On September 20, 2020, scores of sailboats will gather in Shilshole Bay for the inaugural year of a new, inclusive, feel-good event— The Adventuress Cup – A Race for the Salish Sea.

The race is a celebration of the marine environment and aims to raise critical program funds for the nonprofit Sound Experience which owns and operates the iconic tall ship, Adventuress.  The ship’s programs reach more than a thousand children and teens each year who climb aboard for powerful day and overnight programs in maritime skills, environmental stewardship, resilience, and connection to each other and the natural world.

Race participants can join the fun on the water or virtually

Each participant may be a part of a real or virtual crew. Crew members are encouraged to participate in peer-to-peer fundraising and environmental/education pre-race challenges to improve their boat’s handicap (or score).  Rusty Lhamon, Sound Experience Board Member and Race Chair, says, “During a year in which COVID-19 has changed all of our paradigms, we are creating an event with both real and virtual components that will be exciting and meaningful to all participants, those who sail in person and those who participate from miles away.”  The event replaces the organization’s fall gala which in recent years has raised more than $150,000 to provide critical support for youth education aboard Adventuress, including its popular Girls at the Helm program.

“At Sound Experience, we believe that we are all shipmates,” shares Catherine Collins, Executive Director.  “The one thing we hear most from kids at the end of a program is, ‘I would never have been friends with [her/him/them] if we hadn’t sailed together.’”  Whether it is experiencing the marine environment for the first time, taking the helm of a tall ship, or learning what it means to be a shipmate, programs aboard Adventuress have been changing perspectives and lives for decades in the Puget Sound region.

All activities will follow safety guidelines and procedures from the CDC, USCG, and WA State Department of Health and will not include land-based events.  All participating boats must meet safety and other requirements outlined in the official Notice of Race which will be posted on the event website.

To learn more and to sign up for pre-registration information, visit www.soundexp.org/AdventuressCup