Boating

Sailing Six-Pack Style

Fun on the Estuary

    Everyone has seen the Port of Oakland. As the fourth-busiest container port in the United States, spanning more than 1,200 acres, it’s hard to miss. But just beyond the port is a more low-key kind of maritime activity—sailing in the Oakland Estuary. The Estuary is tiny, only a few miles long, sandwiched between Oakland and Alameda; but its size is deceiving. Most people know San Francisco Bay is home to a large sailing community, but what many people don’t know is that the majority of sailors in the Bay Area, many of them with connections to Alameda, call the Estuary home. In fact, Alameda has one of the largest ratios of boats per capita in California, so sailing is both a culture and a local industry. Not only are thousands of boats docked in Alameda, but the Island is also home to boat designers and builders, sailmakers and more than a half dozen yacht clubs, including the third-oldest yacht club in the San Francisco Bay, the Encinal Yacht Club, which was established in 1890.
    So what makes this small body of water so special? “It’s laid back, and the weather is usually better than in the Bay,” says Sutter Schumacher, whose father, Carl Schumacher, was a world-renowned Alameda-based boat designer and sailor. According to Sutter Schumacher, who grew up in Alameda and learned to sail in the Estuary, “It’s a great place to learn, because there aren’t huge winds, and the water is usually slightly warmer than in the Bay.”
    In fact, many of the yacht clubs in the Estuary offer sailing lessons. For the last 14 years, the Island Yacht Club has offered a women’s sailing seminar. Why a women-only program? Sailing is no different than driving, says Joanne McFee of the Island Yacht Club. “Just like it’s more fun to be taught to drive by someone other than your husband or significant other, it’s usually more fun to learn to sail the same way,” she explains. The seminar, which McFee dubs a “kinder, gentler way to learn,” is taught over the course of one weekend in the fall, usually during Fleet Week (San Francisco’s annual two-day celebration honoring Navy and Coast Guard men and women), so “graduates” can sail into the Bay to watch the Blue Angels. Among other lesson programs in the Estuary is the Encinal Yacht Club’s junior program for children 8 to 18; it’s open to all students, from beginners to more experienced sailors. The club is affiliated with the Encinal Sailing Foundation, which provides scholarships to ensure that the sport is open to all children interested in sailing.
    Accessibility is important to this sailing community, which is why many of the sailing activities in the Estuary don’t require membership to a yacht club or even ownership of a boat. “The big misconception is that you need money to sail,” says Laura Paul, executive director of the Yacht Racing Association. “There are many opportunities in the Bay Area to sail if you don’t own a boat.” The Estuary in particular is very open to novices, and it has a rich sailing tradition of welcoming anyone who’s interested. “There is a community feel in the Estuary,” McFee says. “There are many races where everyone is welcome to race and even more welcome to meet up with other sailors at one of the yacht clubs for a barbecue afterwards.”
    While the barbecues are certainly a big draw, it’s a particular kind of race that takes place before the barbecue that has become a tradition of the Estuary sailing community—the famed Beer Can Races, so named for their unofficial beverage of choice imbibed at the barbecues afterward. You can find a Beer Can Race in the Estuary most Wednesday and Friday nights during the late spring through the fall—just look at the yacht club schedules to see which club is sponsoring one and when (see the sidebar “Sail Away” for more information). There are few rules for Beer Can Races: Other than safety, nothing is taken too seriously; you probably shouldn’t show up empty-handed, and if you bring a really nice beer, you are almost assured of winning a space on a boat. It’s just a fun evening on the water. Most sailors are very willing to let a “newbie” to the sport help crew during a Beer Can Race. “Find out where a race is taking place, show up, be outgoing and ask for a ride,” is Paul’s advice. “If the person you ask can’t use you, they will help you find someone who can.” Because of the Estuary’s narrowness, there is close contact with other racers, and “it’s sometimes a bit like bumper cars,” says McFee. “There’s a relaxed attitude and some good-natured ribbing.” While the races are hosted by different local yacht clubs, would-be sailors don’t need to be members at any of them to participate nor do they need a boat. “We’re always looking to expose new people to the sport,” says Paul. If someone is serious about learning to sail, a Beer Can Race is a great place to be introduced to the sport. Just be sure to bring a sense of fun—and a six-pack of beer.