Zongo Yachting Cup Race

The Zongo Yachting Cup races down the coast from Morro Bay to Avila Beach

Starting from the Morro Bay Yacht Club. The Zongo Yachting Cup runs its main race on Saturday, August 15, sending sailboats, powerboats, multihulls, and even human-powered craft down the coast from Morro Bay to Avila Beach. Organized by the Morro Bay Yacht Club, it is the biggest offshore boating event on the Central Coast, open to all seaworthy vessels and capable skippers, with classes for everything from PHRF sailboats to stand-up paddleboards. The start off the Morro Bay harbor entrance is the spectacle for anyone watching from shore.

The morning runs on a clear schedule. The Yacht Club opens at 8 AM for coffee and late registration, the skippers meeting is at 9 AM, all vessels are underway by 10, and the race itself starts at 11 AM off the harbor entrance near the Rock. Boats then run the open coast south, with a 5 PM cutoff: any vessel not finished by then is scored as did-not-finish. For shore-side viewers, the stretch near Morro Rock and the harbor mouth gives the best look at the fleet getting underway.

The finish, reception party, and awards all happen down the coast in Port San Luis, not in Morro Bay. The Zongo Cup Reception Party runs from 4 to 8 PM at Mersea’s on the Harford Pier, with the awards ceremony at 6:30 PM. Racers and crews register through the Morro Bay Yacht Club ahead of time; this is a participation event for boaters rather than a ticketed spectator event, though watching the start from the Embarcadero or the Rock is free and open to all.

For more harbor events and on-the-water happenings around the bay this summer, see what is on the event calendar.