Homeport Regatta boats at the start

Homeport Regatta boats at the start

Homeport Regatta Welcome


Welcome Aboard!

Greetings Sailors! Thank you for your interest in the 2019 Homeport Regatta.  

We at Homeport Regatta Sailing are very pleased to announce that the 2018 Homeport Regatta hosted over 30 entrants and their families and friends for a challenging race and an over the top after-race party.  Thanks to our many wonderful sponsors, there was a raffle, live music, and excellent food. Hundreds of people enjoyed the event and, when it was all said and done, the proceeds of the event were donated to the Channel Islands Marine and Wildlife Institute (CIMWI). As a result of the outstanding success of the event, last year Homeport Regatta Sailing donated $2000 to CIMWI which it used to acquire their new whale disentanglement and rapid assist boat, which will be on display this year at the after-race party and awards ceremony.  The 2019 Homeport Regatta will be bigger and better. Our theme this year is, “It’s Ohana”; meaning, “It’s all about family”.  So, break out your Polynesian gear, and plan to hula with us on May 4, 2019.

This year, the event shall be open to cruising boats and live-aboards, not only from Vintage and Channel Islands Marinas, but from all of Ventura County.  We anticipate that we will have many more participants which means more opportunities for great prizes, great food, great music, camaraderie, and community benefit. The Homeport Regatta is a rare, one of a kind opportunity for cruising sailors and live-aboard sailors to go out, with little or no racing experience, and to compete in a fun race.  And, no yacht club affiliation is required for entry.

The Homeport Regatta was an idea born on the docks between friends Larry Golkin and Gareth Jones. To cut a long yarn short, one day whilst working away on their adjacent cruising boats, one man said to another “hey, fancy a friendly race around Anacapa?” The gauntlet was thrown, and after a bit of excited chatter the other man said “heck, why don’t we invite a couple of other friends’ boats to the party?”  Then, they decided to approach Vintage Marina Partners for sponsorship.  Vintage jumped on board with both feet and the event took shape from there.

How do we get a bunch of cruising boats and live-aboard boats to go out and race competitively against one another?  Easy. The Homeport Regatta is a pursuit race.  This means that the slowest boat in the fleet starts first followed by successively faster boats.  You are probably wondering how this works.  Simple.   Upon entering the race, your boat will receive a Homeport Regatta Handicap based on the characteristics of your boat.  Your handicap will determine your start time vis a vis that of the slowest boat in the fleet.  Ideally, if done correctly, all boats should finish at or near the same time to make for a fabulous spectacle at the finish line.  You will receive more details of how the start times are calculated at a later date.

Following the race, all competitors, their family and friends are invited to the huge awards ceremony and after-race party where all may enjoy great food, music, raffle prizes, and camaraderie.

To enter, fill out the entry form, and deliver it to the Vintage Marina Partners office located upstairs at 3150 Harbor Blvd, Oxnard, along with your $30 entry fee. You can either print out the attached entry form, or go to the Vintage office and fill one out there.  Along with your application and entry form, all entrants must produce and attach proof of current insurance coverage for their vessels. The Vintage office is open 7 days a week, 8am - 5pm. It is strongly recommended to do so as early as possible. No application for entry will be accepted after April 30, 2019.  Moreover, if you are coming from Ventura Harbor, please take notice that Vintage Marina partners will be offering a limited number of free slips for the duration of the race weekend (Friday and Saturday night). However the word here is limited, and they will be assigned on a first come, first serve basis to paid entrants only.

For any questions you may have please send a message to Homeport Regatta Sailing at HomeportRegatta@yahoo.com.  Also be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram!

And a huge thanks to our partners at Vintage Marina Partners without whom Homeport Regatta would not be a reality.






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