Southern charm and sailboat racing

All the problems of the world are solved on bar stools, but the solutions rarely leave the bar. This one did. What began as an idea scribbled on a cocktail napkin has become one of the most iconic sailboat racing regattas in the world.

Charleston Race Week at Patriots Point will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2026 on April 16-19 in Charleston, SC.

“Everyone involved with Charleston Race Week is extremely proud of the product we have created and continue to deliver,” said Randy Draftz, longtime event director. “We have set a standard with this regatta that has earned Charleston Race Week a worldwide reputation.”

Draftz realized that when he was invited to serve as a panelist at a sailboat racing forum in Europe. He was on a panel alongside organizers of such renowned events as Cowes Week and Kiel Week and was asked why Charleston Race Week was consistently increasing participation while those other events were seeing decreasing numbers.

At its height, Charleston Race Week drew a record 287 boats in 2010. That massive mark came amidst a 20-year run when the average attendance was 225 boats. Draftz, who has been involved with the regatta since 2001.

“I think it’s been a combination of high-caliber racing, top-notch on-water management, and Charleston being a destination city,” Draftz said. “Charleston Harbor is a challenging venue that delivers consistent wind and tricky currents for the inshore courses, while it’s a short trip out the channel to the Atlantic Ocean for the offshore courses.”

Ryan Hamm recalls the first discussion of creating a race week took place on the back porch of Charleston Yacht Club. He and other members of the Charleston Ocean Racing Association concocted a plan to transform an existing event held off the coast of the historic South Carolina city.

Brian and Lyn Swan were also part of those early discussions to rebrand the South Atlantic Racing Association Championship. Rick Moore and Chuck Rushing were the other founding fathers of Charleston Race Week, which began in 1996 with 29 boats in four classes.

In the early years, it was a two-part regatta with offshore racing held one weekend in June and inshore racing held the following weekend. That format attracted a loyal following and the regatta grew, but organizers realized there were a few issues that would not go away.

“It was hot and there was no wind,” Lyn Swan said matter-of-factly. “We were having to wait until 1 or 2 in the afternoon for the sea breeze to fill in to start racing.”

About four years in, the Charleston Ocean Racing Association leadership came up with the idea of moving the regatta from early June to mid-April with the goal of attracting boats returning north after competing in Key West Race Week in January.

Twenty-nine entries in 1996 for the first ever Charleston Race Week has blossomed into one of the largest keel-boat regattas in the Western Hemisphere.

It was a genius idea that also solved the wind and temperature problem and Charleston Race Week really took off. In 2005, CORA brokered an agreement with the South Carolina Maritime Foundation to jointly run Charleston Race Week.

Brad Van Liew, a successful solo sailor who was executive director of the foundation, took over as event director with CORA providing volunteers to assist with on-water and shoreside activities.

That partnership ceased after five years and CORA decided to hire Draftz as the full-time event director. It was under his leadership that Charleston Race Week reached record levels of participation due largely to the ability to attract high-level sponsors.

Two loyal sponsors that were pivotal to the early success of Charleston Race Week were Beneteau and Vineyard Vines.

“There was a dramatic uptick in participation after Randy took over. He had connections with several major companies that came aboard as sponsors,” said Brian Swan, who served as event director multiple times. “Randy deserves a lot of credit for building Charleston Race Week into what it is today.”

It was Draftz who struck a deal with the Charleston Harbor Marina and Resort to serve as regatta headquarters and host the post-race parties. That venue proved extremely popular and played a pivotal role in Charleston Race Week consistently drawing more than 200 boats.

In 2023, Charleston Race Week leadership got permission from the town of Mount Pleasant to move regatta headquarters and the post-race parties onto the decks of the USS Yorktown, the historic aircraft carrier that is on display at Patriots Point. That new venue has also proven a hit with participating sailors and provided a unique experience.

“We are all so proud of what Charleston Race Week became and still remains to this day,” Lyn Swan said. “None of us that were involved at the start ever dreamed it would grow into such an incredible regatta that draws teams from all over the United States and even other countries.”

Registration for the 30th edition of Charleston Race Week is now open with the Notice of Race and other important documents are available at: https://www.yachtscoring.com/emenu/50472. Organizers are proud to announce that next year’s regatta will host t

The inaugural ORC Sportboat North American Championship will be among the fleets with 20 to 30 boats expected in the 4-day event. The schedule begins with a distance race that will traverse Charleston Harbor, followed by three days of windward-leeward racing.

Among the various designs that fit into the ORC Sportboat Rule are Melges 24, GP 26, Fareast 28, J/88, Farr 30, Cape 31, and Melges 32. There are also numerous custom designs expected to enter with boats coming from both the United States and Canada.

“ORC sportboats are lightweight, fast designs typically ranging from 24 to 32 feet in length, requiring an athletic skillset for the teams to handle, especially in windy conditions,” said Dobbs Davis, U.S. communications director for ORC.

Details: https://www.yachtscoring.com/emenu/50472.

Source: Bill Wagner/CRW