The 2009 Camellia Cup will make a splash in Folsom Lake over the weekend, hosting a slew of sailors ready to ride the wind to victory in competitive races held by the Folsom Lake Yacht Club.

The 43rd annual Camellia Cup is an open regatta inviting all established fleets to participate, as long as skippers are members of a yacht or sailing club. With no limit to the number of participating boats, the races could lead to packed waters and heavy competition in Folsom on May 2-3.

The overall event consists of five races in two days, with an anticipated 12 boat classes participating. Each class will have an overall winner, and the best performances of the weekend will earn a Perpetual Trophy. Three races will be held Saturday and two Sunday, beginning on both days at 10:30 a.m.

The event is no leisurely ride on the lake, though. The lead boat must finish within two hours of the race’s start, and each finisher after must finish within the next hour to qualify. Winners are determined using the low point scoring system, so that each boat’s regatta score will be the total of its race scores, with the worst score discarded if all five races have been completed.

Last year, the event drew some close finishes in some classes, and some domination in others. Moritz von Werdt, in the boat “Spyder Byte,” took first twice and second twice in four races to easily win the Centerboard Class with only six points. Second place was nine points behind. The Catalina 22 Class, however, saw Michael Rayfuse in “Sirius” and Terry Cobb in “Brainstorm” go head-to-head before Rayfuse eventually took a two-point nail-biting win. Rayfuse won three of the four races, while Cobb won one and took second twice.

The Santana 2 Class was decided by only one point, as Anne Newton’s “Senta” edged out Mark Erdrich’s “Fusion,” 9-10. Newton won one race and took second in two others, while Erdrich won one race and took third in two others for the final score.

“It was a drifting weekend, with the wind ranging from 0 to maybe 5 or 6 knots on both days,” wrote Erdrich, this year’s Camellia Cup commodore, in a report after last year’s event. “Each race was won by a different boat, but by recording two second place finishes, Anne Newton (in the boat Senta) was able to win.”

Craig Lee in “Scat” won the Coronado 15 Class, Kerry Johnson in “Whatever” won the Keel Class, Tom Clark in “Liberty” won the Cruiser Class, Jason Smith in “#14” won the Multihull Class and Bill Fiock in “Passin Wind” won the Day Sailer Class.

Perpetual Trophy winners last year were von Werdt for both the Camellia Cup and Foredeck Centerboard categories, Rayfuse in the C&T Sailboats Keelboat category and Smith in the Stockdale Marine Multihull.

For those interested in competing this weekend, visit www.flyc.org. Registration deadline is 8:30 a.m. prior to the skipper’s meeting on May 2.