Being able to watch some of the fastest powerboats in the world is one of the highlights of San Diego Bayfair. It is returning for its 60th year at Mission Bay and surrounding beaches.
The three-day, family-friendly beach festival runs from Sept. 13 to 15. It has been hailed as the perfect way to end the summer for thousands in Southern California.
Stretching from Fiesta Island to Crown Point Park and East Vacation Island, in addition to powerboat racing, attendees can enjoy beach-based family entertainment, including extreme aquatic sports, live music, a car show, a cornhole tournament, beer gardens and local food vendors.
“This year’s event will be a larger, diverse festival. There will be a variety of events and activities to keep everyone entertained,” said spokesman Gregg Mansfield. “We really look forward to everyone having a good time and enjoying Mission Bay.”
This year’s event marks the return of H1 Unlimited Hydroplane racing, the top-tier powerboat series in the country, as well as Grand Prix World piston boats and American Power Boat Association limited classes.
Once known as “thunderboats” because of the thundering noise of their post-WWII engines in the 1960s and ‘70s, unlimited hydroplane races were first held on Mission Bay in 1964.
“This year they will be competing for the 119th Gold Cup, the oldest active trophy in motorsports,” Mansfield said.
Unlimited hydroplane driver J. Michael Kelly, who won Bayfair in 2019 and 2021, said it is one of his favorite race courses.
“Not only (is it) a very fast race course that I’ve had success on, but also a beautiful place to visit,” Kelly said. “It’s like a mini-vacation before and after a serious weekend of racing on Mission Bay.
“I’ve always looked at the season ending race to reward my teammates after a long, hard-fought racing season,” he added.
The Unlimited hydroplanes can reach speeds of nearly 200 mph, and produce “rooster tails” — 60-foot-tall, 300-foot-long walls of water behind them.
Grand Prix hydroplane racing also takes place at the event. The GP boats feature supercharged big-block V8 piston engines, and routinely attain speeds in excess of 170 miles per hour.
“The APBA are also really fast and really loud; these are the smaller runabouts that most people would own,” Mansfield said.
There is always action happening on the water. Friday is generally a light shake out day with some racing, with the majority of the action on Saturday and Sunday.
“Saturday is the busiest day with all the racing, while all the groups race for their championships on Sunday,” he said.
Race times are generally 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Extreme sport hydro-games also draw large crowds at the festival.
“The hydro games are youth-oriented water sports, where the participants use water powered jetpacks to do aerial acrobatics and tricks — it attracts an X Games type crowd,” Mansfield said.
Another attraction will be water rescue demonstrations by the U.S. Coast Guard.
The inaugural cornhole tournament on Sept. 14 is expected to draw crowds ($40 per team, register at southerncaliforniacornhole.com), as is the car show.
“We’re working with Soliva Car Club on Saturday, and we expect 100 lowrider classic cars to be on Crown Point. Although most of the cars are San Diego-based, some will be coming from as far away as Los Angeles and Phoenix,” Mansfield said.
Mansfield said the music schedule and some of the events are still being finalized.
More than 50 vendors, from food to merchandise, will be scattered among the three islands for the event.
The annual festival attracts more than 70,000 regional and national visitors. It was canceled last year, after losing its longtime title sponsor.
This year’s Bayfair is supported by the San Diego Tourism Marketing District and All Access Services.
The largest man-made aquatic park in the United States, Mission Bay was created by a massive dredging project beginning in 1958. East Vacation Island and Fiesta Island were created by the project, and a race course created between the two.
The shorelines were designed with curves to accommodate a 2.5-mile oval race course and beaches were engineered with a gentle slope to dissipate waves from recreational boats and hydroplanes.
“With San Diego Bayfair celebrating our 60th year as an organization, we are working on making 2024 San Diego Bayfair the best event yet,” said Bob Davies, race director. “We couldn’t be more excited for our fans and competitors to join us.”
Bayfair is the one time each year when RV owners can rent a space for the weekend on Vacation Isle East. Overnight spots are also available on Fiesta Island and Crown Point.
“Having the RVs on-site has always been a big tradition — people have family reunions, meet their friends and just really enjoy it as part of the event,” Mansfield said.
Pre-event RV space reservations can be made at SanDiegoBayfair.org.
Want to go?
San Diego Bayfair
When: Sept. 13-15
Where: Mission Bay, from Fiesta Island to Crown Point Park and East Vacation Island.
Tickets: $60 for three-day pass. Single-day general admission is $25 for Friday, $35 for Saturday and Sunday. Kids 12 and under are free. The 3-day VIP experience is $350. Active-duty military and reservists free with ID. Spouses get 50 percent off. Buy at sandiegobayfair.org or at the event.
Good to know: Paid parking can be purchased in advance or at the event; RV fees (four nights, five days) range from $500 to $1,600 depending on location; no dogs except service animals; Vendor Village on East Vacation Island is open to the public and does not require a ticket. Access to watch the races requires paid admission.