With a sound hull beneath her again, Yankee returned to the racing circuit. In 2005, on what her crew called a perfect “Yankee Day” — flood tide and 20–25 knots of breeze — she posted the fastest elapsed time for a gaff-rigged vessel in the Annual Master Mariners Regatta, winning the prized Billiken Trophy. The Master Mariners Regatta, originally established in 1867 and revived in 1965, is one of the oldest and most prestigious events for traditional sailing craft on the West Coast.

In 2006, Yankee celebrated her centennial. The city of San Francisco issued a “Yankee Day” proclamation. A grand party was held at the St. Francis Yacht Club — a stone’s throw from the site of her launching a hundred years earlier.

The year 2008 brought a new suit of sails and dramatic racing results. In the inaugural Great San Francisco Schooner Race she won the gaff division handily — the only boat to finish within the time limit. The three-race Jessica Cup Regatta at St. Francis that fall was even more dramatic. Yankee won the first race by a slim margin, then shattered her main gaff while jibing at Blossom Rock. The crew retired, disappointed — but then discovered Yankee was still ahead by one point. Skipper John Collins, his friend Mello, and Samantha Ford left the between-races party, drove to a hardware store, and spent the night fabricating a replacement gaff from 2-by-6 lumber and plywood. Rigged by morning, the improvised spar — painted with the logo “Home Depot Racing” and a barcode — carried Yankee to victory and the regatta. It was the first time Yankee had won the Jessica Cup in decades, and with it she recaptured the Yankee Cup, originally awarded in the 1931 Stockton Regatta.

In 2009, John McNeill was elected Commodore of St. Francis Yacht Club, and Yankee served as flagship for the seventh time. In 2012, Yankee participated in creating the Invitational Classic Division for the Leukemia Cup Regatta, racing alongside such noted yachts as Dorade, Santana, Yucca, and her Stone Yard sistership Martha — reunited on San Francisco Bay for the first time in decades. See Chapter VII for the Leukemia Cup cause honoring Liz McNeill Ford.

The next generation was now at the helm. In 2015, Yankee won both the Billiken Trophy and the Master Mariners Championship banner. In 2016, the crew and skipper for the Great San Francisco Schooner Race were entirely women — with Lexi Ford at the helm. Samantha Ford skippered in other years. Rose O’Neill, a fifth-generation family member, had begun sailing aboard as well.

Throughout this period, the Leukemia Cup remained a steadfast cause. In 2014, Team Yankee raised $26,125 to win top fundraising boat for the entire regatta. In 2015, the crew was recognized nationally as the top fundraising team among nearly fifty Leukemia Cup events across the country.

Yankee also made a brief appearance in a worldwide print advertising campaign for Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky — a gig that earned the crew, by their own account, some very nice whisky.