Largest Wave Ever Surfed Hits Mavs

Alo Slebir, a 23-year-old Santa Cruz local, caught a towering wave at the Mavericks surf spot near Half Moon Bay that was recently estimated by Mavericks Rescue Team to be 108 feet tall, which would make it easily the world’s largest wave ever surfed. The current world record is 86 feet.

Mother Nature is Going Nuts!

Happy New Year to all!!

Direct Hit - Santa Cruz Habor with $20m in Damage

Mav's Explodes!

Jaw's was off the hook with the same storm swell from the northern Pacific.

Top Vids of the Year!

I got very misty during the Google video. Put these up on the big screen with some screen mirroring if you can. Enjoy and happy holidays.

The Apple Electric Car

I was really excited when Apple decided to get into the car biz (project name: Titan). They recruited some of the finest engineers in the industry. Spent billions to bring the car to market. Found the right batteries to make it 500 miles on a charge. But it was not to be. They abandoned the project a few years ago. How cool does this rendering look? Would you buy a $100k Apple Car?

Pipeline Goes Nuclear

SF to LA on a $2 Catamaran (amazing wildlife)

Heading towards the holidays and lots of rain ahead. It has been another incredible year of sailing and adventure. My main focus over the years has been day sailing on the SF Bay. My boat is in a slip near Berkeley and in the central bay. It is so easy to slip the lines and head out to the islands. I have been sailing to Clipper Cove alot for an anchor and Hana heads to the beach. I come in alone or with a bunch of friends and we hang out on the beach for 30 minutes or more. My anchor windlass went out in April and I was pulling up the very heavy anchor and chain rode by hand for many months. In October the windlass I ordered from Latvia finally arrived. The supplier jerked me around for over 6 weeks when I finally told him I was canceling the order. Sure enough, 5 days later it arrived. I attempted to remove the old one but it was not moving. I hired some pros who used a hydraulic jack to push it out. They did an efficient job of installing the new one and it works great with my Bluetooth remote. I must of sailed a good 125 days this year (last year was 200!). Lots of friends and family and really fun sails. With the tunes pumping, the wind blowing, the auto pilot engaged and a bunch of friends in the cockpit, I feel incredibly fortunate. One of the great reasons to own a boat is to share it with others. I especially enjoy taking the newbies out and all their interesting questions. I was lucky enough to get invited to sail the Greek Isles for a week. I had been dreaming of this for decades and it finally happened. We had 20-30 knot winds during my birthday week. A meltemi like this happens a few times each summer and we had the only one in September. Also did a 5 day trip to the Delta with Hana, Tex and Barry. Good times and even tho we got stuck for a few hours, it was an epic voyage. My last adventure was the Baja Haha. My 8th trip from San Diego to Cabo. 120 boats and 400 sailors with beach parties along the 750 mile course. If you click back to November you can read about the 30th annual rally. 2025 will mark my 42nd year of sailing the bay! It never gets old as each day is a little different. I have a week long sail charther to Croatia planned with my wife in June. She requires a large cat with a captain and gourmet chef. We are heading out with 3 other couples we have known for 40 years. The only orders I will be barking on this sojourn will be - one more margarita please! I also have Tahiti on my radar for May. We shall see. Lastly, there is a water festival up near Stockton in the Delta at the end of July. It's a bit of Burning Man on the water. It is called Ephemerisle. I will have more info on that as we draw closer. Have a great holiday and look for my end of the year vids from Google, GoPro and Youtube.

Get ready to buy a boat in 2025! (cost breakdown)

Tubed in SF!

On the west side of SF is Ocean Beach. Some call it a nasty place to surf. I surfed there a bunch in my younger days and the currents will drag you far from your start point. About a dozen folks die here each year as they underestimate the tides, current and swell. However, on December 1 we had an amazing swell and the show is below.

Jules Vern Race Attempts to Break 40-Day Record around the Planet

A voice from heaven!

Chris Rogers Explores the Maldives

One of my favorite videographers!! Here's his film from Bali.

Week 3 Vendee Globe Update

Rides of the Year!

La Vagabonde Hit By Fishing Boat

Go to the 25 minute mark for the carnage.

Saving the boat from the reef!

Last Leg of the Baja Haha

I was up at 0600 for the morning radio net. We hear instructions and updates from the Poobah and he makes sure the fleet is ready to go. We have about 20 gallons of fuel left which will not get us to Cabo (about 180 miles away) unless we sail a good part of the way. We motor thru the morning and into the afternoon as the wind starts to build to 8-10 knots. We raise the spinnaker and she is a fine sight. We sail tru the evening untill the wind drops at 2200. Motor on. My watch begins at 0200. My last watch of the trip. I think about some of the highlights of my past 8 Haha"s. All the people I have met and all the fun times we have had. This is very cool way to get down the coast and I enjoy doing it. My watch ends and I head to a restful sleep. Up at 1030 and we are sailing again. The skipper thinks we are maybe not gone a make it to Cabo with the remaining fuel we have as the wind is dying. If we run out, we could be pushed by the wind onto the beach. Not good. I hail the other boats around us and ask for fuel. Sure enough Panther (the cat that I set the party up with) is nearby and have extra fuel. Within 15 minutes they are throwing over a line with a 5.3 gallon jug of diesel. This folks, is the true meaning of the Haha. Cruisers helping cruisers! We pour it into the tank and off we go for the final 8 miles to the harbor. We pull into the harbor for fuel, water and an inspection of our food. They take a few eggs, meat and produce that is not from Mexico. I jump off the boat and say my goodbyes. Thanks to Lisa and Byron for sharing this adventure with me. I had a blast and you guys were so sweet. I head to my hotel room but first have a margarita at the bar. After 8 Haha's I wonder if I will do another? I have been very lucky to hook up with some very cool folks by hitchhiking to Cabo on others boats. There was a beach party and an awards ceremony to attend once in Cabo. However, there was a big wind event coming and the leaders cancelled the events in an abundence of caution and to give everyone a chance to get up to La Paz or wherever before the storm hit. I met a bunch of cool folks from Santa Cruz and Monterey and hope to catch up with them again. And special thanks to Richard Spindler (that's him in the first pic with his 63' cat) for putting these rallies together for 30 years. We had a few snags on this voyage (immigration and weather) and it may be the final Haha as we know it. We will find out in the spring. Over and out!

2nd Leg Baja Haha

We departed about 0700 from Turtle Bay. The winds picked up about 1400 and we had a very nice spinnaker run. After a nice dinner, I hit the hay for some much needed rest. At 0200 I reported for my 4 hour watch. With no issues it was one of the best midnight watches ever. The big dipper was on its side at this latitude. No boats in our way and some great tunes on the stereo. With the coast clear I could reflect on my life and all the amazing things I have accomplished. On my watch I realized I have only one more night watch to go. In the morning we had a line break on the boom furler so we are motoring to Santa Maria. No big deal. We arrived at 7:30 and deployed the anchor with about 25 boats in the bay. I did the dishes and went off into a deep sleep. In the morning we need to get the dog to the beach. Byron took the dingy to look at the bar entrance and the beach beyond. A big wave swept over the dingy and Byron went in the water as the dingy turned upside down and swamped the motor. He and Lisa spent the afternoon getting it going again. In the mneantime, I asked two catamarans if they would be willing to raft up and host a boat party. They agreed and it turned out great. About 50 sailors showed up along with some kids. The only reason it worked was the space that cats afford. Meet some cool folks and had a great time. Back home about 2200 and went to bed. Today is the beach party and I am planning to DJ along with a band on the bluff. The locals prepare a fine meal and we dance the afternoon away. Our last leg is tomorrow and about a 24 hour run to Cabo San Lucas.

Boaters Worst Nightmare Comes True