Charleston Race Week puts sailors to the test for who's best

Landlubbers who love watching those white dots skip across the harbor will have a chance to indulge their fantasies as sailboats take to the water this weekend.

It's Charleston Race Week — something of a misnomer — because today starts three days of sailing races both in the harbor and offshore organized by the Charleston Offshore Racing Association. About 160 boats are expected to compete from 19 states.

The competition, based out of Patriots Point, has become an increasingly popular racing stop since its inception in 1996. The competitor list has grown from 40 entries to about 150 in the past 11 years. Boats make up 13 classes — from J24s to an Esse 850, the new line of boat introduced to the U.S. last year that will be making its first appearance in Charleston. There are races for boats between 24 and 60 feet. The same crew must be on the boat for each race entered.

Local sailor Bill Hanckel has been racing in the event for four years and has sailed since he was 6 years old. He is crewing with his son, Will Hanckel, aboard the "Emocean," a J-120.

"I enjoy the camaraderie and the fun, just seeing everyone from out of town," Bill Hanckel said. "It's going to be interesting. We're in with the big boats. We are the smallest boat in our class. That puts us as underdog, but we like that. It makes us work a little harder."

The races are organized by the Charleston Offshore Racing Association as a stop up the coast for boats that wintered down South and are making their way north.

For serious local sailors, it's one of the highlights of the racing year, a nationally recognized regatta that takes advantage of spring wind and water conditions before the heat of summer turns the harbor into a sea of glass.

Dan Coughlin of Long Island spent the winter in Florida and is working his way up from Key West, where he raced his J-120 called the Peregrine. The last time he sailed in Charleston he was in college.

"We went out today," he said. "It was awesome. A great breeze, but a horrible chop. A lot of power."

When asked how the conditions compare with Long Island sailing, he asked, "Oh, you mean drifting?"

While local sailors might have more experience in with the Charleston currents and waves, Coughlin said he wasn't worried. "They already know the local currents and local waves, but any good sailor will figure that stuff out real quick."

Sailors are headquartered at Charleston Harbor Resort & Marina in Mount Pleasant and also the site of the Race Village where there are vendors and parties each night and results are posted.

That's where landlubbers come in. If they buy tickets, they can rub shoulders with the salt of the sea. And they even find a bottle of rum, too.

Jamie McGee contributed to this story.