Let The Dreams Begin(San Francisco, CA)- Two guys who have spent most of their lives sailing on San Francisco Bay should have heaps of advice for America's Cup match racers from around the world who'll be dipping into these cool and quirky waters over the months leading to the 34th America's Cup defense in 2013.
There were a few examples over the weekend climaxed by locals Shawn Bennett's 2-0 victory over Russ Silvestri on Sunday to win the first of three stops of the California Dreamin' Series. The next two events are in Long Beach (March 5-6) and San Diego (March 12-13).
The overall winner of the California Dreamin' Series gets a free pass to the Ficker Cup at Long Beach March 17-19, and the winner of that gains entrance to the most prominent match racing event in the United States, the Grade 1 Congressional Cup, which will feature a world class line-up on March 22-26.
Bennett, who won the 2010 U.S. Match Racing Championship last September in Detroit, MI, is looking forward to the America's Cup two years hence. "That's gonna be a blast," he said. "I'm general manager of a tugboat company and we have a dock right at Pier 17, so the finish line is going to be right near us."
As for offering advice to the participants based on his local expertise, Bennett shied away. "I doubt if I have the credentials to give anybody coming in here for the America's Cup any advice," he said. However, he added, "I can tell 'em about some good restaurants probably." Full California Dreamin J/22 Match Race report.