The Long Beach Yacht Club hosted the first of three regattas last weekend for the Two Gates Pursuit Series Race, which takes a path around and through the entries of the Long Beach and Los Angeles harbors — Queen’s Gate in the former and Angel’s Gate in the latter.
A pursuit race is where competitors chase down slower boats that started ahead of them. The first boat to the finish wins.
Alex Cross’ Formula Ford on display at ABYC for his recent celebration of life. (Photo by David Murray)
The Alamitos Bay Yacht Club patio during Alex Cross’ celebration of life, with yachts racing in LBYC’s Two Gates regatta sailing past. (Photo by Jo Murray, Grunion Gazette/SCNG)
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Alex Cross’ Formula Ford on display at ABYC for his recent celebration of life. (Photo by David Murray)
In the first race, Rode Rage took first, Ragtime came in second, Deception was third and Loco finished fourth among a fleet of 29 boats.
The fleet passed the Alamitos Bay Yacht Club, as if on cue, just as Alex Cross’s celebration of life ceremony there was concluding.
Yachtsman Cross died in October after battling two cancers for 4.5 years.
A Stanford Law school grad, Cross was a true Renaissance man, whose career and hobbies represented his diverse interests. Friends shared stories about Cross’ skill at practicing law, his role in starting a company that built a new generation of Formula Fords and Indy Cars, and his passion for competitive sailing.
The common thread from all the speakers was that Cross was a kind gentleman who genuinely cared for others.
New officers
Installation season for many local clubs has arrived.
The Seal Beach Yacht Club celebrated with an Arabian nights-themed ball, during which Lori Merrill was installed as commodore. The Southern California Yachting Association hosted its installation and awards dinner at Los Angeles Yacht Club — with Jodi Masters-Gonzales taking the helm as commodore.
LAYC Commodore Beven welcomes attendees during the SCYA Installation dinner. (Photo by Jo Murray, Grunion Gazette/SCNG)
That morning, Los Angeles Yacht Club posted a video featuring a flurry of activity as club volunteers put the finishing touches on the club’s refresh, including members rehanging the LAYC’s massive collection of half models, vacuuming cushions and readying the club for the black-tie event.
When LAYC Commodore Susannah Beven welcomed SCYA guests on Sunday night, Jan. 18, she cautioned them that the doors to the club’s galley (kitchen) were still wet. Beven will officially be installed on Sunday, Jan. 25, as part of LAYC’s 125th celebration.
LBYC will install Bob Piercy as commodore. Two LBYC members who died last year — Tom Shadden and Peter Tong — will be posthumously presented lifetime achievement awards at the club’s installation on Saturday, Jan. 24.
Also on Saturday, Shoreline Yacht Club will hold its festivities at the Lions Automobilia Foundation and Museum. Wayne Miller will be installed as commodore at that ball. Shoreline members start celebrating the night before with a cocktail party at their clubhouse.
Installation season gets many of us thinking about traditions and history.
LBYC Senior Staff Commodore Mike Elias and I recently started researching where the first Crimson Blazer was purchased. The red jacket is presented annually to the winner of the Congressional Cup.
Congressional Cup founder and USC grad Bill Dallesi practiced law in Long Beach and made a point of keeping his purchases local.
There was a men’s clothing store that was on Second Street in Belmont Shore from the 1940s until about 1980. It was at 5211 Second St. — currently home to Mini Monster Cafe.
Phil Hahn’s was where every boater in town purchased their yachting blazers and where the original C300 bright red blazers were sourced. Hahn was an LBYC member and active in the community.
In looking through ads that Hahn ran in Press-Telegram in the 1960s, I spotted the Hoffman brothers in one of them.
I knew the Hoffmans from Chamber of Commerce meetings in the 1970s, when chamber breakfasts were small enough that they could be held at one large table at the Queen’s Cafeteria on Alamitos Boulevard.
Members would stand up and say their slogan. The Hoffman brothers, Gene and Jim, were real estate appraisers who would say, “No job is too small if the fee is large enough.”
I spoke to their kids — Jeff Hoffman (Gene’s son) and his cousin, Debby Hoffman Karson (Jim’s daughter) — and it turns out the latter worked at Phil Hahns and even had some vintage blazers in her closet with the old label.
Elias and I are confident that the first Crimson Blazer was purchased from Hahn’s shop and the color was selected as a nod to Dalessi’s Trojan pride.