Register now for 20th edition of Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week
by LBYC Race Office 15 May 08:24 NZST
June 20-22, 2025
Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week 2024 © Bronny Daniels
Exciting racecourses with flat water offerings inside of the Long Beach breakwater, and big waves and big breeze on the outside are just a few of the factors that make the Long Beach Race Week regatta one of the most enjoyable on the west coast.
With three days of racing and fabulous post-racing parties all hosted by Long Beach Yacht Club (LBYC) and Alamitos Bay Yacht Club (ABYC), this year promises to be as good as it ever gets. Registration is open through Thursday June 19, 6:00 PM and early bird pricing is still available for all classes until June 1, at 1600 hours. Sign up now at www.lbrw.org.
Race Day One begins Friday June 20, with a weather briefing at 10:15 AM by Ullman Sails, and skipper's meeting at 10:30 AM at LBYC. The first race warning will sound at 12:55 PM on Friday, and at 11:55 AM on Saturday and Sunday. Conditions permitting, it is expected that two races will be sailed in most classes on Friday, three races on Saturday, and two races on Sunday.
LBRW is open to multiple classes and in 2025 the event is proud to host the Catalina 37 National Championship, the J/109 West Coast Championship, the J/111 Pacific Coast Championship, the Schock 35 Pacific Coast Championship, the Viper 640 Pacific Coast Championship, the Melges 15 West Coast Championship, and the J/70, J/80, J/105, J/109, and J/120 Southern California High Point Series. For the first time this year, LBRW will host the Moore 24 fleet and the Moore 24 National Championship. A perpetual trophy, the Campbell Cup - PHRF Random Leg A Winner - will also be awarded.
The event is grateful to the generosity and support of its 2024 sponsors including Ullman Sails, Evans, Clarke Marine Insurance, Cabrillo Boat Shop, Durant Design and Construction, Mt Gay Rum, Pirates Lair, The Oriana Shea Group, and Tom Walker Photography.
Bruce Cooper, owner of Ullman Sails Newport Beach, brings Ullman back again as title sponsor, maintaining that if you do one regatta, it should be the Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week.
"LBRW is the special Southern California regatta where skippers and crew can compete in the best SoCal conditions and show off what they have got, it's where skippers and crew can really test themselves against the top racers from across the region," Cooper commented. "The regatta attracts a diversity of fleets, many who choose LBRW as the venue for their class championship. With typically champagne conditions to enjoy - racers can look forward to the typical prevailing conditions for LBRW - clearing westerlies every day and about 75-78 degrees - there is something for everyone."
John Staff owner/skipper of the J111 Obsidian will be back for his fourth event in the boat, although he is pretty sure he's raced 17 Long Beach Race Week events in all, from as far back as the late 1990s racing in a variety of classes including the B-52 Cheetah 30, a Viper, and a Synergy 1000, as well as some chartered boats.
"We are very lucky to have such a competitive and sportsman-like group of J111s here in Southern California," Staff said. "When Peter Wagner brings his multiple national champion Skeleton Key down from the Bay Area with her steady experienced crew to join us, the intensity of the racing goes up measurably and it's a pleasure to compete against them. We on Obsidian are really looking forward to this year's event and are very grateful to the organizers and Ullman Sails for putting on such a great regatta year after year."
Parties featuring music and dancing will be hosted by ABYC on Friday night, and at LBYC on Saturday and Sunday. Prize-giving will be held at LBYC on Sunday at 5:00 PM. Competitors are invited to enjoy both the clubs' services and amenities including the ice machine, and free water taxi service between the clubs until 9:00 PM Friday and Saturday. For details on entry, schedule, mooring requests and more, visit www.lbrw.org.