The Cal 25 National Championship Regatta 2000 was hosted by Fleet V in Long Beach California. Long Beach Yacht Club provided the Race Committee volunteers who made this Great Regatta possible. The regatta consisted of three days of racing activity on July 28th, 29th and 30th.  The racers were mainly composed of regular Fleet V members although some entries from the Newport Beach Fleet sailed up the coast for the tight competition.

Friday June 28th consisted of sail measurement, early entries and a tune up race followed up by a great dockparty/BBQ on gangway 38  in the Long Beach Marina a.k.a. "Cal 25 Row."  John McBrearty owner of Cheap Date brought a new Ullman genoa to this regatta that looked very fast!  Dennis rigs wife, Cathi organized an excellent BBQ and prepared a lot of the food. Her Cevichi was enjoyed by everyone who had a chance to taste it!

At the Saturday morning skippers meeting questions were answered, entry fees paid and everyone headed back to their Cal 25's to prepare to race. The race course was set inside the Long Beach breakwater. Thirteen boats were on the line with several skippers determined to win the start  there was no room to make a mistake.
 

The first race was held in an unusually strong breeze, even for Long Beach. Some people claim they saw 20 knot gusts! The wind lightened somewhat as the day progressed, giving the fleet a variety of conditions to compete in.  By the end of the day on Saturday the crew of Rascal held the lead over Calamazoo by one point, 8 to 9.  This close racing between Calamazoo and Rascal was to continue on Sunday.

Close sailing like the picture above is what makes racing Cal 25's a lot of fun.

Boats within a few boat lengths of each are a typical sight in Cal 25
racing.

Saturday night was a buffet dinner on the LBYC patio. The weather was perfect as the sun set on an exciting day of racing. The LBYC kitchen staff did a great job preparing the Salmon dinner. After a long day on the water the  race committee members attended the dinner and enjoyed the hospitality of fleet V.

Sunday began with light winds that built slowly. The race committee wisely delayed starting the race until the wind filled in Races four saw Calamazoo skippered by Stan Gibbs take the lead over from Dennis Riggs Rascal. In the fifth and final race Rascal sailed hard and got a bullet!

Tie broken by appendix A2.3

Dennis Riggs and crew are the winners of the Cal 25 National Championship.

Congratulations to Dennis and his crew!! Below are the top five finishers. Four trophies were awarded late on Sunday afternoon during a ceremony at Long Beach Yacht Club.

Thanks for a great National Reggata are owed to Dave Hansen and the LBYC race committee whos hard work showed throughout the weekend.