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Welcome to the Long Beach Sea
Festival!
Soon after the start, Transpac crews were already hard at work.
At the start –
Transpac Class III and IV boat take off on thier long journey to Hawaii.
The PubClubettes add to the beautiful views in Rainbow Harbor.
A city of sunshine, still soaking in
the glory of hosting the 2004 US Olympic Swim Trials, is set for a summer
of seaside activities.
It's the Long Beach Sea Festival in Long
Beach, CA, a two-month series of events utilizing its main
attributes – outdoors to take advantage of the flawless weather,
proximity to the sea and a strong sports and recreational-minded culture.
An offshore powerboat race (July 9), LB-to-Catalina waterski and jetski
racing (July 8, Julyt 9), a Fourth of July fireworks celebration, kite
surfing, , a dragon boat festival, regattas, a Tiki Festival and movies
on the beach are among the 29 events running June 25 thru Aug. 26. For
a complete list of Sea Festival events, descriptions and dates, visit
the Long
Beach Sea Festival Web Site.
Here are some event highlights and profiles.
Catalina Ski Race – July 8, 9-11 a.m., Coast Hotel/Queen Mary
Todd Hage (second from left) has won this wild race five times.
Imagine, if you will, traveling from
Long Beach to Catalina Island and back in an hour. Keeping in mind the
fastest ferry does a one-way trip in that time frame and even a helicopter
is 15 minutes each way.
Now imagine doing it on water skis.
This is what the some 80 competitors do the second Saturday in July.
They speed along to Avalon and back in this wild round-trip journey
that begins on the beach and ends in the giant shadow of the Queen Mary.
The boats are monster ocean-going vessels, some sporting twin 1,000-hp
engines that gurgle like a lineman using Listerine.
And it's a day – or morning, actually, as it begins at 9 a.m.
–not just for the skiers and teams. Some 100 spectator boats, crews
sipping bubbly and beer, gather in the bay and just past the breakwater
for the start, then congregate near the finish line like anxious animals
looking for prey to come down to the watering hole. For them, it's a
floating fiesta.
Several more spectators gather on the deck of the Queen Mary ($10)
or at the edge of the Shoreline Village marina. Afterward, many make
port at the shore by the host Coast Hotel for several hours, their appetites
for fun well quenched with cocktails (bloody marys being the prime drink
of choice).
While the athletic feat is hard to fathom – after all, anyone
who has attempted to water ski in the open ocean knows all too well
about the challenge of the swells let along doing it at speeds approaching
85 mph – the accompanying party is not. These are boaters, after
all, and they like their boat drinks. Shortly after winning for the
fifth time in 2005, Todd Hage was downing bloody marys on the victory
dock. On the media boat, PubClub was welcomed on board with an offer
of champagne. At 8:45 in the morning! These are clearly people to which
we can relate.
The event is free for spectators and the competitors and teams are
as open to fans as, well, the open ocean.
Some other highlights of the Long Beach Sea Festival are:
• July 11, 18 & 25, Aug. 1, 8, 15, 22 & 29 – Moonlight
Movies at the Beach.
Dusk - Granada Beach. Enjoy an outdoor movie with friends. Free to the
public. Call (562) 434-1542.
• July 15 – Kahakai Sprints. Similliar to Outrigger
Canoe Races, it features 6-man, 2-man and single canoes. Also features
Polynesian curiosities, food and a "Grand Raffle." Marine
Stadium, 8:30 a..-3 p.m. (562) 598-9401.
• July 29 & 30 - Chinese Dragon Boat Races.
9 am to 5 pm - Marine Stadium. Enjoy one of Chinašs most ancient festival
traditions, colorfully decorated boats races. Oriental cultural craft
exhibitions. Free to spectators.
• Aug. 5 & 6- Kite Surfing Festival.
9 am to 6 pm - Granada Beach. Kite flying exhibitions, kite making workshops,
music food and beach fun. Free to the public. Call (562) 434-1542.
• Aug. 12-13 - Long Beach Sprint Nationals (Circle Boats).
Sat., 10 am - 5 pm; Sun. 11 am - 5 pm - Marine Stadium. Once known as
"Circle Boat Races in at Marine Stadium" it features vintage
"Cracker boxes" boats and traditional "flat bottoms."
Marine Stadium. $10. (310) 704-3243.
• Aug. 12-14 – I-14 U.S. National Sailing Championships.
Championship regatta, a lead-up to the I-14 World Championship (Sept.
5-16). Between 25-30 boats are expected to compete in fast-design boats.
World US Sailing Center, Ocean & Bayshore. (562) 427-3116.
• Aug. 18-20 - Tiki Beach Festival & Polynesian Spectacular.
Perhaps the one most suited for PubClubbers. 10 am to 6 pm - Granada
Beach. A sunrise ceremony begins a celebration of the island lifestyle
with entertainment, Polynesian cultural displays, food, outrigger canoes
and dance troops. Free to spectators. Saturday Night Luau is $30 per
person. Call (562) 434-1542.
Transpacific Yacht Race
 Every
two years, this event begins in Long Beach but ends 2,200 nautical miles
away in Honolulu,
Hawaii. The Transpacific Yacht Race is an endurance
journey that has endured now for 100 years, a test of man and the sea
aboard private sailing vessels. It sailed from Long Beach on three days
– July 11, July 15 and July 17 for the top class of 80-and 90-foot
purpose-built yachts – with nearly 80 competitors meeting up in
Hawaii in anywhere from eight days to two weeks.
Along the way, they encounter 30-foot swells, changing weather conditions
and a harrowing run through the chain of Hawaiian islands before ending
at the Diamond Head Lighthouse. Boats range from 40-foot sailboats to
massive 90-foot sleek vessels built for one purpose: To race and win
"the Transpac" as its called by skippers and crew.
Once underway, top-class
yachts go searching for the Pacific breeze.
Spectators gathered for the Transpac start in a true party atmosphere.
While the event has existed for the past 100 years, for the first time
they have a home departure base. The city of Long Beach, – no stranger
to hosting major events as it's held the successful Long
Beach Grand Prix the past 31 years – has extended its
host hand to create a spectacular setting. Focused around the new Rainbow
Harbor, an area that stretches from Shoreline Village to the Aquarium
of the Pacific along a harborside walk path, it features a festive summertime
setting for fans and competitors. For the final sendoff on a Sunday,
nearly a 100 spectator boats gathered in the ocean, some enjoying a
real party atmosphere.
 Long
Beach, with its reputation as a lively city with spirited winds ideally
suited for sailors, is the ideal location to send the boats on their
long journey. The host restaurant, Gladstone's, sits at the water's
edge in Rainbow Lagoon (Shoreline Drive and Pine Ave.) and offers a
large patio for dining and an atmosphere for cocktailing. There is also
PF Chang's and Outback Steakhouse along the Rainbow Harbor walkway.
The adjacent Pike Place provides many more options for dining and drinking
(see ourLong
Beach guide for specifics). Across from the Aquarium of the
Pacific (at the rollecoaster pedestrian bridge) is the lively Bubba
Gump shrimp restaurant and, for those seeking a perfect bridge to the
islands, a brand new Mai Tai bar.
Running concurrent with Transpac is the inaugural Mayor's Cup.
It features women skippers and crew competing in identical 37-foot Catalina
sailboats on July 14-16. The best viewing is from the Belmont Pier (noon-5),
while Rainbow Harbor is serving as the official gathering and party
place.
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More About Long Beach!
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