The Fourth of July 15k run has been part of Semana Nautica for 60 years.
The Santa Barbara Open tennis tournament and Semana Nautica are still going strong in their 70s.
Celebrating its 78th year, the Santa Barbara Open is the kickoff event for the 77th annual Semana Nautica summer sports festival. Action on the Municipal Courts begins Saturday and continues next weekend for several divisions.
Semana Nautica’s traditional events — ocean swims, men’s and women’s beach volleyball, youth and masters swim meets, run-swim biathlon, cardboard kayak race, 15-kilometer run and youth sailing regatta — get going on Fourth of July weekend and July 12-13.
Andre Dome, the 2012 Santa Barbara Open men’s open division singles champion, is the top seed for this year’s tournament.
Former champion Andre Dome is the top seed in men’s open division of the Santa Barbara Open. The Cal Poly graduate has been playing all over the world since winning the title in 2012.
Also back is Nicholas Bailou, of Orinda. He reached last year’s final but an injury forced him to retire in the second set. Bailou is seeded third.
The No. 2 seed is Noah Newman, a professional player from Venice, Calif. He recently finished runner-up at the Avila Bay Classic. The fourth seed is Campbell Johnson, a member of Cal’s NCAA Tournament team this past season.
UCSB’s Miles Seemann is the highest seeded local player at No. 5. The tourney field also includes UCSB recruit Chase Masciorini of Dana Hills. He reached the semifinals of the CIF Individual Tournament in May. Seemann and Masciorini are combining for the men’s open doubles.
The men will play through the semifinal round this weekend. The finals will be played next Saturday (July 12) at the Tennis Club of Santa Barbara at 10 a.m.
The women’s open singles final will be played this Sunday at 8:30 a.m. at the Municipal Courts. Anna Ustinova, of Sherman Oaks, is the top seed and Santa Barbara’s Lori Stern is No. 2.
Find a complete schedule of Semana Nautica sporting events HERE.
Another tradition of Semana Nautica is the 15k road race on Fourth of July. Several runners get into the spirit of the day by wearing red, white and blue. This year is the 60th edition of the race that takes runners through the neighborhoods around San Marcos High and finishes in front of the high school on Hollister Ave.
Also on the Fourth is the start of the three-day Age-Group Swim Meet, hosted by the Santa Barbara Swim Club at Los Banos Del Mar Pool.
The Swim Club is celebrating its 50th birthday this year. A celebration party is slated for Saturday, July 12 at Los Banos Pool, from 5 to 10 p.m. Details are at sbswim.org
Saturday, July 5, is the first busy day of competition. Hundreds of swimmers will hit the ocean for the Mullen and Henzell One-Mile Swim along East Beach at 9 a.m.
The CBVA Santa Babara Open features many of the best local beach volleyball players.
On the sand, the California Beach Volleyball Association Santa Barbara Men’s Open will be in full swing. The cream of the crop from East Beach take their games to courts set up in front of the Bath House and play for cash prizes. The final will be around 4 p.m.
The top women’s players take over the courts at 9 a.m. Sunday, July 6 for the CBVA Santa Barbara Women’s Open.
Sunday’s schedule also includes the 3-mile ocean swim and 5-mile Stand-Up Paddle and Prone races at East Beach, starting at noon.
The weekly Nite Moves and Reef and Run events are also part of Semana Nautica. The Nite Moves 1k swims on Wednesdays, July 2 and 9, and the Reef and Run 1-mile events on Thursdays, July 3 and 10, count toward the Swimmers of the Year Award. Participants must do one of the swims as well as the Mullen and Henzell one-miler and either the 3 or 6-mile swims to be eligible.
Saturday, July 12 starts at 9 a.m. with the demanding 5-mile biathlon along East Beach. Competitors first do a 4-mile beach run and then hit the ocean for a one-mile swim.
The Krazy Kardboard Kayak Race is always a popular event. Teams put together a kayak out of pieces of cardboard and then have a team member paddle it. The event is at 1 p.m. at West Beach.
Masters swimmers take over Los Banos Del Mar Pool for the Reg Richardson Meet.
Youth sailors 8-13 launch their Sea Shell and Sabot boats off West Beach for the Semana Nautica Regatta on Sunday, July 13.
A new event this year is the Santa Barbara Transition Games. It’s geared toward triathletes. In a bracket-style, single elimination competition, entrants transition from wet suit to cycling gear and then to running equipment as fast as they can.
Semana Nautica wouldn’t be complete without the grueling 6-mile ocean swim from Goleta Beach Pier to Hendry’s Beach.
