The Wonders of
San
Francisco
Bay
S
an Francisco has been called the 51st state in
the Union, and there’s more than a little truth
to the rumour since, like a grudgingly adopted
child, it bears little resemblance to the rest of
California. It is the third largest city in the state (behind
Los Angeles and San Diego) only because it covers a
scant 46 square miles, compared to several hundred
for the larger cities. Having risen from the ashes of
the devastating 1906 earthquake, San Francisco is as
much a state of mind as it is a city, and it has become
synonymous with the Beat Generation, hippies,
earthquakes, high-technology and the Golden Gate.
To the sailor, however, San Francisco is more than
just a city. It means San Francisco Bay, an often wild,
windy and tide-swept stretch of water that, at more
than 400 square miles, is really an inland sea rather
than a mere harbour. The bay lays undisputed claim to
more spectacular dismastings and wild broaches per
square mile than any other stretch of water in the U.S.
For many skippers and crews, racing on San Francisco
Bay is the Mount Everest of sailing: they know it’s
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e
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O
ld
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going to be very scary, often painful and certainly
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e
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expensive, but it’s hard to resist the challenge.
/S
O
M San Francisco and the surrounding communities are
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incredibly water-oriented, perhaps because it’s difficult
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to travel far without seeing the sparkling blue bay. San
i
S
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O
ck
Francisco alone has more than 43 hills, and residents
: ©
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never seem to grow tired of the endless parade of
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yachts, freighters, aircraft carriers and other vessels
;
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who share their bay. When boosters of San Francisco
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.c proposed that they host the America’s Cup, one of
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their favourite arguments was that the bay is literally
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a natural arena, where viewers could sit comfortably
Wild and wonderful, San Francisco Bay
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d –
B
n
in hotels, homes and offices to watch the entire
is an inland sea
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It was an impelling idea for the usually invisible
by ChriS CaSWell
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event, but it conveniently overlooked the one feature
DeCeMbeR 2008 YACHTWORLD.COM 35
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