{"id":76045,"date":"2023-09-06T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-06T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/?p=76045"},"modified":"2023-08-23T14:52:26","modified_gmt":"2023-08-23T18:52:26","slug":"winds-of-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/sponsored-post\/winds-of-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Winds of Change"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\"Town <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n Pensacola: Sailing’s Hidden Gem Shines with American Magic’s Presence.<\/span>\n Visit Pensacola<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

Perched on the shores of the deepwater Pensacola Bay, in the farthest northwest corner of the Florida Panhandle, the city of Pensacola had for years eluded the sailing spotlight. So-named for the long-haired indigenous inhabitants encountered by the Spanish explorers of the 1500s, Pensacola\u2019s identity has ebbed and flowed with the tides. This City of Five Flags was abandoned for nearly a century after a hurricane wiped out its original Spanish inhabitants, to later be governed by France, Great Britain, the US and the Confederate States of America. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A significant economic contributor to Florida for timber and fishing in the 1930s and 1940s, Pensacola\u2019s sailing culture flourished in the decades that followed but fell dormant in the aftermath of the 1970s and 1980s hurricanes, which once again drove an entire generation elsewhere. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With a history as turbulent as the hurricanes that defined it, the city on the bay is rising again, this time capitalizing on its distinguishing geographic features. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immediate past commodore of the Pensacola Yacht Club Tom Pace knows the city\u2014and its bay\u2014quite well. The once-professional windsurfer grew up in Pensacola, moved away during the aforementioned dormant years, but returned to care for his ailing parents. His love for Pensacola inspired a Quixote-esque quest to showcase the bay\u2019s ideal location and sailing conditions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spanning roughly 5-by-11 miles in depths of 22 to 32 feet, Pensacola Bay\u2019s sail-racing area takes advantage of the optimal sailing conditions. Here, wind conditions vary from season to season, but serve up a perfect 8.1 mph average punctuated by 15 to 25 mph frontal surges between October and May. The warmer months see light winds in the morning building into a southwesterly sea breeze later in the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\"American <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n American Magic Finds Home in Pensacola’s Sailing Paradise.<\/span>\n Visit Pensacola<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

The bay has been home to several notable youth sailing events in recent years, including the 2018 Optimist National Championship and the US Sailing Youth National Championship, as well as a host of national and international regattas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt had been a dream for years,\u201d Pace says. \u201cWe are trying to rebuild a sailing culture.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pace\u2019s vision coincided with the brewing of the perfect storm\u2014one propelled by the New York Yacht Club\u2019s decision to challenge the 36th America\u2019s Cup. Led by three-time Maxi72-class champion and yachtsman John \u201cHap\u201d Fauth, businessman Roger Penske and Quantum Racing head Doug DeVos, the AC Cup Challenger team American Magic was looking for a training base. Key West offered the infrastructure but temperamental <\/em>conditions. Pensacola\u2019s protected bay, on the other hand, offered conditions similar to Auckland\u2019s Hauraki Gulf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe kept bugging American Magic to relocate from Key West to Pensacola,\u201d Pace says. \u201cThe bay offers winds from every direction and, unlike San Francisco or New York, it\u2019s not as seasonal. The cost of living factors in as well.\u201d Team representative Dr. Jim Andrews visited during a particularly stellar 40-knot day. \u201cWe got a call a month later from Tyson Lamont (WHO). They would need a dock, containers, and stakes for tent structures for the AC36 Challenger team who would use Pensacola Bay as its winter training base, named Warehouse 10.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the 1984 Olympics, the US took gold or silver in each of 12 sailing medal divisions,\u201d said Pace. \u201cSince then we\u2019ve fallen off; during the past three Olympic cycles, the US has had one medal. Hap and Doug saw this stagnation of American sailing and went back to the cradle. They needed a performance sailing center.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2020, the biggest names in American sailing turned their attention not only to US sailing, but to Pensacola as well. Names such as Paul Cayard, Dawn Riley, Ray Palmer, Terry Hutchinson, and Mike Cazer were each influential in the fledgling opti, foils, and Moth events now surging on the bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\"Sailboats <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n Pensacola Bay: Sailing’s New Mecca Rises with American Magic<\/span>\n Visit Pensacola<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n

This year, Pace\u2019s vision for Pensacola came one step closer to reality when the board of Triumph Gulf Coast voted unanimously to approve an $8.5 million grant for design, renovation, and completion of the American Magic training facility. The new Center for Maritime Excellence will serve as the permanent headquarters for the American Magic team. On top of this, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced a $3.9 million grant from the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund to strengthen Pensacola\u2019s infrastructure and \u201cpromote economic opportunities in the sailing industry for the Florida Panhandle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is a lot of excitement here now that real hard dollars are going into our vision,\u201d says Pace. \u201cNone of this would have been possible without Merrill Land Company President\/Owner Collier Merrill at the state level and Ellis Bullock, President\/Creative Director of marketing and communications firm EW Bullock on the local level. Without them we would not have begun the sponsorship of American Magic. In fact, Pensacola, Florida will now be displayed on the sails through the Cup Finals. They have been critical to the relationship with local leaders as well as with the Governor, Florida Senators and Congressmen, and remain the bedrock of all of this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur task now is to build out the infrastructure,\u201d says Pace. \u201cThe marina space may be a challenge but the water is not. There is a load of potential in revitalizing the waterfront as well as downtown Pensacola.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now that the momentum is going, Pace can already taste an American Magic win in Barcelona. \u201cIf American Magic wins, how do we shape up the defense in Pensacola? There is a lot of excitement. We need tourist development and the county engaged, if it\u2019s all going to work. What we have is an incredibly cohesive core group that we hope will influence the ancillaries. Everything has been set, we have legitimate money, everybody is in. If you build a little bit of infrastructure, you will attract a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Godspeed, Pensacola. We\u2019ll see you on the bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To learn more about Pensacola sailing visit\u00a0www.visitpensacola.com\/feature\/sailing\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With an $8.5 million infrastructure grant in hand and the America\u2019s Cup Challenger American Magic\u2019s feather in its cap, the city of Pensacola, Florida, is redefining itself as a world-class sailing hub.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":76046,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"BS_author_type":"BS_author_is_guest","BS_guest_author_name":"Contributing Partner","BS_guest_author_url":"","hydra_display_date":"","hydra_display_updated":false,"_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"161","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Discover how Pensacola, Florida is redefining itself as a premier sailing hub, driven by an $8.5 million grant and the American Magic's America\u2019s Cup Challenger presence.","_yoast_wpseo_title":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","arc_story_id":"","arc_website_url":"","custom_permalink":"","arc_subtype":"","arc_exclude_from_feeds":false,"sponsored":false,"sponsored_label":"Sponsored Content","sponsored_display_label":false,"sponsored_image":false,"post_right_rail":true,"post_right_rail_ad_1":true,"post_right_rail_ad_2":true,"post_right_rail_ad_3":false,"post_right_rail_ad_4":false,"post_right_rail_recirc":true,"fixed_anchor_ad":true,"post_top_ad":true,"post_off_ramp":true,"post_taboola":false,"labels":true,"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":"","ad_settings_ads_on_this_page":true,"ad_settings_automatic_ad_injection_into_the_content":true,"ad_targeting":"","sponsored_url":"","social_share":true},"categories":[161],"tags":[170,171,2914,1594,2443],"class_list":["post-76045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sponsored-post","tag-americas-cup","tag-american-magic","tag-pensacola","tag-sponsored","tag-sponsored-post"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76045","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76045"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76045\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76046"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76045"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76045"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76045"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}