Single Handed Farallons

[AlanH]

I remember my first SHF, which was probably around 1998. It's quite a feeling to get to the other side and realize that there's nothing between you and Japan, but water.

I would suggest taking your first one easy, unless it's a very light day. Set your boat up so that if you have to shorten sail, you can do it by reefing rather than a headsail change. If you don't set a spinnaker on the way back you will still bomb home at a good clip if it's anything like a typical year. If it's "Pretty Windy" then there's something to be said for setting the spinnaker while still in the lee of the island. I rounded the islands fairly close to Jim Fair several times. Jim always set early, usually in the lee of the island. Yeah, sure he headed for Ocean Beach for the first hour and a half but he was always trucking along and by the time he got between the Lightbucket and the entrance channel, he'd usually be headed right down the pipe towards home. I stared at Jims shocking pink spinnaker a bunch of times while I dithered with setting. I'd round the island within a hundred yards and he'd beat me home by 40 minutes.

Your goal for SHF #1 is to get there and get back with a smile on your face. All the regular stuff about jacklines and so on, still apply. Now there are big equipment requirements so review them and comply.

[EvanLyons]

Is it possible to spend the night before and/or after the race at the GGYC dock? Are there other nearby options available? If I have to sail all the way back to the South Bay, its going to make for a very long day.

[Lightspeed]

Evan, the answer is yes both before the race and also we have had some pull in after the finish and spent the night. Check the GGYC website for contact....R

[EvanLyons]

Awesome, thanks!

[Gamayun]

https://www.latitude38.com/Lectronic...r18/Apr18.html

Whoa. Now this is why I still don't like spinnakers

[Philpott]

Whoa. Now this is why I still don't like spinnakers

Now, Bob, why are you scaring the other kids like that (and that IS a scary story)?

[BobJ]

I'm not sure it was me. Somewhere in that old thread was a reference to Dan's FAST FORWARD, and Lanikai asked what happened to her - I just supplied the link.

Since we're on the subject, FAST FORWARD is a good example of why calculated stability indices (STIX) are not reliable indicators of boat stability. There is a movement toward requiring them for ocean races. For example, if NorCalORC didn't delete the requirement every year, we would all need to have a boat with a calculated STIX of 103 to be able to do our coastal races, and much higher for offshore races. This is a bad use of data and would eliminate many of our most popular local designs from ocean racing. Unless you perform hydrostatic tests, you don't know how well a boat will right itself.

FAST FORWARD was a 38 footer with a deep bulb keel and would have met a calculated STIX threshold, but Dan (who is/was a safety engineer by profession) believed its wide beam aft and cockpit layout prevented it from righting itself. It floated, on its side, most of the way back from SE Farallon before it fetched up on the rocks north of Pt. Bonita. I was in his division in that race.
.

[Gamayun]

It floated, on its side, most of the way back from SE Farallon before it fetched up on the rocks north of Pt. Bonita. I was in his division in that race.

At some point, an anchor might have made sense, at least to slow the momentum. This is also why I carry a sturdy anchor on the bow....cruzer stigma be danged

[BobJ]

His anchor (a typical Danforth-type) was deployed. He was drifting so fast that the anchor merely skipped along on the surface.

This is one of the reasons I bought a Burke drogue (the "Kraken" in the e-rudder thread). A drogue might have slowed the boat enough for the anchor to grab.

[jamottep]

His anchor (a typical Danforth-type) was deployed. He was drifting so fast that the anchor merely skipped along on the surface.

This is one of the reasons I bought a Burke drogue (the "Kraken" in the e-rudder thread). A drogue might have slowed the boat enough for the anchor to grab.

Has anyone used drogues with an ULDB, in particular an Olson 30?