SFIOD Fleet Hosts the IOD World Championship Regatta

September 28th - October 3rd, 2008 -- San Francisco Yacht Club,
Belvedere, CA
SAN FRANCISCO--(Business Wire)--
In September, the 50-member San Francisco International One Design
(IOD) Fleet will welcome 12 world-class teams from 5 countries for 5
Days of unsurpassed competition.

The 60 visiting sailors will race our traditional yachts on one of
the most exciting sailing venues and best race courses in the world -
San Francisco Bay.

A 33' racing sloop, the IOD was designed in 1936. Its narrow form,
graceful lines and traditional overhangs were modeled after the racing
6-meter yacht, Saga. The tall, powerful sail plan is perfectly
balanced by a full displacement keel, making the boat a delight to
race in the Bay and elsewhere around the globe.

The founders of the IOD Class were inspired by the premise that
racing should test the skills of the helmsperson and their crew rather
than their ability to enhance or modify the equipment. As a result,
the IOD Class rules dictate rigorous specifications for the
construction and maintenance of the one design boats.

Commitment to these principles seeded fleets in Norway, Sweden,
The UK, Bermuda and the US and attracted an impressive array of
sailors whose names also appear in America's Cup and ocean racing
history including Cornelius Shields, Bus Mosbacher, Arthur Knapp,
George Hinman, Bill Cox, Arthur Davis, Bob Bavier and Bill Luders. The
world class credits 10 active fleets in Oslo, Goteborg, Cornwall, Nova
Scotia, Nantucket, Fishers Island, Long Island Sound, North East
Harbor, Marblehead and San Francisco.

In each of the fleets, the racing season culminates in a contest
for an invitation to the World Championships. The annual event rotates
to each of the 10 venues in the World and was last hosted in San
Francisco in 1999. Each year the host fleet welcomes the visiting
competitors and provides their boats for use in the competition.

Our SFIOD fleet is honored to host 1 team from each fleet and the
defending World Champion as our guests at the oldest club on the
Pacific Coast - The San Francisco Yacht Club in Belvedere Cove.

Current World Champion, Charlie Van Voorhis from Fishers Island,
NY is a favorite among the visiting competitors. Charlie has won the
event twice in the past five years including last year's event in
Nantucket which lead from the first day and won by a sizable margin.
Nine-time World Champion, William S. Widnall from Marblehead, MA and
six-time World Champion Eugene "Penny" Simmons from Bermuda will also
be in attendance. Widnall who won the Worlds in San Francisco in 1977
and Simmons who won it here in 1985, are two of the only three
outsiders to win a World Championships in San Francisco since 1959.

The local team of Tad Lacey and Evan Dailey won the event the last
time it was held in San Francisco in 1999 and this year the San
Francisco fleet will be represented by Tiburon Fire Chief, Richard
Pearce. Richard and his brother Mark are Tiburon natives and have been
racing IODs on the Bay all their lives. They are sure to be a
formidable team in contention for the top spot in this year's event.

Founded in 1952, the SFIOD Fleet boasts a growing membership and
16 yachts many of which were among the original boats made in Norway
in 1937 and 1938. Restoration and preservation of these classic boats
is our priority so our fleet has partnered with Spaulding Wooden Boat
Center in Sausalito to repair and restore these magnificent
traditional yachts.

A tax deductible donation can be made to the SFIOD Fleet to help
this restoration and facilitate presentation of the World
Championships. Checks can be made out to 'Spaulding Wooden Boat
Center' with a note on the Memo Line 'SFIOD FLEET' and mailed to SFIOD
Fleet, 862 Sir Francis Drive #123, San Anselmo, CA 94960.

We look forward to a spectacular week of Racing and Social Events.

NOTE: Photos Available upon Request.

S.F. IOD FLEET
Danielle Ames Lawson, Regatta Co-Chair
415-302-0285
treasurer@sfiod.org
www.sfiod.org
or
Spaulding Wooden Boat Center
415-332-3721
www.spauldingcenter.org
or
San Francisco Yacht Club
415-435-4202
www.sfyc.org
or
Sailors available for Interviews:
Henry Hernandez, SFIOD Fleet Chairman
510-306-8846
info@sfiod.org
or
Danielle Ames, SFIOD Fleet Treasurer/World's Co-Chair
415-302-0285
treasurer@sfiod.org
or
Rich Pearce, SFIOD Fleet Champion & World's Co-Chair
415-435-0332
rspent@aol.com

Copyright Business Wire 2008