Midwinter Fleet Falls Short of Expected 1,000

Seventeen yacht clubs finished the first two days of the 56th Southern California Yachting Assn. Midwinter Regatta Sunday, leaving two clubs to continue the action today.

Los Angeles Yacht Club and San Diego Yacht Club, both hosting large boats, will wind up the regatta with a final race today.

The turnout for the world’s largest winter sailing regatta fell short of the anticipated 1,000 boats. The total count was 895, according to general chairman Dave McMillan. Largest turnout was at Alamitos Bay Yacht Club, Long Beach, where 142 small boats in nine classes competed over bay and ocean courses.

The sailors enjoyed midsummer weather on Saturday with light winds. The weather came closer to living up to the name of the regatta Sunday when overcast skies spread a chill over waters from San Diego to Ventura County. Sailors on Mission Bay in San Diego experienced fog Saturday but visibility improved Sunday.