pics of the week

Snafu U.

BVI Tour

One of my favorite sailing trips of all time.  A week in the BVI refreshes the soul and you get to enjoy one of the most beautiful places in the world.

superbad

The best kite boarder in the land with a very cool foil in light winds somewhere in lala land.

your life from the desktop

Interesting short on our digital culture.  A must see!

A Cup Race 3 & 4

We made it to the race and found a spot near the Marina Green aboard our sailboat.  We had full view of the race course and man was it great!  Many of my family members were aboard and it was a nice celebration!  We finished the day with a nice dinner at the Waterfront Restaurant.  Here is a pic my bro in law took as the teams raced by.

Sailing Sojourn to Napa

Just returned from a wonderful trip to Napa with my friends John and Tex.  Sailing up the Napa River has got to be one of the great trips from the bay.  We started with a loading of the boat on Sunday evening.  I had arrived early to fix a connection on the radio/mp3 player.  I traced the lines and found a corroded piece that needed replacement.  Success!  I was up at 5am to take Kona for a walk.  By 6, we were on our way.  We motored for several hours towards Vallejo.  By noon we were passing under the Mare Island Bridge.  Shortly after the bridge tender raised the bridge, we were sailing the river.   The wind was a mellow 12 knots and pushing us nicely towards our destination.  We meandered past vineyards and beautiful landscapes under full sail.  Soon, we could see parts of Napa that we recognized.  We rounded the last marker and completed the 12 mile sail up river and tied up at the Napa Valley Yacht Club.  The club sits at the edge of downtown Napa and features a full size bocce court which we played 2-3 times each day.  Plus, we have the place all to ourselves.  $30 per night and it nice and peaceful as well.  After a nice salmon dinner, Tex told us about his recent experiences at Burning Man.  He had a great burn.  In the morning, we had some great omelets and then up to the bocce court.  I surprised the gang with a limo pick up and off we went to hit some wineries in Calistoga.  My niece Julie rounded out the crew and we had a great time.  Our first visit was with Travis, a friend from the Baja Haha, and his winery, Bennett Lane.  He gave us a nice tour and we used a fractometer to determine if the grapes were ready to harvest.  Not yet ready was the result.  Next we were off to Chateau Montelena.  We had a nice taste and some laughs.  After a quick lunch in Calistoga, we hit Clos Pegase.  This is the winery my wife Bridget and I got married at 20 years ago November.  Tex was the best man.  We enjoyed the wines and then took off for home base.  At the boat, Kona was waiting for us and ready to run around the club meeting other dogs and some fishermen.  We played some more bocce and then my nephew and his partner joined us for dinner.  We had a nice pasta dinner and great conversation in the cockpit.  And then some midnight bocce!  I was rolling well and we had some fun.  On Wednesday, we jumped on our bikes and headed out to the Coombsville Region.  This is a little known area east of Napa and it dotted with tiny wineries producing some very nice wines.  We met with Curtis who was very informative at Ancien winery.
Some great wines too.  Then off to Black Cat .  We met Tracy at the designated time and sat on her lovely patio surrounded by grape vines.  She is a one person show and produces some lovely reds.  We were all charmed by her and had a lovely time visiting and talking wine and sailing in New Zealand.  Then it was off to Tolucay.  Bill greeted us at his front door and invited us in to his dinning room for tasting.  That is the cool thing about these wineries, they are unpretentious and you are welcomed into homes with the wine maker.  How fun!  Back to the boat with a great bike ride thru town and the river.  Travis and his girlfriend would be joining us for dinner and....bocce.  I think by now you have gathered our theme for the week, bocce, wine, food!  We had a great time with Agusta and Travis in the saloon.  Travis brought plenty of wine and we started the night with some soup and wine on the patio of the club.  Next was dinner with some Thai chicken from the BBQ.  Then back to the bocce court for another showdown.  We are having some fun.  On Thursday, we had plans to head down river on the boat to the Carneros region.  The tide was not in our favor and we were stuck at the dock in the mud.  We decided to play some bocce and then head to town for some fun.  We ended up at the Oxbow Market for some crepes.  Back to the boat and she was floating.  We motored to the Napa Valley Marina and headed off to Bouchaine Winery for a tasting.  Rosie remembered us and we were having a great time.  We purchased a bottle of white and headed to the patio for some conversation.  The weather all week had been perfect and today was no different.
Back to the boat for our last visitor, Ralph. He brought a vertical tasting of some Shiraz that was out of this world.  On Friday morning we headed back down the river towards home.  It was all motoring until we hit San Pablo Bay.  Winds were light but enough to have a terrific sail down to Pt Pinole.  From there we motored some more and once under the Richmond bridge we were able to sail home in some nice winds coming thru the Gate.   All in all another great trip up the Napa and one that I would recommend to anyone.

Big Waves of Joy

Heading to Napa

We are departing Monday for another trip up the Napa River.  This is sailing at its best!  The 12 mile reach up this narrow river is as amazing as it is beautiful.  The river narrows as you get closer to town.  With the wind at a perfect angle with the river, there is no need for tacking - just a straight shot with full sails up.  We dock in downtown Napa at the south edge of town.  We will have our bikes ready to take us off to some of the top wineries in the valley.  We have friends meeting us along the way for tastings and dinner aboard.  Should be one of the highlights of the summer.  My sailing buddies Tex and John will join Kona and I for a five day trip!  Bon voyage, indeed!

Not Good!

Had an amazing late afternoon solo sail yesterday!  Out about 3pm and the wind was in the 20's.  Hit the end of the Berkeley Pier and it was a solid 25 so just had a bit of jib out to keep it safe.  Heading into the slot the waves were big and I was questioning my decision to sail to Angel Island.  Kept going and as soon as I hit the shadow of Angel it mellowed out.  The sun was out and 80 degrees.  Hove to and got out on deck with Kona for some sun.  Thought about a swim but decided to set sail towards home for a great run to the barn.  Wow what a nice afternoon.  Thanks Addiction for keeping it safe!

Terror on the southern ocean

foiling on a laser!

$6k gets you what you need to fly!

Oldy But Goody

Cruising the California Coast

I have considered several times a cruise up the coast to Tomales Bay.  Without radar and with a boat not really up to par for ocean sailing, I have used my better judgement and not made the leap.  You can make a lot of mistakes and be fine on the bay.  On the ocean, it's a whole different ballgame and a boat failure could be the end.  But that does not mean you can't get out there if you have the time and the boat to do it.  One skipper did it recently and took his family on big portions of the trip up and down the coast for a 1400 mile adventure.  He basically bought a boat, took some lessons, fixed her up and went sailing.   And loved it!  The website he put together is impressive.  If you ever needed a push out the door on your way to the cruising lifestyle, this is it.  Please head over to the site, be  warned, you may end up way past your bedtime reading this wonderful account of making your sailing dreams come true.  Go here.

America's Cup...Bust?

I have been following the America's Cup thru the local media here in SF as well as on the water.  I have seen several races and had the 72' monsters scream by my boat within 75 feet.  I also watched the race on TV the other night.  So far, the results are mixed as there have not been any races that were really competitive.  The city has spent millions, donors have spent millions and the competitors have spent over $100M just to be in this race of 2 boats at a time.  And with a total of four boats in the entire competition, it seems all is lost and that this Cup will go down in flames.  However, I am an optimist and when you see these amazing boats come at you at 30 knots, it is an incredible site and one that can make your heart stop!  Watching them duel it out on TV was impressive as well.  The one thing that most non sailing folks don't realize is that the quantum shift in speed is incredible.  My 30 year old sloop was built as a racer/cruiser back in the early 80's.  It's average speed is under 6 knots with a high speed of 8.5 when she is really cooking along.  On the race course, the AC boats are hitting speeds in the high 30's and higher  In the old America's Cup, 14 to 15 knots was impressive.  So times have changed.  In hindsight, the 45' cats should have been the boat to bring to the dance.  Much more affordable means more teams and more excitement from other countries.  However, watching them on tv the other night i was giddy with pride.  The shots of the boat against the cityscape was impressive.  The bottom line is yes this America's is a bust so far.  Not one race has been closer than a difference of 2-5 minutes.  My hope is that we see an amazing finish with nz and oracle fighting it out in the finals.  Take a look at a local sailor and his awesome camera handywork.

Awesome Sail Out the Gate

Over the weekend, I went for a sail on my friend John's Ranger 33 out of Sausalito.  And what a sail it was.  We took off around 11am.  As soon as we hit the end of the channel, there was Team NZ out on the bay in practice mode.  There she goes foiling across the bay.  Soon another AC boat comes into view.  No graphics on this one but I soon realize it is the brand new Artimus boat from the Swedish team.  We are out in the middle of the bay near the Gate and the 72' foot NZ monster is heading near us just off our port bow.  Wow!  She flies by us foiling and less than 50' away.  So cool.

A couple more runs and we check the tides and it is a perfect time to head out towards the Pacific.  We pass under the Gate and the wind is in the high teens with very little swell.  There are only 2 other boats out here and we are excited.  A few more tacks and we pass Point Bonita and the end of the strait and out on the Pacific.  Because of the distance to this location, tides and many other factors, I only sail out here once or twice a year, so this is a big deal.  The conditions are perfect and we let the boat steer herself for a bit while we grab a bite.  Soon we are a mile offshore and enjoying the north south looks up and down the coast.  Time to head in.  We take a few tacks in and soon we find ourselves back in the marina and celebrate our safe return.  What a great day.  Thank-You John!

Mutiny on the Transpac

Trapped on a boat with a skipper that is in need of some anger management during a race across the Pacific.  Here is a small excerpt:

Day 0, Monday, July 8: Race Day.
An unexpected and totally unnecessary event. Harry blew up over the coffee filter left on the coffee maker by Jake. It was a half hour rage and total shut down all operation. My goodness, the man needs an anger management course badly. He threw things all over and around him. He was insulting Jake and everyone else claiming this is his house,….. blah, bah.
I don’t think it was a big deal. The filter was still warm and he should have given Jake a chance to clean up. After all, we were being pulled all different directions for the last two days by two bosses. Well…. I didn’t care, I just want to sail the Pacific and nothing can stop me know.
{Edited: Never knew this was just the beginning of an ordeal that I have never expected}.

When my daughter was in her second grade, I think she had a better organization skills than that of Harry and Jane. We rushed and rushed in a totally disorganized way, I didn’t really have time to think. Somehow, I thought we would have plenty of time to work out the details once the rush is over when on route to Hawaii. Jake reminded Harry to top off the water tanks but he left the dock anyway to head to the starting point. Both Harry and Jane were equally controlling.

We were 20 min late to the start of the race, but I was happy to see that we were underway; at least I was thinking we will have time to learn or adapt Harry’s style. As I often said to other on the net. It is his boat, his house/castle, his rules unless my life is endangered.

You can read the rest here.

Be sure to hit the "continue" on the bottom of that page to read the second part.  Some are calling the story bs but I am not so sure.

Download the West Coast's Top Sail Rag for Free

Latitude 38 has printed their latest issue.  My favorites are the Letters section and Changes in Latitude.  Download the mag to any device and enjoy.

Click here to go to the download page.

If Only She Could Sail

pics of the week

The Sailing Life is for Me!

Took out some old and new friends on Sunday for a very special day on the SF bay.  We departed about 10:30 and from a distance we could see the Berkeley Kite Festival in the fog.  Tacked out towards the City and the Louis Vuittan Cup Races.  New Zealand was dominating Italy once more.  Winds were in the 20's so we had a bit of jib out for a nice easy sail.  As we reached the finish line, NZ comes roaring through.  Nice view of these spectacular vessels.  Then we head to McCovey Cove for lunch.  We anchor and are eating lunch when one of the large brunch cruisers comes through the anchorage.  He turns and promptly hits our bow and bends up our bow roller very nicely.  I am a bit stunned and contact him on the VHF.  The captain says to call him on Monday and he will take care of it.  This will be a big hassle I am sure.  We did not let this ruin our day and it could have been much worse.  Had a great sail home in high winds and I look forward to the next adventure.

Bonehead move of the weekend goes to the brunch cruise captain!

Dolphinlove

Consider This...

Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846.
John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.
Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860.
John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.
The names Lincoln and Kennedy each contain seven letters.
Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
Both wives lost a son while living in the White House.
Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
Both were shot behind the head.
Here is an interesting one...
Lincoln's secretary was named Kennedy.
Kennedy's secretary was named Lincoln.
Both were assassinated by Southerners.
Both were succeeded by Southerners.
Both successors were named Johnson.
Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1808.
Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.
John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln was born in 1839.
Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy was born in 1939.
Both assassins were known by their three names.
Both names are made of fifteen letters.
Mr. Booth shot Lincoln in a Theatre called "Ford".
Lee Harvey Oswald, shot Kennedy in a car called "Ford" Lincoln.
Booth ran from a theater and was caught in a warehouse.
Oswald ran from a warehouse and was caught in a theater.
Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.
And last but not least,
A month before Lincoln was shot he was in Monroe, Maryland.
A month before Kennedy was shot he was in Marilyn Monroe.

Sex, Drugs and a little Roll!

What an amazing highlight of the summer!  My son and I got an invite to a private concert on Alcatraz!  We partied with the band and had an awesome evening on The Rock!  We left our slip in the late afternoon for a 2 hour sail to the city.  We arrived at our guest berth and departed for the ferry to the island.  The band was on board and we were greeted in style.  The wind was in the mid 20's as we approached the island.  A national company was treating their top sales folks to a grand event on the island.  We were shuttled to the prison commissary for the show.  The first act was a rapper with some great tunes.  Then came the headliner, Neon Trees.  They put on a great show with lots of energy and fun.  The crowd was going nuts.  We enjoyed the show and then just like that, we were on our way back to the city on the ferry.  My son and I felt like rockstars as there was a group of folks waiting for the band to return to shore.  We slept soundly in the guest berth and then sailed home in a nice breeze in the morning.  What a party!!

Bonehead Move of the Week

Dorade Wins Transpac

Dorade was a yacht designed in 1929 by Olin Stephens of Sparkman & Stephens and built 1929–1930 by the Minneford Yacht Yard in City Island, New York.

Dorade 1931.

Dorade went on to place 2nd in the Bermuda Race later that year. The crew for its first race received the All-Amateur Crew Prize. However, it would be the Transatlantic Race that would bring the boat its name. Placing first, she completed the race in 17 days – a race that takes an estimated 3–4 weeks to complete. A parade was held in celebration of the crew and ship's return with the mayor holding a reception in honor of Olin Stephens' victory.
Olin Stephens, the designer, was skipper through 1932 when he handed the boat to his brother, Rod Stephens.^[1] Led by Rod, Dorade sailed to victory in the 1932 Bermuda Race.^[2] From Bermuda, Dorade sailed back to Norway, down to Cowes, England, and finally back to America after winning the Fastnet Race. The victory of the 1932 Fastnet Race was of substantial significance given the unusually severe weather, several ships feared missing as well as one recorded drowning among the events that unfolded.

She is now on a quest to race in all the races she did in the 30's and 40's.  How cool is that?

cool pics

click any pic to make it bigger.

Greatest 1st Pitch Ever

Superyachts

Phaedo Drops Mast

Phaedo dismasting from Richard Langdon on Vimeo.

Heading to Hawaii on the Transpac, one of the coolest boats in the fleet (they have a pizza oven aboard), has lost her mast and is heading back to LA for repairs.  Bummer!  They had just set the distance record for a 24 hour period of over 400 miles.  It's going to be a long motor back to port.

Yacht Sinks after hitting Whale

Srecko and Olga Pust were taking part in the rally and sailing their Sweden Yachts 45 Ciao two-handed and were nearing the end of a long passage from Indonesia to the remote Cocos (Keeling) Islands. The were only 40 miles from landfall. The rudder was all but knocked off in an impact with the submerged object (possibly a whale). The first sign of the problem was that the boat was difficult to steer. When Srecko Pust investigated below he saw that the boat had been holed at the rudder stock. He put out a Mayday on the boat's long range SSB radio and then the two did everything they could to save their yacht, leaving only as the boat sank beneath them. They broadcast a Mayday. The only crew to hear this immediately was another a World ARC yacht nearby, J'Sea, a Jeanneau 52.2 owned by a highly experienced Canadian cruiser, John Cuzner. He alerted others. J'Sea and two other rally yachts, Royal Leopard and Spirit of Alcides, diverted and reached Ciao's position within hours. The video was taken from on board Spirit of Alcides, a Challenger 39 owned by Australians Gus and Linda Pallot. The whale was given some Tylenol and seems fine.

too much fun!

Weekend Raft Up

Just returned from a great sailing adventure on the SF Bay.  We started on Saturday with a sail with some (6 crew + the skipper) volleyball friends from Palo Alto.  It was blowing in the high teens so we went with the jib only.  We headed towards Angel Island and had a great sail across the bay.  For lunch we anchored in Paradise Cove.  Sunny and warm, I took Kona over for a swim to the beach and a romp in the sand.  There is a beautiful home here and the owner Scott said hello to me and welcomed me back to his beach (it had been about 2 years).  I asked him if anyone else swam up to his beach from a boat.  No he said, you are the only one!  We headed back toward home with Maureen driving and she was having a blast!  We made it back around 5pm and took a nap on the boat.  Tex and I then departed for Clipper Cove at Treasure Island.  We were to raft up at with My Girl, another Newport 30 from San Diego.  They had sailed up the coast over 10 days or so.  We had a nice dinner and and conversation on Rich's well out fitted 1986 Newport.  Back for some time on Addiction and then a nice sleep.  In the morning, we had coffee and breakfast of my fav, blueberry pancakes.  My Girl took off and we were out shortly after 10:30.  Had a great sail up to Tiburon with the sun popping thru.  Headed back to the barn about 1pm and cleaned up the boat.  So nice to have fixed our fuel delivery issues and now we can concentrate on having too much fun!  Here is to a great summer on the bay!!!!!!!

Zen crew abandons ship enroute to Hawaii

Zen and his wife were heading to retirement in Japan when their 30 foot cat started running into to bad conditions.  Stormy seas, rudder failure and a sick crew caused the crew to abandon ship and jump on a passing freighter.   They are safe in LA but heartbroken and homeless.  You can read about the misadventure here.

"I am not a sailor, l guess that is one lesson from this. I can sail, I can handle the boat well and blend with the element, however the moments of pleasure have been slight. There was a few moments when the flow was there, the sequencing , the harmony of movement, with water, wind and self was balanced, beauty. However a real sailor would live for this adventure. I have been measurable since we left. I guess I am just a weekend sailor. I do not want to do this passage stuff again. I would love to fly someplace, rent a boat and explore, then fly home. That would be excellent. Sail around the inland sea, exploring, yup I want that. Weeks at sea, wet, drifting, sleepless, tired, with a broken boat sucks."

zensailing

Foggy in SF

Adrift from Simon Christen on Vimeo.

Very Cool Surf Vid

Had a great sunset sail on Thursday.  Got up there about 4pm and headed for the cut in the pier.  On a port tack to Angel in perfect winds with just the jib pushing us along at 5 knots.  Head up on the deck with Kona for a bit as it was warm and sunny.  Tacked towards the city for a perfect run.  Couple of ships in the distance but no worries.  Nice sunset and then back in about 10.  Still having some fuel issues so had to sail into the slip.  Good times indeed!

Both AC Oracle Boats Racing in the Fog

Joke of the Day

An elderly man in Louisiana had owned
a large farm for several years.

He had a large pond in the back. It was
properly shaped for swimming, so he fixed
it up nice with picnic tables, horseshoe
courts, and some apple and peach trees.

One evening the old farmer decided to
go down to the pond, as he hadn’t been
there for a while, and look it over.

He grabbed a five-gallon bucket to
bring back some fruit.

As he neared the pond, he heard voices
shouting and laughing with glee.

As he came closer, he saw it was a bunch of
young women skinny-dipping in his pond.

He made the women aware of his presence
and they all went to the deep end.

One of the women shouted to him,
“We’re not coming out until you leave!’

The old man frowned, “I didn’t come down here
to watch you ladies swim naked or make you
get out of the pond naked.”

Holding the bucket up he said,
“I’m here to feed the alligator…”

What Sailing is All About

Please go full screen.

Tri Again!

Fuel Problem Fixed

We have been dealing with an ongoing fuel problem and finally got a fix over the weekend.  There were several times where we thought we had it but again the problem came up and the engine would not start without a bleed.  In the end, it turned out to be a clog in the pick up line inside the tank.  I cut the fuel line (no fuel in the line) and blew back into the tank and viola, she is purring like a kitten.  Spliced the line back with a coupler and we are off to the races.  Great news as I hope I will not have to use my bleeding skills for a long time.

Pics of the Day

Great White in the House

Heading to the Boat!

AC Racing

Fast Sailing on SF Bay

This boat should win the race to Hawaii in July.

Sailing to the Giants Game

Went out on Tueday with my best friend from my childhood, Andy and his daughter Lexie.  We hit the water about 4pm with a long port tack to Angel Island.  Telling stories about our days at UNLV and growing up to Lexie.  She is going to be a junior at UNR this year.  Tacked in 20 knots with the jib only.  Nobody out so we let the boat do the steering.  Made it past Treasure and towards the city front.  Under the bay bridge and the winds came up a bit.  Really great sailing.  We have a slip reserved and head in.  Some tailgating and then we were off to see the Giants play the Blue Jays.  Giants won 2-1 and now we are headed back.  The winds are in the high teens and we went with just the jib again.  Close to Treasure, we raised the main and headed home.  I had not done a night game in several years as we get home sooo late.  Over the last few years, it has been day games with awesome sunset sails.  However, I really enjoyed our safe transit and it was great to be on the bay at night again.  No traffic and we can park closer than any cars. Go Giants!

And a little Green Flash to boot!

Kiteboard Champions Racing in SF this week

Here is a video taken by John Navas of the North American Kite Board Championship being held this week off the tricky waters of the St. Francis Yacht Club and Crissy Field.  Johnny Heineken will be defending his title and his Yachtsman of the Year award from 2012.  Don't even get me started on the fact that a kite boarder won the sailor of the year.  Really? 



Here is a quick interview with Johnny.

Ever see one of these?

3. Southern Right Whale Dolphin

Southern right whale dolphins are small species found in cool waters far south. They have no visible teeth or dorsal fin but they still leap out of the water gorgeously.

My Favorite Radio Program - 10@10 on KFOG

I hope to start posting the most popular show of the week so you guys can get a feel of this 31 year old radio program from KFOG 104.5 San Francisco.  The following is a quote from Wikipedia and sums the show up pretty well: 
10@10 is a daily program the begins at 10 a.m. and also rebroadcast at 10 p.m. On Saturday morning at 7 a.m. the entire weeks show are rebroadcast back to back. Each weekday a random year is selected followed by “ten great songs from one great year” in addition to classic commercials, news broadcasts and clips from popular TV programs. Listeners would call in with their favorite songs with the winner being named “Best Of Set”, (B.O.S.). In later years the “Best Of Set” votes would also be tabulated from the KFOG Facebook fan site.
The show was hosted by Dave Morey with Don Pardo serving as announcer beginning on September 1982. Don Pardo would “spin the big wheel” which would land on the year of the day. Dave Morey retired from KFOG on Friday, December 19, 2008 [4] to his home on Lake Huron.
In addition to the regular programs, there are occasional special shows, such as “Ten Turkeys” on Thanksgiving, “Hits From Hell” on any Friday the Thirteenth. During Dave Morey's tenure, he was fond of occasional all Beatles playlists.
Following Dave Morey's retirement, on air personality AnnaLisa took over the program until 2012 when Annalisa moved to KFOX radio and Renee Richardson took over Ten At 10. [5]

Renee is the current host and is doing well in her role as musical travel guide for the show.  The show below was broadcast on Memorial Day of this year and was a set for those great rock stars that are no longer with us and went very young as well.  Three of the the artists died within 9 months of each other: Jim, Janis and Jimi.

Here is the playlist:
Ten Most Untimely deaths: a tremendous amount of great music was lost by their untimely passing.
10           Janis Joplin – Piece of My Heart (Big Brother)
9              Bob Marley - Jamming
8              Buddy Holly – Rave On
7              Stevie Ray Vaughan - Lenny
6              Kurt Cobain – Smells Like Teen Spirit (Nirvana)
5              John Bonham – D’yer Maker (Zep)
4              Jim Morrison – Break On Through (Doors)
3              Freddie Mercury – Killer Queen
2              Jimi Hendrix – Little Wing
1              John Lennon – (Just Like) Starting Over

Enjoy the show:

Pic of the Day

Heavy Tripping

The trip begins at the 2 minute mark.  Enjoy!

Awesomeness for you!

Coast Guard Boardings

Have you ever been boarded by the Coasties?  The one time they boarded my boat, I was single handing on the bay.  They did a safety inspection and noticed I did not have a safety throw cushion on board.  Who is going to throw it to me, I asked?  Point taken.  I got a throw cushion.  Here is a great two part article about your rights as a boater when the arrive along side you boat.  Basically, you have no rights.  They can look and do anything they want.  Read it here.
http://www.sailfeed.com/2012/10/coast-guard-boardings-and-your-fourth-amendment-rights-part-1/

Gate Jumper Rescued by Sailors

SAN FRANCISCO -- A Santa Cruz sailing crew rescued a man who jumped from the Golden Gate Bridge on Monday, delivering him safely to Coast Guard officials. Scott Walecka, 56, of Santa Cruz, was taking his 38-foot vessel Animal to San Francisco to prepare for Friday's Spinnaker Cup race from the city to Monterey when his daughter, 23-year-old Hilary, said she saw a person jump from the fabled bridge shortly before 2 p.m. Moments later, the pair and sailing friend John Mizell heard a Coast Guard radio call for a jumper in the water near the San Francisco end of the span. Walecka saw the man bobbing underneath a California Highway Patrol helicopter and sailed toward him. "He was alive and wanted to be rescued," Walecka said after returning home late Monday. "We threw a life sling out to it. He grabbed on to it, and he was hand-over-hand on the rope to get to the back of the boat." That's when Walecka realized the man's legs appeared to be broken. The man, who authorities say is 31 and identified as homeless, told the sailors he was from Alabama. The tattooed man was wearing a shirt, shorts and appeared to be in strong physical condition. "He was really fit, really buff," Walecka said. Walecka said Mizzel, who is 30 and trained is mountain rescue, talked to the jumper to keep him from going into shock. Walecka said the man didn't seem capable of saying much, including thank you. "He was just in pure survival mode at that point in time," Walecka said.California Highway Patrol officer Peter Van Eckhardt said the first call of a person over the bridge's railing came at 1:45 p.m. and four minutes later he was seen in the water. The Santa Cruz sailboat picked up the man at 1:54 p.m. Escorted by a 47-foot Coast Guard vessel, the Santa Cruz sailboat delivered the injured man to a Coast Guard station in Sausalito, where he was treated and then transferred to Marin General Hospital, authorities said. The full extent of his injuries was not immediately known. It's rare for jumpers to survive the 220-foot plunge off the Golden Gate Bridge. The bridge's governing body hopes to complete a design for a suicide barrier. Walecka is glad he was in the right place at the right time Monday. "It's good for him," he said. "Things just work out that way." Walecka owns Animal with Santa Cruz area residents Matt Lezin, Craig French and Tom Akrop. Walecka, who rented a car to get back home Monday, said he and Lezin still plan to participate in Friday's race from San Francisco to Monterey.

Awesome Bucket Racing (or the best sailing video of the day)

The Ship That Sailed into the Huricane: HMS Bounty

Why would an experienced captain of the HMS Bounty sail into the worst storm of the century?  Were there structural problems aboard the 50 year old ship?  Why put the ship and it's crew to sea when ports were available to weather out the storm?  Here is an excerpt from an article that delves into these questions and more:
The AIS records of the Atlantic during those hours are chilling: a sparsely dotted screen of vessels all making their way to port. Simonin attempted to counter growing vitriol online by reminding mariners of the adage that a ship is safer at sea than at port, but that idea was quickly denounced by other captains. Navy vessels and tankers may go to sea, they responded, but only in the interest of national security or averting major environmental disasters. Did Simonin think either applied to the Bounty? She didn’t reply.
At 7:30 p.m. on the 27th, Simonin received Walbridge’s scheduled email update. He told her that his new plan was to “keep trying to go fast and squeeze by the storm and land as fast as we can.” All else, he wrote, “is well.”
On board the Bounty, the ship’s cook, Jessica Black, was no longer able to prepare meals. She and Christian handed out sandwiches and cold hot dogs.
Barksdale was the first to sustain a significant injury, careening into the side of the vessel, jamming his right hand and rendering it all but unusable. Hours later he was thrown against a metal worktable in the engine room. He sustained a severe gash on his arm and was certain that he’d broken his leg.
Sometime on Sunday the 28th, Prokosh, a bearded, tattooed 27-year-old, was thrown across the tween decks, dislocating his shoulder and breaking several ribs. Christian found a mattress, tacoed Prokosh inside it, and wedged him against the vessel’s starboard side. “Claudene was mothering him,” says Barksdale, “stopping by while she was running around doing her duties to make sure he was comfortable.”
Later that day, Barksdale and Walbridge were in the great cabin in the vessel’s stern when the Bounty hit a large wave. The captain’s lower back struck a bolted-down table, and he crumpled to the floor in pain. With Barksdale’s assistance, Walbridge was able to stand, but for the rest of the voyage he was nearly incapacitated, unable to get around without help.

Read the whole article and the comments here.

It's turning into a banana!

Terra d'Agua

Here is a blog with some interesting characters that are sailing the world to get to know it better.  Here is their story:

You can read more here.

Nautical Terms Used in Every Day Speech

Some of these you might not know but others stand out as you may use them yourself.  Take a look.

A shot across the bows

All at sea

Anchors aweigh

Batten down the hatches

Between the Devil and the deep blue sea

Broad in the beam

By and large

Chock-a-block

Close quarters

Copper-bottomed

Cut and run

Cut of your jib

Edging forward

Fathom out

Full to the gunwales

Get underway

Give a wide berth

Go by the board

Hand over fist

Hard and fast

High and dry

In the offing

Know the ropes

Loose cannon

Mal de mer

On your beam ends

Panic stations

Plain sailing

Push the boat out

Shipshape and Bristol fashion

Shake a leg

Shiver my timbers

Slush fund

Taken aback

Tell it to the marines

The bitter end

The cut of your jib

Three sheets to the wind

Tide over

Walk the plank

Sad Day

Our hearts go out to the Simpson family and friends.  Here is a pic Andrew might have enjoyed.

Pics of the Week

Click the pic to make it bigger.

Sunday Sail to Angel Island

Weather was not looking good as I headed to the boat in Emeryville.  On the way, I had to turn on the windshield wipers.  The crew of Travis, Courtney, Mirra and Peter were waiting for Kona and I to arrive.  As we walked the dock, a huge round of thunder rolled thru the marina.  Very unusual for May.  We boarded the boat, went over some safety procedures and hit the water.  The wind was from the south and very light.  We drifted for a while and then she picked up.  We were off towards Angel Island.  Nice winds even in the lee as we made our way to Raccoon Strait.  The strait is named after the HMS Raccoon which scuttled their Navy boat here in the early 1800's.  We decided on a Bocce game over in Ayala Cove at the island.  We headed over to the lawn and I refreshed everyone on the nuances of this great game.  We had some laughs and fun as we mastered the art form of Jungle Bocce.  Back to the boat for some light wind sailing back to the marina.  We were back at the dock about 6 for cleanup and pulling the boat back in order.  Kona fell for Courtney and followed her all around the boat.  At the end he was asleep in her lap and happy as a clam in mud.  Great sail with Travis from the first Haha in 2010!

Bonehead Move of the Week