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Southern Bay Distance Racing Series

Administered by Broad Bay Sailing Association in collaboration with
Hampton Yacht Club, Old Point Comfort Yacht Club, Norfolk Yacht and Country Club, and CCV-Racing

Southern Bay Distance Racing Series (SBDRS)

The Southern Bay Distance Racing Series is a collection of sixteen distance races sponsored by various sailing and yacht clubs in the Southern Chesapeake that are summary scored to recognize the best distance sailing skipper and crew.   The clubs include: 

Of the sixteen CBYRA-sanctioned races, competition in seven (five for Cruising) are required for trophy consideration and generous throw-outs proportional to the total number of races sailed.  Sail your “…distance heart out” and be recognized by your fellow distance racers from across the Southern Bay.

2024 Southern Bay Racing Schedule

This document consists of all racing events in the southern bay.  The 2024 Notice of Series (to be posted below) will show which of these races are part of the Southern Bay Distance Racing Series.

Important Documents:

  • 2024 Notice of Series

2023 Results:

 * Check the Racing Archive for results from past years.  

SBDRS Calendar

    • Saturday, May 18, 2024
    • 9:30 AM
    • Chesapeake Bay off Buckroe Beach
    Register

    The 2024 Cape Henry Cup will be held on Saturday May 18, 2024, with a 0930 scheduled first start. This is a long-distance race in the lower Chesapeake Bay. The race officers select from multiple course options prior to the race depending on the weather. The race course length may be over 20 nautical miles for the faster divisions.

    This is Race #2 of the Southern Bay Distance Racing Series (SBDRS).

    Entry fee is WAIVED for all BBSA members!

    New for 2024, the Broad Bay Sailing Association is teaming with Hampton Yacht Club to include The Cape Henry Cup into the 2024 Hampton Roads Hospice Regatta, in support of the Dozorets Hospice House of Hampton Roads.

    Information about the Hospice House can be found at: https://www.hospicehousehr.org/

    Donations to the Dozorets Hospice House and optional tickets to a post-race social at Hampton Yacht Club can be found at: https://theclubspot.com/shop/regatta/QicRLbIWyE

    The Cape Henry Cup Race was established in 1974. As one of the most popular races on the southern Chesapeake, the course originally passed out through the Maryland Channel opening of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and returning through the Thimble Shoal Channel opening. Now we maintain the distance, but usually do not go through the openings.


    • Friday, May 24, 2024
    • Saturday, May 25, 2024
    • Annapolis, MD to Hampton


    • Thursday, May 30, 2024
    • Sunday, June 02, 2024
    • Hampton Yacht Club

    Southern Bay Race Week.  

    more details to come.  This includes race 4 & 5 of SBDRS.

Past events

Sunday, April 21, 2024 CCVR Spring Day Race 3 (Race 1 SBDRS)
Thursday, March 21, 2024 Crew/Skipper Match Party
Saturday, January 13, 2024 Explaining the PHRF of the Chesapeake @ OPCYC

History:

The Evolution of the Southern Bay Distance Racing Series - Nineteen Years of Distance Racing Recognition

In late 2003, the Broad Bay Sailing Association (BBSA) Vice-Commodore, Michael Nestor, proposed and gained support from the local sailing community at the individual to club level to have a season-long series (modeled after the Chesapeake Bay Yacht Racing Association (CBYRA) High Point Series and CCV High Point Series). The goals are to promote distance racing and recognize those skippers in the Southern Chesapeake beyond the windward-leeward regattas that abound.

The first year of the series was in 2004 as the Chesapeake Bay Distance Racing Series (CBDRS). There were a total of 5 races in the inaugural year.  BBSA hosted two races the first year.  CCV-Racing, Hampton Yacht Club, and Old Point Comfort Yacht Club hosted 1 race each. Additionally, the four hosting clubs funded the inaugural CBDRS trophies and have continued to fund the series and trophies every year. 

In 2012, the series name was changed to Southern Bay Distance Racing Series (SBDRS) to de-conflict with other series throughout the Bay incorporating Chesapeake in the title.  SBDRS is a collaborative effort of the local sailing clubs to get more boats out on the water, regardless of whether the boats are full on racers, racer-cruisers or pure cruisers.

The number of qualifying races has increased over time with notably Norfolk Yacht and Country Club in 2011 with Dink Vail and the Down the Bay Race added in 2016. The Round the Lights race sponsored by Old Point Comfort Yacht Club brings to 16 races available from April to October for skippers and their crews to show their mettle and skill in distance formats.

BBSA has administered the series since the beginning with collaborative and valuable inputs from all participating clubs.


"Broad Bay Sailing Association" is a non-profit organization. Virginia Beach, VA 23454

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