to
call it that?>
SKIPPER’S INSTRUCTIONS
Dear Skippers and Boat Parade Participants:
On Saturday May 24, 2025, the historic South Bay Yacht Club (SBYC)
will be hosting the annual Opening Day on the South Bay. Such
opening days on the South Bay have been in place for more than a
century.
This year's festivities will kick off with a breakfast at the yacht
club, followed by boat decoration at the Alviso Marina, a rubber
duckie race, and a big boat parade from the Alviso Marina to the
Yacht Club's docks. <Dean note: we might have to
reverse the direction>
This information is provided to help you understand how the parade
will be conducted.
All boaters are welcome to participate. Participants need not be a
member of a Yacht Club. Participation in the boat parade is free of
charge.
The parade route starts at noon on May 24 from the Alviso Marina,
follows along the Alviso Slouth to docks of the South Bay Yacht
Club. Distance is approximately 1 miles (?? is this accurate?)
Boats can choose to fly flags and streamers, not decorate,or have
other types of décors.
Some boats will be decorated with this year’s theme "Generations on
the Bay" in mind.
The parade will be a fun display of boats decorated to depict
various interpretations of the theme which celebrates and honors the
vivid historical generations of the South San Francisco Bay!
The theme is open to many interpretations and skippers are
encouraged to be creative from the Gold Rush Era & Building of
the Golden Gate Bridge to the Summer of Love, Music Mecca, the GoGo
90's, Golden Decade of Sports and Tech Explosion - Pick Your
Favorite
"Generation" to Represent.
Some boats will fly flags and streamers or just join in the parade
not decorated. All are welcome.
For members of yacht clubs: Club of The Year – COTY – the rules were
revised a few years ago to encourage clubs to jointly put boats into
the
decorated boat parade. We want to give Non-Bay Area clubs a chance
to participate without having to take one of their boats a great
distance. These
revised COTY rules reward a Non-Bay Area club & a Bay Area club
who join together to decorate a boat by giving both clubs COTY
points. If two Non-
Bay Area clubs join to enter a decorated boat, both clubs will get
COTY points.
There are six trophies that will be awarded: The BoatUS Ward
Cleveland Memorial; The Captain Morgan; The Pier 39; Royal Cruise
Line; Marine World Foundation and the Claude Benham Memorial. There
will also be prize bags for 1st, 2nd and 3rdplace in each group.
Trophies and prize bags will be presented at the June Delegates
meeting. (See your Yachting Yearbook for details on the trophies –
we follow the deeds of trust.)
Thank you to all participants for your efforts to make our 107th
Annual Opening Day on San Francisco Bay a friendly competition and a
fun day
for all.
1. All boats should register at the SBYC website,
www.southbayyachtclub.org/events by May 20 (to be included in the
program). But registration is open until 10 am the day of the
parade. Boats must display their assigned parade order number to
participate in the parade and to be eligible for Opening Day awards,
prizes and Club of the Year (COTY) points. Please display your
SBYC/BoatUS burgee if you have one. Questions – contact parade
registrant Shirley Reekie <telephone> <email>
2. Follow verbal instructions given by personnel aboard Coast Guard
vessels, Coast Guard Auxiliary vessels, Police boats, Picket Boats,
Lead Boats or any
vessel flying the official orange SBYC Opening Day Banner.
3. Date & Time: Saturday May 24 the parade is to start at
approx. 1200 hours. NOTE: Boats parade by category and by number
within a category; thus, not
everyone starts at noon.
<Dean note: this assumes we will be sailing south from the
Marina to SBYC. Reverse the directions if we are sailing
north instead.>
4. At 1130 hours entrants are to rendezvous in the staging area just
north of the Alviso Slough. Assemble behind your lead boat in your
category (i.e. 100 class, etc.) numerical order if possible. While
waiting, circle in a counter-clockwise direction in your class
group. Your Lead Boat will let you know by radio, phone or visual
signal when it is time to enter and proceed through the parade
corridor. You should be following your Lead Boat, in numerical order
if possible, through the parade corridor; keeping any picket boats
(or anchored vessels flying the official Opening Day Banner) to your
Port. The Committee Boat and the Alviso Levee should be kept to
Port. The Committee Boat will be located between San Francisco’s
Marina Gas House Cove entrance and the first Fort Mason building
east of the Marina Green.
5. At 1200 hours: The Lead Boat will begin the parade with special
interest boats such as fire boats, search and rescue boats, etc
following. Lead Boat 000 will follow leading the Classic Yachts.
All boats are to proceed in single file, maintaining a distance of
at least 2-3 boat lengths between boats, at an approximate speed of
4 knots.
6. The parade route is along the Alviso Slough, past the SBYC
Committee Boat, Luxe Cruise Boat – Cabernet Sauvignon, continuing to
the SBYC docks where the parade officially ends. Participants will
be monitored by a spotter on the Alviso Slough Lefee, for completing
the course; thus confirming they are eligible for awards and COTY
points.
7. NOTE: There will not be a Coast Guard Auxiliary boat assigned as
Lead Boat in each group. The Coast Guard will assign them to
perimeter control. We will be asking that one boat from each
category assume the lead boat position for their group.
Categories are:
000 Classic and historic yachts
100 Powerboats decorated to theme
200 Sailboats decorated to theme
300 Power or sail decorated by Juniors
400 - 500 Flags & Streamers by club
700 Decorated not to theme
800 Non decorated boats
900 Human powered Paddlecraft including Dragon Boats, Kayaks, Stand
Up Paddleboards, Canoes, etc
Please Remember: Commercial Vessels have the right-of-way on the
slough!!
8. Radio communication will be on channel 69 and alternatively on
68, 71. (IF SOMEONE LEAVES A MIC OPEN, USE ALTERNATES)
Exercise CAUTION in the vicinity of the Alviso Marina
entrance, and the South Bay Yacht Club docks.
The Coast Guard asks that you use extreme caution while lining up
for the parade. Leave enough room while looking for your lead boat;
which will be the lowest numbered boat in your category. At the
Alviso Marina, make a safe wide turn as the area gets congested. Do
not cross through the parade route.
Display your assigned Parade order number in three places, using a 2
ft. X 2ft. Sign with a white background and large black numbers for
each of these placements. Place your number on both sides of the bow
- port & starboard and also on the stern. The boat name must
remain visible. The onboard spotters are looking to identify you to
our parade announcer. We want to correctly identify you in our video
and announce the information you provided on the registration form.
It is easy to use poster board from the dollar store or order a
banner online at staples. Caution is suggested as boat control may
be an issue when the current is above 4 knots, over the bottom.
Disqualification: Remember NO BALLOONS are allowed in decorations
and use of balloons may cause disqualification.Also: not
passing Pier 39 or not following other instructions may result in
disqualification for prizes and COTY points.
We will attempt to call the trophy and prize winners within a week
after the event. The official results will be posted at
www.SBYC.org. If you have won a trophy/prize please contact Shirley
Reekie <email> to reserve a place in the Awards Ceremony.
Thank You for your participation.
Good Luck and Have Fun!
Shirley Reekie <kayakrowsail@gmail.com>
South Bay Yacht Club Fleet Captain
