Boaters descend on town as Charleston Race Week hits

Image by Flickr user b.gernertt Image by 20090417-race.jpg

Charleston Race Week has arrived and boaters are flocking to our harbor for a weekend full of boating and shore-side fun.

The festival's competitions start today, and conclude on Sunday with a 4 p.m. awards ceremony -- the shoreside events for a $75 pass.

Here's a bit about the event from a press release:

More than a thousand sailors spent a near-perfect Thursday at the water's edge in Charleston today, while they prepped, launched, and tested out their speedy racing sailboats in preparation for tomorrow's start of 2009 Charleston Race Week. 

Once a small, largely local regatta, Charleston Race Week has ballooned in size over the past 4 years to become one of the most prominent sailboat racing events on the calendar. Sailors from 10 different countries and 37 states will take to the waters of Charleston Harbor and the Atlantic Ocean at 10 a.m. as a record-breaking 175 boats race for bragging rights and prizes worth over ten thousand dollars.

“The opportunity to sail in San Francisco-like conditions but wearing short-sleeved shirts is just fantastic,” said Kristen Lane, the northern California owner of the Melges 24 'Brick House'.  Her husband Peter races against her in an identical boat, and shares Kristen's sentiments about Charleston.  “It's a great venue, and the people are fantastic. Say what you want about Southern hospitality - here, it's true.” 

If you want to know more about it, hop on over to their Web site, or check out this article from The Post and Courier.