More Ways to Play: The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society SUP Cup
The San Francisco Bay Area Leukemia Cup has always been about more than raising a sail. Over the years, San Francisco Yacht Club created the most successful Leukemia Cup in the country, raising millions of dollars to support blood cancer research. Beyond the successful core fundraising regatta and gala, this year hosted by Corinthian YC on October 20, the event added other happenings to broaden participation and grow contributions to this important cause. This year, the Rock the Dock party hosted by the Golden Gate YC on August 17, the Perkins Corporate Challenge to be co-hosted by SFYC and St. Francis YC on October 19, and the fourth annual SUP Cup to be hosted by Cort Larned and 101 Surf Sports in San Rafael on October 26 join the regatta. You can learn about all of these here.
Larned is a lifelong waterman, one of the original windsurfing champions, and a founder of 101 Surf Sports in San Rafael and Redwood City. He’s also a 10-year survivor of mantle cell lymphoma. Cort was successfully treated at UCSF by Dr. Charalambos Andreadis with the help of the many advances in leukemia/lymphoma treatment supported by the LLS foundation and Leukemia Cup sailors locally and nationwide. He’s on board to make sure he and others continue to benefit from the care, generosity and research that continue to be at the heart of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s efforts.
Following the Leukemia Cup Regatta on Sunday, October 20, Cort and crew invite you to ‘hoist a paddle’ on Saturday, October 26, to continue the fundraising and competition in the LLS SUP Cup. It’s limited to just 125 participants. Those who race in both the regatta and the SUP Cup can vie for the combined Waterman (person) award. The SUP Cup offers a 2-mile short course entirely on the protected San Rafael Canal and a longer 6-mile course out to the Marin Islands and back.
The San Rafael Canal is a pleasant little waterway just north of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. It’s home to several marinas and three yacht clubs: Loch Lomond, Marin and San Rafael. If you haven’t had a chance to explore it, this is a good opportunity to discover something you might have missed while racing past the Brothers on the way to Vallejo or zipping north on Hwy. 101 from the Golden Gate Bridge. Next month you can add the LLS SUP Cup to your fall good causes and challenges by signing up here.