Leading the light parade

Mathis Winkler

NEWPORT BEACH -- Brett Hemphill doesn’t remember who got him hooked on

sailing in the first place.

Maybe it was because he bugged his parents when he was 8 to sign him

up for a sailing course offered by the city’s recreation department.

Maybe it was the other way around.

In either case, the 34-year-old owner of Hemphill’s Rugs and Carpets

Inc. in Costa Mesa will be chairman of the 92nd annual Christmas Boat

Parade.

Although it’s a “promotion” after a three-year stint as the parade’s

control chairman, Hemphill said the former position is what gets him

going.

“You’re out there on a Harbor Patrol boat with the Coast Guard

auxiliary,” he said, sitting in the lobby at the Balboa Yacht Club, where

his own 20-foot sailboat, “Magic Carpet Ride,” is docked.

“You’re in constant communication with the Harbor Patrol, maybe

slowing the parade down a little bit [to let boats catch up.] There have

been boats that have gone aground. It makes things pretty interesting.”

Newport Harbor’s parade of lighted and decorated boats will begin at

6:30 p.m. Sunday and continue nightly through Dec. 23.

Hemphill’s pretty much kept on sailing since he began as a child.

After the city’s program, he joined the Balboa Yacht Club’s junior

sailing program.

And as a business major at USC, Hemphill joined fellow enthusiasts on

weekly trips to Alamitos Yacht Club in Long Beach.

“It seemed like you had the day off, even though we only spent a few

hours sailing,” he said, adding that the group would stay out on the

water until it got dark.

Hemphill also has tried power-boat racing and recently went on a barge

trip in France. But even if it’s just a question of money, he always

comes back to sailboats.

In the summer, Hemphill -- still the only sailing member of his family

-- participates in the weekly beer can races in the harbor.

“You go out there and drink beer and race boats,” he said, adding that

accidents have occurred in the past.

Hemphill recently joined fellow sailors from across the country for

the national sailing championship held at his club.

“We did not do well,” he said.

Even his wife, Cherie, turned out to share his passion for sailing.

“She would have raced in the nationals,” he said. “But she was out of

town for business.”

Since the couple will travel to Cherie’s home state of North Carolina

to celebrate Christmas with her family, Hemphill will miss the last two

days of the parade.

On the other five days, he will try to spend as much time as possible

on patrol boats. And he will judge the boats one night.

As a parade veteran, Hemphill has some tips on the best parade

experience: Rent a boat and join the others on the water. Walk Balboa

Island with its illuminated houses or get a reservation at a restaurant

with harbor views.

Hemphill said he has discovered a secret viewing spot that he is glad

to share.

Next to the sheriff’s new Harbor Patrol station on Bayside Drive is a

public beach that’s not too crowded, he said.

When it comes to complaints about the cold, wintry air, Hemphill said

he doesn’t have much sympathy.

“Bundle up,” he said. “It’s warmer here than in Chicago, so you can’t

complain.”