The San Francisco Bay Bear Boat Association Introduction and History The Bear Class Sloop is a living piece of San Francisco Bay's maritime history. Conceived by Ernest Nunes and Marty Martinson, the first keel was laid late in 1931 by the Nunes Boat and Ways Company, Sausalito, California. By the summer 1932, the new boat was ready for its first sea trial. On lookers reported that Commodore Cliff Smith of the San Francisco Yacht Club praised the effort, telling young Ernest Nunes, "That is a bear of boat." The name stuck and a unique class, indigenous to San Francisco Bay, was born. By the late 1950s enthusiastic owners, competitive racing, and adventurous sure-footed sailing craft made the Bears the largest one-design class on San Francisco Bay. Never having achieved mass production, the Bear Class was truly home grown as new boats were added to the fleet by an assortment of professional and amateur builders. Active and highly competitive racing continued through the 1960s with as many as 65 boats in the fleet. Starting in 2009, a core group of enthusiastic Bear Boat owners started to re-acquaint the greater San Francisco Bay sailing community with these wonderful little yachts. Near term efforts were focused on getting the boats out in sufficient numbers to sail, race and reinvigorate the Bear Boat Association. Eight boats are racing in this year’s Wooden Boat Racing Association (WBRA) season. Six boats have been rescued by active owners in the past three years. The San Francisco Bay Bear Boat Association celebrates the 80 th birthday of the launching of #1, Merry Bear in The SFBBA is active today, organizing racing and social events throughout the year.

Our racing season consists of: A Season Championship weekend racing series with the Wooden Boat Racing Association. The season runs from April through September, with no racing in July. Racing is held on approximately 10 weekends with 2 races per weekend at different courses throughout the Bay. The Master Mariners Benevolent Association Regatta raced every Memorial Day Weekend. The Bears are the first start of the Regatta, along with the San Francisco Maritime Museum Scow Schooner “Alma”. The St. Francis Woodies Invitational, raced over the first weekend in June, held off the St. Francis Yacht Club (St. FYC), on the SF “City Front” race course. The San Francisco Yacht Club Fall Classic, raced in September or October, for the Bear Boat Association Perpetual Trophy. Social events include our post-season Awards Dinner, informal sail-ins, and work parties. The Association continues to focus on growing the Bear Class back to an active and vibrant group of sailors. We love to talk about these fun and tough boats, so feel free to ask any one of us with the handsome critter on the mainsail and see the original "great Bay boat" all the ads talk about. Boat Specifications Length Overall (LOA): 22’ 11” Length Waterline (LWL):18’ 4” Beam:6’ 9” Draft:3’ 6” Displacement:4,400 lbs Keel:2,070 lbs Cast Iron Internal Ballast: Lbs Lead ingots Sail Area:280 ft 2 Main:192 ft 2 Jib:88 ft 2 Displacement to Length Ratio : 379 Where to Find More Information Go to our website at for additional information. We also have a very active online forum at Our classifieds and forum have an assortment of Bears in need of rescue or purchase along with very encouraging owners who can often lend a hand, hardware, tools, and experience. Contacts Please contact the following for additional information: David Sandry, SFBBA President, (415) , Tim Maloney, SFBBA Secretary, (408) , Margie Siegal, SFBBA Treasurer, Peter Miller, SFBBA Race Chair, (510) , Russell Katz, SFBBA Webmaster, (408) , Photo and article credits Cover Photo: Photo courtesy of Master Mariners Benevolent Association ( Bear History: Courtesy of Bill Hansen (Bear Facts, Spring 1980) and Bill Jellife (“Bears on the Bay," WoodenBoat Magazine #50)