Support a schooner and help support its Chesapeake nonprofit partner.
Have you heard about the virtual Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race happening this month? Now is the time to join the friendly competition. Here’s how it works.
The Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race’s (GCBSR) Virtual Race will unfold online August 21 to 24. All you have to do is jump on the GCBRS website during those three days and make a donation in support of your favorite boat and its chosen Chesapeake nonprofit partner.
Instead of competing under sail, during the virtual race each schooner team will be racing to raise funds for an organization of its choice, so long as it works to preserve and protect the Chesapeake Bay’s history and ecology. The schooner that raises the most money is the winner. This year’s goal is $50,000.
Stacy Spaulding, GCBSR board member for education says, “We are so pleased to support the communities where we live and sail. Our virtual race has raised $176,000 over the last four years, and $112,000 of that has gone directly to 20 charitable organizations. We’re proud to support organizations that are working directly with the public to promote awareness and preservation of our natural resources.”
2024 grant recipients are: the Alexandria Seaport Foundation’s apprentice program; Chesapeake Region Accessible Boating (CRAB) summer sail camp, which pairs underserved youth and area police officers in a learn-to-sail program; the Patuxent Riverkeeper Eco-Summer Nature Camp; and Tidewater Wooden Boat Workshop.
In 2023, nine nonprofits were awarded grants, including on-water sail programming at the Downtown Sailing Center in Baltimore, Nauticus Foundation in Norfolk, and Brendan Sailing.
Stay tuned for the on-water race and festivities in Baltimore and Norfolk, which run from October 1 to 6. Racing begins at noon on Thursday, October 3, with a start line just south of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. To learn more about the fundraising competition and to make your donation, visit gcbsr.org/races/virtual-race.
