Paddlers will row themselves along a 20-mile course from Mission Bay to San Diego Bay on Saturday, June 6 in the 26th annual Bay to Bay Rowing and Paddling Regatta to benefit the Peninsula Family YMCA. More than 250 competitors will take to the seas, and the regatta is made up of two separate races. The 20-mile race starts between 6:30 and 7 a.m. and is geared towards the advanced racer, while the five-mile beginners race begins between 9 and 10 a.m. The 20-mile course takes competitors from Santa Clara Point inside Mission Bay past the Mission Beach Jetty into the ocean, around the southern tip of Point Loma, and into the Coronado Bay, where the race finishes at Tidelands Park Beach Landing just before the Coronado Bay Bridge. The five-mile race starts at Shelter Island in the Coronado Bay and also finishes at Tidelands Park. In its early years, the regatta was primarily a rowing event. Since then, the race has expanded to include all kinds of human powered watercraft, including paddleboards, surf skis, kayaks and outriggers for a total of 45 categories between the two races. Basically, as long as the vessel doesn’t have a motor, it’s good to go. The regatta has added a new category this year – stand-up paddling. “It’s kind of the old Hawaiian thing where they stand up on a paddleboard and paddle,” said event coordinator and YMCA department head Greg Erickson. “That has become more popular in the past couple years.” Even pets have become part of the action in recent years. “One family every year enters a triple kayak,” Erickson said. “It is a husband and wife and their two Labradors.” The regatta raises funds for financial aid and scholarships for the youth aquatic programs at the Peninsula Family YMCA. Erickson said that despite not having as many sponsors for the event as in years past, it is not going anywhere in the near future. “It’s the longest running paddleboard event in southern California,” Erickson said. “We were the first people to have an event like this. It really means a lot to us.” Because most of the event is in open water, it’s difficult to watch the race. Spectators can view the race from the Mission Beach Jetty between 6:30 and 8 a.m. Paddlers can also be seen from Shelter Island and Harbor Island. The finish line is a great viewpoint point between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. “You can walk down the Coronado boardwalk and view the last mile of the race to the finish line at Tidelands Park,” Erickson said. Activities and a barbeque will follow the race at Tidelands Park. An awards presentation, silent auction, raffle prizes, vendors and Hawaiian dancers and drummers will finish the event. Registration for the event is $45 until June 1 and $60 from June 2-6. Forms can be found on the YMCA’s website, www.peninsula.ymca.org. For more information on the regatta, call the YMCA at (619) 226-8888.