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I can't help it Sled - I like to accumulate and redistribute sailboat stuff!
The pole has some SSS history which Jackie has been charged to perpetuate. First used on Dan Benjamin's Olson 30 WHITE KNUCKLES, the pole went to Hawaii in 1992. Though fully rigged with bridles for spinnaker work, its almost unused condition suggests it was the second whisker pole for the pair of colorful twin headsails Dan also bought for the Olson.
Alan Hebert equipped his Santana 30-30 WISDOM for the 2004 SHTP, and he bought the pole and twins from Dan.
As I prepped RAGTIME! for the 2006 race, I kept hearing I needed twins so I bought the pole and twins from Alan.
After the 2008 race the pole and twins parted company. Scott Prusso was gearing up for the 2012 race and the twins would fit his Cal 29, so he bought them. I kept the pole to use as a whisker pole with my 125% genoa, but never did.
Then Jackie posted and now the pole, aboard DURA MATER, and the twins, aboard ROSALITA are destined for yet another run to Hanalei Bay.
Sled and 'Zia were looking good as they sailed WILDFLOWER at hot angles back into Berkeley yesterday. As expected, Sled backed the little cat into her just-wide-enough slip with precision.
sleddog
11-26-2012, 05:09 PM
Latitude 38 will not publish poems. Seems poetic. No restrictions here. Here's another from Ogden Nash, posted locally by "Blighbaum."
How pleasant to gaze on the sailors
As their sailboats they manfully sail
With the vigor of the vikings or whalers
In the days of the vikings and whales
They sport on the brink of the shad and the shark
If it's windy they sink, if it isn't they park
How pleasant to gaze on the sailors
To gaze, without having to sail!
sleddog
11-27-2012, 11:56 AM
Later tonight, we are about to get our first real SE gale of the season on Monterey Bay. Though South Easterlies only blow 5-7% of the winter season November through March, they have played an overriding influence on discovery and development of the Monterey Bay area.
In Dec. 1602, the Spanish explorer Sebastian Vizcaino was attempting to navigate his three boat expeditionary fleet northward along the Pacific Coast. His objective was to survey and map potential ports of refuge for Manila galleons on their yearly voyages from the Phillipines to Acapulco.
Luckily for Vizcaino and his unweatherly fleet, a SE gale sprung up on Dec. 13, and they were able to sail from the Channel Islands northward along the usually rowdy Big Sur Coast. When they reached the latitude of Monterey, they took shelter in "an all weather port, sheltered from all winds" (Monterey.) Vizcaino's glowing descriptions of his find were reproduced on Spanish charts and spurred overland Spanish exploration.
In October, 1769, Gaspar Portola led an overland expedition northward from Baja in an attempt to find Vizcaino's all weather port of refuge. But Portola was not a sailor, and we can presume the Monterey Peninsula was hidden under its usual shroud of fog. Whatever, Portola did not recognize Vizcaino's perfect shelter, bypassed his elusive goal ("overstood the mark," I'd call it.) and continued north until they became the first non-natives to sight San Francisco Bay a month later.
sleddog
11-27-2012, 12:52 PM
As the Monterey Bay area grew in population, its many resources needed to be exported. Because there were only a few dirt trails over the coast mountains, local redwood logs, tanbark, potatoes, smokeless gun powder, lime, sugar beets, tallow and hides all needed to be shipped by sea. Wharves sprang up from Watsonville clear up to Pigeon Point to accommodate small schooners and steam powered ships.
But SE gales created a major log jam. Most of Monterey Bay is a lee shore in a SE gale, with a long fetch of open water to windward. The wharves were regularly damaged or destroyed each winter, and venturesome ships driven ashore. Some wharves were rebuilt, others left to disappear.
Even today, the Capitola Wharf gets raked each winter by SE gales and swell, losing parts and piles. A clamor grew for a solution to fighting the SE gales that took away the coastal wharves.. The answer came in the mid-1880s in the form of railroads, linking both Santa Cruz and Monterey to inland destinations and markets, especially the growing Bay Area.
When you live on the coast, SE gales take on a very real personality. I suspect this one will shoal the Santa Cruz Harbor entrance with hundreds of cubic yards of sand deposited overnight. And that big catamaran, CRYSTAL BLUE PERSUASION, (55') still anchored off the Santa Cruz wharf, will likely be driven ashore, just like it was last year. Who are those guys and what aren't they thinking?
Hugsatthebeach
11-27-2012, 06:11 PM
Hi Sleddog,
I was reading a friend's Small Craft Advisor from 2010 and saw a picture of this cool small catamaran. Traced it to you and this forum so I joined. I have really enjoyed your postings and photos on the building of your catamaran. Looks like it is a lot of fun and it's given me some inspiration. I mainly sail on the coast of North Carolina and some in upstate NY.
Philpott
11-27-2012, 07:15 PM
I can't help it Sled - I like to accumulate and redistribute sailboat stuff!
The pole has some SSS history which Jackie has been charged to perpetuate. First used on Dan Benjamin's Olson 30 WHITE KNUCKLES, the pole went to Hawaii in 1992. Though fully rigged with bridles for spinnaker work, its almost unused condition suggests it was the second whisker pole for the pair of colorful twin headsails Dan also bought for the Olson.
Alan Hebert equipped his Santana 30-30 WISDOM for the 2004 SHTP, and he bought the pole and twins from Dan.
As I prepped RAGTIME! for the 2006 race, I kept hearing I needed twins so I bought the pole and twins from Alan.
After the 2008 race the pole and twins parted company. Scott Prusso was gearing up for the 2012 race and the twins would fit his Cal 29, so he bought them. I kept the pole to use as a whisker pole with my 125% genoa, but never did.
Then Jackie posted and now the pole, aboard DURA MATER, and the twins, aboard ROSALITA are destined for yet another run to Hanalei Bay.
Sled and 'Zia were looking good as they sailed WILDFLOWER at hot angles back into Berkeley yesterday. As expected, Sled backed the little cat into her just-wide-enough slip with precision.
Well, I take the charge seriously: hardware with a pedigree. It extends through my whole cabin. Bob says don't store it in deck, I'll trip over it and fall overboard. Any suggestions?
Jonathan Gutoff
11-27-2012, 10:08 PM
Well, I take the charge seriously: hardware with a pedigree. It extends through my whole cabin. Bob says don't store it in deck, I'll trip over it and fall overboard. Any suggestions?
If it's short enough store it in a sleeve on the boom just like an Express 27 (or Laser 28) The foreguy and topping lift stay out of the way of jib sheets and such...
sleddog
11-28-2012, 07:50 AM
I would disagree with my friends, and say a 12' pole belongs on the foredeck, Off to one side (stbd), in chocks, with the aft end outside the chainplates as far aft as it can go and not overhang outside the rail. In this position, it is not a tripping menace. It does the opposite and provides a foot brace when working on the foredeck and heeled over on port tack.
The topping lift should be led to a cam cleat, chest high, on starboard side of mast. To raise pole, untie the pole from the chocks, affix topping lift, face forward standing on deck abeam the mast, and hoist the outer end of the pole with your left arm while grabbing the butt end with your right arm and swinging it to the mast slider.
This is likely a pretty beefy pole to be stowed on the boom. Not to say it can't. But I consider boom stowage a good around the buoys technique. Offshore, less so, with the pole likely longer than the boom and waiting to snag sheets and clew reef lines.
The new Commodore of SSS, if he is reading this, would likely recommend the pole be well secured to the boat when stowed on the foredeck. He may less than fondly remember, on one of his early races to Hawaii, waking up the first morning after a rough first night and finding TB's only pole had disappeared over the side during the night. To their credit, TB's crew turned around, sailed back to SF, found another pole, and continued on in the race.
For the SHTP, RUSHMOORE, like myself, would recommend two poles.
All this, and poetry too? Singlehanders untie.
Critter
11-28-2012, 09:54 AM
Jackie, there are pole brackets that you can attach halfway up the stanchions to get the pole off the deck. But they're kind of bulky and ugly.
I agree with Skip; I don't think a pole stowed on deck is a tripping hazard if it's close to the rail. I carried the spinnaker and whisker poles that way to Hawaii and back and didn't have a problem.
That reminds me: I need to get my whisker pole back from Scott Prusso someday. Scott, are you out there?
sleddog
11-28-2012, 09:58 AM
My (Virtual) Vendee Globe race continues as SLEDCAT beam reaches in the SE Trades down the South Atlantic at 14 knots. With over 360K, mostly French, racers, competition is fierce. The wind is freeing as we approach the St. Helena High, and I suspect tonight after the 11 pm wind update, I will have to switch my jib (sheeted outboard) for the spinny.
It is similar, weather wise, as racing around the Pacific High to get to Hawaii. Except the winds blow opposite direction around pressure systems in the Southern Hemisphere. I tried inverting my laptop screen, but that didn't work. It is kinda like learning to drive on the left when you visit UK or NZ.
Soon we will enter the sleighride of the Roaring 40's. That is except for the Virtual Boats, the "Vagabonds" the French Vendee website calls them. These boats, several hundred or more, have chosen to race through both the North West and North East Passages. I am guessing ice is not an issue for a virtual boat, as they seem to be progressing just fine over the top of the world, under virtual sail, with virtual wind.
There even appear to be some virtual boats going "cruising" into the Med. Leave it to the French seeking women, wine, and cheese instead of icebergs and freezing cabin temps.
To see a satellite view of this amazing fleet, go to http://vr-annexe.akroweb.fr/vagabond.php The leading purple boats are the paying "pros" with 10 sail options forward of the mast. The yellow is "sans options" (one jib, one spinny) sailing free, like me. And if you want to see SLEDCAT's position, type her name in at the bottom of that screen view under "Bateau," and click on "Chercher."
Philpott
11-28-2012, 05:32 PM
The topping lift should be led to a cam cleat, chest high, on starboard side of mast. To raise pole, untie the pole from the chocks, affix topping lift, face forward standing on deck abeam the mast, and hoist the outer end of the pole with your left arm while grabbing the butt end with your right arm and swinging it to the mast slider.
I'm having my boat re-rigged next week. So I should ask for a cam cleat to be added to the starboard side of my (soon to be sanded and repainted) mast? Chest high? Thank you.
sleddog
11-28-2012, 05:54 PM
I don't know if your topping lift is internal or external, nor where it exits the mast. I do know, for solo sailing, having the topping lift controllable from the mast area is a good thing. It allows the pole to be more easily raised and lowered. I only said starboard side, because 75% of spinnaker sailing on the Eastern Pacific is on starboard tack. So the pole will more often be raised to starboard.
"Chest high" when you are standing on the cabin top is a good compromise for being both reachable and ergonomically being able to be pulled. On WILDFLOWER I then ran the topping lift tail down to a block on deck and aft to another cam reachable from the tiller. That way I could also adjust the pole height while steering. The foreguy was double ended, one cam each side of cockpit, also within reach of the tiller.
It might be good for you to go sailing on an Express 27, Laser 28, or Moore 24 and see their spinny setups. They use twingers in lieu of a foreguy. But otherwise things are similar.
A good look for your initial spinnaker sailing is tie your boat stern first to a buoy or dock. In true wind less than 8 knots, you can practice set, jibe, and douse your spinnaker without having to watch where you are going or running out of runway.
In '08 I spent several afternoons tied stern first to a CG mooring buoy off Santa Cruz Wharf practicing two pole jibes, and spin/ twin jib changeovers. Eventually, with sails going up and down, but the boat not moving, someone on shore thought I was in trouble, and called the CG. As the Coasties approached in the distance, I slipped my stern line and took off.
Philpott
11-28-2012, 07:55 PM
That's a great idea. I'll do it!
sleddog
11-28-2012, 08:12 PM
To Hugsatthe beach in N.C. Thankyou for the kind words. I just finished an article for Small Craft Advisor. And thankyou to all who check in here. You know who you are, including RAGTIME!, Critter, Cap'n Bob, Jonathan, ERGO, the Rubies, Synbad, SleddogSis, Jan, brianb, Travieso, Tom and Sue, Richard and Anne, alanH, Larry V, Howard, DIANNE, Knotbum, Rock Lobster, AJ (where are you?), Philpot ....
I love hearing from one and all, whatever you want to share, agree or disagree, or just tell a story. News tonight is they have apparently found evidence of life on Mars. Heck, we got evidence of life right here, and there are no expensive rockets or cameras in this group. Well, almost none. Travieso is gonna aim his sliver boat vertically, mount two JATO packs, torch them off. And then SSS will have reached the stars.
Okay, with that bit of encouragement here are a couple more.
Jack London Square
Before Scott's and the Waterfront Hotel, the Seawolf and the Bow and Bell occupied those spots. The guest docks were between them, long fingers that jutted straight out towards the Estuary. At least one of the restaurants (I can't remember which) was far enough out on pilings that diners were treated to shenanigans comparable to those seen at boat ramps on a Summer weekend. A couple examples:
When racing out the Estuary you wanted to maximize the length of your tacks. As you approached the restaurant windows, you judged the timing of your tack based on the reaction of the diners. Simply wide-eyed wasn't quite close enough. When the guy placed his hands flat on the table to jump up, it was "Helm's a-Lee!" Then once on starboard, you seemed to get a bit of a lift from the wind deflecting off the windows.
Daysailing, we'd tie up SQUALI at the guest dock and walk up to Sambo's - that most politically-incorrect of restaurants. It was a family favorite, more for the boat ride than for the food. One of the first times we tied up there I was handling the stern line. I was backing up with the line, using the ends of the adjacent fingers as reference. What I'd failed to notice was the finger on which I was backing up was a few feet shorter than those on either side. Yep.
The pilings under the Bow and Bell were surrounded by bags of cement that looked just like punching bags. Yep.
Back then we had real chandleries. The small one down near the Stone Boat Yard was Proper-Tighes. The big one at Jack London Square was Johnson & Joseph - a wonderful place to pass the time.
Speaking of Stone's, Lester Stone kept his cutter "SCAMP" at Alameda Marina, a couple rows east of where SQUALI was berthed. He was a real gentleman. Svendsen's had a gas dock, alongside where the travel-lift launches boats now. One day a gas-engined cutter blew out his transom and sank on the spot there. But that's another story.
When we were cleaning out Bill's ERGO a couple weeks ago, I noticed a Santana 27 named QUETZAL just a few slips over. Assuming it's the same boat, I experienced my first ocean race on that very boat about 40 years ago. Back then it was owned and raced aggressively by Dick Heckman, a member of the newly-formed Island Yacht Club. As a member of IYC's Jr. Program, I was invited to crew for Dick for some YRA races. At first I was on the traveler but before long he had me releasing the genoa sheet on tacks. When Dick would get wound up he did what too many skippers do - he yelled. But he knew it and would encourage us to simply yell back at him. We rarely did.
After a few races Dick invited me to join him and a one other crew for a night race in the ocean - I think it was called the Waterhouse. It started off the St. Fancy at 1800, went up to the Duxbury buoy, around the Farallones and back in the Gate, finishing the next afternoon up in Vallejo.
The beat up to Duxbury was an honest upwind leg and it was blowing, and it didn't ease up as the night wore on. The reach out to SE Farallon was downright scary. After rounding the island, Dick announced he was going to sleep. Sometime later we saw a seagoing tug approaching and decided after some hand-wringing to take his stern. I guess our conversation woke up Dick - he came on deck just in time to tell us to change course. In the darkness we hadn't noticed the tug was towing a barge.
I don't remember how we finished but it was a great introduction to ocean racing.
sleddog
11-29-2012, 06:16 PM
I drove Capitola to Berkeley Marina early this morning. WILDFLOWER's slip expires today, and I planned to haul her on the hoist and trailer home.
Best laid plans don't always happen. The Berkeley hoist is on the SE side of the Marina, where the Cal Sailing Club has its boats. There is no protection from the SE, and it was blowing from the SE at 15-18 knts., making a lee shore where I had planned to tie up.
The 2' wind waves were smacking the seawall right under the hoist, and reflecting upwind. In a good example of Physics 101, there were 3' standing waves popping up all over the place. It would have been nearly impossible to get WILDFLOWER anywhere near the hoist without damage. The Berkeley Marina staff was most accommodating, and found me a well protected end tie. I closed the boat up good, and retreated to Bette's for breakfast with my sister and family, and will return next week when the weather moderates.
Philpott
11-29-2012, 07:51 PM
I'm going down to the marina tomorrow and again for sure on Sunday, when I will bring Dura Mater over to chat with and spend the night with Wildflower. She's so small: my big fat girl will keep an eye on her, not let any of the other boats bully her.
sleddog
12-02-2012, 09:24 AM
The SE winds, gusting 30-40 knots in Monterey Bay, have shoaled the Santa Cruz Harbor Entrance extensively. Not much "channel" remains. Yesterday morning (Saturday), the surf was breaking the whole way across during sets.
http://www.santacruzharbor.org/harborCams/harborEntrance.html
More impressive is what is happening offshore. Third Reef, about a mile seaward off Lighthouse Point, is also breaking "burgers." The localized depth at Third Reef is only 18-20' at low tide. But so far offshore, surfers can't get there short of jet skis.
Yesterday, at "Coffee Club" at the Harbor Kind Grind, we chuckled at the original paint job on the Santa Cruz Breakwater boutique light house. Costing nearly $3/4 million, the lighthouse was supposed to look like romantic New England, something Santa Cruz certainly is not.
I guess the architects never got the word. The new lighthouse sits on the end of the West breakwater, on your port side when entering. It's original paint job, lasting at least a year, featured a nice broad red stripe around its white tower.
sleddog
12-03-2012, 08:41 PM
Getting a break in the weather, I departed Capitola at 0500 this morning for Berkeley Marina. With help from brother-in-law Tom we hauled the boat on the 2 ton hoist. It then took two hours to unrig and tie down.
Not sure what is more challenging: rounding Pt. Sur northbound. Or towing a trailer down the 880 corridor with faded lane lines and 18 wheelers only inches away. Today, the latter had my full attention.
Arrived safely back at Capitola at 1:30 p.m. and backed WILDFLOWER into the driveway.
sleddog
12-06-2012, 08:53 AM
Many sailors on SF Bay have likely noticed an increase in sightings of Harbor Porpoise. These small and usually solitary animals are found up and down the CA coast. But their presence in SF Bay since WW II was limited. Now, likely because of cleaner water, they have returned.
But there is possibly another, darker, reason for Harbor Porpoise in SF Bay. Right here off Capitola, and elsewhere off the Central CA Coast, gangs of juvenile Bottlenose Dolphins are attacking the smaller Harbor Porpoise and killing them with blunt force. Dozens of dead Harbor Porpoise have washed ashore in the last few years, and there is now video of these attacks.
What this all means is uncertain. Bottlenose Dolphins are usually found in warmer waters to the south. Are Harbor Porpoise seeking refuge from these "porpicide" attacks in SF Bay? Fascinating stuff.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Porpicide-Bottlenose-dolphins-killing-porpoises-2309298.php
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBul5j30V98
sleddog
12-06-2012, 05:45 PM
On her trailer, WILDFLOWER is now rerigged here in Capitola and ready for some driveway sailing. A two page list of maintenance and improvements awaits sunny winter days.
Say what you want. But there is a certain pleasure being able to see the boat out the window. And step outside, climb a ladder, and be aboard.
On the other side of the World, the Vendee racers have passed south of the Cape of Good Hope. The Virtual Vendee now has 390,000 racers, of which SLEDCAT is currently 1500 miles behind the leader in position 28,872. No worries, we've been averaging 21.8 knots for 36 hours with a 30 knot tailwind down at latitude 43 S. The leading group is only making 6 knots, stuck under a slow moving area of high pressure.
The enjoyment of sailing takes many forms. My good friend, Gary, in Anacortes, finds simple pleasure in seeking out used bronze boat parts. Over in Hawaii, Cap'n Bob stand up paddles every day, as well as monitoring Matson's fleet comings and goings. Down in Los Barriles, Alex is windsurfing.
Onward.
You can't put numbers in front of a bean-counter like that and not expect him to do something with them - you're in the top 8% of a 390,000 boat fleet and moving up!
In the live race, the tactics for staying in the breeze while navigating through the latest ice gate have been interesting. I was sure Armel (BP) had given up his lead for good but now it looks like he'll be back up there as the other leaders sail into 5 knots of breeze to clear the gate.
The top three boats are less than 50 miles apart after 27 days of racing!
sleddog
12-07-2012, 08:50 AM
We are all connoisseurs of something: wine, coffee, dessert, wood, hot springs, gardens and ?
My taste reaches towards the horizon. More specifically, catching the Green Flash at sunrise and sunset. The Green Flash twice a day takes some doing and some luck. Sunrise is harder than sunset. I walk to the cliff, hoping it is clear down the Salinas Valley, toward El Gabilan Peak. I know the sun is currently rising 40 seconds later each morning.
If everything aligns, like it did this morning at 7:13:29 a.m., the Green Flash lights a point on the horizon for an instant, just as the sun's upper limb appears above the distant Coastal mountain range. The color, at least to me, is not deep green. But more a fluorescent green, almost turquoise, that lasts for a count of 2.
I'd be interested if others have seen the Green Flash at sunrise, and where.
H Spruit
12-08-2012, 10:05 AM
We used to refer to color of the flash as psychedelic or electric green.
While living in Hawaii the evening sunset and green flash became a ritual event, my mornings have almost never allowed such leisure.
However in the winter of 1968, when leaving La Paz before sunrise bound for San Diego, and strictly by chance, caught the morning flash.
H Spruit
sleddog
12-08-2012, 10:41 AM
Single and short handed sailors like you and I often create marvelously inventive equipment and techniques to compensate for our lack of manpower. For example, though I am not a fan of spinnaker snuffers, in the '98 DH Pacific Cup on the 60' Wylie design ROXANNE, we would hoist the spinnaker by attaching the tail of the spinnaker halyard to a 5 gal mayonnaise bucket. On the command "hoist away" the mayo bucket would be launched overboard. It would fill with water having a sea anchor effect, and the 35 pound spinnaker, with snuffer, would shoot to the top of the 80 foot mast in 3-4 seconds, no physical exertion required.
When the spinnaker two blocked, the 75# plastic wire tie holding the halyard tail to the bucket handle would break, the bucket would capsize, and we would conveniently haul it back aboard.
OK. I'm offering another cruise on WILDFLOWER to the most creative shorthanded piece of gear or technique posted below. The above H. Spruit has already made known one of his many boat building shortcuts. H Spruit is the only one I know who has 19 pairs of vice grips in his tool kit. I asked him why. He says he often uses them when singlehandedly removing fasteners from deck gear and jib tracks. He simply attaches a vice grip to each underdeck nut, then goes topsides with his Makita electric drill. Presto, the jib track or whatever is removed in a few short minutes....
sleddog
12-10-2012, 05:54 PM
On a lowtide walk this afternoon down towards New Brighton, I encountered possibly 100 or more beached Humboldt Squid. The seagulls were having a calimari feast on the carcasses. The squid looked to be mostly about 2' long, weighing probably 5 pounds.
Why they came ashore last night is anyone's guess. Humboldt Squid, until recently, were found much further south, Mexico and beyond. I'd hate to have one of those puppies be flushed into the cockpit at night. Their beaks are rumored to be razor sharp.
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/aptos/ci_22163225/hundreds-squid-beached-aptos-area
Phil MacFarlane
12-10-2012, 07:14 PM
Do you know if they are any good to eat ? if fresh of course.
sleddog
12-10-2012, 08:29 PM
Do you know if they are any good to eat ? if fresh of course.
My neighbor uses Humboldt squid he catches with a fishing pole to bait his crab traps. But according to guide books, they are good eating as well. The Humboldt squid give thick steaks. But reportedly the tentacle suction cups have teeth and are not edible.
The knock on Humboldt squid is that it is tough and chewy, like retread truck tires. But this toughness is often a result of overcooking. If worried about toughness, wrap the squid steak in plastic, and pound it with a meat tenderizer or wooden mallet. The other thing is to use a marinade containing something acidic, like lemon juice or vinegar.
Cleaning a Humboldt Squid: Film at 11.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jM8_JgzAKdE
sleddog
12-10-2012, 08:48 PM
One of my childhood heroes and pioneering British solo sailor Bill King has died at age 102. King was a much decorated British submarine captain, and the only man to command a sub from the first to the last day of WW II.
While restoring the roofless 12th century Oranmore Castle overlooking Galway Bay, the idea of sailing alone around the world took seed for King. He developed his own junk-rigged 42' schooner GALWAY BLAZER II to compete in the Sunday Times Golden Globe solo round-the-world race, which was eventually won by Robin Knox-Johnston.
King left Plymouth in August, 1968, but lost his rig two months later in what he described as the "worst storm I have ever witnessed" and was towed to Cape Town. A second attempt ended in Perth, Western Australia when ill health forced him ashore. He resumed his voyage the following year and finally completed his circumnavigation in 1973.
During his time in subs, Bill King survived on a "soap-like meat substitute" and became so haunted by the smell of Spam that he lived on raisins, wholemeal biscuits and almond paste for protein. For vitamin C he, like Chichester, grew watercress aboard, and collected the odd flying fish.
In 1975 The Cruising Club of America (CCA) awarded Commander Bill King the Blue Water Medal. I recommend his books, including "The Stick and the Stars" about his war experiences and "Adventure in Depth" about sailing.
I'm offering another cruise on WILDFLOWER to the most creative shorthanded piece of gear or technique posted below.
I installed a masthead VHF antenna while hanging from the masthead. The challenge was pulling the coax down through 40' of mast conduit.
Before going aloft I lashed a small block down at the mast base (in the cabin). I disconnected the bottom end of the wind transducer cable and tied/taped a messenger line to it, then ran the messenger line through the block and out the forward hatch, finally tying the tail to my TopClimber and taking it aloft. Up there, I pulled the transducer cable out from the top of the mast and tied/taped the coax to it then pulled the two cables back down through the conduit using the messenger line.
When you see a single-hander sitting in the cockpit staring off into space, he's probably cooking up something like that. (Or he might just have gas from eating all that squid.)
In the Vendee, BP and MACIF are a mile apart after 31 days and thousands of miles. BP is ahead but MACIF is sailing faster. An amazing performance! Sled, how's SLEDCAT doing?
sleddog
12-11-2012, 10:41 AM
I was up at 11 pm last night to jibe my Vendee Virtual Race boat SLEDCAT. Unfortunately, the website was down for 45 minutes and SLEDCAT was sailing the wrong jibe at 15 knots during that time. The neighbors, seeing my lights flicking on and off, have suggested I "get a life."
BobJ: as of this moment, SLEDCAT is 27,333 out of 411,334. And we are back pickin' off the Frogs one by one.
Your description of pulling the coax wire downward while hanging from the masthead certainly has the attention of the Judges. However, one of them, a lady whose name I will forgo mentioning, described the feat as akin to Nixon trying to put the toothpaste back in the tube after WaterGate. Wha????
I can't remember who, but it was definitely a single-hander returning from Hawaii, ran his batteries flat at night ...He re-led his mainsheet single part down the hatch, through a snatch block, and around his diesel engine flywheel. He put the boat on a reach, released the compression levers, then released the mainsheet. The flywheel spun, the engine started, and the batteries were again charged.
I thought everybody put the excess toothpaste back in the tube. I am, after all, a Scottish accountant . . .
Regarding starting the diesel, I've heard that tale but I can't remember from whom. Were you ever able to start your 1GM with the hand crank? I've tried several times without success. The compression release lever is spring-loaded so you have to hold it up with the left hand while trying to crank with the right from a bad angle. Maybe I need to prop up the lever with something.
Housekeeping on one of my earlier posts (due to poor memory) - I was trundling around on a J/105 last weekend and noticed the two waterfront restaurants at Jack London Square are Scott's and Kinkaid's. Scott's was the Seawolf and Kinkaid's must have been the Bow and Bell. The Waterfront Hotel was the Boatel back in the day.
Critter
12-11-2012, 12:05 PM
I've heard the jibe-starter story also. I thought it happened in one of the solo round-the-world races. Probably been done more than once.
AlanH
12-11-2012, 12:27 PM
The Stuff of Legend.
Truth.....Mike Jefferson re-wound an alternator, using extra wire he had on board, on the way back from a SHTP. This must have been in the early 90's, he was on FoxxFyre at the time. ..... or so the story goes, but Mike DID confirm it.
AlanH
12-11-2012, 12:33 PM
One of my childhood heroes and pioneering British solo sailor Bill King has died at age 102. King was a much decorated British submarine captain, and the only man to command a sub from the first to the last day of WW II.
While restoring the roofless 12th century Oranmore Castle overlooking Galway Bay, the idea of sailing alone around the world took seed for King. He developed his own junk-rigged 42' schooner GALWAY BLAZER II to compete in the Sunday Times Golden Globe solo round-the-world race, which was eventually won by Robin Knox-Johnston.
King left Plymouth in August, 1968, but lost his rig two months later in what he described as the "worst storm I have ever witnessed" and was towed to Cape Town. A second attempt ended in Perth, Western Australia when ill health forced him ashore. He resumed his voyage the following year and finally completed his circumnavigation in 1973.
During his time in subs, Bill King survived on a "soap-like meat substitute" and became so haunted by the smell of Spam that he lived on raisins, wholemeal biscuits and almond paste for protein. For vitamin C he, like Chichester, grew watercress aboard, and collected the odd flying fish.
In 1975 The Cruising Club of America (CCA) awarded Commander Bill King the Blue Water Medal. I recommend his books, including "The Stick and the Stars" about his war experiences and "Adventure in Depth" about sailing.
When I was getting involved in Singlehanded stuff, I read a book...."Blue Water, Green Skipper" by Stuart Woods. Stuart lived in the UK in the early 70's and prepped a Ron Holland half tonner, a Golden Shamrock to do the 1972 OSTAR. The book is about the process of getting ready to do that, and training, then doing the race. Bill King featured prominently in the book, as an advisor to Stuart.
About 5 years ago I discovered a Golden Shamrock...a quintessentially British boat, for sale on SailingTexas. I contacted the guy...sure enough, it was Golden Harp, Stuart Woods boat. He'd have sold it to me for a song, but it needed ()*&^$(% - loads of work and it was on the East Coast. If' I'd had a spare $20K, though.....
The Stuff of Legend.
Truth.....Mike Jefferson re-wound an alternator, using extra wire he had on board, on the way back from a SHTP. This must have been in the early 90's, he was on FoxxFyre at the time. ..... or so the story goes, but Mike DID confirm it.
Righto - in fact he re-wound it twice. This resulted in the creation of the "FoxxFyre" perpetual trophy, awarded to the SHTP skipper who demonstrates the most ingenuity in solving problems encountered during the race.
sleddog
12-11-2012, 02:25 PM
BobJ:
I never was able to get my 1GM10 to handstart. I had Buzz lengthen the handle 2". Then rigged a small block directly over the engine. I led a light line from the compression lever up through the block, then aft to between my teeth.
I'd crank and crank, ready to open my clenched jaw and release the compression lever. But it was futile. Handcranking a Yanmar was a something I heard about, but never achieved. If anyone has handstarted their Yanmar, we'd like to hear about it!
pogen
12-11-2012, 02:26 PM
I've heard the jibe-starter story also. I thought it happened in one of the solo round-the-world races. Probably been done more than once.
Mich Des did it in 2000
In 2008 Michel Desjoyeaux suffered mechanical difficulty at the start and ended up leaving almost two days after the others. His march through the fleet to an eventual victory marked him as one of the greats to play this game. He also won in 2000, the race where he had to pull start his engine using his mainsheet and a well timed gybe for most of the race. He will not be racing this time, but there are a number of seasoned veterans for whom this might be their best chance, and a new young group ready to challenge them. One woman, Sam Davies will challenge the men. She finished fourth last time.
from here: http://www.oceannavigator.com/Web-Exclusives-2012/Vendee-Globe-starts-November-10/
sleddog
12-11-2012, 02:47 PM
The honor roll would be incomplete without mentioning Tom Dreyfus of New Orleans. The builder of ACADIA, Tom was late for the start of a 1980 SORC race off Miami because his plane got high-jacked to Cuba.
Back at Miami, Tom conned a helicopter guy to fly to the start line on the pretense of needing to take some photos. When they got over ACADIA, Tom threw his duffle bag out the helo door, thanked the startled pilot, and, from 75', jumped into the sea. He landed just ahead of ACADIA, whose crew was a bit startled to see Tom fall from the sky. They picked him up, started the race, and legend was born.
sleddog
12-11-2012, 09:11 PM
Thanks to AlanH for giving us the link to a most wonderful short film on Commander Bill King. As King says in the film, "there is no chance to sin when you go to sea...." http://vimeo.com/31019844
sleddog
12-13-2012, 08:47 PM
The lowest tide of the year this afternoon, and cause for walking west along the beach as far as Pleasure Point. It seemed about half the County, their kids and dogs were out enjoying the event. Only thing missing was a clothes pin for my nose, as there was a strong smell from hundreds of carcasses of Humboldt Squid decaying in the sand from their stranding event a few days ago.
Continuing the sub-theme of growing up on the Estuary . . .
During the Summer while I was 13, I had a submarine.
Our family wasn't rich but we had some cool friends who were. One of these was a United pilot and engineer-type, Ernie Barter. The Barters got our family into boating with a ride on their powerboat, but that's another story. One Summer, Ernie needed a project so he built a submarine and surprised me with it. I instantly became the coolest kid at the Alameda Marina.
The hull was a 12' long surplus aircraft "drop tank," oriented with the fill cap on the bottom. Ernie attached a chunk of railway rail as a keel to keep it upright and installed a rudder controlled with two steering lines led forward to the sides of the "cockpit." Propulsion was by bicycle pedals that turned a morse-type cable led aft and through the hull to a propeller. This would prove to be the weak spot.
The "sail" was hinged on the port side so you could open it and climb in, and one of the coolest things was that with the sail closed you looked out through a screen - you could see them but they couldn't see you! The tail cone had proper-looking fins. The whole works was painted flat black and had the name "USS BRICK" painted on each side. (Brick was my childhood nickname.)
Maximum speed was maybe a half a knot until you over-wound the morse cable and it broke. It only submerged once (and permanently), on a dark night at the end of the Summer when my parents decided it had become too much of a hazard. More on that later.
sleddog
12-14-2012, 11:38 PM
Just returned from "The Life of PI," a movie with stunning visual effects about a young man drifting in a lifeboat for 212 days with no companionship but a very wild Bengal tiger. The book and story took me back to a time in 2002, featuring the "The Life of PI" book and another, very different cat.
WILDFLOWER and I shared the Hanalei anchorage two different summers with EL TIBURON, Michael and Rory's Passport 42 from Pt. Richmond. Both times, 2000 and 2002, we were returning from the Pacific Cup. El TIBURON had a special interior, primarily designed as a home for their Maine Coon cat Snowball, the only cat I know to race across the Pacific twice.
In 2002, ELTIBURON departed Hanalei Bay for the mainland two days before WILDFLOWER. We'd organized a 2x/day radio gam between the two boats. On August 13 I weighed anchor and departed Hanalei for Santa Cruz
After nine days, about halfway home, I had caught up to ELTIBURON. On the radio, Rory said if we could rendezvous, they would pass over some warm sticky buns, fresh from EL TIBURON's oven. I replied that I just finished reading "Life of PI," and would pass them that book in return.
I could see El TIBURON about a mile up ahead, and was relaxing in WF's cockpit as we slowly overhauled them. Suddenly a most amazing thing happened: the blunt head of a large sperm whale arose from the sea alongside WILDFLOWER. The eye the size of a plate was staring at me from less than half a boat length away.
The whale slowly submerged and disappeared astern. I radioed my friends to tell them what I'd just seen. Michael, on the VHF, was out of breath told me THEIR story. A few minutes before, with Michael in the cockpit of EL TIBURON, a large whale had surfaced alongside. Michael was shocked, and called down the companionway to a sleeping Rory, "Whale!, bring the camera, quick!"
Rory woke up from her dream, thinking Michael had yelled "cat overboard!"
Only they know why, but EL TIBURON's cat overboard procedure was for Rory to jump in and rescue Snowball, while Michael turned the boat around.
Rory bounded up the companionway ladder to jump, which presumably would have landed her somewhere near the whale.
Luckily, she collided with Michael coming down the ladder to get the camera. They both landed in a heap on the cabin sole.
Rory woke up and said, "where's Snowball??!!" Michael replied Snowball was sleeping. Sure enough, Snowball was snoozing peacefully in her sock drawer, oblivious to the mayhem.
Michael and Rory got back up to the cockpit in time to shoot a short video of the whale swimming away (I have the clip). Presumably it was the same whale that came to visit WILDFLOWER a few minutes later.
Shortly thereafter I caught up to EL TIBURON. They tossed me warm sticky buns. My toss of the "Life of PI" bounced off the deck, and the book, wrapped in a Ziploc bag, fell into the sea.
Perhaps on some distant island, "Life of PI" drifted ashore, ready to be read, like a message in a bottle.
Oops, simultaneous posts. Skip's tales are better than mine anyway.
_______________________
Ernie had suggested to my folks that once I'd had my fun with the little sub they should feel free to tow it out to deep water, open the fill cap on the bottom and let it sink.
After a few weeks the time came. Mom and Dad went over to the marina one night and towed it out to the center of the Estuary, removed the cap and it began to fill with water . . . very slowly. About that time a tour boat came along, with an on-deck party in full swing. My folks attempted to go the other way and ended up down near the Park St. Bridge before the tour boat finally turned around and headed back out. Eventually the little sub went to the bottom and that was that.
Hopefully the statute has run on non-toxic mid-Estuary submarine disposals.
sleddog
12-14-2012, 11:53 PM
A lifeboat Tiger, an all black submarine on the Estuary, a curious bull sperm whale, a cat in a shipboard sock drawer racing to Hawaii, and our new SSS RC Chairperson at one time breaking into the Alameda Chief of Police's home. If you didn't know this group any better, you'd say we're crazy.
sleddog
12-16-2012, 09:47 PM
The coast of Oregon is getting pummeled tonight. Winds already gusting 55 knots at Newport, and 63 knots at Cape Arago, at Coos Bay. That's serious breeze.
In the southern hemisphere, Cat.5 Hurricane Evan is over north and west Fiji.
H Spruit
12-18-2012, 09:18 AM
A lifeboat Tiger, an all black submarine on the Estuary, a curious bull sperm whale, a cat in a shipboard sock drawer racing to Hawaii, and our new SSS RC Chairperson at one time breaking into the Alameda Chief of Police's home. If you didn't know this group any better, you'd say we're crazy.
Craziness is what gives this group socially redeeming value!
To quote Willy Nelson, "I've always been crazy but it has kept me from going INSANE!"
Wylieguy
12-19-2012, 01:33 PM
The earlier references to Bill King sent me to the bookshelf. Stuart Woods is the detective author of the Stone Barrington and Holly Barker novels (among my favs), but long ago before that in 1976 he was living in Ireland and hatched the idea of sailing the "Observer" Singlehanded Tranatlantic Race - even though his total sailing experience was one season in a Mirror Dinghy and crewing with a few friends. He had Ron Holland build a boat, read some books, and talked Bill King into crewing with him on a race to the Azores. Eventually he did sail the "Observer" race, taking 45 days to do so. The story is a lesson in how "not" to prepare of a long ocean race - singlehanded or crewed, but King does make his appearance then disappears. It's a quick read. "Blue Water, Green Skipper" by Stuart Woods
Pat Broderick
sleddog
12-20-2012, 12:32 AM
Pi, the fictional boy in "Life of Pi," is not the only one to cross an ocean with a tiger aboard. Our own Capt. Bob has done so in real life. But that's a sea story for him to tell......
Today at Santa Cruz Harbor they hauled in the remains of a giant squid, estimated to be 25 feet long. The tentacles were as big around as a human leg. You wouldn't want one of those coming aboard at night in the SHTP.
I read Alameda is getting a drone aircraft for police work. Do you think it could be rented for a few hours to patrol the restricted areas in the 3BF?
Travieso
12-21-2012, 10:49 AM
Maybe the friendly America's Cup folks could lend us a few of their helos and draw those colorful lines on the water....
sleddog
12-22-2012, 01:28 PM
A second 66' x ~188 ton steel and cement dock from the Japanese tsunami has landed, this one on the Olympic Peninsula of WA, near La Push.
http://thedailyworld.com/sections/news/local/tsunami-debris-dock-makes-landfall-near-la-push.html
Flotsam and jetsam has been floating across the N. Pacific for centuries. Only recently has it become hazardous for sailors. An unscientific survey has 50% of yachts crossing to/from Hawaii in the last 10 years hitting or snagging something significant, at least enough to slow the boat.
ALASKA EAGLE, returning from Transpac in 2011, got so much netting in their prop they couldn't cut it away and had to tow it at reduced speed 1,000 miles to SF. PEGASUS got stuck in a net island. This past August, the SC-50 INCANTATION hit a submerged piling which took a chunk out of the bow before hanging up on the keel. Even on the Cal 40 ILLUSION, not an underbody that would normally snag things, we had to regularly back down, and once sent Stan swimming to clear the rudder.
Back when Bill Lee was building Santa Cruz 50's and 70's at the chicken coop, inspection windows or endoscopes to view the keel, prop, and rudder were standard operation. PYEWACKET and ORIENT EXPRESS went a step further and installed remote cameras over the windows, viewable at the nav station. Windows were preferred over fragile endoscopes, and could be used at night with a flashlite.
In my mind, if you are competitively racing to Hawaii, having windows is a speed enhancer, worth the cost and trouble. Even in coastal racing, there is so much kelp that windows may be a good idea.
sleddog
12-24-2012, 12:31 PM
SLEDCAT, on port jibe, is currently averaging 22.2 knots in 28 knots of wind from the NW. Our position on Christmas Eve will be about 400 miles south of the S. Island of New Zealand, with Auckland Islands to the north, distance about 100 miles. Not much out here but wind, albatross, and frothy seas.
Bernard Stamm on CHEMINEES POUJOULAT tried to take refuge yesterday at Auckland Island to repair his broken hydrogenerators and coffee grinder winch. But got blown out of a tenuous anchorage by a 40 knot gust, and is now headed to Stewart Island, 200 miles north. Stamm hasn't had much luck in the Vendee Globe. His previous boat was blown ashore at Kerguelen Island when he anchored there for repairs in the '08-'09 Vendee Globe.
Excitement looms aboard SLEDCAT for Christmas Day. We'll be traversing the northern quadrant of an intense low. The GRIB Files show 42 knots of wind for a large area directly ahead. We're gonna get to see how strong and fast my virtual SLEDCAT really is. And can we carry a spinnaker in that much breeze? There's nothing in the rules that mention high wind or extreme boat speeds. We'll be hanging on, one hand on the virtual tiller and one hand clutching the mug of egg nog and brandy.
Merry Christmas, All.
sleddog
01-02-2013, 10:33 AM
Happy New Year, All.
"For the want of a nail.."
In the Vendee Globe, Bernard Stamm's water generators ripped off the back of his boat, and he was running out of electrons to power the auto-pilot.
The Vendee Globe Race news now reverberates with the disqualification of Bernard Stamm by an International Jury. The IJ ruled that Stamm accepted outside assistance while tying astern of a Russian research ship at Auckland Island. Stamm's anchor was dragging in 40 knot winds, and CHEMINEES POUJOULAT was dragging down onto the Russian ship, which had apparently anchored astern and nearby.
The International Jury's decision was DSQ. Many, including myself, are shocked. The race rules about "mooring" are unclear, depending on whether French or English is translated. Stamm did not ask, and was surprised to find a Russian crewman had come aboard to begin pulling the anchor. In the situation to save his boat, with language differences, Stamm did not immediately ask the Russian seaman to leave CHEMINEES POUJOULAT. The Russian's RIB had reportedly gone back to its mothership.
Props to Stamm for saving his boat, and for making full disclosure of the circumstances.
It is unclear if an appeal will be launched to reinstate Stamm and CHEMINEES POUJOULAT. Apparently Stamm's competitors in the Vendee Globe would like to see him re-instated, maybe with some penalty other than complete termination.
In another fascinating, complex, and developing story, the Shell drilling rig KULLUK has broken loose from its tug M/V AIVIQ and washed ashore on Kodiak Island in the Gulf of Alaska. Apparently the drilling rig, with 18 crew, was put to sea in the face of predicted extreme weather. Protected anchorages were reportedly bypassed. Not good result when the 360 foot, $200 million, icebreaking tug AIVIQ lost all four engines, reportedly due to "bad fuel."
The CG ship ALEX HALEY attempted to take the AIVIQ and KULLUK in tow. The towline snapped, wrapping in one of the HALEY's props, and she had to return to port for repairs. Shell's Alaska drilling plans and contingencies are not looking good at the moment. Can they pull the the KULLUK off the rocks? There's more than 150,000 gallons of fuel aboard.
http://gcaptain.com/alaskan-storm-claims-victory/
Happy New Year Sled!
Jackie says you don't need a (M)PHRF certificate to sail in the 3BF. We could have an on-line poll (right here) to determine a rating . . .
Wylieguy
01-02-2013, 04:36 PM
I don't understand this "don't need a PHRF Cert for the 3-Bridge" discussion. A PHRF or MPHRF Certificate has always been required. The SSS has allowed the previous year's Certificate to be used since getting one for the current year can be a problem - and certain One-Design Fleets have been admitted. I'd like clarification from the Board about this. If a Certificate (PHRF or MPHRF) is not required who is going to rate one-off boats? -- Pat
The one-offs are going to be a problem, as are any boats which don't conform to their prior year certificates. Personally I'm planning on flying a gollywobbler.
EDIT:
I e-mailed a board member about this and did a little research. The "one race without a certificate" rule was also in effect last year but it's only for monohulls (sorry Sled!). There's a presumption that if you had a prior certificate you will race in compliance with it (no gollywobbler). Perhaps last year there were no one-offs?
Critter
01-02-2013, 07:35 PM
Pat, the board has taken a couple of small steps toward loosening the cert requirements. Two years ago we exempted one-designs, and last year we allowed boats to do any one race without a cert. (As Bob stated, this applies only to monohulls. None of us was brave enough to rate a multihull, and anyway BAMA can issue a provisional rating fairly quickly.)
In practical terms, the one-race exemption mostly reinstates the use of the previous year's cert for the Three Bridge (which was eliminated in 2011 because Laura was able to process renewals quickly). But I did get to dream up a couple of ratings. It was kinda fun, but those boats were DNS anyway.
Max
Wylieguy
01-03-2013, 01:23 AM
Max, I think this is a very slippery slope. I think PHRF Ratings are best left up to the NCPHRF Committee - period! The 3-Bridge is an established race and the NOR goes out in plenty of time. I don't see any reason for the SSS Board to create a "Certificate" for someone who decides at the last minute to race. This has been my "set in stone" opinion as Race Chair for the SCC, SYC, SSS, and when I was SSS Commodore. -- Pat
sleddog
01-03-2013, 09:12 AM
Jan.5, 2013
Clear and crisp these last five mornings, with low temps of 32-34, putting frost on WILDFLOWER's deck. It's been good green flash weather, and I've caught three in three consecutive sunrises, looking east towards Gabilan Peak, near Hollister.
Good to see CW and JG of STINKEYE at the New Year's Eve Santa Cruz "Do-It-Yourself" Parade, downtown on Pacific Ave. This unpermitted parade, with cops ready to intercede, is true SSS "Bring What You Got" spirit. How are they gonna bust grannys with peace signs, costumed women and children, clowns on stilts, a drum circle, all marching behind a soulful bagpiper?
I got WILDFLOWER safety inspected yesterday by a knowledgeable member of the SF Bay Coast Guard Auxiliary. My pre-inspection and safety sticker should go a long way to avoiding inopportune boardings by the Coasties, of which I have endured many over the years.
The three most memorable were the Coasties lowering a German Shepard from a helo overhead while WILDFLOWER was anchored at Cuyler Harbor, San Miguel Is. The dog spun in circles on the wire, just above the mast, and was retracted without touching down on our deck. What the woof?
A second began when a young, corn fed, 220# Coastie, wearing his PFD, VHF, and weapon, got thoroughly stuck in WILDFLOWER's companionway hatch. The only way to get him unstuck was to (with his permission) plant my foot on his back and give a hard push, whence he fell in a heap onto the cabin sole.
The last inspection, at San Diego Customs Dock, began in unsatisfactory manner. The custom's official, fresh from the airport, came aboard WILDFLOWER without asking, wearing cowboy boots. His attitude was aggressive and he immediately wanted to go below, without me present. OK, buddy, go for it. I stood on the deck at the mast, and gently started the boat rocking. That solved the issue. The cowboy emerged from below a shade of green, gave me my receipt, and told me to get out of there.
sleddog
01-04-2013, 04:06 PM
January 4, 2013
After 55 days, 10 hours, 8 min. since starting the Virtual Vendee Globe at Les'Sables d'Olonnes (2:10 pm PST) my little red boat SLEDCAT has Cape Horn abeam, one mile to the north. The wind is WNW at 25 knots, the seas are 10-15 feet, and viz is 8-10 miles.
Now it is up the Atlantic to the finish, 7020 miles distance. I've become attached to my little boat, adjusting course and sails at odd hours, day and night. At #19,365, SLEDCAT is currrently in the top 4% of the nearly half million virtual boats racing, 99% of whom are French. With a good passage north, I could possibly pick off another couple of thousand racers, including Alex Thompson on HUGO BOSS, who is 4th place in the real Vendee Globe.
Mythical Cape Horn entered my life early. In the second grade we were marched off to the auditorium to see a movie. Lo, it was "50 South to 50 South," the film story of WANDERBIRD, the magnificent German pilot schooner, skippered by Commodore Tompkins father, Warwick Tompkins, Sr. WANDERBIRD was rounding Cape Horn, headed to San Francisco. And there was four year old Commodore playing in the rigging. It looked like the life for me.
Little did I imagine that 30 years later, Commodore and I would become shipmates on many a sailing adventure. I was lucky to learn from one of the best seamen of our generation.
In third grade, Capt. Irving Johnson came to town for one of his lecture series. My father took me, and I got to see the film of Irving Johnson's 1929 voyage round the Horn as crew on the last Cape Horn square rigger, the massive steel bark PEKING.
Irving Johnson as a young man trained for this Cape Horn voyage. His training techniques included climbing telephone poles and standing on his head on top to improve balance. For strength he practiced tearing phone books in half. Johnson wanted to experience the ultimate storm. The PEKING found it off Cape Horn. Johnson's black and white film, taken from the top of the main mast in 100 mph of wind and 80 foot seas, ranks as one of the most spectacular photo epics ever. If you have a chance to see "Around Cape Horn" by Irving Johnson, a film from Mystic Seaport, don't miss it.
In 1969, in Hyeres, France, I had the chance to shake Irving Johnson's hand and briefly tell him what his dedication to the sea meant to me. I had forgotten the massive size and strength of Johnson's hands, and he, unintentionally, nearly crushed my hand in his friendly grip.
JohnS
01-04-2013, 08:40 PM
Sled, your latest missive to this thread sent me searching for Irving Johnson and Cape Horn. Youtube came through (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RfuGKXOkB4). I don't know if this is the full Mystic film, but it was great fun to watch. As for your San Diego customs dock inspection, that sounds like an oscillation induced green flash to me.
I love it - rock a 'bye baby . . . wha' - who me?
This Vendee continues to thrill. It reminds me of a Vallejo race, usually won or lost in the Vallejo channel - this race will be won or lost in this final leg. Frequent race leader Francois (MACIF) seems determined to sail into a massive hole, Armel (BP) apparently plans to visit Buenos Aires, and JP Dick (Virbac) has emerged from his own hole and is sailing much faster than the other two, now only 250 miles back.
Okay, maybe trackers aren't so bad after all.
Meantime the IJ has heard Sled's complaint and is reconsidering Stamm's DSQ.
The PEKING was clearly freeboard-challenged. It's good to see the normal life aboard a ship without a bunch of movie-induced drama. Looks hard but kind of fun.
.
AlanH
01-07-2013, 12:55 PM
The boat ~finally~ has a rig. Now, this sail is made from a white polyethylene tarp, double-sided, doublestick carpet tape, white duct tape, and grommets. There's a 5/16 poly/nylon bolt rope around the borders. It ain't anything close to perfect, but it's reasonably close to the dimensions suggested by a sailmaker back east who's made a lot of lugsails for the skerry. Since these pictures were taken in my front yard, I've trimmed 10 inches off the mast. It's pretty bendy. We'll see how it goes, if it's just silly-bendy, I might give it a layer of unidirectional carbon fiber.
http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/527344_4654530835182_890831476_n.jpg
http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/524604_4654532555225_2030858915_n.jpg
Eyrie
01-07-2013, 02:08 PM
Wow Alan, the sail looks awesome. Let me know and I'll put in a good word for you at Santa Cruz Sails! :D
AlanH
01-07-2013, 05:16 PM
Wow Alan, the sail looks awesome. Let me know and I'll put in a good word for you at Santa Cruz Sails! :D
For a $27 piece of plastic, plus about $15 worth of other bits and bobs, it's pretty cool. Everybody says they don't last like a dacron sail, though. If this works to my satisfaction, then I'll either cough of the moolah for you to make a real one that will have a higher peak, a reef point and be about a 12 inches longer on the foot...or figure out how to sew one myself on the home machine. Broadseaming with roughly horizontal seams, I grok that. Broadseaming with vertical seams? Me has no clue, whatsoever, and there's no luff rounding in this sail.
Philpott
01-07-2013, 08:26 PM
I think that's a pretty little boat. When do you plan to launch her? And where?
AlanH
01-07-2013, 08:56 PM
I think that's a pretty little boat. When do you plan to launch her? And where?
She was launched last January. I let some chick and her dog take it out...
http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/395887_3052436352337_87566677_n.jpg
but that was rowing, only. I haven't sailed her yet, but I'm a member on the Wooden Boat forum and we have an elbow-bending session scheduled for the Encinal YC on Feb. 2nd, so she's got to have *some* sort of rig before then!
sleddog
01-09-2013, 09:10 AM
My friends at Berkeley Marina headquarters went into full-on oil spill response yesterday. It turned out to be just a drill. But how did the OVERSEAS RAYMAR sideswipe the Bay Bridge?
Speaking of oil spills, the circus came to town yesterday. Santa Cruz Harbor parking lot was filled with technical vehicles, a mobile hospital field truck, and people standing around in uniforms and lab coats.
I moseyed into their midst, and asked them what they were selling. Everyone was friendly and informative. Turns out they were there to recapture "Olive," the oiled sea otter.
In 2009 a sea otter washed ashore covered in oil. She was brought in. Cleaned with olive oil and dish soap. Fed, rehabbed, and released back into Monterey Bay with a microchip and locator transmitter implanted.
Nobody knew if "Olive" would survive. Olive not only survived, but thrived. She got her own Facebook page, and became world renown, especially to children.
In September of this year, Olive gave birth to a healthy pup. Mom and pup hang just offshore Capitola, in the kelp, and have been closely monitored. Now, Olive's locator batteries have expired. The large group of scientists at the Harbor yesterday were hoping to recapture Olive and her pup while they slept in the kelp. Then give them both a medical checkup, open Olive up, and put in fresh batteries.
I don't know if success was achieved. But here is Olive's story:
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Rescued-oiled-otter-amazes-with-birth-3864297.php
Hey Alan,
You are my new role model for self-sufficiency. Love it. Did Girfriend break in the poop deck?
Bill
sleddog
01-10-2013, 09:45 AM
In the Virtual Vendee Globe Race, SLEDCAT continues her ascent of the S.Atlantic, a couple hundred miles south of Rio. We are just west of the Great Circle. And mounting a challenge to the vanguard of the "sans options" division (one jib, one spinny.) But there's gonna be decisions ahead, with land and a stationary low in the way. A tack east will be necessary to clear the NE corner of Brazil.
I received brief radio messages from a boat back near New Zealand. Propagation is difficult and the noise below requires earplugs. I think the boat and her support crew hails from Tahoe. If you are reading this, please identify more fully. SK? Renee?
Of greater surprise, another racer appeared out of the night, crossing jibes. I put the night vision binos on him. Holy Macaroni. It's DOGBARK. No kidding, Al Hughes, from SSS Singlehanded Transpac is also out here on the virtual sea. What are the chances. It looks like a match race between DOGBARK and SLEDCAT back to Les Sables. I got Al on VHF, and will say "hi" from you guys and gals.
Alan, your sail is too cool. Graphics on that should be a cinch with masking tape, spray paint and magic markers. I forget your clan plaid.
Eyrie
01-10-2013, 10:20 AM
Hey Alan,
You are my new role model for self-sufficiency. Love it. Did Girfriend break in the poop deck?
Bill
It takes a sloop for GF to poop.
Philpott
01-10-2013, 01:56 PM
"Does this boat make me look fat?" is still my favorite.
skatzman
01-10-2013, 07:13 PM
The boat you heard from back in NZ is skippered by Renee, a friend of mine from the Tahoe area. She is new to ocean racing, has just finished her first season of boat ownership with her Santana 20 and is pluging away at it so I turned her on to Sledcat. SDK
sleddog
01-14-2013, 09:26 PM
My brother flew west from Annapolis, bringing with him a new carbon/Technora #1 his loft had built for a local client. Arriving at Oakland Airport after dark, he rented a car and drove to the nearby Airport Hilton restaurant for a meal. He parked in the restaurant lot, under a light and camera.
When he returned an hour later, his car and two others had been victims of a smash and grab. Though his duffle bag and clothes were gone, the boxed sail, which weighed 40 pounds, was still there. I can just see someone trying to fence a large black sail in E. Oakland.
He spent much of the rest of the weekend trying to verbally contact the police to file the report. The online report was returned, and he never could get that filed. The good news is the new sail fit to a "T".
On his return flight east, the pilot announced they had locked into a 200 mph tailwind, and their SOG was over 700 mph. Unusual for a commercial airline to go that speed.
On a slower bell, this evening on my walk to the cliff, an osprey flew by at eye level with a fresh fish dangling from his talons. The crescent moon looked cold in the sky. Windows around Monterey Bay were reflecting fire red in the sunset. I was glad I was wearing extra fleece.
Sled, on Saturday I sailed aboard FLICKER, Ed Ruszel's J/32. In ghosting conditions his very cruisy J coasted along pretty well. I'd never risked this but Ed has many times: We circumnavigated Brooks Island and the Richmond breakwater. It was high tide but starting to ebb, so a careful eye on chartplotter and depth sounder was the order of the day.
A nice afternoon - thanks Ed!
sleddog
01-15-2013, 02:30 PM
It is full court press time in the Virtual Vendee. Not only are DOGBARK and SLEDCAT practically overlapped. But with 3944 straight line miles to go to the finish at Les Sables d'Olonne, if we average 11.7 knots or greater, we'll break the mythical 80 days Around the World.
Currently, DOGBARK, to leeward and ahead is close reaching at 12 knots with his Blast Reacher led outboard to the port side outrigger. SLEDCAT, going a little higher and slower, is under Code Zero genoa. Next up for both boats is crossing the Equator, and the ITCZ (Doldrums).
I see Al's cabin lights intermittently at night, and know he is fine tuning his course and trim, as am I. The decks are dry, the tradewinds are blowing at 15 knots from the east, and flying fish are becoming airborne in the lee side bow wave. Virtual sailing at its best.
sleddog
01-17-2013, 10:30 AM
Our clear and cold weather high pressure weather has been good for green flash viewing at sunrise. Seven counted now since New Years. The mountain range south of Hollister, 30 miles distant, provides the necessary sharply delineated foreground.
The osprey has returned to his cliff side haunt. I've seen him/her three times in as many days, twice carrying a surf perch in his talons as he flew by at eye level. The third time, close up, about 20 feet away, on his favorite willow branch, where he perched for 20 minutes until a gangster crow drove him away.
The "Made in Santa Cruz" reunion in late May is picking up steam. How they are gonna fit every boat in our little Harbor is going to be interesting. Too bad MERLIN won't be attending. What a Santa Cruz icon. I calculated once that MERLIN gave more people more fun miles than about any boat I know.
Wednesday night races, MERLIN regularly had 30, 40, even 50 crew aboard. You never quite new how many, because they were scattered all over, above and below decks. It drove the Coast Guard wild.
Like clockwork, every Wednesday night, after MERLIN had returned to her slip, the Coasties would appear and ask Bill Lee to produce lifejackets for the horde of crew that had walked up the dock ramp. The Coasties would count each disembarking crew. And like clockwork, Bill Lee would produce six large sailbags filled with lifejackets, which he would dump on deck and count out the needed amount.
sleddog
01-17-2013, 02:50 PM
Listen up everyone. I just heard from my good friend, Capt. Jan Brewer, that she needs more volunteers for Race Deck at GGYC for the 3BF. She wouldn't ask if she didn't need you. So don't sit on your butts if you are not racing. Call Jan today in Alameda, 510.684.5555, and tell her you want to help. SSS is run by volunteers. No experience necessary. That''s you. Call today, operators are standing by.
Jan also wants everyone to know the Skipper's Meeting is gonna feature some really fun happenings. Knowing Jan's Southern penchant for flair, you'll want to be there to see what this is about.
sleddog
01-18-2013, 08:58 AM
SLEDCAT crossed the Equator last night at midnight. I toasted the passage with a glass of virtual champagne and went back to sleep. Al on DOGBARK has nabbed a slight advantage by cracking sheets and making for the NW corner of a split Azores High. In the real Vendee, we are both in the same water as Alex Thompson, the Brit on HUGO BOSS. Our speeds are in the 10 knot range as we transit the ITCZ, starboard tack, in TWS 9 knots.
I saw the osprey again this morning, and wasn't surprised to see he has a mate. The two of them were chirping at each other, pursed by a gang of crows, who haven't taken kindly to ospreys invading their turf. If there's two ospreys, can a nest be far behind?
I was sorry to hear my long time friend, yacht designer Doug Peterson, is recovering from a stroke in San Diego. For those who don't know, Doug is probably the most influential yacht designer of the latter half of the 20th century. His GANBARE set the IOR era on its heels. I've sailed on many of Doug's designs over the years, including SCARLETT O'HARA, CHECKMATE, BULLFROG and JURA. Upwind they go like a witch. And downwind, unlike other IOR lead dogs, they are well behaved, controllable, and don't leave a walloping stern wake . I wish you a speedy recovery, Douglas.
Jan Brewer
01-18-2013, 12:23 PM
Thanks Skip. Wish you'd consider having fun with us on the deck! Then again, I'd have to put you in charge and . . .
Dazzler
01-18-2013, 12:47 PM
Skip,
Happy New Year! We continue to enjoy your posts and encouragement to get outside and enjoy this great weather, sunrises, osprey and all.
My one time meeting Doug Peterson left a lasting impression of "what a great guy." It was in the mid 80's and I had Seraffyn hauled out at Anderson's in Sausalito. One of Doug's latest custom boats was also there hauled out. I don't remember the name of the boat; it might have been red. Doug was there to supervise the chain-sawing off of the bottom 8-10 inches of lead keel. Seems the keel needed some post construction custom modification. They used a power plan to shape the lead after the rather brutal first cut.
I was working away on the bottom of my boat and Doug made a point of coming over to talk. I was surprised in the interest he showed in a full keel non-race boat and that he would take the time to come talk with me. He seemed like a really nice guy with not sign of attitude. We had a great chat about boat design and particularly the trim-tab self steering on Seraffyn's transom hung rudder.
I was saddened to hear of Doug's stroke and wish him all the best.
Tom
sleddog
01-19-2013, 09:49 AM
Tom,
It does not surprise me Doug Peterson immediately recognized your SERRAFYN. Doug has a long affinity with wood boats, dating back to his early racing days aboard the historic Azorean whaleboat design, BUTCHER BOY II. Doug apprenticed with Skip Calkins, who drew beautiful and fast designs, often double-enders. Currently Doug owns at least one restored 8 meter.
I have not spoken with DAZZLER since they returned from a dive expedition to the remote and seldom visited Alijos Rocks, 180 miles west of southern Baja. Hope you had a good adventure, and might tell us something about a voyage to these rocky pinnacles that arise from the ocean depths in the middle of nowhere.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocas_Alijos
Sleddog_sis
01-19-2013, 03:47 PM
Great to have you up here, Skip! The break-in of our brother's rental car (and 2 next to his as well!,) was at Francesco's restaurant actually. After he got the car replaced, he then went to the nearby Hilton that had a locked parking lot (and was safe). Apparently the Starbucks near the Oakland airport is also frequently hit for quick break-and-grabs (the car company said).
Ok - beautiful day, and warmer weekend!
--Sled's sis.
Dazzler
01-19-2013, 11:15 PM
Skip,
Our dive trip is pretty far off-topic, but you asked... We had a great trip, everything we had hoped for. I need to clarify that we actually went to the Revillagigedo Islands (about 240 miles SS-W of Cabo San Lucas), one of the other Mexican island groups in the Pacific Ocean that are not on the continental shelf. There are three such groups; Rocas Alijos and Guadalupe Island are the other two. The Revillagigedo Islands include Roca Partida, Socorro, San Benedicto and Clarion. We dove at the first three; Clarion is much further west. These islands are very much related to Rocas Alijos as they are all volcanic and Roca Partida (split rock) is very similar to Rocas Alijos. In both cases they are out in the deep ocean (10,000 -12,000 feet deep). Roca Partida sticks up only about 100 feet above the swells. It is the leftover magma plug of a volcano. The vertical sides drop off to about 200 feet where there is a bit of a shoulder and then there is a rapid drop to the ocean floor. These islands are Mexico's Galapagos.
This is open ocean diving with strong currents and lots of pelagic animals. The diving there is particularly known for frequent encounters with the very friendly giant Pacific mantas. We had dive after dive with mantas, lots of sharks (hammer head, white-tip, Galapagos), dolphins, octopus, turtles, tuna, wahoo and too many other fish to mention here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revillagigedo_Islands
Since you thought we had gone to Rocas Alijos, I need to explain that, though we did not go there on this trip, in fact Sue has been diving there. Very few people visit Rocas Alijos since there are only rocky spires sticking out of the ocean. The Wikipedia link you included refers to a 1990 expedition to Rocas Alijos led by Robert (Bob) Schmieder of Cordell Expeditions and the "Literature" reference shows a single publication. Sue was on that scientific expedition, made several dives there and made significant contribution to that publication.
To be more on topic, I hope we see you out sailing soon. Are you doing the 3BF? Let me know when you want to talk about the Delta. The summer is not that far away.
Tom
sleddog
01-21-2013, 09:49 PM
Point San Pedro is a rocky outcrop below a prominent headland, just south of Rockaway Beach and Pacifica and adjacent and just to the north of Devil's Slide. Pedro Point headland has some nice hiking trails and wondrous views of the Gulf of the Farallones.
Pedro Point is now a park area. But few people visit, as there is limited parking and no signage. After some creative parking, I hiked Pedro Point on Saturday. At the bluff overlooking the ocean, the Farallones, 26 miles distant, looked close enough to pluck. Point Reyes, well up the coast, was equally visible.
600 feet below my perch, the long period storm swell from Japan was arriving in time to give the Mavericks contest its much anticipated surf. Riptides below Pedro Point looked significant. I wouldn't want to be anywhere near there in a small boat. Ravens soared nearby to the nearly vertical cliffs. Its rare having such a significant and beautiful headland so close to a major city (San Francisco) all to one's self.
Thankyou, Tom, for the report on your recent trip to the Revillagigedos. Swimming with mantas. Wow. I've seen a manta get tangled in an anchor line in Mexico, and tow a 40 foot boat at 4 knots, with no one aboard.
Were you able to hitch a ride?
Meanwhile, in a startling development, the third place boat in the Vendee Globe, Virbac-Paprec 3, has lost its keel. JP has stabilized things, filled his ballast tanks, and is sailing under reefed main and staysail to the Azores. Holy macaroni.
Eyrie
01-25-2013, 09:22 PM
Hey skip, are you close to finishing too? Or still hanging with Alex? Or slowing down to wait for the tide?
sleddog
01-25-2013, 10:23 PM
Hey skip, are you close to finishing too? Or still hanging with Alex? Or slowing down to wait for the tide?
SLEDCAT is 340 miles west of the Azores, and 1653 miles from the finish of the Virtual Vendee Globe. We are running at 17 knots. The final couple of days promises some heavy air downwind virtual sailing. HUGO BOSS and the crippled VIRBAC PAPREC 3 are nearby. But I'm not sure I can help JPD if he capsizes. Alex Thompson can, and is thoughtfully hanging back, until JPD makes his decision whether to retire to the Azores, or carry on to the finish, sans keel.
My friend Al on DOGBARK continues to maintain a lead of 85 miles over SLEDCAT. I compliment Al for sailing a smart race. It is becoming increasingly doubtful I will be able to catch him.
Good luck to all you Three Bridge Fiasco sailors! Look out: EYRIE has a new jib Syn made for herself.
(8 hours later) Woowee, can't sleep, SLEDCAT is averaging 23.1 knots and alternating between submarine and airborne. The motion and noise makes me imagine I'm in a washing machine... Jean Pierre Dick and Alex Thompson are over to the southeast in less boisterous conditions. I'm glad they are presently in convoy in lighter winds..it would be difficult to retrieve JP in these conditions should he capsize.
Hangin'on..... and hoping for the best for JPD
sleddog
01-29-2013, 06:47 AM
In an "only in Santa Cruz" visual, I was down at the Harbor yesterday when a fleet of women on SUP (Stand Up Paddleboards) came drifting by in a Yoga class, in all manner of animal poses.....
I'd like to give a shout out to Dave Wahle on the occasion of his 70th Birthday today. Many of you know Dave from his Watsonville boat shop where he builds Wyliecats. Dave has built more boats and poured more lead keels than anyone I know. If you sail a Santa Cruz 27 or an America's Cup 80 footer, Dave probably made your keel.
Dave, in collaboration with Tom Wylie, began building boats back in the early '70's. MOONSHADOW, still racing SSS, was their first joint effort. Actually, Dave held two jobs. He was a Santa Cruz garbage man for over 30 years. You can always count on Dave for any heavy lifting. And when you ask him how work is, he'll reply "Picking Up." Happy Birthday my friend.
SLEDCAT, my Virtual Vendee Globe entry, is racing to the finish in a nasty Bay of Biscay gale. With 142 miles to go to the finish at Les Sables d'Olonne, SLEDCAT is catapulting off short, steep waves at a nearly 24 knot average. Her finish will come today about noon, after she and I spent 80 days at virtual sea. If any of you are in the vicinity, come by for a celebration!
skatzman
01-29-2013, 10:14 AM
My greetings to those at The Dreaded Capitola Shorebreak (DCSB). And my compliments to SLEDCAT for retaining her virtual keel to bring you back to Les Sables d'Olonne. I had the pleasure of talking to Dave Wahle while #0 was in Watsonville. Fascinating describes the operation there as Dave continues building boats. Here in South Shore Tahoe a chill northwind as I repair some minor damage to Dianne's boom. Cheers, SDK
AlanH
01-29-2013, 08:04 PM
While many of you were out enjoying a windy 3BF, I launched Vingilothiel at the Port of Redwood City, with her "new" rig. it took a while to figure it all out, nothing like hoisting a strange setup with 18-20 knots coming over the dock. At any rate, I got it squared away and we took off.......for about 300 yards until the epoxy bonding the mast step failed. Ah, well, it's all fixed, now, and we'll be sailing again in the Estuary next Saturday.
sleddog
01-29-2013, 10:10 PM
SLEDCAT finished the Virtual Vendee Globe this afternoon at 12:22 local time, in the time of 80 days, 8 hours, 8 min. Her finish position was 14,504 out of 472,744 competitors. We beat all but the first two finishers in the real Vendee Globe, using the same polars and wind speeds. But then I didn't have to lift my head from the pillow to jibe.
At the instant of crossing, my brave little sloop disappeared into the ether. To be replaced by an ad for a Vendee Globe commemorative T-shirt available for 30 Euros.
Sail on, SLEDCAT.
Outstanding, Sled!
I'm not that concerned about whether you beat Francois and Armel, I want to know if you beat Al!
AlanH
02-04-2013, 12:44 PM
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/481947_10151527950388646_2030521020_n.jpg
Balanced lug sail made from a white polyethylene tarp. It has some horrendous hook at the leech, but everything else isn't too bad. The next one will be about 10 inches longer on the foot and head and higher on the peak.
sleddog
02-04-2013, 06:06 PM
Hi AlanH,
As a kid I used to make sails out of bedsheets. Yours looks much higher tech. I'm not sure, but PHRF may penalize your squaretop. However, knowing SSS management, they may be able to swing you a deal. BobJ?
~sledcat
Philpott
02-04-2013, 08:43 PM
Bob isn't even formally on the board and already it is suggested that he can be corrupted. I'm shocked and dismayed at this suggestion. Besides, I'm the one who registers people for the races. In which one were you interested in participating? The list of safety equipment is becoming dismayingly long, and without an obvious keel on that pretty little boat I would say that a registration approval will cost you. What have you got?
I can be corrupted but I don't do ratings. We have an uncorruptable NorCal PHRF committee for that.
Looks like fun Alan. I need to get something like that again - I'd sail more. I finally got out yesterday and drifted around San Pablo Bay for a couple of hours. I hoisted the new A2 and messed with it for awhile. It's blue and silver - Rags is stylin!
Critter
02-05-2013, 09:17 AM
blue and silver
All set for the Great Hannukah Regatta!
Jan Brewer
02-05-2013, 11:23 AM
There's another regatta I don't know about? How can that be? AlanH, looks great and Jackie is corruptable. She just hasn't been approached by the right person with the right price yet!
AlanH
02-05-2013, 03:28 PM
How about one, very slightly used, polyethylene (that's a long chemical word that translates to "high-tech"...kind of like "carbon fiber") lugsail?
As for ballast, that's what the skipper provides!
Philpott
02-05-2013, 06:04 PM
So those fancy sails out on the bay are made of the same material I use to cover leftovers. How much of that do you need, Alan? And what's it worth to you? I need a spinnaker. From those photos you posted I can just imagine your suggestions for me.
AlanH
02-06-2013, 04:42 PM
Hey, I could've made it out of Tyvek. I betcha don't wrap up old pickles in that! :D
http://www.onboardwithmarkcorke.com/.a/6a010536216f64970b0162fc95459d970d-400wi
http://www.woodenboat.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/boat_launchings/495-sylvester-c-09-09.jpg
Wylieguy
02-06-2013, 05:53 PM
Oh Dear! I'm afraid someone should read the ISAF Advertising Code. Appendix 20 has a nice table pointing out that sails are allowed a "sailmaker's ad" no more than 150 mm X 150 mm and placed down near the goosey neck. I see a "Tom Sawyer" moment here. At the first regatta offer a free boat ride to the gullible person who volunteers to white wash the sail - except for that teeny 150X150 spot.
The sails should fit the vessel:
What she deserves. (http://www.northsailsclassic.com/NorthClassicSails/ClassicCruising/tabid/16214/language/en-US/Default.aspx)
sleddog
02-12-2013, 02:31 PM
Today, February 12, is a special day. It is the 48th Birthday of Capt. Ivo Hruza of the Czech Republic. Ivo was Master of the MSC TORONTO, the 1066' container ship that safely plucked me off WILDFLOWER, Sept.1, 2008, 400 miles west of Santa Cruz.
Ivo's exemplary ship handling in gale force made everything possible. On welcoming me aboard his ship, his first words were, "Captain, I am so sorry we do not have the capability to lift WILDFLOWER on board."
Ivo and I have stayed in touch as he travels the world on board his commands, 4 months on, 4 months off. We remain friends for life, as shipmates who have shared something special.
Happy Birthday, My Friend!
Attached photo of Ivo with his ship, MSC TORONTO, in background, as we sailed Rich Baker's J-105 one windy afternoon down the Alameda Estuary. Ivo noted at the time the Estuary isn't much wider than his ship was long
sleddog
02-14-2013, 09:27 PM
Great news that the Cruising Club of America (CCA) has selected Captain Thomas B. Crawford (Lopez Island, Wash.) to receive its 2012 Rod Stephens Trophy for Outstanding Seamanship for the rescue of Derk Wolmuth and his 31-foot Vindo sailboat, BELA BARTOK, during the 2012 Singlehanded Transpacific Yacht Race. The trophy is given “for an act of seamanship which significantly contributes to the safety of a yacht or one or more individuals at sea.” The trophy will be awarded by Commodore Daniel P. Dyer, III at the Annual Awards Dinner on March 1, 2013 at the New York Yacht Club in Manhattan.
In the early hours of July 15, 2012, Crawford was aboard his ship, Matson Navigation’s 860-foot RoCon MV MOKIHANA, en route to Oakland, Calif. He received a call from the Coast Guard asking for help in the rescue of Derk Wolmuth, who was two weeks into the Singlehanded Transpacific Yacht Race from San Francisco, Calif. to Hanalei Bay, Kauai, Hawaii. Wolmuth was fighting an infection onboard, but with no antibiotics he was close to death. An avid sailor himself, Crawford connected with Wolmuth over the radio. His primary goal was to save Wolmuth, but he hoped to save the boat as well, since it served as Wolmuth’s only home.
Prior to bringing the sick sailor aboard, Crawford instructed Wolmuth to adjust his Monitor wind vane and trim the jib. After Wolmuth was aboard MOKIHANA and on his way to the ship’s infirmary, Crawford maneuvered – using gantline hauling, engine commands and the helm and bow thruster – to get BELA BARTOK on course to Hawaii, which was 450 miles away.
On July 19th BELA BARTOK was rescued 15 miles north of Maui by Wolmuth’s fellow race competitors Ronnie Simpson and Ruben Gabriel, who had been monitoring the boat’s progress with the Yellow Brick Tracker that was aboard.
According to Crawford both of his goals were accomplished. “Derk is alive and mending, and his home (BELA BARETOK) is safe in Oahu. Many people working together made for an amazing outcome…not exactly a Mars landing, but it wasn’t that far removed for a bunch of people unknown to each other and with no planning or rehearsal.”
Well Done, Capt. Crawford and crew of MOKIHANA.
pogen
02-15-2013, 12:48 PM
Very cool! We spoke the MOKIHANA on what must have been her next Hawaii-SF passage late at night about 700 nm from Hawaii during our PacCup trip. Very friendly and alert watch officer, they had seen us before we had noticed them! A great story all-round.
sleddog
02-17-2013, 03:25 PM
A fun time yesterday at RYC attending a 52nd Birthday Party and reunion for SPIRIT, her owners and crew over the years. SPIRIT is the Sparkman and Stephens 34' launched in 1961 for George Kiskaddon and family as an SF Bay One Design Racer. She is narrow, fractional rigged, a lead mine, with a long cockpit and longer tiller. Perfect for SF Bay breeze. Story has it Olin Stephens made Kiskaddon promise never to sail SPIRIT in the ocean.
With a young and irreverent crew, SPIRIT proceeded to sail the SORC, Trans-Atlantic, Cowes Week, Fastnet, Transpac, Sydney to Hobart, and many other famous races. Her crew over the years included Billy Green, Norm Duvall, Ron Holland, Doug Peterson, Mary Crowley, Peter Sutter, John Amen, Annie Lewis, Robert Flowerman, the Kiskaddon family, and so many others that SPIRIT influenced and developed an entire generation of first class sailors.
If you have sailed on SPIRIT, or have a SPIRIT story, I would love to hear it.
Dazzler
02-18-2013, 01:19 PM
Skip,
I'm sorry to have missed this event. SPIRIT is truly one of the "special boats" in the history of yacht design. And, WOW, does that boat have some stories to tell. I sailed on SPIRIT a few times sometime in about 1968. Commodore Tompkins got me on board. As I recall, they were doing a two boat tune-up series with sister-ship ESPRIT. Was that prior to the SORC? I think this was also the first time I met Tom Wylie. He was on ESPRIT and had just finished making some new sails. I think he was working for Dewitt & Peters.
I was also on SPIRIT a few times in the Peter Sutter ownership years. There are stores to be told about Sutter sailing SPIRIT to Palmyra. Sutter loved the pure joy of just being on the ocean. Then there are SPIRIT's Caribbean years...
SPIRIT's influence on later designs is interesting to consider. Gary Mull was a draftsman at S&S at the time and is reputed to have drawn the construction drawings. And, later in the 70's Carl Schumacher worked for Gary Mull before going on his own. I've always thought those contoured seats at the base of the companionway in E27's came from SPIRIT.
Other stories for others to complete: SPIRIT was originally built without an engine or head. What ocean race was she refused entry for lack of a head? Interesting to think how minimum equipment requirements have changed!
Tom
sleddog
02-18-2013, 03:17 PM
Unfortunately, little of SPIRIT's good karma rubbed off on her near sister ship ESPRIT. ESPRIT was involved in the most acrimonious Transpac Race ever. During a drifting Transpac start in 1969, one of WINDWARD PASSAGE's crew came in contact with ESPRIT's man overboard pole, which was hanging at an angle well off the stern of ESPRIT. PASSAGE's crewman was attempting to keep the tip of the pole from poking through PASSAGE's genoa
This violation caused two hours to be deducted from PASSAGE's elapsed time, denying her first to finish and a new elapsed time record. Rival BLACKFIN won instead. Big controversy, as many felt any penalty should have been applied to PASSAGE's corrected time.
BLACKFIN's owner refused the Barn Door trophy, saying it rightly belonged to PASSAGE. The Transpac YC committee told BLACKFIN's owner if he didn't accept the trophy, he would be booted from the Race and never invited back. PASSAGE's owner died soon after of a heart attack. BLACKFIN's owner crashed his small plane attempting to fly over the Sierra in winter.
ESPRIT sailed a second Transpac in '71. With a three man delivery crew, she disappeared on the return passage. Nothing was ever found.
Dazzler
02-21-2013, 07:08 PM
A piece of interesting "yachting history" has come on the market. The one time Lightship SAN FRANCISCO (now the NANTUCKET) is for sale for a mere $6,250,000. As the ad explains, this was our Lightship SAN FRANCISCO from 1950-1969 and the weather mark for races of the same name. I have memories of sailing around the Lightship with Coast Guardsmen waving from on deck. I remember thinking that being out there rolling in the swell must be pretty rough duty. I also remember trying to decide how close to come to the "mark" as the ship heaved and rolled.
http://www.yachtworld.com/boat-content/2013/02/nantucket-lightship-for-sale/
http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1950/NANTUCKET-Lightship-WLV-612-2446949/Barnstable-County/MA/United-States
Critter
02-21-2013, 07:20 PM
Maybe it's time SSS had a commmittee boat to call our own?
Dazzler
02-21-2013, 07:43 PM
Maybe it's time SSS had a commmittee boat to call our own?
It would give new meaning to "setting the weather mark." SSS could have ocean races to anywhere along the continental shelf. And there might not be difficulty recruiting race committee considering the accomodations. The gross tonage is not indicated, so I'm not sure if Jan could be Captain.
sleddog
02-21-2013, 08:49 PM
I like the comment about the Lightship "with 24 locomotive headlights on the main mast, you will be noticed."
Like Tom, I remember rounding that sucker when she was anchored off SF. It did not look like very "romantic" duty.
Captain Jan will be visiting in a few days enroute AZ. I will ask her if this is "up her alley." They don't call her "Red" for nuthin'.
sleddog
02-22-2013, 01:03 PM
Happy 40th Birthday to Kame and Sally Richards and the crew at Pineapple Sails. A long time asset and contributor to the SF Bay Area, Pineapple Sails has been serving Bay Area sailors and giving back to our sailing community since 1973. Well done, guys!
Bonus points for anyone who can tell us what class of boat the first suit of Pineapple Sails was built for.
sleddog
02-22-2013, 03:29 PM
Negative on Tuna and Bear.
Philpott
02-22-2013, 05:42 PM
Cal 20 ?????
sleddog
02-22-2013, 09:48 PM
Negative on Cal 20.
Jonathan Gutoff
02-23-2013, 12:00 AM
Cal 25. What do I win?
Unless you attended Pineapple's birthday bash it will be a long shot to get this right. I'll hijack it instead (I never do that!) and toss out some classes you may not have heard about in awhile, all SF Bay-centric.
Perhaps my favorite (and the one that's not SF-centric but we've had a couple) - the Yankee OD. Or how about a Treasure Island, Golden Gate, Buccaneer (we had one in the 3BF!) or Hurricane? Of course the Birds and Bears are still around, as are the Folkboats, Knarrs and IOD's. Others?
Philpott
02-23-2013, 01:50 PM
dufour! what do I win? No! Dolphin! What do I win?
AlanH
02-25-2013, 12:24 PM
I'm thinking it would have been Richards and VanHeekeren, back then.
I assume Sled meant the first suit with Pineapples on them?
We had some DeWitt sails (before the dinghies and the paintings).
sleddog
02-25-2013, 06:06 PM
Jake (van Heeckeren) and Kame began an association in the late 60's at the Stanford Sailing Club boathouse on Alpine Rd., in Palo Alto. Jake had an industrial sewing machine, and they made mountaineering gear, sleeping bags, clothing, the odd El Toro sail, and sails for the Stanford Fleet of Flying Juniors. Jake also made the first pair of plastic ski boots I ever saw, beginning with plaster of paris molds of his feet. He forgot to shave his ankles when he stood in the waste baskets full of plaster of paris. I had to break him loose with a hammer, 'cause he couldn't walk very well.
Though I'm not sure exactly when the first Pineapple Logo was stitched, it had to be around 1971. I believe the idea came not only from Kame's Hawaiian heritage, but also from a pizza box at Round Table. The first suit of Pineapple logoed sails I saw (and I was also living at the boathouse) was for Jake's Flying Dutchman. This pre-dated their move to the Oakland warehouse where Pineapple began business.
Thanks to RAGTIME for reminding us of early SF Bay centric classes. I will throw a few more woodies in the pool: Spaulding 33, Rhodes 33 (not SF Bay centric, nor is the IOD,) Pelican, Zephyr, Wylie 30 Gemini Twins, S&S 34's (SPIRIT class), El Toro, and Farallone Clipper.
An extra bonus point for who can tell us what Farallone Clipper recently sank, and why she was so pretty.
It's great to hear Bill Merrick will join GREEN BUFFALO for the Vallejo Race. Certainly the occasion for an SSS party in Vallejo. All in favor, raise your hands.
Travieso
02-26-2013, 11:36 PM
What would it take to create a 'modern' SF Bay centric class??
Critter
02-27-2013, 10:29 AM
... at the Stanford Sailing Club boathouse on Alpine Rd., in Palo Alto...
Skip, where was this more specifically? I grew up just off Alpine Road, and as far as I know it doesn't pass near any body of water except San Francisquito Creek.
Max
sleddog
02-27-2013, 11:33 PM
Max,
Beginning in 1963, the Stanford Sailing Assoc. boathouse was on a loop driveway on University Land, on the southeast side of Alpine Rd, about 1/4 mile southwest of the 280 freeway. The Dish was visible just across the 280. I believe today it is some sort of tree nursery.
The nearest sailable body of water was Lake Lagunita, which only had navigable water from New Years to April. In the late 60's SSA lobbied the University to seal the lake bottom so the water wouldn't all leak out each spring. But there was a special plant that only grew in the muck, and the Biology department successfully objected.
There was a fleet of 10 FJ's that SSA sailed on Lake Lag that were maintained at the boathouse by the live-in crew. In addition, two Shields sloops were kept at San Francisco YC in Belvedere.
Eyrie
02-28-2013, 10:21 AM
While I was attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the later half of the 70's I raced (team SLO :p) a few times on Lake Lag. when Stanford was the regatta host. As I recall, close to 1980 Stanford moved their regatta location either over to Redwood City or to Half Moon Bay, but that could have been San Jose State's host location. By the mid 80's when I was taking classes at Stanford the lake was no more than a meadow year round, so it seems they did something to keep the water from even collecting thought the winter.
Critter
02-28-2013, 10:21 AM
OK, so it was just across Alpine Road from Ladera where I lived. I see on Google there are several streets on that side, but I don't recall ever venturing over there. Thanks for the history.
Wandering off topic, that stretch of 280 didn't even exist until the mid-60s. I remember riding my bicycle up and down the freeway a day or two before it opened.
sleddog
02-28-2013, 10:42 AM
PRO Emeritus Jan Brewer was here yesterday for a short visit enroute to her home in AZ. She had me in stitches with her stories of this year's 3 Bridge Fiasco, the biggest sailboat race in the U.S. For pure fun/dollar/person, the 3BF shines brightly.
For anyone who thinks SSS races just "happen," the opportunity to serve on Race Deck should not be missed. Good luck to BobJ, SSS Race Chairman for '13.
AlanH
02-28-2013, 01:13 PM
PRO Emeritus Jan Brewer was here yesterday for a short visit enroute to her home in AZ. She had me in stitches with her stories of this year's 3 Bridge Fiasco, the biggest sailboat race in the U.S. For pure fun/dollar/person, the 3BF shines brightly.
For anyone who thinks SSS races just "happen," the opportunity to serve on Race Deck should not be missed. Good luck to BobJ, SSS Race Chairman for '13.
Thanks for stepping up to the plate, Bob!
sleddog
03-02-2013, 08:14 AM
Our town is in mourning for the loss of two police officers in the line of duty, first ever in the history of Santa Cruz. The gun battle could be heard a mile away here at the harbor. The killer was known to us harbor rats, as he worked at the coffee shop by the Crows Nest.
RIP
sleddog
03-05-2013, 08:56 AM
Huge kudos to Parker Diving Services for pulling the stolen Oyster 82, DARLING, off Rockaway Beach late last night. It could not have been easy rigging a bridle and towline in the dark, with surf breaking against the hull. Those guys are pros, and it's good to see pros in action.
WILDFLOWER was moored astern of DARLING in Friday Harbor for three days last summer. DARLING defines the word "yacht." http://www.interpacyachtcharters.com/yachts-for-charter/darling-2 At the time, she had three paid crew aboard. Things were spotless.
The question is how did the "senior citizen" perps get DARLING out of Sausalito Yacht Harbor and out the Gate at oh dark thirty?
DARLING was hauled this morning at Bay Marine in Richmond. Underwater damage is uncertain. But the rudder and prop are history. Looks like the "ship has come in" for Kim and crew at Bay Marine. ;-)
While Kim had North Coast Yachts in Alameda (go back in this thread for some stories) I bought a faded, international orange-colored O'Day Daysailer that had been t-boned hard in a race. The cuddy was cracked in two on the centerline and there was another big crack through the sheer where it had been hit. I sailed it for awhile as-is but enjoyed the boat and decided to cherry it out. North Coast/Kim did the work and it came out of his shop looking flawless. He charged me less than he should have - the boat wasn't worth much to begin with and he "adjusted" for that. I also had a Banshee he probably built.
Kim moved on to become a yard manager at KKMI and when I bought the J/33, I tracked him down. TROUBADOUR had been raced hard and my first two yard bills were killers. Kim was patient with me despite my whining. It wasn't in his best interest but he advised me to consider down-sizing, even to a boat that could live on a trailer. I ultimately did, storing RAGTIME! on a trailer for several years. Kim also talked me out of buying a J/125 I really wanted, with the simple statement that my yard bills would easily quadruple.
I'm happy to see Kim (now at Bay Marine in Richmond) get a good-sized project, and I wish him well.
.
sleddog
03-05-2013, 03:32 PM
Seeing DARLING in the surf reminded me of two beachings when I was a kid. In S.Cal it almost always pays to short tack the beach. My Dad was skippering Rhodes 33 #20, RUTH, off Balboa when they got in too close. A wave broke outside, and they were physically launched onto the beach. There's a classic photo of my Dad wading ashore with the spare battens. He could never tell me what was in his mind with that.
That afternoon, South Coast Shipyard's little black tug WALRUS pulled RUTH off the beach. She immediately sank. No problem, they just towed RUTH underwater, dragging her on the sand bottom for two miles back to Newport Harbor Entrance. Once in the breakwater, she was raised with a crane, pumped out, rerigged, some broken frames sistered, and racing a week later.
A similar thing happened as few years later. As a kid, I had a love affair with Starboats. I mean, they were so pretty. And fast. With dozens of things to adjust. Our fleet had two world champions in Ficker and Edler. Because I only weighed 120 pounds, only another kid named Tom Blackaller would take me as crew. And then only in the Bay, not in the ocean.
So I was left on the beach alot. I would walk along the ocean beach during regattas, following the Starboats just offshore, dreaming of the day I could skipper one.
During one of my reveries, Star #3497, MENEHUNE, came along and tacked out onto starboard. Just then, the set of the day from a distant Mexican Hurricane broke outside.
MENEHUNE was picked up, went vertical, and thrown backwards by the breaking wave. Her skipper bailed. Her crew took refuge under the deck.
To my amazement, MENEHUNE, her bow to the sky, landed on her transom at my feet. Her skipper swam ashore. Her crew appeared, wide eyed, out from under the foredeck.
MENEHUNE's transom was crushed. But the rudder and rest of the boat, except for the broken mast, was undamaged.
It didn't take long for a cherry picker A-frame truck to appear on the beach, pick up MENEHUNE, and take her across Balboa Blvd to her trailer.
My father bought MENEHUNE from the insurance company, and had Driscoll put a new (wood) transom on the boat. I have good memories of racing Star #3497 with my father as crew. We always gave the beach where both RUTH and MENEHUNE went ashore a little extra distance.
Sleddog_sis
03-05-2013, 03:54 PM
I love these two stories, Skip, and I didn't know either of them (even though I'm Skip's sister). I guess being 9 years younger, I still need to catch up on some old lore. . . what Skip isn't telling you is that he was 12 or 13 when he got Star #3497. And he beat the tar off even folks a decade or 2 older than he was. I think he paced some of the practices for the World Stars in #3497 but was too young to race in the actual regatta, per the rules. Something like that. I was 4 or 5, so I don't know all the facts, for sure. He later graduated to #4497 (Shadow, a beautiful blue Star with gleaming wood/teak deck) and campaigned it all over the country, once he got his driver's license ;-).
Back to Darling - kudos to Kim and his yard!! I want to see pictures and hear stories. The boat went aground right where our daughter did a lot of surfing. Good thing the waves were not up yesterday.
skatzman
03-06-2013, 09:56 AM
And how about the "perps" in the Darling episode putting the boat in some nice sand at Linda Mar. Instead of on the rocks at Pt San Pedro. And they picked a day with relativly small surf. There's a story here that is not being covered in the Chronicle.
And this story winds to Kim Desenberg....since the thread mentions his North Coast Yachts shop on Clement I remember that shop when I was sailing Madman Across the Water out of Alameda Marina. I thought it a great event when the Alameda Beltline would run trains right down the middle of Clement.
Crossing Clement (like into Svend's) has always been like playing "Frogger" - even more so when switch engines w/boxcars were trundling along there. But I do miss the industrial side of things we used to live around. Now Alameda is all beemers and smartphones.
sleddog
03-07-2013, 02:53 PM
The stolen and beached Oyster 82, DARLING, is gonna need some work. When I saw her yesterday at Bay Ship in Richmond, the floorboards were reportedly floating in a mixture of saltwater and diesel. The rudder and prop were extensively damaged, and the keel was loose. Nothing a million bucks can't fix. But the smell of diesel below is not going to be easy to remove.
Next door at KKMI there were five Bird Boats in various stages of restoration at the "Bird Nest." CURLEW, ORIOLE, and WIDGEON looked beautiful. I believe CURLEW is 91 years young, the second Bird Boat built
Down the way, the Volvo 70 MASERATI was hauled and parked next to a Folk Boat and SPIRIT. Interesting contrast in hull shapes.
Out of those three I'd take SPIRIT. MASERATI looks like a Cal-Trans project run amok.
Does anyone know who would have owned ORIOLE say, 40 years ago? There's a memory there but I can't piece it together.
sleddog
03-07-2013, 09:56 PM
RAGTIME! has a way with words. I concur wholeheartedly that the Volvo 70 MASERATI looks suspiciously like she was designed by CalTrans. When MASERATI is on her keel on the hard, you need a freeway overpass to get up to her deck, 20 plus feet off the ground. Nosebleed anyone? You won't be seeing MASERATI tied up at Sam's for lunch.
Equally unlikely is seeing a Bird Boat reefed.
I am no Bird Boat historian. I believe Jock McLean's father, Scotty, once owned ORIOLE, his third Bird. It is likely Jock who is restoring ORIOLE at KKMI.
Did we know the first Bird, OSPREY may have assisted an escape from Alcatraz? And that Bird Boat owners call their deck sweeping main booms, "Brooms?"
http://www.birdboat.com/Terry%20Norton.htm
Sailing is first of all a visual reward - there is no place in it for ugly boats, no matter how fast they may be.
H Spruit
03-08-2013, 08:41 AM
Sailing is first of all a visual reward - there is no place in it for ugly boats, no matter how fast they may be.
Agreed; The visual rewards of sailing are very important, but the pickle dishes often go to the less than elegant racing machines.
Having said that, I must admit that racing must not be the most important part of the sailing experience.
sleddog
03-08-2013, 10:10 AM
Off topic. Bear with me. I grew up sailing in S.Cal. It wasn't until 1962 I first got to sail SF Bay, in the Blue Stars (West Coast Championships). Being a kid, I didn't find it unusual short tacking up the Alcatraz cone for tide relief, getting close up under the Island. What was unusual, seeing as how I missed reading the big warning sign on the NE side of Alcatraz, was the rat-a-tat-tat of automatic weapons fire coming from an overlooking guard tower. Evidently the bored or trigger happy prison guard was warning us off. The top of our main was perforated. But didn't come down.
According to my sailing friends over at SFYC in Belvedere, there wasn't much going on Friday nights back in those days (early 60's). At the time, the Golden Gate Bridge cost a quarter to cross, and had toll booths at both ends.
One of the Bridge toll collectors was Clem Mathis, the singer Johnny Mathis' brother. Clem was a handsome and friendly dude. On Friday nights, the dateless high school girls would pile into a car and drive across the GG Bridge, in order to give Clem a quarter and touch his hand. It was evidently quite a thrill, as the girls would turn around to drive back across the Bridge. And do it all over again, vowing to not wash their hands for a week.
Clem Mathis was a big revenue maker for the Golden Gate Bridge. Now, 50 years on, the GG Bridge toll takers are about to fade into history as automated license plate cameras take over.
sleddog
03-10-2013, 12:59 PM
The S.Cal ocean racing community is reeling with the loss of the Columbia Carbon 32 UNCONTROLABLE URGE and one of its crew. The CG helo did another heroic rescue, and pulled the six (one deceased) from a rocky and inhospitable NW (lee) shore of San Clemente Island, where they had drifted, after losing their rudder in the Islands Race. Conditions were 22-26 knots of wind, 8 foot seas and a dark night.
Facts are not yet clear. We do know the newly built UU initially refused offers of assistance from other race boats and the CG after radioing either a May Day or Pan Pan. Reportedly, they elected to seek a private towing firm. We also know from the tracker that UU was about 2-3 miles off the lee shore when the rudder broke and incident began to unfold.
Reportedly, the crew of UU were unable to deploy their liferaft, and their anchor would not hold near shore. Judging from the night vision video on YouTube, the boat likely rolled, near or in the surfline. And was dismasted and de-keeled. Whether the deceased crew drowned, or was entrapped in the wreckage is not clear. http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/mar/09/one-dead-five-injured-in-sailboat-wreck/
A sad day indeed.
Not the only incident in the Islands Race. At least two other boats received timely Coast Guard assistance for their own problems. One was the F-10 sportboat MILE HIGH KLUB, with an injured crew and who subsequently lost its rudder. Reportedly, MHK's friends organized a replacement rudder, and the CG delivered it, as well as putting a medic aboard. That's service.
H Spruit
03-11-2013, 07:19 AM
It is troubling that our sport has shown the ability to kill it's participants, ironically for me, because I gave up motorcycle racing to pursue sailing because motorcycles were becoming too painful!
Sled's report of broken rudders has also impacted my thinking, so I am going to make myself a long sweep oar for an emergency steering devise and to skull my little cruising cat.
I also have a friend who has recently experienced a broken rudder, and has a sculling oar hanging over the door of his garage. I am going to encourage him to take it down to his boat.
I also know that there are race committees that require emergency steering devices to be on board.
Yes, we do for the Singlehanded TransPac. We've approved sweeps in a couple cases where they were shown to be effective, but they can be hard to store.
I know Greg used to carry STARBUCK's e-rudder for the local ocean races. I think I'll put RAGTIME!'s back aboard. It's carbon fiber so it doesn't weight that much. I can even attach my tiller pilots to it.
I'm very sorry about the loss of another sailor, and a family man at that. I don't know what to say except we can try to learn from these things.
Jan Brewer
03-11-2013, 02:13 PM
Hi all y'all, twice now I've tried to type something and it goes away so I'll make this really, really brief.
I too am saddened by the tragic events of UU and hopefully we do learn from these events.
Remember too, just like in LSC, there's the snowball effect that seems to have taken place in these accidents. It seems to be that it's never just one thing, but at least several things combined that ends up with these tragic results.
Bob Buell
03-11-2013, 05:58 PM
Re the Bird boat "Oriole", she was raced by the Rumsey brothers, John and Jerry, in mid 60's while I was at CMA, and racing on another Bird.
The Rumseys on Oriole won every race in those days, 1964-1966 (?) John Rumsey became a famous sailmaker & skipper on Ticonderoga, and Windward Passage. The Oriole had their Bird insignia updide down on mainsail, looked like a moustache !!
The Bird boat owned by EZ Davies family was first boat I crewed on in SF Bay 1964, when starting at Cal Maritime Academy.
Good memories from Belvedere and SFYC in those days...Capt Bob
Thanks Capt. Bob. I was aware of ORIOLE a bit later than that, starting around 1969, and the Rumsey brothers aren't jogging my memory. Any connection perhaps with the Pax Davis (Sr.) family? Probably not - they only liked boats with hard chines!
Tchoupitoulas
03-11-2013, 08:02 PM
Speaking of hard chines... I think Starbuck will start carrying the e rudder for local ocean races. And still looking at what is an appropriate anchor for the NCORC MEL. Thoughts for 4500lb Starbuck?
tiger beetle
03-11-2013, 09:50 PM
And still looking at what is an appropriate anchor for the NCORC MEL. Thoughts for 4500lb Starbuck?
If you want the lightest anchor for use in offshore sandy/muddy bottoms, I'd look at Fortress - make sure you get the crown plates - the original Fortress anchor had these an option and the anchor doesn't work without them (tips won't dig in).
An FX-7 ought to work in benign conditions (e.g., no wind, you're using the anchor as a kedge to stop you from drifting).
If, on the other hand, you want an anchor that will hold conditions so windy that it is too much to sail in, you might want an FX-23 and a lot more chain and rode.
Depth-wise, it's 150-200' feet deep all the way out to the Farallones. I'd think about 30 feet of 1/4" G4 (hi-test) chain minimum on 350' of 7/16" rode. If you are looking for a kedge anchor (no wind), then 10' chain with 3/8" or 5/16" nylon.
For the NCORC MEL, you ought to meet the rule with any anchor/chain/rode combination specified by the anchor manufacturer as sufficient for your boat length/weight. Fortress thinks you'd do fine with an FX-7 & 3/16" chain & 3/8" rode, or FX-11 & 1/4" chain & 3/8" rode.
http://www.fortressanchors.com/selection-guide/fortress
On Beetle I carry an FX-7 with 6' of 5/16" G4 chain and 300' of 3/8" line carried in a canvas bag for drifting conditions, and two really big anchors (Rocna 25 kg and Fortress FX-37) with 275' of 5/16" G4 chain and 350' of 5/8" rode to back up the chain. The big anchors are really nice when it's blowing 50+ knots through the anchorage at Drakes Bay. The chain is overkill, but I sleep better.
- rob/beetle
My boat is similar in size (30') and weight (5,500#) to STARBUCK. I carry an FX-11 for around here - it has WM's standard rode package: 15' of 1/4" chain and 150' of 7/16" line.
For Hawaii I also took an FX-16 - it has 25' of 5/16" chain and 200' of 1/2" line, w/tags so you can tell how much rode is out. If I do any races under the new NorCal ORC MOR's I'll swap for this larger set-up.
Not saying that's right, it's just what I have. I've anchored overnight up in Drake's Bay with the FX-11, but it didn't blow 50+ knots.
sleddog
03-11-2013, 11:05 PM
As your primary anchor, my choice would be a 22# galvanized Delta, 30' of 1/4" chain, and 200' of 1/2" Samson gold-n-braid nylon rode.
If you are blowing on a lee shore, the lightweight aluminum Fortress tends to waterski on or near the surface, and it is hard to get it down to the bottom.
The Fortress does not work well in kelpy or rocky bottoms, or hard pack sand. Nor does it reliably reset if the boat swings at anchor with a current or wind shift, (China Camp.)
If the pull is constant in one direction, you use plenty of chain, and the bottom is mud or soft sand, the Fortress is an excellent anchor. (Half Moon Bay)
WILDFLOWER, the 22' cat, uses a Delta 14 as primary, and Fortress 7 as a stern anchor/lunch hook.
sleddog
03-12-2013, 09:17 AM
On the subject of anchors and the recent tragic loss of the UNCONTROLLABLE URGE, it is a worthy reminder that when sailing offshore, the entire Pacific coast line of North America, from Baja to Alaska, is a lee shore.
Over the years, at least half a dozen SSS boats have been driven ashore for various reasons. The most recent, a few years ago, on the west (windward) side of Pt. Bonita, a total loss.
Each situation is different. But a drogue carried aboard, and practiced with, might gain time to sort things out. Drogues are cheap, lightweight, and can be used for other tasks. An old tire, or a milk crate, works as a drogue. And halves or quarters the boat speed when blowing towards trouble downwind.
Drogues are primarily towed behind the boat. Drogues do not have to be towed far astern on the leading face of the second wave. 2-3 boat lengths behind works. Lowering a drogue over the side from one of the jib sheet or halyard winches works. Just make sure there are no chafing issues.
Wylieguy
03-12-2013, 11:25 AM
Stephen, Thinking ahead, if I were you and planning for more than the Farallones, I'd check the requirements for the SSS & PacCup races to Hawaii, and purchase an anchor and rode that would meet those requirements. I agree with Skip that we always sail on a lee shore after Pt. Bonita and that investigating another method to say away from land is a good idea. I have a line and two Costco detergent buckets with rope lanyards.
For rudder issues, I think an adequate emergency system is a must. I don't trust dragging a bucket, so I carry an entire unit around (in addition to those VHF/PLB/Strobes around my neck). I also carry a long dowel to use in driving the rudder shaft out of the rudder shaft tube in case a bent shaft/rudder is the problem (the Wylie rudder is a simple thing). The foil is about 60% of the original and in a 2"x2" aluminum assembly with a cassett that's mounted into the outboard socket and lashed to the pushpit.
On the Tuna i used a long oar strapped to the outboard. I've tested both, but not in high seas nor with the original rudder missing (so there's always been a foil pointed along the center line during the tests - does anyone remove the rudder when doing test runs?). I figure that if I'm ever down to the emergency rudder I'm not racing anymore.
sleddog
03-18-2013, 08:25 AM
In a good example of cascading events, the first-to-finish and overall winner of the recent Islands Race in S. Cal. came to grief following their finish.
In the dark night, and 24 knots of wind, with other Santa Cruz 70's nipping at their heels, they crossed the finish line south of Pt. Loma, only to find the spinny halyard lock would not disengage.
Coronado Beach lay a mile ahead. As they approached with spinny flogging and staysail aloft (staysail apparently wouldn't come down either.), the spinnaker wrapped around the forestay.
They tried to start the engine. A lazy spinny sheet wrapped so tightly in the prop the strut was forced upward into the hull and the prop shaft was bent. For unknown reasons, maybe water through the hatch, the starter and/or batteries caught fire. The electrics, lights, and navigational instruments went dark. The cabin filled with smoke.
The navigator radioed on a handheld VHF for assistance. The navigator, using his handheld GPS, also called distance off beach to his experienced, 10 person, crew.
The halyard lock disengaged unexpectedly, and the spinnaker dropped 20 feet before the halyard jammed. The navigator, standing at the bottom of the companionway, had his feet tangled in the tail of the spinny halyard and was yanked upwards, feet first, , injuring his knee, before luckily hanging up without further damage.
A customs boat showed up, but didn't know what to do. The CG requested a parachute flare be fired, to pinpoint location. This was done with trepidation, as the crew had no experience firing a flare in anger in the dark. During the next few hours, the boat was kept off the beach until dawn. I'm not sure how.
4-5 hours after finishing, the Coast Guard took the SC-70 in tow. The tow line apparently damaged the bow pulpit. The carbon main was left at full hoist, in case the towline broke. The main flogged itself, doing damage, as they were towed to windward, away from the beach, and ultimately safely into San Diego Harbor. A crew was hoisted aloft, and the spinnaker was cut off the forestay.
I wasn't there, and can't answer your questions or comments. Doesn't sound fun.
AlanH
03-25-2013, 01:09 PM
I'm just as glad *I* wasn't there for this. It sounds pretty horrid...shades of Dan Benjamin's loss of his Aerodyne 38 about 8-9 years ago.
sleddog
04-04-2013, 10:44 AM
Back from the Newport to Cabo Race aboard SC-70 "OEX," I trailered WILDFLOWER from the driveway and relaunched at Santa Cruz Harbor, where we have secured a slip for two months.
Our first sail back in the water since late November of last year found all well aboard. The wind was SW, 15-17 knots, out past Mile Buoy, and WILDFLOWER had her skirts up, while I had one hand on the mainsheet as we skipped along at 12-13 knots on a white sails reach.
Interesting contrasts in boats. WILDFLOWER draws 15" with her daggerboard up, and I can sail her alone. WIZARD (ex-BELLA MENTE), first-to-finish yacht in the recent Newport to Cabo Race is 74' long, draws an incredible 19', and needs no less than 12 pros aboard to get away from the dock.
As you surmise, I don't consider deep draft an advancement in yacht design.
skatzman
04-05-2013, 06:41 AM
Fast is fun, less.is more, KISS. Good to know the kitten is plying the home waters. SDK
sleddog
04-08-2013, 04:39 AM
Not looking for excitement, excitement found us yesterday afternoon. While sailing with one reef, close hauled on port tack at 6.5 knots, 1/2 mile south of Santa Cruz Main Beach, a 20 knot gust got under the port hull, and over we went. My crew and I were hiked to weather, hand holding the uncleated mainsheet. But it was not enough.
Over the next five hours, through hard work and good seamanship by friends and members of Santa Cruz Yacht Club, we got WILDFLOWER righted and towed safely into Santa Cruz Harbor as the sun set. Thankfully, no injuries, except to my pride
We pumped her dry, and pulled her from the water on the Yacht Club hoist. Rig, sails, rudder, and dagger are intact. There is a foot long crack in the starboard hull at the waterline where Vessel Assist made contact, before backing off. Some gear floated out of the cabin and disappeared to leeward, probably on the beach down near New Brighton. We pulled the outboard and have submerged it overnight in a drum of freshwater.
I won't know more until daylight today as to the extent of damage. We'll lift WILDFLOWER onto her trailer, and bring her home for survey and repair.
Things could have turned out much differently. If Paul Tara and son Patrick hadn't taken it upon themselves to sucessfully anchor WILDFLOWER just offshore of Black Point, she would be little but splinters at this time. Thank you Paul! And to Gene Sofen for skillfully and patiently driving the Yacht Club towboat. And to Mary, Jim, Dave, John, Royce, Gary, Anna and Don, and everyone else who pitched in to make the recovery a success. Thankyou!
Finally, my humblest apologies to my dear sister who was called by the Coast Guard SAR to be told WILDFLOWER's EPIRB was ringing. For 45 minutes she did not know our circumstances or location (my cell phone got dunked), nor did I know the EPIRB, secured inside the companionway, was activated.
Amen.
I'm sorry to hear about the scare and the damage, but I'm glad you were within range of capable help when you found WILDFLOWER's limits. The rigging box is open if you need something.
It was breeze-on and gusty up here yesterday, both in Vallejo and in Richmond - unusually windy on the Riviera in fact. I'm not surprised some of that breeze found its way to Santa Cruz.
You'll get her going again.
Harrier
04-08-2013, 09:33 AM
Just another adventure, huh Skip? Seriously, sorry to hear about Wildflower (2?) but happy that the result was as good as one could hope for.
Best wishes for a quick turnaround. I'm at Lee's house in TX, having finished replacing all the rotted wood parts on her plastic Sabot. Made the parts in my SC garage, so installation involved final shaping and lots of epoxying and screwing! Tomorrow I'm off to start some needed work on Harrier.
Fair Winds to all!
Philpott
04-08-2013, 11:34 AM
Yikes! Skip, we met in Berkeley when you and Synthia went sailing. Bob Johnston was delivering his spinnaker pole to Dura Mater and we walked over to admire Wildflower. I'm sorry to hear of your dunking, and very happy to learn not only that you are okay, but that the sailing community all came out to assist. I've learned recently just how wonderful that community is. While you were getting wet I was sailing with Mike Maloy on his Even Keel, not learning how to sail a spinnaker, and we talked at length about how much we enjoy and learn from your ... I think of it as your missal. Regards, Jackie
Sleddog_sis
04-08-2013, 11:43 AM
I am so glad, relieved, you name it, that you and your crew are alive and safe.
That was one awful 45 minutes to an hour - after dark, envisioning you in the drink somewhere in the cold ocean off Santa Cruz -- and the Coast Guard lieutenant and I talked at least four times trying to figure it out. They had not had the 2nd pass of satellite to pinpoint you (yet), and I didn't know you were going out sailing but at least knew the harbor you would have left from. And it was gusting like stink up here in Berkeley. Pots blew over off our deck.
I hope never, ever, ever to get that kind of call again - and will happily pay for a better/faster EPIRB too.
Get some sleep and food today.
L'il sis.
skatzman
04-09-2013, 06:14 PM
You weren't looking for trouble, trouble was looking for you. At that time on Sunday afternoon I was at RYC, tied on the end of B dock in Dianne, doing maintainence and noting how strong and violent the gusts were. I would take a break now and then to go up on the deck of the clubhouse and watch the crashes and events out on the water. After dinner I bunked on my boat only to note a particularly violent rain squall around 10pm. Then it really started blowing. Between 1am and 4am it had gusts of probably 40+ in the lee of RYC clubhouse where I was tied. I checked my lines, re moused the clanking things aloft and huddeled below. Sleep was not possible.
Noting you havn't written again I hope the damages are not too severe and you are licking your wounds. A speedy recovery to you and WF. SDK
sleddog
04-09-2013, 06:34 PM
WILDFLOWER is home in the driveway, where she was built 2010-2012. I am both heartbroken and hopeful. Vessel Assist, friends with good hearts, did a number on the starboard hull, punching 15 lineal feet of holes and cracks that will need to be repaired. There is also a sizable hole in the foredeck, where the bow cleat and backing structure used to be.
VA should not have been involved. They tried. But were limping on one engine and a broken bow thruster....close in manuvering their vessel in 20 knots of wind was all but impossible. Unfortunately I was not aboard to wave them off. The Harbor Patrol ordered my crew and I to abandon ship, afraid WILDFLOWER would sink. WF is all wood, no keel, and unsinkable. But the Harbor Patrol did not know that, and I don't fault them for their concern. In fact, we both were beginning to feel the effects of hypothermia, and I could not tie a bowline.
Tears have been shed. This spot will be used for updates, lessons learned and questions answered. I invite SSS supporters to visit Capitola and WILDFLOWER.
The outboard has been "fogged" and the engine oil changed twice. It runs. I am now cleaning the interior of the boat. Howard is grinding and hot coating the holes in the hull. Some have experienced the havoc wrought by a capsize. WILDFLOWER's cabin is a spicy stew of kelp, paper remnants, rice, battery acid, and salt water draining from the mattress foam. Already my halibut fisherman neighbor has fileted Synbad's 5" custom foam mattress into nine, 50 pound steaks so we can remove the waterlogged remnants out the hatch. Sorry Syn. Ironically, I have been solicited to write a chapter for Safety at Sea on "Damage Control." Capsizing was to be part of the chapter....
sleddog
04-09-2013, 09:47 PM
Photo of WILDFLOWER in submarine mode, 30 minutes after capsize, 15 minutes after we righted the boat. We had not yet been approached by Vessel Assist.
Dazzler
04-09-2013, 10:52 PM
Skip,
Our hearts are deeply saddened for you and Wildflower. The good news is that you are unhurt. We are confident that you will rally from this, and that the result will be an even better Wildflower. You must admit, you love a challenge. We wish you all the best in these difficult times. All the best, Tom & Sue
Jan Brewer
04-10-2013, 09:47 AM
Oh. Geez, Louise, Skip and crew, thank Goddess you are okay. Just sent you a PM cause I was so rattled I could not remember how to log in to this forum. Another thanks to Matt for sending my login info. Wish I were closer to help you. If you need a little R&R my door is always open here in AZ. Jan
sleddog
04-12-2013, 05:44 PM
Thank you to all for your good wishes! It means a lot. Ken, great to hear from you.
It isn't often one gets to analyze a capsize. Here is what I saw.
Sunday, April 7
Wind 250 degrees, 15, gusting 21 kts
4-8' swell with 1-2' wind waves.
At 1430 hrs. WILDFLOWER left her slip at Santa Cruz Harbor for a short sail in the freshening afternoon breeze. Crew aboard was myself, and Renee from Santana 20 LIL VIXEN on Lake Tahoe. We tucked in one reef. We had sailed WILDFLOWER in these conditions before, more than a dozen times, both off Santa Cruz, and in the “Slot” off Berkeley and the City Front.
We made five tacks, working our way up towards Lighthouse Point. Initially Rene was steering. Abeam River Mouth, and ½ mile offshore, I took over steering. Rene took over hand holding the uncleated mainsheet. According to the Velocitek Speed Puck, we were making about 6.5 knots close hauled on port track. My instructions to Rene were to let the mainsheet run if the windward hull appeared to lift more than a few degrees.
At 1510, a larger than average, beam on, wave lifted the windward hull. (the swell was wrapping around Steamer Lane). This wave lifted the windward hull about 5', while the leeward hull went into the trough. Our heel angle instantly went to about 40 degrees. The combination of the breaking wave's angular rotation and the momentum of our rig and sails, about 100 pounds at 13' above the center of gravity, meant we were in No Man's Land.
We did not hang there long, maybe a count of “two.” Rene blew the mainsheet instantly. We both dropped onto the leeward side of the cockpit. With the mainsheet run, the boom and clew of the mainsail hit the water and did not go out further.
With the main released, the jib assumed control and created lee helm, pulling the bows down and off the wind. According to Skene's, the force on the 80 square foot jib in 20 knots of wind was about 170 pounds multiplied by center of effort distance above waterline (~ 10'). We had about 1700 pounds of force levering the bows down and over.
The wind gust found at the top of the wave got under the rising windward hull and bridge deck. With our combined crew weight on the leeward side, WILDFLOWER did not stand a chance. Over she went in less than five seconds.
We both were swimming. Rene had to swim through the lifelines to get out from under the boat. Thankfully I had not rigged the weather cloths to the lifelines. I tried to swim the big fender ball, tied to the stern pulpit, out to the masthead for flotation. But the mast and sails quickly sank to vertical inverted, and I never got the fender ball untied from the stern pulpit.
We both tried to climb aboard the overturned hulls from opposite sides. There was little to grab, and I'd just coated the bottom with “MacLube Speed Polish” as a product test for Practical Sailor. Slippery indeed. I boarded WILDFLOWER over the transom. Renee did a pull up onto the starboard hull using the daggerboard.
With assistance from the Santa Cruz Yacht Club 17' Whaler “Guardian” we got a righting line over the hulls and pulled WILDFLOWER right way up. She wanted to come up, mostly because we have foam floatation embedded in the cabin top, and the cabin and hulls were filled with air. Once upright, about 15 minutes after capsize, I lowered the main and rolled up the jib …...and we began to drift downwind, half awash.
To be continued.
sleddog
04-16-2013, 07:23 AM
Yesterday saw gale warnings for NW winds along the Central Coast. Common enough in Spring. I call them "reinforced NW Trades." The usual afternoon 15-25 "Sheep's in the Meadow" whitecaps get replaced by something different. The blue/green ocean with white flecks turns brown and white, as sheets of spume get blown off wave tops.
I don't know about the rest of SF Bay. But there was enhanced rescue action off Berkeley Harbor yesterday as Cal Sailing became the focus of rescue swimmers, fire trucks, and a CG helo. Snow flurries in the Sierra. The day before, hail had pummeled the Skagit Valley tulip festival near Anacortes, with low level snow and avalanches in the Cascades.
Conditions look to be moderating.
sleddog
04-18-2013, 07:30 AM
Good progress on starboard hull repairs to WILDFLOWER. Howard has completed the internal structural repairs, which included replacing a broken floor frame and vertical strut, gluing backing butt blocks and panels over the holes and cracks, sistering a foredeck beam, and repairing the hole in the foredeck where the bow cleat was ripped out.
Howard showed his experience gluing a panel over the crack behind the daggerboard trunk. The vertical space is only 2" wide. He not only managed to get the backing panel with its glue in place, but secured firmly with ingenious temporary wedges and a flexible batten.
The external repairs will mostly be glassing and fairing, then repainting.
As the entire electrical system was water damaged, that is being removed. I am stockpiling the repairs and replacements for that push. Salt water and electricity is a potent combination. The inside of the tiller pilot, which had power going to it, is barely recognizable for the rust encrustation.
As my good friend Skeeter once said regarding electrical wiring aboard small sail craft, "Cap'n, that wiring is to hold in the purple smoke.."
Travieso
04-28-2013, 11:15 PM
Back from the Newport to Cabo Race aboard SC-70 "OEX," I trailered WILDFLOWER from the driveway and relaunched at Santa Cruz Harbor, where we have secured a slip for two months.
Our first sail back in the water since late November of last year found all well aboard. The wind was SW, 15-17 knots, out past Mile Buoy, and WILDFLOWER had her skirts up, while I had one hand on the mainsheet as we skipped along at 12-13 knots on a white sails reach.
Interesting contrasts in boats. WILDFLOWER draws 15" with her daggerboard up, and I can sail her alone. WIZARD (ex-BELLA MENTE), first-to-finish yacht in the recent Newport to Cabo Race is 74' long, draws an incredible 19', and needs no less than 12 pros aboard to get away from the dock.
As you surmise, I don't consider deep draft an advancement in yacht design.
Did you stay in Cabo long. Would have been good to catch up then. I was riding the Invisible Hand with solosailor.
Travieso
04-28-2013, 11:34 PM
Just read the about the capsize of Wildflower. Glad to hear that everyone was safe. Here to speedy repairs. If you need any short term gratification you are always welcomed on the JetStream.
sleddog
05-02-2013, 04:30 PM
317 3165/2/13
Greetings from WILDFLOWER's nav station. For three weeks, since the capsize, and subsequent assault by Vessel Assist, Howard Spruit and I have been in full court press.
Howard has masterly repaired the holes and cracks in the foredeck, starboard hull and interior structure where Vessel Assist rammed multiple times in futile attempts to secure alongside. We found evidence (bottom paint) that, at one point, VA's bow went up over the cabin top. Ouch.
Before and after attached photos of finished repairs and master craftsman Howard Spruit.
As all the electronics, except the Velocitek puck, were toast, I unwired the boat before starting over: new battery, master switch, switch panel, 12 volt receptacles, inverter, depth sounder, VHF radio charger, solar panel, shore charger, Alpenglow cabin lights, boombox, stove, and tiller pilot.
The "pickled" 6 hp outboard motor started first pull.
Santa Cruz West Marine has been fantastic in their support, and I am deeply indebted to Amy and her hardworking crew.
The starboard hull has been faired, then repainted with 4 coats of primer and 2 finish coats of Brightside (foam roller). The foredeck has been re-nonskidded. WILDFLOWER looks good, and will be as good, or better, than before. Our plans are to return to the Pacific NW this summer.
Thank you everyone for your support during these trying times.. And THANK YOU Howard! Hope to see many of you at Made in Santa Cruz Race Week.
sleddog
05-04-2013, 12:35 PM
Tides and currents are a fascinating subject. I never tire of their study, and what they can bring, or just as easily take away. I remember the time bringing WILDFLOWER up Baja. It had been a windy and wet 48 hours. Safely at anchor in San Quintin, I hung my flannel sleeping sheet to dry from the backstay. 6 clothes pins weren't enough in the 25 knot breeze, and the sheet took off towards Tahiti. I thought I last saw my sheet 100 yards downwind.
The next morning at 0400, the wind had stopped. With a flashlite clenched between my teeth, I pulled anchor. At the surface I saw something wrapped around the anchor. With the anchor on deck, I found the "something" was my sleeping sheet! How in the world did that happen?? The sheet must have sunk, then somehow hitched onto a subsurface counter current. I don't know.
Equally improbable was something that happened two days ago. My Moore 24 spinnaker, donated by Morgan Larson, had somehow escaped from WILDFLOWER's cabin after the capsize.
Then 24 days later I had an e-mail that a spinnaker had been found on the beach at Moss Landing, 12 miles, 120 degrees across Monterey Bay.
I do not yet know the circumstances or parties involved. But the spinnaker was returned to Santa Cruz Yacht Club, nicely dried and bagged, with no apparent damage. The number 127 identified it as Morgan's. Morgan said he "wasn't missing any spinnakers." But, "maybe it was the one he had given WILDFLOWER?"
Yup.
AlanH
05-06-2013, 04:58 PM
I just stumbled across this....just goes to show, I oughtta check here more often. I'm glad you are OK, and that Wildlfower is back together again.
sleddog
05-22-2013, 09:13 AM
5/22/13
WILDFLOWER is parked in the driveway, loading for departure June 7 for Anacortes and points north. We are on the "I-5 Yacht Club" program. Which involves an oil change and tire rotation as opposed to jib change and reefing.
Getting north along the coast this week would be problematical. I see 30 knots most afternoons out at Mile Buoy, off Santa Cruz Harbor. A local Sydney 38, ANIMAL, did complete a successful delivery to SF for this weekend's Spinnaker cup Race to Monterey.
ANIMAL's crew was greeted by a different type of MOB, a Golden Gate Bridge jumper, who landed nearby. They fished him out alive, but with possible broken legs, and delivered him to safety in Sausalito. Well done, Hillary, Scott, and John.
WILDFLOWER's new bunk cushion foam was delivered last week. You'd think a piece of 4" foam would be readily obtainable ....this order turned into an epic. Finally, it was handed off to Synthia, who performed her magic of getting the foam successfully fitted into the cover. As you can see from the attached photo, Syn really gets into her work.
sleddog
05-29-2013, 08:33 AM
5/29/13
Sad to hear of the passing of long time friend to all sailors, Svend Svendsen, 81, of Alameda.
Sven's obituary is printed below:
SVEND SVENDSEN
1932-2013
After a courageous and dignified battle with cancer, Svend Svendsen passed over the bar quietly at home in Alameda on May 27 with his family by his side. Born 1932 in Espergaerde Denmark, Svend was the fourth of six children to Anna and Jens Svendsen. Svend descended from a long line of Danish fishermen. Out of necessity, Svend developed a strong work ethic at an early age and held many jobs growing up. He spoke often of his favorite childhood job, delivering fresh baked bread on his bicycle – through all weather conditions and driving snow storms. When the Nazis occupied his Danish homeland in 1940, he delivered messages for the Danish underground which were hidden in the loaves of bread.
After the war, Svend attended and graduated from a boat-building technical college. Faced with the choice of going to Australia or the United States to pursue his new trade, Svend chose New York, traveling across the Atlantic in 1956 on one of the last immigrant ships. After working briefly for the Derecktor shipyard in Mamaroneck NY, Svend traveled across country with several Danish friends in a car with no reverse gear. He ended up in San Francisco, where he worked for a number of well-known yacht builders in Sausalito and Oakland, and traveled the country with the world’s fastest unlimited hydroplane boat which he helped build and maintain.
In 1960 Svend married his loving wife of 52 years Suzanne Svendsen, whom he met while on a winter ski trip at Tahoe. Together they shared over five decades of love, family unity, creativity and adventure. Svend was an original member, a Board Chairman, and later an honorary member of the Young Scandinavian’s Club (YSC) in San Francisco, where he and Suzanne carried on Danish traditions. His fellow members were more like his extended family, and together he and Suzanne created life-long friendships within the YSC.
In 1963, Svend and Suzanne founded Svendsen’s Boat Works at the Pacific Marina in Alameda (now Marina Village). In 1966 Svend moved the business to its current location in the Alameda Marina. For fifty years, and up to his passing, Svend worked side-by-side with his employees, growing it from a one man shop into to one the largest and preeminent boat repair and supply businesses on the West Coast. Svend took risks during his illustrious maritime career and constructed many sailboats, including the first Nordic Folkboat made of fiberglass. Known as the “Godfather of Folkboats”, the transition from wood to fiberglass construction helped save the Folkboat class, causing it to grow into one of today’s most active racing classes both in Europe and San Francisco Bay. Svend was a member of the renowned St. Francis Yacht Club since 1974, where in 2004 he earned the “Yachtsman of the Year” award, given to the person who has contributed the most to the sport of yachting in the greatest sense of the word. He was an avid yacht-racer, and his son Sean crewed with him from a young age. Together they won numerous regattas over the course of Svend’s sailing career.
Svend was also an avid golfer, and played regularly with close friends on Thursday mornings at the Alameda Golf Complex. He was the Treasurer of the Commuter’s Golf Committee which organizes the annual Commuter amateur golf championship, and served as a course marshal every year on the 15th green. He loved to play in pro-am tournaments in Hawaii, and had the good fortune to play with the sport’s biggest names like Nicklaus, Couples, Furyk and even Tiger. Given his down to earth nature, Svend’s golf picture wall of fame was often fascinating to those who just met him.
Svend was best known for his good nature, charisma and charm, and for the friendship he bestowed upon all who crossed his path. Svend was a great father and mentor to his son Sean. He dearly loved his daughter Sabrina, and was very proud of her jazz and tap dance performances. He adored his three grandchildren who called him “Far Far”.
Svend is survived by his loving wife Suzanne, his son Sean Svendsen and wife Nancy Svendsen, daughter Sabrina Svendsen Baltutis and husband Larry Baltutis, grandchildren Tor and Annelisa Svendsen, and Olivia Baltutis, his sisters Inge Thorvaldsen, Hanne Nielsen, brother Erik Svendsen, and numerous nephews and nieces. Svend had verve and panache, and was a lover of life. He will also be missed by his employees, whom he treated with the utmost respect and loyalty. Svend will be remembered by all for the positive influence he had on his community and the world around him.
sleddog
05-30-2013, 04:59 AM
"Made in Santa Cruz Race Week" is in full swing at Santa Cruz Harbor with boats and people arriving from around the country ....Many of the original crew from Bill Lee's "Chicken Coop" were gathered last evening at the hoist: Bobbo, KT, Pitter, Alan, Howard. And of course the Wizard, Bill Lee, himself.
Santa Cruz 27's were arriving from as far away as Washington State. #3, CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR is here from Santa Barbara, looking all shiny and new. Not bad for a boat built 35 years ago.
This afternoon are the Jester Dinghy races, followed by the Concours d'Elegance judging.
Talk about a step back in time...If only MERLIN were here.
Jonathan Gutoff
05-30-2013, 11:42 AM
http://norcalsailing.com/ is covering the races and festivities. Promo over.
sleddog
05-31-2013, 12:09 PM
Made in Santa Cruz Race Week gathered a full head of steam yesterday. I've never seen so many Moore 24's and Santa Cruz 27's in one place. There's at least 30 Moore 24's, with visiting crews occupying a tent village on the Harbor Lawn.
Yesterday's festivities kicked off with the Jester Dinghy Races. These "cute" little 7' dinghies are a local Santa Cruz phenomena. And have been for 40 years, ever since George Olson took a mold off some passing tender to a visiting yacht tied up at the Crows Nest.
A Jester couldn't plane if you dropped it from an airplane. The faster they go, the deeper they go. I once saw Buzz Ballenger running in 18 knots of wind in his Jester. He had reached terminal velocity at 5 knots, and water was coming over both the bow and stern at the same time. That was before he filled to the gunnels.
20 Jesters raced three in-the-Harbor Races yesterday, with dozens of spectators lining the docks. The "No Sniveling" Rule was in effect. I think Chris Watts won the trophy. But everyone was laughing so hard it was hard to tell.
After the Jester Races was the Concours d'Elegance. A chance to show off your Made in Santa Cruz boat. What a fleet. Difficult for the judges of Bill Lee, Eileen Sundet, Dave Wahle, and myself to choose winners, as everyone looked gorgeous.
OCTAVIA, a 30 year old Santa Cruz 50, won the big boats. In the Wood is Good Class, SPARKLE, a beautiful Herreshoff 12.5, won over the nicely restored 34 year old Piver tri KAIJA. There was no need for the Olson 30 PACIFIC HIGH's crew to bribe the judges with cold gin and tonics to win the under 30 foot class. PACIFIC HIGH was in a class by itself. On the human powered front, the Aeolus Rowing boat "BILL GRUNEWALD" was raised from two years in the mud and totally restored by members of the Elkhorn Yacht Club to take that class.
The Grand Champion? There was no argument Paul Tara's 1984 WaterRat 505 dinghy CAHOOTS was the Boat of the Show. Congratulations, Paul!
If you aren't doing anything this weekend, come on over to Santa Cruz, take a short walk out on the West Breakwater, and watch the action just offshore. Festivities conclude Sunday afternoon. Check out norcalsailing.com for pics and more story.
sleddog
06-02-2013, 02:15 PM
Greetings to the fleet from Justine and Chris of the Dana 24 CARROLL E in Berkeley. I had a good visit with this team today. Chris is getting tuned up for the upcoming Long Pac. Of particular note is Chris's new "kite cam," using a new design, materials, technique ...I for one can't wait to see the results.
CARROLL E is not only one of the sweetest, best equipped boats of SSS. But if she gets a breeze, could do major handicap damage. Any angle of wind from a close reach down, and with a windspeed of 15 knots or greater, CARROLL E is a sleeper in the SSS fleet, She don't plane, but you don't need to plane when you go 6 knots steady on a 24 footer that rates PHRF 246.
Speaking of small SSS boats. What's up with the Cal-20 that's sails the 32 mile Duxbury/Lightship Race as a protest against lifelines? I don't know the boat or crew. But she likely would have won had she been entered.
Geez. I've been protesting the lifeline requirement for years. But for a different reason: ORC requires minimum 1/8" lifelines, uncoated. Not only do these small diameter linelines pinch skin where they pass through stanchions. But when you fall hard across the foredeck against 1/8" wire lifelines, it's like meeting a human cheese slicer. 1/4" should be minimum, even if overkill. Lifelines are meant to keep the crew safe, not hurt.
We are all accepting the lifeline requirements, however misguided they may be to some, including myself. I say to the Cal 20 that was out there Saturday: we hear your protest. Now go put your stanchions and lifelines on and join the fun. It's not an onerous proposition.
sleddog
06-03-2013, 02:03 PM
There's more than a few locations on San Francisco Bay where you can not only get your E-Ticket punched, but provide business for local sailmakers as well. Queen of the list is perhaps the South Tower of the Golden Gate Bridge.
For as long as boats have been spinnakering past the South Tower, there have been spectacular and expensive wipeouts. The windspeed often nearly doubles at the South Tower. Currents increase also, as does the steep chop, rips and backwash from the pier.
All the variables were in play Saturday afternoon. Here comes WHIRLWIND, the WylieCat 30, running deep by the lee to get by the South Tower. Overlapped and close abeam is the J-92 RAGTIME, running DDW with a small reaching kite. Overlapped with both RAGTIME and WHIRLWIND is the J-105 RACER-X, hauling the mail with her black and red spinny.
Everything seemed pregnant with possibility. What would it be? RAGTIME was sailing with a cracked tiller. If that failed at the wrong moment, all bets were off.
Drums rolled. Heads swiveled. Yikes. Here's comes the 900 foot x 140 foot container ship YM ORCHID, making 18 knots SOG with a pilot bent on getting in on the South Tower action. A few minutes ago the ORCHID was back at Mile Rock. Now she's headed between mid-Span and the South Tower. The squeeze play is on.
RACER-X, RAGTIME, WHIRLWIND, and YM ORCHID all passed under the Golden Gate overlapped, close enough together to see wide eyes of all concerned. The South Tower Demon huffed. The wind speed went to 28 knots.
Out the other side, the four vessels were safely spit into San Francisco Bay, compatriots for a moment in time. You can see some of the action at
http://www.pressure-drop.us/forums/content.php?3546-2013-Crewed-Duxship
I wanted a little more margin off the South Tower but Skip was worried about the ship.
Three things went through my head at that point:
1) I hope Skip doesn't panic and lift the cracked tiller out of its bracket.
2) If he does, how fast can I get to the furling line, a) with the boat level, or b) with the boat on its side?
3) The big round-down (mid-gybe) I did in exactly that spot at the end of the 2011 LongPac.
But all I actually said was "Just don't lift the tiller."
sleddog
06-03-2013, 04:24 PM
Possibly the most memorable South Tower disaster was the afternoon before the start of the Big Boat Series first race in 1971. Ken DeMeuse, owner of the 73' aluminum ketch BLACKFIN, decided to take his 25 man crew out for a little practice.
They got to Point Bonita in the 25 knot afternoon westerly before turning around. DeMeuse called to set the spinnaker. By the time they got everything rigged and the massive sail set, they were at the South Tower and it was time to jibe in now 30 knots of breeze.
The 30' spinnaker pole was tripped away. But there was difficulty getting the 3/8" wire afterguy made into the jaws on the new jibe. The spinnaker yawed first to port, then way over to starboard, as the 'FIN rolled her rails. Next thing, the spinnaker did a brief collapse, before refilling with a thunderclap likely heard in the Haight.
The strain on the rig was so much on the refill that the 100' main mast fell down right alongside the South Tower. My neighbor, Pitter Crawford, along with Jim Nichols, were tending the mizzen sheet on the aft deck. Said Jim to Pitter, looking at the wreckage on the front half of the boat, "Well, at least our mast didn't fall down."
sleddog
06-06-2013, 07:05 AM
WILDFLOWER is packed and poised for our early a.m. departure Saturday up the I-5 to Anacortes, WA. Hope to make it past Shasta before the temps hit the forecast 110 degrees at Redding.
Again, it's been a group effort getting the boat shipshape. Thanks to everyone, especially Howard Spruit, who have made our adventures possible. We'll write when we can from the Salish Sea (a.k.a. Straits of Georgia/Inland Passage.)
sleddog
06-12-2013, 07:34 AM
Despite stiff headwinds up the Sacramento Valley, we made good driving time, arriving in Anacortes, WA, before sunset. 18 hours, 940 miles, 52 mph, 11.3 mpg.
By noon Sunday WILDFLOWER was launched and rigged at Cap Sante Marina. Raising the mast involves a 9' "gin pole" perpendicular off the mast butt. The gin pole provides leverage for a two part foreguy to the winch, and up she goes.
In the small world department, moored nearby is the SC-27 SOLITAIRE which won the first SHTP in 1978 under Norton Smith's command. Many memories there, as WILDFLOWER and SOLITAIRE shared Hanalei Bay post SHTP, and later cruised the Hawaiian Islands in consort some 35 years ago.
Weather here in Anacortes is cool, with highs in low 60's. Big fluffy clouds over the Cascades producing an occasional rainbow to the East. Bald eagles are soaring overhead, producing their distinctive chirping sound. Nearby, Cap Sante Head overlooks the harbor below and provides good viewing of the surrounding Skagit Valley and San Juan Islands.
sleddog
06-12-2013, 02:17 PM
332
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Solo sailors are notoriously frugal. Suffice to say, I resemble that description. This morning, good friend Gary Adams and I towed WILDFLOWER's trailer to Gary's property atop Mt.Erie. There, by means of a rope around a tree, we rappelled the trailer down a hill, around a corner, and into a level field where the trailer will be stored for the summer. Thanks, Gary!
Just uphill, Gary has a beautiful 18' Aeolus rowing dory under wraps. This dory was built 20 years ago in Davenport by Bill Grunewald. She has a storied history, including a patched bullet hole, where she was once used for target practice by some crazed local in the far reaches of Alaska.
Gary wanted to show me another piece of history. We crossed onto Indian land, went down a dirt road, and there beside the Swinomish Channel was a sad sight: the half sunk WESTERN FLYER, John Steinbeck's fishboat that he and Doc Ricketts chartered for their famous voyage and resulting book, THE LOG FROM THE SEA OF CORTEZ.
Nearby to WESTERN FLYER sits "Boom City." With no restrictions on fireworks sales, the local Indian tribe has set up a small town devoted strictly to the sale of fireworks for the upcoming 4th of July. Sales even at this early date seemed to be brisk, with more cars parked at Boom City than at the nearby casino.
jubatus
06-13-2013, 05:33 AM
At 1510, a larger than average, beam on, wave lifted the windward hull. (the swell was wrapping around Steamer Lane). This wave lifted the windward hull about 5', while the leeward hull went into the trough. Our heel angle instantly went to about 40 degrees. The combination of the breaking wave's angular rotation and the momentum of our rig and sails, about 100 pounds at 13' above the center of gravity, meant we were in No Man's Land.
We did not hang there long, maybe a count of “two.” Rene blew the mainsheet instantly. We both dropped onto the leeward side of the cockpit. With the mainsheet run, the boom and clew of the mainsail hit the water and did not go out further.
With the main released, the jib assumed control and created lee helm, pulling the bows down and off the wind. According to Skene's, the force on the 80 square foot jib in 20 knots of wind was about 170 pounds multiplied by center of effort distance above waterline (~ 10'). We had about 1700 pounds of force levering the bows down and over.
The wind gust found at the top of the wave got under the rising windward hull and bridge deck. With our combined crew weight on the leeward side, WILDFLOWER did not stand a chance. Over she went in less than five seconds.
Hi Sleddog and many thanks for this informative and humoristic thread. Capsizes in narrow cats is unfortunately an inherent risk, so I am glad you were in contact with rescuing help and that nobody got hurt. I have a few questions about risk reduction: did you have the daggerboard down and was it to leeward? Secondly, do you think the capsize would have been avoided if also the jib had been immedeately released? And after the capsize, would a masthead floatation devise (fixed or automatically released) had allow you to right the cat yourselves? Would that have allowed you to sail on yourselves? In short what are your learnings from this episode? Are there design or handling advices that can make small narrow cat cruising gust safe?
sleddog
06-13-2013, 02:43 PM
Regarding WILDFLOWER's capsize, the daggerboard was down and to leeward, increasing the draft from 2' to 4'. I'm not sure that played any part in the capsize.
The boat went to 40 degrees so quickly that I'm not sure the jib (nor main, which was hand held) could have been released in time to have any effect. Had both sails been released before the wave picked up the windward hull, or had I seen the wave approaching and luffed up, the capsize would have likely been avoided.
I have scratched my head about masthead flotation. A masthead float would have likely allowed us to right the boat from 90 degrees. A float like Meade Gougeon's would have to be of necessity quite large. Not sure I'm ready to go that route. An inflatable device might be better. But I have yet to see one that addresses that function. Some have suggested flotation sewn into the head of the sail like training dinghies. I'm open to possibilities.
We did right the boat fairly quickly with a line across the hulls to a 17' Whaler. The boat wanted to come up. A big mistake was not having the hatchboards in place and secured. That would have made the cabin watertight, and she would likely have wanted to pop up even faster.
Our mistakes were many: over confidence, not having tucked in the second reef, not seeing the approach of the offending wave behind our backs, not braced for our fall across the cockpit, not having the hatch boards in place and secured, not having the forward watertight compartment doors in the bows in place, not anchoring the boat when the Harbor Police ordered us off the boat.
I'm not sure 2-3' feet of additional beam would have made any difference. A mast head float, as mentioned, would have been desirable and kept us from inverting.
New procedures and equipment have been instituted. The hatch boards have locking lanyards and will be in position when sailing in winds > 15 knts; the bow compartments have their watertight doors in place and sealed, providing an additional 320 pounds of flotation forward; there is now a longitudinal foot brace (Windsurfer mast) in the cockpit, 1' off the floor; there is now a drybag on the transom with the PLB, flares, VHF, and cell phone.); the old EPIRB without GPS has been abandoned in favor of a new PLB with GPS locator; the tiller has been raised to clear the outboard, allowing greater turning response: the lead acid battery has been replaced in favor of AGM glassmat; and it has been noted that any badge holding officer of the peace, not just the Coasties, can order you off your boat for, what is in their mind, "reasons of safety."
jubatus
06-15-2013, 01:03 AM
Thanks for sharing your observations and learnings. But is the hull draft with daggerboard up really 2 feet? Sounds very deep to me. Flotation in sails doesn't sound like a good idea since it won't work when sails are reefed. Perhaps twin masts like Schionning (freestanding), Kelsall och Chris White (stayed) could be a solution to avoid complete belly up, or perhaps an A frame rig, all very experimental though... There is not always outside assistance available, and any solution will have be proved in real life.
sleddog
06-15-2013, 05:37 PM
[QUOTE=jubatus;] "But is the hull draft with daggerboard up really 2 feet? Sounds very deep to me."
WILDFLOWER draft in loaded config:
Board down = 4'
Board up, Rudder down = 3'
Board up rudder up, OB down = 2'
Board up, rudder up, OB up = 1.25'
jubatus
06-16-2013, 12:13 AM
WILDFLOWER draft in loaded config:
Board down = 4'
Board up, rudder up, OB up = 1.25'
Thanks for clarifying, that is what I thought. It doesn't sound unlikely that the board aided as a tripping point, preventing the boat from sliding down the wave. Perhaps the capsize risk would have been reduced had a daggerboard been located centrally or in both hulls and being down on the windward hull only? From smallest to largest single-handed multis: Joyon's IDEC is now close to Lizard Point at incredible speeds http://www.trimaran-idec.com/multimedia_cartographie.asp
sleddog
06-16-2013, 06:35 AM
This morning Gary and I rode the ferry five miles from Keystone on Whidbey Is. across Admiralty Straits to Port Townsend. At $1.50 for seniors, this boat ride is a bargain.
We were met by long time friend and wood boat sailor, Roger Nisbet, of nearby Port Hadlock. Roger drove us to Port Ludlow where we caught up with SSS legend Dan Newland. Dan, three time winner of the SHTP, has recently taken up Radio Control (RC) boat racing.
Port Ludlow has the perfect venue for RC racing: a 50'x 200' enclosed lagoon surrounded by grass lawn. There were nine one design RC boats in attendance. Gary and I were kindly loaned boats. I won the first two races, Gary won the next two. Then Dan showed how it is done and won six straight. Much fun was had by all.
Returning to Anacortes, I found WILDFLOWER had new neighbors: 60 Nordic Tugs were in town for their convention. What an infestation. The Kentucky Sour Mash was flowing, and dueling bow thrusters seemed to be the afternoon entertainment.
sleddog
06-17-2013, 07:22 AM
It's fun watching really big things being moved. On the Anacortes waterfront are four large oil storage tanks recently built for the North Slope of Alaska. These tanks are roughly 100' high, 80' in diameter, and hold 650,000 gallons.
Yesterday I watched two of the massive tanks being loaded on a barge. Fagioli is a heavy lift company, and specializes in this type of work. Each tank was on two self contained, modular trailers. Each trailer, about 200' long, had 160 fully articulating wheels, tires that probably weigh more than my boat.
The trailers are self propelled, and can travel at speeds up to 3 mph. They are also self leveling, and each set of tires can independently retract or extend to compensate for irregularities and bumps in the road bed. Impressive to watch, even in slow motion.
Critter
06-18-2013, 09:57 AM
That's a lot of beans!:)
sleddog
06-19-2013, 06:45 AM
WILDFLOWER is back in Friday Harbor. A lot has happened since I was here a year ago. Yesterday's weather was lovely, with blue skies and big fluffy cumulus clouds. Not much wind to sail the 20 miles from Anacortes to Friday Harbor. But I was able to test all systems. Everything seems to be online, including the new depth sounder, tiller pilot, solar panel, and stove. I did have to splint one of the long mainsail battens which had become delaminated. But duct tape and some shorter miscellaneous batten stock solved the issue.
Friday Harbor is a boating town. You don't have to go far to meet interesting people. Tied up close astern are Herb, Willie, and dog Jake on WILLIE'S TUG, a Ranger 27 tug. Their home is the Gulf Coast of Texas. Hearing the story of trailering their 12,000 pound boat halfway across the country was both eye opening and inspiring.
Up ahead is my new best friend Nemo. Nemo started life as a pound kitten in San Diego. She joined the crew of the Atkins Ingrid ketch COLUMBINE, and circumnavigated over nine years. Now Nemo is a big kitty, well acclimated to her liveaboard life, but always ready to come to the rail for a scratch.
sleddog
06-20-2013, 09:55 AM
With rain spitting down, and gale warnings hoisted, I've taken a page out of Comfortable Cruising Onboard Small Catamarans and decided to "never leave a good harbor on a bad day."
I've moved WILDFLOWER forward 50' along the dock, and am now viewable on the Friday Harbor webcam. http://www.islandcam.com/fridayhrbr.html You may need a magnifying glass to see WILDFLOWER on the upper left.
Action today should come when the 130' waterjet propelled, passenger catamaran VICTORIA CLIPPER arrives from Seattle. At 30 knots, the CLIPPER brings her 230 passengers comfortably north, enjoying Deception Pass whirlpools and a little whale watching enroute. http://www.clippervacations.com/seattle-san-juans-ferry/
Just inshore on the main dock is the Friday Harbor Fishmarket, home of legendary "Popeye" the one eyed harbor seal. Beloved Popeye has been enjoying crab, calamari, and shrimp salads while entertaining tourists for 25 years. They've even built a granite statue of Popeye in the town's waterfront park. http://oldsite.sanjuanislander.com/port/fh/popeye.shtml
WILDFLOWER and I enjoyed an unexpected visit from Popeye last year when she popped her head into our cabin when the Aquarium hatch was open below. Surprise!
sleddog
06-21-2013, 07:53 AM
Happy First Day of Summer!
The baro is rising, and rain has ended, having given a good drenching to Washington State. In its wake comes building high pressure and a "Super Moon." The year's closest proximity of Earth to Sunday's full moon will bring extreme tides, from -3' to +8', and strong currents.
I'm headed north to Sucia and Matia Islands, sandstone fingers lying athwart Boundary Pass, just south of the Canadian Border. The chart shows many anchorage
possibilities. But a reminder to self to anchor in water deeper than 6' at low tide.
sleddog
06-23-2013, 08:37 PM
Congrats to all Long Packers and to those that made it possible!
Sucia Island is something special. Lying in the NE quadrant of the American San Juans, Sucia is composed of sandstone eroded by wind and water, creating fantastic shapes, caves, and cliffs.
WILDFLOWER and I pulled into legendary Fossil Bay after a three hour sail from Friday Harbor, not knowing what to expect. What we found were 30 boats flying pirate flags tied up to the two State Park docks, and a yacht club party about to start. After tying up, I took off hiking to the other side of the island to visit Fox, Echo, and Shallow Bays, and see what my options were.
After a two mile hike through a lovely forest, I emerged onto the white sand beach of Shallow Bay. There were two Beaver float planes on the beach and a wedding party on a nearby point. Unlike Fossil Bay, Shallow Bay was serene and almost completely landlocked. With only 5' of water depth throughout on the upcoming low tide, Shallow Bay looked like a less populated option if the partying got out of hand at Fossil Bay.
Hiking back to Fossil Bay, I found the potato cannon wars and amplified music had begun: potatoes were being launched out of PVC cannons, using ignited hairspray as the charge.
I anchored WILDFLOWER out of range, and settled in for the evening wearing foam earplugs. My plan was to move the next morning to the more secluded waters of Shallow Bay.
Santana20Vixen
06-23-2013, 11:44 PM
Oh I bet that was a true "Popeyed" surprise through the Aquarium hatch... and were you reading the paper at that moment too? Duck Duck - Goooooose.
sleddog
06-24-2013, 05:30 AM
Saturday 0900 I pulled anchor. Not difficult, as the tide had dropped to -2.2' and I could see large crabs on the bottom under the boat. Sailing clockwise around, it was less than two miles between Little Sucia and Sucia, through Fox Bay, and into Shallow Bay. Only one other boat in Shallow Bay. I motored in until I had 5', set the anchor, and made a potato, bacon, and cheese omelette.
The day proved the best so far. With building high pressure, the sun was out and the sand beach was nearby. I inflated the dinghy and went for a row. Several bald eagles watched from their roosts on nearby snags. Kayakers began to appear. One kayaking group appeared to be under dictatorial command. The leader, in a voice that could be heard across the Bay, kept repeating "rudders up! We are going ashore to put on more sunscreen and drink water. Remember, drink water!"
I took the time to clean the waterline of Friday Harbor's scum. White (Petit Vivid) bottom paint was not a good choice of color. Especially as my 22' cat has 84 linear feet of waterline to scrub. But all came clean as nearby harbor seals watched with baleful eyes.
The "Super Moon" was so bright reflecting off Shallow Bay's calm waters I awoke at midnight, thinking it was morning, and began to dress.
Remember, drink water.
AlanH
06-24-2013, 03:42 PM
These are the kinds of pictures and stories that got me to design, then buy a sail and oar boat.
We have a project for you and Wildflower if you're back before August.
sleddog
06-26-2013, 01:29 PM
If it's Tuesday, it's thrift shop day in Anacortes. On the short list are more plastic food containers, the ones that have six sides, not round. Round food containers offered by markets are hopeless. Not only do round containers like P-nut butter, jelly, and mayo jars offer 20% less storage volume for the same shelf space, but they tend to roll if laid on their side.
With three days of rain, living aboard with 32 sq. feet of floor space has taken a less than romantic turn. I need to get RED SKY up here to fix the radio waves. Congrats to Brian for figuring out how to contact Long Pac racers 150 miles at sea via VHF. He'd have his work cut out up here. The only VHF weather I can receive on my handheld VHF radio is from Canada, is in French, and is metric. Bon chance!
Cap Sante Marina recently spent nearly a quarter million $ upgrading their Wi-Fi system to attract marina visitors. New 60' aluminum towers surround the docks. The Harbor Master's roof looks like an electronic eavesdropping convention. Now, after a year of fine tuning, Cap Sante Wi-Fi only works at high tide. RED SKY would probably have this little glitch for lunch.
All is not for naught. Dogs love this place. Most boats have at least one. The dog park is right across the street. Yesterday, I had three Shih Tzus (Stan, Alice, and Iris) visit aboard. With all sorts of cozy compartments, they thought WILDFLOWER was the coolest dog house. And they didn't want to leave.
The rain is supposed to end tomorrow. I'll be headed back north to my new favorite island, Sucia. I'd better post this before the tide begins to drop.
Wylieguy
06-26-2013, 02:41 PM
Sucia is nice, but Shallow Bay can be mean in a stiff NWer - lee shore. Too much company on the other side at lot of the time. Have you tried Stuart Island? Prevost Harbor on the North side faces Haro Strait and across to B.C. Turn Point Lighthouse is a nice walk with even nicer views. Bald eagles, etc. Prevost Harbor is better protected, but not as scenic, I think.
Pat Broderick
sleddog
06-27-2013, 07:32 AM
Thanks, ELAINE. Post #75 on page 8 talks about Prevost Harbor, the delightful hike to Turn Pt. Lighthouse, and the surprise awaiting there.
The upper level low pressure funneling in all this rain is forecast to move west this afternoon, bringing dryer and warmer weather to the PNW.
WILDFLOWER's cabin is a cozy retreat, replete with tropical curtains, prayer flags, a library, and the smell of coffee.
Seeing the SC-27 SOLITAIRE, winner of the first SHTP, down the way reminded me of all the things I've seen on boats over the years. In the first Singlehanded Transpac, one of the entrants, intending to cruise Down Under and support himself by doing landscaping, was carrying a lawnmower lashed to the mast.
Some of you may remember the Olson 30 STILL CRAZY in the 1990 SHTP. Ron's crew of a well patched blowup doll was a source of amusement. But of equal amazement was STILL CRAZY's compact cabin being dominated by a saddle and spurs. The skipper supplemented his sailing habit by riding broncs in rodeos.
sleddog
07-01-2013, 12:14 PM
Hiking three miles to Turn Pt. on Stuart Island is always fun. Yesterday's weather was warm and clear. Gary and I watched a small plane takeoff from Stuart Island International Airport. The runway is angled down, is grass, and disappears into the woods. I'd say pilots have to have local knowledge to use this field!
Post hike, Gary and I had cold beers aboard his beautiful Peterson 34, JURA. (photo below) Then some Trader Joe's chili. Prevost Harbor, landlocked in all quadrants, was calm and quiet. Except for an armada of about 30 geese cruising the main.
This morning JURA and WILDFLOWER upped anchors for Blind Bay on Shaw Island. In mid-Channel I spot an odd looking craft heading north. I altered to pass close, and discovered it was good friends Russell and Ashlyn Brown on the proa JZERRO from Port Townsend.
We shut down engines and gammed for a few minutes. JZERRO is headed north to Desolation Sound with a boat full of boat parts for Josh Sunderland, who is building a 40' cat on Maurelle Island.
It's a small world in these parts
sleddog
07-02-2013, 10:22 AM
Anchorages in the San Juans are many and varied. Like the boats that take their shelter, everything is a compromise when choosing an anchorage: the nature of the bottom for good anchor grabbing, protection from wind and wake, view, neighbors (hopefully without generators that run at sunset), beach access, insects, communication access are just a few of many considerations.
I'm back briefly at Friday Harbor, on San Juan Island, and will be taking off shortly for Fisherman Bay ("Fish Bay") on Lopez Island. Lopez Islanders call Friday Harbor "Sin City" in contrast to their more pastoral digs where passing drivers wave at each other, bicyclists, and walkers.
sleddog
07-05-2013, 01:18 PM
Lopez Island's 4th of July Parade was wonderfully small town, with a cast of firetrucks, tractors, kids on bikes, antique cars, and the Lutheran Church drumming up business with a float that said “We're dying to have you join us!” and “Gluten free religion.”
Of course everyone was giving the “Lopez Wave,” which is best described as the middle two fingers extended upwards, and wagged sideways. Only on Lopez.
Walking back from the parade, I ran into hometown friends Toby and Kimberly, who car topped their canoe and bikes from Santa Cruz, are visiting the San Juan Islands by ferry, and staying at waterfront cottages. Looked good to me.
Mid-afternoon I re-anchored at the southern end of Fisherman Bay, upwind of the fleet of 200 visiting vessels in town for the fireworks for which Lopez is famous. By 10:30 pm it was dark enough for the show to begin. Impressive would be an understatement. The themed aeriel display was some of the best I've seen, with
Sweeping Comets, Purple Cycas Blooms, Glittering Silver to Bright Red, Revolving Dragons, Red Sunflower,Crossing Comets, Green Chrysanthemum to Crackling Display, Red Palm, Five Angle Star, Red White and Blue with Artillery, Golden Coconut, Golden Wave to Blue Swimming Chrysanthemum, Glittering Silver to Green to Red with Reports, Purple Crossette, Nishiki Kamuro Niagra Falls, and the Grand Finale.
The echoes of the reports reverberated for miles around the hills and through the forests of Lopez Island.
Four miles across San Juan Channel, Friday Harbor was replying in kind. Hot diggity, Dog Diggity, Boom diggity.
H Spruit
07-06-2013, 08:58 AM
Lopez Island sounds great!
Here in Santa Cruz we had thick fog, 42 arrests, two stabbings and 425 pounds of illegal fireworks confiscated and uncontrolled illegal fireworks going off in the neighborhoods, and docks until 4:AM.
<H>
sleddog
07-07-2013, 02:20 PM
Though it's cheap theater watching the lone New Zealand AC 72 catamaran, costing $100 million, race itself in the first Louis Vuitton Cup race, I must say I'm slightly underwhelmed watching 10 crew furiously pump hydraulics as their machine goes 20 knots upwind, and touched 38 knots downwind.
My dear friend Renee goes 5 knots on her well thrashed Santana 20 LIL VIXEN on Lake Tahoe. Renee is new to sailboat racing and covets tiller time, hard to get unless you own your own boat, which she bought for a song and has been fixing up.
Until yesterday, 8 knots was a gleam in Renee's eye. But somebody loaned her a dirt boat (land sailor) on a Nevada dry lake bed, and in a few short minutes she was racing around, averaging GPS speeds in excess of 35 knots, on a machine that is decidedly low tech: no winches, no crew or hydraulic pumps, old dacron sail, well worn tires. And she's going faster than EMIRATES NEW ZEALAND, upwind and down.
These dirt boats even kids can safely sail. And regularly do. Personally, I get a real kick out of watching dirt boats race. And even a bigger thrill going 40 knots into a two wheel drift around the leeward mark. Foiling? We don't need no stinkin' foiling.
Maybe Renee will tell us about her day on the playa, sheeting the main tight, then tighter, as the apparent wind of 50 knots gusts into her smiling eyes. I can only post the pics she sent. Eat your heart out Americas Cup pros.
North America Land Sailing Assoc. (NALSA) maintains a website at http://www.nalsa.org/ Read about sailing at 126 mph.
skatzman
07-08-2013, 09:11 AM
Proud to chime in here that I was on the Playa Friday last with Renee. It's all like Skip says: low cost, low tech, low rent, high speed, high thrill. An d a special mention to Lester (Moore 24 #29) for maintaining Misfits Flat for landsailing. SDK
Philpott
07-08-2013, 07:34 PM
Oh how I would love to sail again on Lake Tahoe! When I was young I sailed with friends out of Obexer's on the West Shore. Ten years ago I rented a 22' Catalina from the Tahoe City marina. We motored out into the lake and floated around for awhile (at $60/hour 2 hour minimum) before motoring back in. My understanding is that sailing on Lake Tahoe can be very wonderful, scary or dull. Where does Renee keep Lil Vixen, if I may be so bold? Jackie
Santana20Vixen
07-08-2013, 08:21 PM
All I have to say is YEEEEEEEEHHHHAAAAAAA WEEEEEEEEEEE, HOLY SMOKES.... I HAVE GOT TO GET ONE OF THESE!!!!!! I don't need no stinking 8knts. This was about the most fun I could imagine doing with a sail. I did not have the control to make the 2 wheel drift around the leeward mark at 35knts. However, I certainly spent a fair bit of time on 2 wheels with the puffy air.... I must say there is a certain "pucker factor" that takes place in those moments and it takes a fair bit to void the instinct to let the sheet run. When you get in the 30knt speeds everything starts bouncing around and you start to pray that it holds together, goes in the direction you want, and does not spin out. Then I learned to slide sideways on demand... it's like a hockey stop on a boat... then I was told it is not a nice thing to do, too much dust, but it was way fun!!! Did I say I HAVE GOT TO GET ME ONE OF THESE?
Renee
Santana20 Vixen
South Lake Tahoe
H Spruit
07-09-2013, 08:28 PM
Renee;
Dennis Basano has a Manta For Sail!
He can be contacted at "Dennis Michael Bassano Jr." <dmbassano@comcast.net>
or(831) 423-4355
He is president of NALSA
Sincerely,
Howard Spruit
sleddog
07-10-2013, 06:36 AM
A little excitement last evening as kids playing with fireworks set Cap Sante Head, overlooking Cap Sante Marina, in Anacortes, on fire. It's steep terrain, I could see the flames on the hillside, about a quarter mile away, and firemen couldn't easily get to the fire.
Eventually several fire boats came into play, letting loose with an almighty deluge that soaked the hill and promptly extinguished things. No structures were damaged, except maybe some bunny dens and squirrel nests.
http://www.goskagit.com/news/local_news/crews-fight-fire-on-cap-sante/article_afce6198-e90f-11e2-b215-001a4bcf887a.html?mode=image&photo=0
Fair weather continues. I'm off today, northbound, towards Desolation Sound.
sleddog
07-12-2013, 10:53 AM
WILDFLOWER trucked north yesterday through the Gulf Islands, goin' while the goin' was good. We left Orcas Island at 0830, and were tied up at Newcastle Island, Nanaimo, 12 hours later. 60 miles, including a pit stop at Bedwell Harbor to clear into Canada. That phone call took all of a minute.
Shortly after Bedwell we passed two 19' whaleboats rowing and sailing north. They were lugsail rigged, ketches, with six crew and three pairs of oars. I pulled alongside to chat, and found they were crews from University of British Columbia at Vancouver. These crews would pull ashore and camp enroute. Pretty cool. I took a couple of photos.
One disadvantage of these waters is the amount of flotsam, mainly timber of all sizes, drifting at random. It requires due diligence. No napping or reading. I had to alter for a 50' tree, and a 15 foot log. Many powerboats in these waters carry extra propellers.
Dodd Narrows is about 50 yards wide. Much of the water in the Gulf Islands passes through here, creating currents to 9 knots. We entered Dodd an hour before slack, and had 4 knots pushing us merrily along.
Newcastle Island is a beautiful park, administered by the local First Nation tribe. Nanaimo, a small city, is about quarter mile across the channel. Crossing the channel is challenging, with a steady flow of float planes landing and taking off. Planes have right of way. Good luck. Everyone seems to get along.
sleddog
07-12-2013, 01:41 PM
Apparently I am missing some nearby action. My waterfront correspondent, Gary in Anacortes, reports a bit of trouble.
"A brand new 85' Ocean Alexander ($7.5 million) burned & sank in Roche Harbor. The resort was evacuated to the Roche Harbor Airport as the high winds were sending the flames toward the marina. 1600 gals. of fuel on board. The fish scow "Clam Digger" which delivers food to fish pens (Atlantic salmon aka "Frankenfish") at Cypress Is. sank in Guemes Channel after sending a Mayday it was taking on water. 3,000 gals of fuel on board."
"High drama over in Victoria Wed. night also during the strong winds when the 341' ferry M/V COHO departed & took out a float plane dock astern of it Nearby was a $15 million dollar mega yacht that missed being sideswiped. Guests at the hotel immediately behind the totaled float plane dock thought the COHO's stern was going to end up in their lanai.............."
Hmmmm. The otherwise immaculate Grand Banks 36 next door should be happy. His cruise with guests has been interrupted. Everyone left. In came the technician. Out came the clogged head, which was deposited in the dumpster. Out came the crystal encrusted head hoses and plumbing. In they went to the dumpster also.
Out came the technician's shop vac. Into the shop vac went the fouled bilge water. Into the harbor the smelly mess went.
In came the new head. In came the new hoses. Out came the technician's tools.
He's been working on it all day. Wonder what that's gonna cost? Certainly not as much as a new Ocean Alexander or float plane dock in Victoria. All in a day on the waterfront, a moveable feast.
H Spruit
07-13-2013, 07:07 AM
Because you posted a pic of this boat sunk in its slip I thought you would be interested in this article.
Former Steinbeck boat coming back to Monterey County — in one form or another
By DENNIS TAYLOR
Herald Staff Writer
Posted: 07/12/2013 06:57:14 PM PDT
The Salinas businessman who owns the boat that carried author John Steinbeck, marine biologist Ed "Doc" Ricketts and skipper Tony Berry to the Sea of Cortez in 1940 says he is fully dedicated to restoring the famous vessel to its original glory.
Whether the 72-foot purse seiner can be made seaworthy again is a different question.
Gerry Kehoe said the years have been unkind to the Western Flyer. Built in 1937, it has what could be irreparable damage to her hull, engines, kitchens, cabins and decks — issues that caused the boat to sink twice in recent months, first in October and again in June.
Kehoe said he will consult with experts who will examine the vessel in Port Townsend, Wash., on July 29 before deciding exactly how to proceed with his renovation plan.
Kehoe promises that the boat that helped inspire two of Steinbeck's literary works — "The Sea of Cortez: A Journal of Travel and Research" and "The Log from the Sea of Cortez" — will be meticulously restored for future generations to enjoy, on the water or elsewhere.
"The Western Flyer is a historic and literary American artifact, the largest piece of John Steinbeck memorabilia," Kehoe said. "The reports that we have received so far from experts who have examined her indicate that she is not seaworthy."
One option Kehoe has discussed is making the Western Flyer a tourist attraction inside a boutique hotel he's building in the 50,000-square-foot space at 300 Main St. in Salinas
sleddog
07-14-2013, 07:22 PM
7/14 Bastile Day
WILDFLOWER successfully crossed the Straits of Georgia, 21 miles, to the mainland side. I had the boat "stacked" for port tack. With one reef, we sailed along nicely closehauled in 14-17 TWS, averaging 5.5-6, passing a Cal-34 close aboard.
After 50 miles and 10 hours, it was time to call it a day. The wind went on the nose, and I dropped anchor in lovely Sturt Bay, on Texada Island. Spent a quiet night, intending to set off for Desolation, 24 miles NW.
The outboard motor had other ideas, and wouldn't run. I fussed for an hour. Then sailed into the Texada Boating Club docks, not knowing what I'd find. It turns out there is a local outboard mechanic here, and he'll be coming down tomorrow.
Depending what he finds, I may be here a while. Which is not a bad thing. Everyone has been exceeding friendly. I've met at least two dozen people. It turns out the designer of the Kismet catamarans and trimarans lives here, and has his own Kismet 34 SKAL, with a wing mast, nearby.
Also arriving was a hi-tech, carbon/foam F24 CR tri, MINDBENDER, enroute to circling Vancouver Island. Just outside Sturt Bay they hit a dead head log at 8 knots, knocking their rudder out of the cassette, and maybe breaking off their daggerboard.
MINDBENDER made it in here on a wing and a prayer. They couldn't steer except with the outboard, and T-boned the dock at 3 knots. Once things were settled, I helped them put things to right. The rudder is fixed, and I loaned Nick my mask and fins. He went swimming, and found there is no damage to the underbody, daggerboard or trunk. They are very thankful. It could have been much worse.
Right behind WILDFLOWER is a giant flowerpot. It looks like we've landed in a garden. To the right in the photo is the tri.
How long we will be here depends on the mechanic's diagnosis tomorrow. It would be foolish to go north of here without an engine: strong currents, narrow channels, and light winds.
And there is much history here to explore here. Rusting mining machines, winches, and parts everywhere, being slowly overgrown by blackberries. Sturt Bay was once a bustling town of 5,000. Whaling was king. Then gold was discovered. Opera house, schools, hotels were built.
It's all history now, detailed in the book "Texada Tapestries." I walked through the center of "town" and only saw three moving cars. It looks like time stood still.
Bob Buell
07-14-2013, 09:49 PM
Skip..you should upgrade to the "big cat" in the 3rd pic, good for meeting chicks?? What the hell is that anyway??
Will check you out on google map in Sturt Bay...Capt Bob
sleddog
07-15-2013, 07:27 PM
A fairweather Monday, Texada Boating Club's guest docks emptied this morning. And the locals came out of the woodwork. I think I must have met another dozen boaters, all who live here on Texada Island, one lady who had been born here 60 years ago. Everyone has been exceedingly friendly. A diverse group.
Texada Boat Club is do-it-yourself, and everyone chips in. One member, Sean, was clearing the docks of floating logs that drift in on the high tide at 7 a.m. Toi, from Thailand, came down to trim the flowers in the flowerpots. Jean restocked the free library. Maggie monitors the VHF radio for incoming boats ....
Keith, the island mechanic, showed up. Nice guy, obviously competent and all business. Probable low speed jet clogged, a pin hole. Keith said he'd seen it many times before. All it takes is a little piece of dirt. This clog screws up the choke, and the engine floods with fuel
Keith has taken the carburator with him to his shop in Powell River, across Malaspina Strait, and will be returning tomorrow (Tuesday) on the 4 pm, ferry. If everything is good to go, I should be underway Wednesday morning, which may dove tail with a forecast of SE winds (tail wind).
It being a sunny and warm day, I dove the boat in 68 degree water. Bottom clean and fair.
Sleddog_sis
07-16-2013, 08:56 AM
Nice to hear about all this, Skip! I like the news of the locals, and of of course the flowerpot nearby you. All is well here. Bowie is watching dragonflies and the occasional hummingbird. Stay safe ~
L'il sis
sleddog
07-16-2013, 08:26 PM
A quiet night. I was not sure it would be. Two American boats arrived and tied up nearby. The nearest, a Catalina 42 from Monmouth, Oregon, got situated. It's skipper swayed down the dock to his buddy boat, a bottle of whiskey in hand. He'd left his main halyard slapping against the mast in an otherwise peaceful evening. And his VHF radio turned on, loud enough to hear. What sounded like rap music filled the cove. Out of place.
I put in my earplugs, retired to the bunk, and hoped for the best .....
I didn't find out until he left this morning that the turkey had left without paying his moorage bill. His significant other had locked herself in the stateroom, and the loud music and VHF radio were meant to cover up the argument. I guess she never did unlock and come out. He cast off by himself and motored away.
I went for an early row. To sketch the beautiful L. Francis Herreshoff 36' ketch GARGOYLE across the way. What was going to be a short row turned into a multi-hour adventure.
I rowed up the narrow lagoon called Ceasers Cove. Passing GARGOYLE, an Atkins Ingrid, a Tahiti ketch, and a pretty Frers Sr. ketch. At the head of the lagoon was a graded dirt ramp with a red steel sloop hauled out on a primitive railway. This "boatyard" is not KKMI.
Jacques, the owner of Joshua steel design, was eager to bend my ear about all the preventive measures he was taking to prevent electrolysis that had already pitted his hull. Zinc paint, aluminum anodes, pouring oil into the keel. I listened for 30 minutes, and excused myself.
I rowed past a beautiful blue 43 foot cruising sloop. Two Canadian women Sandy and Tina, had welded her up and built this stout looking vessel in the Alberta countyside, far from city politics. It took them 10 years. They set sail on their circumnavigation dream, got 300 miles, and decided ocean sailing wasn't for them. They are now liveaboard residents of Sturt Bay and exploring coastal waters.
http://www.thebigsailboatproject.com/
I rowed on to WINGS OF THE WIND, a Crealock 34 from Anacortes. John hadn't noticed his masthead tri-color was broken loose and about to fall off. I went up the mast and duct taped things back in place. 20 years of UV sun is the lifespan of a plastic running light lens before it cracks.
From the masthead of WINGS I could see a maze of channels and lagoons to the west. We rowed our dinghies to investigate ...traversing several mini reversing rapids. It looked like something out of African Queen. We found an historical scow that was once someone's home. Now abandoned, it needs a bit of work. The perfect "fixer upper."
Back at the boat, Keith the mechanic and I mounted the reconstituted carburetor. No luck. The outboard ran the same as before: not well. We need a new carburetor, which Keith will order tomorrow. How long shipping will take is unknown at this moment.
WILDFLOWER and I are not going anywhere for the near future. Sturt Bay is a good place to be. Clear warm water, friendly locals, and steady change of visiting boats coming and going.
sleddog
07-18-2013, 08:11 AM
A low pressure trough from the south came through Sturt Bay area last evening, giving a spectacular show. Full double rainbow, lightning, and tequila sunset. The locals said it was the best double rainbow in 50 years ...I take them at their word.
The wind shift from NW to SE provided some excitement in the anchorage. Several boats had their anchors snag on underwater obstructions as they tried to motor off a lee shore. One single-hander proved the mixed wisdom of buoying one's anchor in case of foul. John got his anchor up OK. But ran out of hands, and his anchor buoy line and float drifted aft, narrowly missing fouling the prop.
John is now at the dock. I helped him with his reefing procedures and jib trim technique. He had been told you can only roller furl the jib on one tack. Definitely not true.
I did a walking tour of the town of Van Anda. History is oozing. The director of the museum gave me a one hour personal tour. Mining was king. Gold, silver, copper, limestone. Texada Island remains the biggest producer of limestone on the West Coast.
Sturt Bay (Van Anda town) is about the size of Inverness. One hotel, one small market, the gas station is out of gas. This weekend is a fly-in at the local airport. "The Biggest Little Airshow in British Columbia." Ex-Snowbirds (Canadian Blue Angels) doing stunts in bi-planes. Should be interesting.
WILDFLOWER is here until at least next Tuesday. My mechanic has ordered the replacement carburetor. Even though it is a fairly common part (Tohatsu, Nissan), it has to come from Japan to Vancouver to Powell River to Texada. It is on "express delivery." But it takes four ferry crossings to get from Vancouver to Texada.
sleddog
07-20-2013, 08:16 AM
For a small harbor, a lot is going on at Sturt Bay: My neighbor, Bill, on the blue Bahama 24 OFFBEAT from Anacortes, is quartermaster on the Washington State ferry ELWHA. He reqularly steers ELWHA from Anacortes to Friday Harbor, and shared the perspective of being on her bridge while doing 17 knots, threading through the San Juan Islands amongst heavy small boat traffic.
Two lovely Bill Garden designed power yachts tied up nearby yesterday afternoon. HERSELF is from Sidney, BC. PUFFIN from Tacoma. I'd seen HERSELF last year, and fell in love with her lines. PUFFIN's mascot, Spencer, is a good size black cat with white markings, and came by WILDFLOWER last evening as he curiously checked out the fleet.
Nearby, Sydney (11) and Hudson (8) from Alberta, are spending July aboard their grandparent's 40' ketch LOUINA. Fishing, hiking, drawing, reading keep the grandkids busy. Yesterday we had rowing practice on WILDFLOWER's dinghy. They caught on right away.
In return, they took me to their favorite swimming hole, a nearby abandoned quarry that is filled with turquoise fresh water. We swam around, jumped off rocks, and kept cool. The Pacific NW is having an abnormally dry and warm year. Seattle/Tacoma airport is on track to break a 53 year old record. No measurable rain in the month of July.
sleddog
07-21-2013, 07:28 AM
This noon, the Fraser Blues flew overhead, in formation, with smoke trailing. They are in town for tomorrow's fly-in at Texada airport. Evidently there are 60 planes on the field, with people camping in tents and under wings. Tonight is a BBQ and dance. Tomorrow, the pancake breakfast, demonstrations, and the Fraser Blues performing. Imagine the opposite of the Blue Angels. The Fraser Blues are five WWII vintage planes, each of a different bright color (red, blue, green, yellow, and silver). Their air speed looked to be about 120. One of the Fraser Blue pilots is 75. And I don't think the others are much younger.
In conjunction with the Fly-In is a three day "aerospace camp" for kids 11-14. They get cockpit time in a small indoors trainer. Build cool shiny aluminum riveted tool trays. Practice rocketry. Learn about the theory and history of flight. It's all thanks to volunteer work by "Doby" Dobrinski and dedicated parents. I'm guessing about 15-20 kids. Tomorrow at the air show they will be presented with their "wings."
With the wharfinger's permission, I've moved WILDFLOWER out to the end of the dock. Not that I did not like being alongside HERSELF. But on my bow was the hospitality float with tent, and picnic tables. The evening drinking, smoking, and yarning was just too close for peace of mind. Out here it is almost private, quiet, with a cedar forest in the backyard. And the occasional curious harbor seal poking its head up.
Thus far I have not needed to be plugged into electrical power. The solar panels are taking care of business.
I had a shower, with three different temps to choose from: coiled hose water (warm), the bucket (warmer), and the solar shower (hot). Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap. Good to go.
One of my favorite books is called "River Horse" by Wm. Least Heat Moon, author of "Blue Highways." WLHM, who has no boating experience, but loves maps, dreams up the idea to cross the United States, from the Statue of Liberty in the Atlantic, to the Pacific at the mouth of the Columbia River, by boat. No one tries to dissuade him, because no one thought such a voyage possible.
"River Horse" is the story. NIKAWA is the name of his C-Dory 22, which means River Horse in Ogala Sioux.
Least Heat Moon has daily challenges that seem insurmountable. But he is focused. And his Quaker philosophy of "Proceed as the Way Opens" gives him the right temperament to not push against the impossible.
Proceed as the way opens. I think that is a good motto to live by when singlehanded sailing. Alongside tread lightly, do unto others, think small, Earth Island, and share the wealth......
Off to the airshow ......
Intermission
07-21-2013, 11:37 AM
Can't help but wondering if the carburetor replacement is partially due to an overindulgence in Monterey Bay seawater earlier this year...?
Sounds like a cool place to be "stuck" in though.
"Proceed as the Way Opens" sounds pretty good too.
H Spruit
07-21-2013, 06:55 PM
Agreed!
"Proceed as the Way Opens"
This base philosophy has always worked best for me!
A more aggressive approach has, at times, brought me a margin of success, but the fruits of that success has often been tainted.
I must look at the dunking of the carburetor in Monterey Bay as a result of not properly applying that philosophy.
And when I looked at the picture of the swimming hole, you posted, my first thought was; Why are you in a hurry to leave this place?
<H>
sleddog
07-22-2013, 07:23 AM
Today was the Texada Island Fly-In and Airshow. "Biggest little airshow in BC." Featured were the Fraser Blues, a team of WW II vintage L-17 Navions flying formations and crossings with smoke trails. On their initial pass, about 100' overhead, colors were presented and the crowd sang Oh, Canada.
It was fun sitting at the same picnic table, eating burgers with the Fraser Blue pilots. And listening to their stories. One of their compatriots, in a P-51 Hawker Sea Fury, had been the only one ever to shoot down a jet with a prop plane (Korean War.)
There were about 60 single engine planes at the Fly-In, many restored or home built. Pilots and families were camped in tents under the wings. Everyone was having a good time. Down the parking lot were antique cars, including a Buick with wood spoke wheels.
Two WW II vets, a Super Stearman bi-plane and a T-28 Trojan, capable of 37,000' and 340 knots, entertained the local crowd with flybys and a hammerhead.
The T-28 had quite a history. After Korea, being sold from the US Military to the French in 1959 where it was used in Algeria and Suez. Then the French sold it to the Moroccans who had it until 1976, when it was sold to the Honduran military.
Dominating the field was the yellow, two engined, De Haviland “Buffalo,” flown by the Royal Canadian Air Force Search and Rescue Team. The Buffalo, built in 1960, is the backbone of Canadian SAR. 50 were built, about 10 still exist, and the Canadian RCAF SAR own six, of which three are flying missions. The 50 year old Buffalo is unpressurized. The crew use oxygen when they go high. They do not use night vision goggles, trusting instead to their eyes adapting to the darkness. The cockpit instruments are mostly analog.
The Buffalo was fully equipped for mountain and offshore search and rescue. They could drop flares, pumps, liferafts, even parachute medic first respnders. I talked with the Buffalo's navigator, a young woman, and came away impressed. It was her job in mountainous terrain to make sure the plane maintained a 1.5 mile turning radius between mountain peaks, even in cloudy conditions. Until recently, there was no GPS chart plotter onboard the Buffalo.
In the Yukon, in Northern Canada, on missions where GPS failure could mean loss of the plane, the navigator explained she takes backup three star celestial fixes with the bubble sextant fixed into the airplane roof.
The afternoon concluded at the Texada Air Show when the Buffalo went to 13,000' and dropped the two SAR Techs. They free fell for about 8,000' before pulling their pink chutes and landed on the grass in front of the appreciative crowd. They wrapped up their chutes. The Buffalo landed to pick up them up. And they were off on their next mission.
Congrats to DORADE, just winning overall the Transpac Race (Los Angeles to Honolulu) 77 years after she won it the first time, in 1936. Quite a wonderful feat for an old woodie. DORADE just nudged her rival, the Lapworth 50 WESTWARD, with three generations of the Bell family aboard that 1962 classic.
Santana20Vixen
07-22-2013, 12:01 PM
Oh my here is some flash back memories - I got into trouble making the same tool box as a little girl. My Grandpa was proud. My mother, not so much, with the quote "what is wrong with you? - girls don't make tool boxes!" And so has gone my life... but I had fun and loved my Grandpa's for giving me those skills and memories. I'm glad small communities are still doing such great things for kids.
Santana20Vixen
07-22-2013, 12:07 PM
I concur with Howard! "Proceed as the Way Opens" - I have been humbled many times and have gone back to my version of "In the right way, order, and time - for me and other's".... However, "Proceed as the Way Opens"... seems to resonate with brevity. I can just settle with that for awhile.
And I also concur - Great place to explore the depth and breadth of a place.
~R
Merging the girls-with-toolboxes and air show comments . . .
As the "lights" slowly dim for my Mom (with dementia), one of the things she tells the other residents at Merrill Gardens (over and over) is how her father made sure she had her own tool box by the time she was five. This set the tone for her adult life - as posted earlier in this thread, Mom not only sailed but had her pilot's license and was certified to do aerobatics. As a child, and at her mother's (and grandmother's) insistence, she was also a very accomplished concert pianist and could sew and crochet with precision. Skip's description of the airshow brought back a memory related to all that.
I posted way back in this thread about Ernie Barter and the submarine he gave me. Ernie was a United Airlines pilot and owned a Stinson Reliant, a large, gull-winged tail-dragger with rotary engine. We had our Piper Super Cruiser. So one of things we did when I was a kid was go to the local air shows.
With the big Modesto fly-in coming up, Mom got the grand idea that we should all arrive in matching Hawaiian style shirts, in her favorite color (red) and with airplanes all over them. A trip to several local fabric stores finally yielded the desired material and the project was underway. Ernie and his wife were chums about the whole thing - me and my sisters less so - but arrive we did in our red shirts. There used to be pictures but something happened to them.
Okay, that brought another one to mind (sorry Skip).
When I was in Jr. High they still had shop classes. One year the wood shop teacher built an El Toro but didn't know how to sail, so I helped with the maiden voyage. When the mainsheet came untied we ended up plastered up against one of the CG cutters at Government Island. If you did that today you'd probably get shot, but I digress - the story I wanted to tell was about when my Mom took up knitting.
When Mom started something new she went all-out, and this time it was my Dad who had to be the chum. She knitted him a matching sweater, gloves, and even a beanie hat with a pom-pom - I kid you not - in kind of a light brownish, tannish color. One day around that time I forgot my lunch and Dad brought it to me during shop class. With all of us arranged around our work benches, my Dad walked in wearing the full garb. Remember, these were Jr. High kids - it was mass hysteria.
sleddog
07-23-2013, 08:24 AM
Thank you all for posting. I love stories and have been collecting them for years. These go into my logbook, which now number 22, 300 pages each. Do not be bashful about writing and posting here. Thank you, Bob, Renee, Capt. Bob, SK, Howard, SleddogSis and everyone!
Congrats to Renee on winning her first ever race on Lake Tahoe on Sunday with the restored Express 27 PHOENIX. Her finishes were 2-1-2. As some of you may know, under a previous owner, PHOENIX dropped from the Brickyard Cove hoist, "totaling" the boat. Renee has been instrumental in her resurrection. Go Girl!
The water under WILDFLOWER at the Texada Boat Club dock is 60 feet deep. Yesterday was a big tide, with over 14' between high and low. Very clear waters with about 20 feet viz and 73 degree temp at 3' depth. I've been sounding the Bay with lead line. Found an apparent abandoned boat near my position. Noted on chart not to anchor in that vicinity.
On a technical note, best guess is the outboard's dunking did not do the carburetor any favors. After $500, the engine shop swore it was good to go last April. The OB did run for a month, 50 hours, and 200 miles before failing. Bad fuel, whether Ethanol or the Nanaimo Fuel dock, are also possible culprits. Fuel in Pacific NW islands is delivered by truck and barge over bumpy roads and seas, and fuel hoses often go underwater..... I'll never know. But carrying a spare “get me home” outboard is now under consideration. It did make me feel better when one of the Fraser Blues couldn't get his airplane engine started yesterday at the Airshow.
Rowing and hiking have been my exercises of choice. Each evening at sunset I row a mile loop in WILDFLOWER's Avon Redcrest inflatable. With the one piece, 6' oars, stout oar locks, and a simple athwartships rope foot brace, I can average 2.9 knots for 20 minutes in the Redcrest inflatable.
It's too bad rowing is in the minority. The boat dinghies built these days are mostly designed for outboard motors. Rowing is an afterthought, and the cheesy aluminum oars and the cheapo oar attachments are a disgrace on dinghies that cost several thousand dollars, or more. I think kids should be taught to row, and the value of a quiet anchorage, as opposed to speeding around in a whining outboard at a high rate of speed, disrupting wildlife. My 2 cents.
Harrier
07-23-2013, 11:54 AM
Hey Bob. Stinson Reliant (the first plane I ever flew in) has a "radial engine", Not "rotary engine". There's a big difference. Some WWI fighters (esp French) had rotary engines. Prop was fixed to the engine and the whole shebang rotated...plenty of torque for turns in the right direction, that's for sure!
Hi Ken - yep, it's been enough years ago to flub that detail. Here's that radial engine:
http://www.grubby-fingers-aircraft-illustration.com/images/stinson-30-grubby-med.jpg
Libations Too
07-23-2013, 08:26 PM
Skip, your commentary on using the Redcrest rekindled some memories. A few years back when in the Channel Islands I used my Redcrest as a tool for anchoring and exploring. I can report that on this same cruise I had the misfortune of meeting the nautical equivalent of the Lone Outdoorsman. (For those who do not remember the Whole Earth Catalog, the Lone Outdoorsman was introduced to the world in a little novella that was printed in the bottom corner of each page of the Catalog. He was a guy who carried a small cannon as a side arm and had a strong dislike for Hippies; he “camped” with an RV fully equipped with generator, TV, dirt bike, etc.)
I met the nautical version of the Lone Outdoorsman one evening while at anchor in Pelican Bay at Santa Cruz Island. He arrived in a power boat with outriggers for stabilizers, diving gear strewn about the deck, and had a dinghy racing around the anchorage even before his anchor had touched bottom. He anchored tight against the cliff wall and about 10 minutes after he had dumped anchor and chain into a pile on the bay floor the breeze shifted and the skipper and crew were scrambling to keep the boat off the cliff face. After buoying their anchor, retreating to open water, sending the dinghy in to fetch the deserted anchor, and regrouping they proceeded to anchor directly upwind from Libations and over my anchors. Dodging the outriggers that gave his boat an effective 50-foot beam, I rowed my little Redcrest over to note my intent to leave about mid morning and advised that I may need to ask that the boat be moved if I couldn't get to my anchors...the response was one of scathing incredulity.
Next morning when I was ready to leave, the Lone Outdoorsman was still on top of my anchors. My solution was to retrieve one of my two bow anchors with my Redcrest and row it to windward to serve as a kedge. When I was in the process of retrieving my second bow anchor the powerboat came to life, raised anchor, and motored away.
sleddog
07-24-2013, 06:49 AM
WILDFLOWER's position at Sturt Bay, Texada Island, is 49-45.601 N x 124-33.861 W. I doubt this will show up on any Google Earth, as it appears time stands still here, and I've sailed into Middle Earth, a time warp, a black hole, or Alice's Wonderland. Take your pick.
Mostly it is all quite wonderful. The harbor master has a 17 year old pot belly pig, “Binky.” I regularly see more deer on Main St. than cars. As a going away present, the kids on LOUTINA brought me a fossil moon snail found on the local beach. Sydney and Hudson have been the highlight of my stay here. They left this morning to return to their home in Alberta.
Occasionally a splash of reality reminds me where I am. This afternoon it was a 46' Bayliner attempting to tie up. The driver apparently mixed up his twin engine shift and throttle, and nearly pulled his wife off the dock before she let go. I lept onto the Cheoy Lee 32 CATS PAW to defend his bowsprit before quickly deciding discretion was the better part of valor. Somehow, contact was avoided, which was not the case when another out of control boat rammed HERSELF, splintering the freshly varnished mahogany cap rail.
Keith, my mechanic, showed up this morning to fix BLUE NOTE's Yanmar 3GM oil leak. Reminder to traveling Yanmar owners: carry a spare gasket for your fuel/primer pump, as well as gasket material. Yanmar parts can only be bought from a Yanmar dealer. The closest one to Sturt Bay is somewhere south of here. Vancouver, Canada, is eight hours by car, including three ferry rides.
Keith had news for me which I am not sure is good or bad. The good news is the carburetor for my 6 hp, hand start, Tohatsu (Nissan) outboard has been shipped from the Texas parts warehouse. The bad news is, after being ordered 8 days ago, it wasn't shipped until today The good news is it may arrive, possibly Friday.
In a Wonderland moment that left me scratching my head, I asked Keith if my engine part would be subjected to customs clearance. He said “Toshiba parts don't have customs clearance.” It will be interesting to see if I receive a carburetor or hard drive.
At sunset I rowed out through the anchored fleet of a dozen boats. ZULU, an ancient gaffer, was there. Steve and Janet on the Dragonfly 1000 trimaran FLEXIBLE FLYER invited me aboard. I met their crew of two cats, “Thomas,” and the Showshoe “Frankie.” Apparently Frankie gets seasick, and FLYER was running out of kitty litter.
Santana20Vixen
07-24-2013, 08:03 AM
WOW- What gifts does the universe hold for you? "Proceed as the way opens"
That can be hard when you plan to be elsewhere. So what are you to see that you possibly might not?
Naw - that's all fishy wonky stuff - you are caught in boat part neverland. Sorry Skip. However, just in case it might help, I'll sacrifice a chicken on your behalf to clear the bad boat part distribution spirits.
Be well, keep looking with wonder and "Proceed as the way opens"
Renee
H Spruit
07-25-2013, 07:18 AM
I must paraphrase Joshua Slokum where he points out that a successful navigator does not go to a planed destination but can only go TOWARD it.
That is how, proceeding as the path opens, worked for him.
I remember that Coach Walsh, and Joe Montana made big success by taking what the competition gave them.
It seems to me that to have success at this philosophy one must be able to identify what is being given!
<H>
sleddog
07-25-2013, 08:02 AM
An advantage of being holed in a pretty place like Sturt Bay is the fleet comes to you. In yesterday's roll call, a humpback whale was sighted breaching outside the cove, and apparently has been hanging around.
I caught a ride with my mechanic to the other side of Texada (West side), a place I had wanted to see. Shelter Point park is about 8 miles, past the little village of Gillies Bay. Shelter Point is a pretty place with old growth cedar, two white sand beaches, camping sites, and archeology history dating back 7,000 years. My mechanic's step daughter is doing the archeological digging and mapping. She has apparently found significant middens, bones, and evidence of a village on Shelter Point. Not surprising, given its location, and view west onto the Straits of Georgia and Vancouver Island.
I bought Keith lunch at the little burger stand, and enjoyed hearing about his life on Texada. After lunch we visited their modest home in Gillies Bay, and sat on the porch watching hummers. The cat from next door came by and lay at our feet while Keith cut out water pump gaskets for a disabled powerboat.
We drove back to Van Anda and I got dropped off at the credit union to get some cash. The three bank ladies wanted to hear about sailing to New Zealand. When doing business at the credit union, you sit in a comfortable chair. Outside, I was offered a ride back down to the Harbor. The gentleman had a small bird cage with bird seed on the front seat. I asked him about it and he said his friend had spotted an escapee budgee. They had hung the bird cage in the nearby tree and were able to catch the bird when it came in to eat. The parakeet was then taken to Miss Frieda, 95, who takes in rescue birds.
After a shower and dinner of red beans and rice with yoghurt and slices of orange pepper, I rowed up the lagoon. It was a 15.6' high tide and the maze of channels led way back, maybe half a mile, out of sight of any boats. Like rowing through the forest, the high tide lapping the bottom boughs of the cedars and the setting sun highliting their tops. I stopped to listen, and could hear only an invisible stream.
Back outside the lagoon a flying bridge powerboat was anchored. He was all buttoned up, generator echoing off the cliffs, with the crew below watching their big screen TV.
My view across the Malaspina Straits takes in the seven peaks of Marlborough Heights guarding Jervis Inlet and Princess Louisa. Quite spectacular and pointy, with snow capped tops, Marlborough Heights reaches to nearly 6,000'. They are so steep that when you approach their vertical rock walls at one boat length, there is no bottom to be found on the depth sounder.
Howard is correct. When you voyage on a small boat, you voyage "toward," not "to." My friends, Rob and Laurie, at Surge Narrows, 40 miles north, are building a 20 foot catamaran. Their neighbor, Josh and Johanna, are building a 44 foot catamaran. All off the grid of course. See page 13 of my previous post.
I had hoped to see them again this summer. Except at slack water, the currents at narrow Beazley Pass at Surge Narrows run fast with rapids. I won't be approaching without a working motor. Maybe tomorrow the carburetor arrives. And maybe not.
Harrier
07-25-2013, 09:10 AM
Bob: Of course it is. I'm just a picky aviation historian. The owner of that Stinson sure has a clean engine! The one I flew in (age 6 0r 7) was red. I guess this one is red and white. Considered a "classic", along with a number of neat airplanes from the 30's....so called "sport plane era" to some. Several of such, eg Ryan ST and Stearman bi plane, went on to become trainers in the war. Another classic of the era was the DC-3, in another category, of course...and still flying commercially hither and thither.
As for the "rotary" engine (not the Wankel Mazda car engine),, I have never quite figured out how it came to be. Seems as if it popped up out of no where. Most planes before WWI seem to have had fixed engines driving props either directly or via chains (ala Wright Flyer). Any ideas? I imagine Google would know.....
Yep, Google knew: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotary_engine They even explain why flying airplanes with rotary engines gave pilots the runs!
Ernie's Stinson Reliant was dark red, which seemed to be a popular color for them - like mustard yellow for Santa Cruz 27's I guess.
Before he met my Mom (in the early 50's) my Dad had a Great Lakes. I thought I'd Google those and low and behold, they just came out with a new model:
http://www.wacoaircraft.com/great-lakes
Only $245,000 before options!
.
Sleddog_sis
07-26-2013, 07:49 AM
. . . The cat from next door came by and lay at our feet while Keith cut out water pump gaskets . . .
It was a 15.6' high tide and the maze of channels led way back, maybe half a mile, out of sight of any boats. Like rowing through the forest, the high tide lapping the bottom boughs of the cedars and the setting sun highliting their tops. I stopped to listen, and could hear only an invisible stream. . .
Howard is correct. When you voyage on a small boat, you voyage "toward," not "to." My friends, Rob and Laurie, at Surge Narrows, 40 miles north, are building a 20 foot catamaran. Their neighbor, Josh and Johanna, are building a 44 foot catamaran. All off the grid of course. See page 13 of my previous post.
How beautiful Skip!! I'm glad you are really enjoying the people, the rows, the cats and birds. I'm rowing right with ya.
We are home from the mountain lakes and peaks (and cuzzins). Kitties are great, kids are happy on their travels. You take care and keep doing exactly what you are doing. Fingers crossed for engine part arrival and functioning.
L'il Sis
knotbum
07-27-2013, 07:24 AM
Beautiful planes but an awfully small rudder that was ineffective as the tail settled down on landing (tail dragger). Had a bad habit of rounding up on ya.
mark
sleddog
07-27-2013, 08:44 AM
7/27/13
With a substantial library aboard, I have yet to complete a book. Too much action, even tied to a dock Yesterday I was diving under the wharfinger's Rawson 30, cleaning the barnacles off his prop and securing a loose collar zinc.
I surfaced to hear a crash and a cry. Pulling myself up on the dock, I doffed my fins, and raced to the adjacent dock. A double-handed Hunter 42, with considerable free board, had come in for a landing and the wife had fallen off the boat, landing on her ribs on the dock railing. She was in considerable pain and shock. After a while she rallied and was able to get below.
The nearest medical facilities are considerable distance, a ferry ride to Powell River.
Rib injuries can be excruciatingly painful. A reminder that docking a boat is often the most dangerous part of sailing.
Today I rose early to hitch to the Texada to Powell River ferry. It's six miles by road to the Blubber Bay landing. Blubber Bay. once a whale flensing site, was apparently where Capt. Cook made first contact with the local Tla' Amin people.
The Texada ferry is a medium sized, car carrying, catamaran. In Malaspina Straits it was blowing 25 and the ferry was rolling. At Powell River we had to heave to, and wait for the Comox ferry to depart.
Once ashore in Powell River, about the size of Sausalito, I hoofed a mile up the hill to the “mall” supermarket for provisions.
Then I set off in search for word of my new carburetor. After some false starts I located Guy's Cycle Works, the local Tohatsu/Suzuki dealer. Catherine at the front desk was most helpful, and confirmed the part had been shipped Tuesday from Texas, Hopefully it will be here early next week. I now have her phone number, and will be able to check status daily.
The ferry ride from Powell River back to Texada is about the same distance as from Sausalito to San Francisco. With unlimited visibility I could see 40 miles, up into my destination, the waters of Desolation Sound. It looked like a fire burning above Lund, at road's (Highway 1) end.
Back at WILDFLOWER the strong NW winds continue and Sturt Bay anchorage has filled with boats seeking shelter. The Coast Guard is broadcasting a Securite' that a log boom under tow has come apart in the vicinty. Apparently many dozen large logs are on the loose. http://texada.org/texada-boat-club/
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