Bayview to Breakers: a Ragtag Regatta

The 4th Annual Bayview to Breakers: a Ragtag Regatta

Celebrating free public access to the Bay and the maritime history of India Basin and the southeast shore of San Francisco, Bayview to Breakers is an urban flotilla of manual powered watercraft. If the land-lubbers in small towns on small waters in America's heartland can have watercraft celebrations, so too shall the City by the Bay.

All Hands on Deck!

Calling all weathered, barnacled sea captains and rubber-legged would be skippers. Summoning all those with non-motorized, manually powered vessels, from the finely handcrafted to the roughly hewn, from the Bay worthy to the "as yet determined." From the innovative and inventive, to the overly ambitious. To all the works-in-progress waiting to be plied to the open water. Shake off your summer fog -- this is your day in the sun and water. San Francisco's sunny southeast waterfront is home to the finest weather to be found in summertime.

All hands on deck! Mind the current! Steady as she goes!

Saturday, August 13, 2011
India Basin Shoreline Park
San Francisco, CA 94124
Start time: 9 a.m.
End time: when the Bay begins to break (afternoonish)

Q: What is going to happen?

A: People will show up and launch their watercraft into the Bay from Arelious Walker cul-de-sac near the India Basin Open Space in Bayview Hunters Point. What happens beyond that is mere speculation. Some may head towards the Pacific Ocean, the middle of San Francisco Bay, or explore the southeastern shoreline until the afternoon winds whisk up the breakers. Some sailors have heard rumors of a scavenger hunt along the shoreline, a treasure of nautical flags waiting to be discovered and flown proudly on mast heads. Well wishers, villagers and bystanders will take part in the traditional blessing of the fleet as watercraft set forth and return from the voyage. Good viewing may be found along Heron's Head Park. Teachers, educators and parents are encouraged to use this event as an opportunity to teach their students about boat building and the local maritime history of San Francisco's southeast waterfront.

Regatta Categories

Kayaks, canoes, dugout canoes, row boats, dragon boats, dories, guideboats, dinghies, Jersey skiffs (sail), traditional & wooden boats, tub boats, rafts, barrel rafts, pvc pipe rafts, floats, gondolas, outrigger canoes, human powered hydrofoils, hydrobikes, cardboard boats, sea eagle sailboats, PFDs (personal flotation devices), IFDs (improvised flotation devices), homebuilt experimental category, unclassifiable category. Reclaimed materials category, small sail (if entering from India Basin Shoreline Park), large sail if entering area from neighboring shores.

“If you dream it, you might be able to float it.” -anonymous

History of Bayview to Breakers

History of Bayview to Breakers Ragtag Regatta

The first year’s event was an unforgettable experience but all documentation went down with the ship. Her crew survived the calamity, but the maiden voyage of the U.S.S. Ragtag proved fleeting when the afternoon winds whipped up the breakers and proved the vessel unworthy of the open water. Written logs, photographic documentation, and notes carved onto the forecastle have been lost to history.

Legal Flotsam

This is not a planned or organized event with big-pocket corporate sponsorships. All claims due to participant injury or accidents will be summarily jettisoned. The public is free to access the San Francisco Bay. That they choose to do so at this park on this day is their decision alone and not due to the influence of publicity surrounding the possibility of an event that takes place and resembles what is described here. The similarity and appearance of an organized event is not intended to resemble an organized event and is the result of subjective interpretation.

Anyone willing to place themselves on or into a watercraft vessel in the San Francisco Bay recognizes the inherent dangers present. Any number of terrible things may happen and although statistically infrequent, terrible things happen to people on the San Francisco Bay on a regular basis. The Bay is a large body of water that is a combination of inland fresh water runoff and the salty waters of the Pacific Ocean, the largest ocean on earth. The Bay is not to be construed as a placid little freshwater pond; it’s a large tempestuous bitch. It has currents and tides (changing water levels) and when played upon by the wind, weather events, and the pull of the moon, it can be an unpredictable place to recreate. Yet, despite these elements, thousands of reasonable people choose to spend time in watercraft on the San Francisco Bay. If you have reservations, you should never participate in any activity that may do you harm, particularly if you have people or family whom might be pre-disposed to filing lawsuits on your behalf. If attempting to float on a large unpredictable body of water makes your boots shake, please watch the regatta from Heron's Head Park, the official Bayview to Breakers Ragtag Regatta reviewing stand. Much fun is to be had by family and friends who remain ashore.

Knowledge and use of nautical terms is not necessary but strongly encouraged and may enhance sensitivity.