Sailing the Bay is an exciting and informative one hour film celebrating sailing on San Francisco Bay. From English and Spanish explorers plying the Pacific to clipper ships and flat-bottomed scows; from the first yacht club west of the Mississippi to the bird boats of the 1920s and high tech carbon fiber cats of today leading up to the America’s Cup, San Francisco Bay has always been one of the world’s foremost sailing venues. Strong winds, swirling waters and breathtaking scenery combine to make San Francisco Bay an unmatched nautical paradise.

Sailing the Bay is the first television program to tell the story of the full spectrum of sailing adventures on the Bay – from its European discovery in the late 18th century to the recreational sailing mecca of today.

We meet some of the people who first sailed the Bay — the explorers, traders and gold seekers — and we sail with some of the colorful characters on today’s Bay — professional crew, amateur sailors, boat-builders and sailing students –- who partake in what one denizen described as a permanent party on the Bay.

Timing

Production of Sailing the Bay is expected to take about one year (to ensure shooting through a cycle of four seasons). Depending on the start date – assumed to be Spring 2012 — the film will be ready in advance of the 2013 America’s Cup.

Distribution

Sailing the Bay is being produced to run as a public TV program initially on KQED in the San Francisco Bay Area. National distribution is likely to follow. The program will also be screened at the Bay Theater at Pier 39, which re-opened in September 2011 under control of the Aquarium of the Bay/Bay Institute. Additional screenings will take place at venues through the Bay Area.

Education

Sailing the Bay will offer a web-based curriculum on the www.sailingthebay.org website. Downloadable lesson plans derived from the program will include narratives, reference guides and video clips organized by subject, grade level and key words. We envision two educational streams — one centered on maritime history for general use in schools and the other a primer on how to sail.

Funding

Please help us share the magic of being on San Francisco Bay by visiting our Donate page as we are fundraising for production of the program and related educational material. All contributions are tax-deductible.

The Racing On The Bay and Jr Sailing Reunion video clips are courtesy of Vince Casalaina. Photos of the Santana (formerly Humphrey Bogart’s yacht) on the Home and Links pages are courtesy of Peter Lyons. The Sailing the Bay, The First Ship and The Alma video clips are from Saving the Bay.