Preparation was the name of the game in Saturday's ASL Season Opener. Six teams of three entered the event with hopes of sailing around the course with ease. It did not take long on Saturday for reality to set in. Short course racing is hard on the boats and the crews...

After a winter of retrofiting, Team Spot Satellite Messenger/Toyota Sunnyvale arrived at the beach with a fresh paint job but alot of assembly required. Optimistic helmsman Dan Brandt continued to rivet, screw, tape and pin together his skiff. With over a hundred details to be addressed, Team Spot sat in the same spot on Saturday.

The rest of the fleet left Crissy Field with spinnakers up for a ride to the PIER 39 course.  Before the first start, a bowsprit breakage sent Switch Clothing's Joey Pasquali, John Gray, and Rory Giffen back to the beach early for repairs. 

 Races 1 and 2 were tight among the rest of the fleet with Howard Hamlin showing his speed advantage and experience. 

A third victim of carnage fell during the third race when The Skiff Sailing Foundation also broke their bowsprit. Canadian in charge, Andrew McCorquodale snapped the sprit while trying to make an adjustment in the water. 

Chad Freitas, Brian Malouf and JV Gilmour made it to the fourth race on the red skiff. On the first run, serious mainsail damage was sustained in a capsize.  Two boats were left standing: last year's champion Patrick Whitmarsh and unchallenged Howie Hamlin. They were left to face off in the Saturday's last race. Hamlin returned to the beach with a perfect score but an imperfect bow man. Matt Noble sustained a knee injury putting him out of the game.

With a long night of boat work planned, all six boats promise to be ready for Sunday's noon start.