Running for my life!

In 2002, my son Connor was 6.  With the time that it takes to raise a son, I had put on an extra 20 pounds.  I decided it was time to lose the extra pounds by running, swimming and biking.  I ran the hills by my house for 13 years.  Five to seven runs a week, 30-45 minute runs did the trick.  I would only run uphill and recover on the down.  I had a beautiful perch above the bay as I ran with my first golden Sierra and for 7.5 years with Kona.  We were in great shape!  The pounds came off and I felt fantastic.

Last December I noticed a pain in my left knee.  I stopped running and kept swimming and biking.  The pain has persisted on and off since then and there has been no running.  Bummer.  It can get pretty bad at night but goes away as soon as I stretch my legs straight.  I believe I have a bit of arthritis in both knees now.  It sucks getting old.  My goal is to continue working out everyday and to start doing longer rides.  My normal ride is 8-10 miles through those same running hills at Coyote Hills.  As I approach departure for my big sail to Australia in 2018, I want to be in great shape.

 I really enjoyed those runs.  They were never very fast...but I was lapping everybody on the couch!

Great Dream

We sailed to the Giants game the other day and had a great time.  I just woke up from a great dream.  We were at the game and towards the end of the game they let some of the fans on the field.  Since my sail boat was there, I sailed it onto the field.  Eventually, I anchored and watched the game...on the field.  Not sure how the players did it in 6 feet of water but they were out there.  That's just how dreams work.  I was pretty sure I had the only boat every to motor out onto the field.

The Best Day of the Month

Today we are setting sail for the ball park.  The Giants are playing the Reds in an afternoon game and we plan to sail to the park to take in the game.  A few friends will join in the fun and it should be a blast.  The winds are already approaching 20 and we may see some gusts in the 30's.  After the game, we will sail home during sunset.  Wish you were here!

We have a slip at the marina and will walk to the game.  It costs less to park my boat than my car.  And no traffic!

Sailing From Around the World

Whales in the Bay

We have had an unusual amount of humpback whales feeding in the bay this year.  I have been sailing the bay since the early 80's and have never experienced this much traffic.  It's all do to their food source which is small fish and plankton. This is good news as the waters of the bay are supporting many different types of marine life.  Normally,  the whales stay out near the Farallon Islands, which are 30 miles west of SF.  Take a look at this cool vid.

Pics For You

Furler Foul

Kona and I were out the other day and we were flying under full jib.  20 knots plus and the wind keeps building.  Time to furl to less than 100%.  I pull the furling line but it won't budge.  The furler is a year old so it should work fine.  Must be tangled inside the drum.  If I try to sail back into the slip I will be going way to fast as we have a downwind slip.  I could head into the harbor, anchor and try to get the sail down.  That's going to be tuff as the sail would be all over me as I anchor.  Before I try that, I go on a reach and the boat is sailing herself just fine.  I shimmy up to the bow and we are heeled pretty good so it's a bit dangerous to be on the pointy end.  I get on my butt and get to the drum.  I do my best to loosen the line inside.  I head back to the cockpit and she furls without issue.  Dodged a big bullet and continued a fine sail and swim in Clipper Cove.  Got lucky and had a great day!

Angel Sail

 Mike, Kona and I sailed out about 11am on Sunday.  Mike mentioned some live music was on tap in the afternoon at Angel Island.  Let's go.  The wind helped us sail a reach to the island and with main and a reduced jib we were fighting in 20-22 knots.  The wind lined us up on the north side of Raccoon Straits.  We did a couple tacks and we headed in to Ayala Cove.  We had a nice lunch in the cockpit and then headed in for some bocce and music.  We played a very competitive game thru the picnic area and Mike won 7-6.  We walked over to check out the trio and found out there is music there every Sunday from 2-4:45.  We heard some old Beatles tunes as well as a few other oldies.  Back to boat and I opt to take the easy way home and we retrace our steps from Emeryville.  The wind is in the mid to high 20's and we are racing to the barn.  Great way to spend a Sunday!

Pics for You

Had a great sail with Jason on Thursday.  We had winds in the high 20 and the headed under the bay bridge for a 12 knot cruise across the bay and back.  One more sail on Sunday and the conditions look fantastic.  Get out there if you can!

Airbnb for Exotic Sailing Vacations

Have you ever wanted to do a charter in Croatia or maybe you always wanted to party in Ibiza from the comfort of your yacht.  Well here is your chance.  For anywhere from $50-250 per day, you can join a boat in some of the greatest cruising grounds on the planet.  Instead of organizing your own charter, you jump aboard a boat that is going that way.
Check it here.

Download the Rag

Sit back and enjoy a boat load of sailing adventures and learn more about distant cruising grounds.  Click here.

Manta Alley

We were visiting Tahiti with the Too Much Fun Club.  I had started this company a few years prior (we are approaching 25 years in biz!).  Half of the company was an adventure travel/fun activity based company for singles and couples in the Bay Area.  The other half was an event planning company for company events.  The events biz was starting slowly as I had no one marketing but me and the web was not yet up and running.  One of our greatest trips was a two week long visit to Tahiti.  We had 20 or so folks on the trip.  We were in Bora Bora and out on a dive in the very special place called Manta Alley.  We had heard it was filled with Manta Rays, some with 20 foot wing spans.  We head out in to this plankton filled valley and dive down to 30- 40 feet.  An octopus glides by but no mantas.  We head back to the boat to rest and get ready to do our second dive.  The boat was boring so Frank and I head out for a snorkel.  We head over to the valley once again and from the cloud below us we see some murky figures.  Six mantas come into view.  They are following each other in perfect formation.  Soon they are doing figure eights and more.  It is magical.  Their show lasts for about 10 minutes and then they disappear into the cloud below.  Amazing.  If I had not seen it with my own two eyes, I never would have believed it.  I love nature and this was a highlight for me!  We had a great trip and a bunch more dives.  On another dive on the other side of the island, the dive master would knock on his tank with a metal object and Morey eels would swim out from their hiding place and for a treat, they would allow him to give them a great big kiss!  Wow.  Another first.  We even had a wedding on that trip.  Way too much fun!

Cali On The Cusp of Legalizing Marijuana

Last week Californians put the legalization of marijuana on the state ballot.  In November we, along with half a dozen other states, will be voting on this issue.  This will be the second time voters have had a chance to vote on legalization.  The tides have turned and most believe it will become legal.  And why should it not be legal?  There are so many positive attributes of this wonder drug.  It fights diabetes, shrinks tumors, kills cancer cells, stops debilitating pain, and helps so many people.  Study after study has proven the medicinal attributes of this amazing plant.  Please watch this great video below and learn more about nature's own cure for many of our ailments. 

Our Beatiful Planet and the Wonders That Dwell Here

Take time to smell the roses this holiday weekend!

Livin' Large!

Not sure who Jay Alverez is but I want his lifestyle and his girlfriend.  We should all be so fortunate.  If you like, head to Youtube for more of his amazing life on film. 

Holiday Pics

Bonehead Move of the Month

Who would do this?  They must be out of their minds??

Here are some big water fails to remind you to be very careful over this holiday weekend.  Especially if you are on the water.

Favorite Video of the Year (so far)

I featured this a couple months ago and I really like it.  This is on the Amstel River near Amsterdam during last year’s SAIL Amsterdam.  Founded in 2000 to celebrate big classic sailing ships, SAIL Amsterdam is held every five years and — as you can see — has been a wild success. In last year’s event well over 100 classic sailing vessels in excess of 100 feet — schooners, barkentines, Dutch tjalks, clippers, cutters, brigs, fully-rigged ships, kits, luggers, cogs, frigates — participated. A number were more than 100 years old, and many were more than 40 years old. As you can tell, they attracted a lot of spectator boats.  They love sailing in the Netherlands!

Go full screen.


Off to the east coast for some family fun on Lake Sunapee.  This will be the first year my parents will not be joining us.  My Dad is wheel chair bound and my Mom has trouble getting around.  Sorry they will not be there.  Happy 4th of July to all!!

Sheer Terror

I downloaded an app called Cruiser Forum that is a treat to read when you need to escape.  Here is one of the threads about a guy (first time sailor) who bought a 34' used sailboat.  He decided to head out of western FLA and learn as he goes:

Just a quick update. I left St Marks with Fort Pierce as a destination saturday morning in my seafarer, motored and sailed a little along the way, but the sailing part was only with the jib, as I could easliy take it down if bad weather came up. Saturday day was nice an pleasant, lite winds out of the north east sea at 1 to 2 feet...nicely motoring along.

Saturday night? SHEAR TERROR...winds at 15 to 20 knots, seas 4ft - 7ft, cloudy. There I was...zero sailing experience, zero open ocean experience, old boat I knew almost nothing about, being tossed around like a ceasar salad on the waves. All I could do was sit down in the middle of the sole and get religion. This little tempest went on for about 15 hours, and moved my little boat all over the place, sideways, thissaway and thattaway, till I realized, this was my time to die, and it would be here in the open ocean...why I cried...why did i do this stupid faking idiotic thing to get in a boat and go into the ocean, all alone, out in the middle of nowhere. This all night long, and into the morning did I plead, cried, screamed, beg God for mercy. I call the coast guard on the VHS and said...will someone PLEASE help me! Where are you at...and all the normal details, vessel name, long lat, description, name, how many people on board...and all the time I just asked Where is LAND...I need LAND!! I was weak, sleep deprived, in total terror. The CG guy said, "You are 85 miles from Ft Pierce, and 35 miles from Hommasass" I asked where is hommassas, CG says...due east..u gota a compass? yes I do..he said go east. I turned the boat due east....35 miles and 17 hours later...dark again, cold north wind, seas 2 to 4 feet, clear night..as I watched the last rays of the sun sink into the west...crab pot bouys ahead for as far as I could see, i dodged them all...ah a light in the distance..I headed for the light and LAND...depth finder beeping..7 ft.....I got a 5ft draft.....beep beep beep...6ft. Dropped anchor, 10 miles due west of the hommasssa river. I went to bed, CG called me and ask my position, just as I dozed off...I said I was anchored, gave him my lats/longs...he said great, be sure you have ALL your nav lights on, I said ok and went to sleep..or tired to go to sleep...chain locker rattling, squeeks and moans from the boat, fish flopping, and every few seconds it felt like someone was yanking the front of the boat real hard. Tried to sleep, but only short cat naps maybe 5 or 10 minutes long. Thought I heard people talkin on deck...jumped up the stairs and only the wind rattling through the riggins was there. Around 5am this morning, I go to crank up the motor...batteries FLAT...nothing....short end of the story...called tow boat, an 12 hours and $1050.00 later, here i sit in Crystal River at Petes Pier tied to the dock. At least I can get a decent nights sleep.

For ALL you romantics that want to go a-sailing in ships..stay the fak on land! Cause being out there all alone being tossed around, with no place to go is the most terrfying situation you will ever imagine!!!

I am taking a week here to piddle around on the boat and practice some, and hopefully get my nerve up to go back out there.

You can also access the Cruiser Forums site online here.

Must See TV

I featured this way back in 2013, but it is so good we had to run it again.  Full screen she said.

Pics I Like

Awesome Shot

Frisbee golf started way back in the 60's and became a real sport in the 70's with the invention of the basket.

I started playing in college at a local course.  I played occasionally through out my 20's and 30's.  Now they have these very specialized discs which are smaller and with a heavier rim just for golf.  They fly much further than a conventional disc.  I never mastered these discs and still play with 175 gram disc that we used for Ultimate.  A few years ago, I decided to start playing when I walk Kona at the park.  I have gotten remarkably better.  I use objects in the park and I have worked it up to a 9 hole course.

Recently I was at a party celebrating my friend Steve's 40th year of ultimate Frisbee.  A couple of his friends showed up and wanted to check out the local course.  We headed over and they all showed up with their golf discs.  I showed up with my 175 and they started giving me a hard time in a good natured way.  The kept asking if I was really gonna play with the "lid"?  The first hole was a long drive to the woods edge.  My first shot was long and true and I was right with these guys.  My second shot got me about 40 feet from the hole, but I had to get through the trees as well.  I lined it up and boom...birdie!  Lucky, right?  Everyone else parred.  Next hole we all parred.  Third hole, birdie chance again from 50 feet...bingo!  I was on a roll and they headed back to their cars to their 175's!  It was a great game and we had a ton of fun.  If you have never tried this wonderful sport, head out the park and get crazy with hole layouts and use the sign posts, grill poles and whatever.  I don't usually use trees because they are too large of a target.   If you have a course nearby, all the better.  I was recently playing at a real golf course (think Tiger) and along with the regular holes they had placed Frisbee golf holes around the course.  How cool.  Now get out there and tee it off!

Do You Have a Dream??

My dream is getting closer.  For over 20 years I have dreamed of sailing this watery planet.  In a little more than 24 months, we will be departing on a trip of a lifetime.  Sailing to Australia from San Francisco (about 10k miles).  I plan to purchase the boat in 2017 or early 2018 with my friends Tex and Mike.  We will depart in September 2018.  The voyage will take one year.  My wife is not going but has given me the opportunity to make this journey.  She plans to meet me in some of the best spots.  I have been preparing for this epic adventure by sailing the bay for the last 30 years, offshore cruising in Mexico (5 Haha's) and many charters in the Caribbean and Mexico.  I have more Baja Haha's coming up plus another Caribbean bareboat charter. 

This dream has brought so much to my life.  The people I have met in the pursuit of this dream.  The boat that I have owned and shared with my boat partners for the last 16 years.  The Addiction has brought so much joy into my life.  The wonder of being on the water for those years in many different points on the planet.  Keeping in shape with daily workout on the land and in the pool.  I love it!

Now it's your turn!  What are going to do with this gift of life you have been given?  If I can get one person to imagine and pursue their dream, I have succeeded.  Dream big and dream often.  I hope your dream comes true, but it is entirely up to you. 

I hope you enjoyed the video.  You can find more from this gent if you go straight to Youtube. 

Cool Tools

Got Anchor?

Heading out for a Father's Day Cruise to celebrate the sailstice!  We now have three for our cruise to Australia in 2018.  Welcome aboard Mike!

Pics for You

Abandon Ship!

The two words no sailor would ever like to hear.  They say you should always step up when leaving the boat for the last time.  A few years ago, my friend and boat partner was in such a predicament.  He had jumped aboard a super high tech trimaran called Transit of Venus.  They were bringing the boat back to San Francisco from Hawaii after a successful race to the islands.    They were fighting the winds, tacking alot and working hard for the miles.  This was no pleasure cruise.  In the dark of night almost three weeks out, something went bump in the night.  A large object had hit the starboard amas and caused major damage.  So much so the the boat could not sail forward much more than one knot and hour.  They looked at their options and none were good.  They sent out a May Day and within the hour, a tanker was there for the rescue.  What luck!  They gathered up their most important belongings and swam over to the rope ladder that had been lowered by the tanker crew.  Can you picture yourself at this point?  I hope none of us has to.  They make it on deck to be greeted by the Captain of the ship.  Within a few minutes they ascertain they are now on a cruise to Panama!  How long will it take?  About two weeks came the answer.  Oh boy, the wife is not going to be happy!  They made it to Panama after a very long and boring cruise.  They did not have any passports so they were delayed another week trying to get home.  They finally made back to good old SF.  The boat is out there somewhere.  Good thing she was insured.  The moral of the story?  Anything can happen out there and usually will.  If it's going to happen, it's going to be out there.

Bohemian Groove!

Just returned from a great trip up to the Russian River and the Bohemian Grove.  My friend Chris has been a member for many years and he invited me to join his camp.  We arrived about 3pm on Thursday and quickly integrated ourselves into the music scene.  That day we saw about 7 bands at the various camps and venues.  It was amazing.  There are about 2500 members and guests - all male in attendance this weekend.  Meals are sometimes in the camps but there is also a huge common area for meals.

The most amazing thing about the camp is the location.  All the redwoods are 1st growth so many are over 1500 years old.  The canyon is tight and beautiful.  Camps are spread thru a large area and many are perched on the sides of the valley.  It is truly spectacular. No electronics are allowed, the only way to communicate with the outside world is a bank of land line phones.

The days are filled with lectures and music.  Our camp was very nice with a huge deck and stage as well as an enclosed area with seating inside.  We had a musical performance on the stage as well as a speaker one afternoon.  Lunch at the camp followed.  Prepared by our crew of 4 in excellent fashion.

The musical highlights included a soul/R&B show with some of my favorite songs, a tribute to the Eagles (we scored front row as Chris had his timing down) and a jam session at one of the camps with fiddlers and guitars.

I met some very cool folks and had a very memorable weekend.  They have been hosting these weeks and weekends for over 100 years at this venue.  A weekend I will not soon forget!

World Sailing

Heading up to the Bohemian Grove this week.  Got an invite from a friend.  I will be rubbing elbows with the movers and shakers.  Should be a ton o' fun!

Here is the lowdown on the hoedown.  Click here.

Pics of the Week

Heading up to Tiburon to sail on John's 42' ketch.  The stateroom is awesome with a great bed.  Looks to be a great day on the bay!

Run Like the Wind!

As cool as it is expensive.  Do you want one?

Amazing!

Tape Man!