“Run silent, run deep.” These words send prickles down the back of your spine, but they epitomize one of the Corinthian Yacht Club’s best sailors. George Berticevich grew up in the Castro district of San Francisco and sailed all the little dinghys on the bay. He learned the winds and tides. A quiet man, sort of like the John Wayne of the movies, he never said much. He just went and did. He joined the Mariposa Yacht Club and built and sailed his own racing canoe. This was 1938!

In 194l, George ended up in the U.S. Navy as a machinist mate, 1st class. When asked what his main job was, he said, “staying alive”. He crewed on destroyers and sub net tenders in the Atlantic arena and Italy, and he was present in Africa, when German general Rommel surrendered in Oran in 1943.

George came home to the bay area as an engineer and designed machinery for the American Can Company. He joined the Corinthian Yacht Club in 1962. Always the sailor, he began racing Rhodes 19’s and Birds. In 1968, his “Bird”, the “Teal”,was 1st in the Vallejo race., In 1972, George became the Commodore of the Corinthian Yacht Club, and as he puts it, he started crewing because he couldn’t beat the great Bird boat skippers on Oriel and Falcon, anymore.

You can see George Berticevich any Friday night of the summer series, teamed up with John Nooteboom on his Cal-20. They don’t say much. They just go out and win, in large part to George’s knowledge and sailing experience.