New Boat 4 Sled

[pogen]

To enter yesterday's Doublehanded Farallones Race, racers were required to have read or viewed the following materials:

[...]

Cal 20 "Can 'O Whoopass" will finish next Tuesday but has already corrected out to first in its division.

I hear ya Bob. The DHF SIs are stupifyingly bad.

And honestly, if I ever get to be race chair, I'm going to make sure there is a Division defined as "PHRF <= 273, >= 273".

I did notice as we rounded in close company with RedSky and Whirlwind the most everybody was rounding the Island with a more respectful distance than in years past. I've always been scared of those waves, this year I had more company.

[sleddog]

I have the unenviable perspective of looking at these offshore regulations through the eyes of one who attempts to decipher the Internal Revenue Code. There are many similarities, few of the rules are based on logic or common sense and both sets appear to be designed to stifle growth and redistribute money.

LongPac Minimum Equipment Requirements 3.13 (LPMER)

In the first Singlehanded Transpac in 1978, WILDFLOWER towed a Walker Taffrail Log. These mechanical devices have been around since forever, 1688 to be exact. By means of a spinner rotating astern, my Walker Log would accurately measure distance through the water. I would crawl aft every four hours and record the Walker Log reading in nautical miles run and used this distance to chart a Dead Reckoning position between celestial fixes. No electronic navigation in those days worked between the Mainland and Hanalei.

WILDFLOWER's Walker Taffrail log spun merrily until Day 9, when a fish took the third and last of the spare spinners. By then I had learned to estimate my hourly average speed to 1/2 knot.

Those days are long gone. Walker Logs are now an antique rarity, sometimes listed on E-Bay.

SSS LongPackers are required to carry at least two GPS. A third may be used for AIS positioning. No worries. With a GPS, accurate positioning, speed, and distance run can be readily viewed with amazing precision.

If such information is available from the multiple GPS, why is there Rule 3.13, "A boat shall have a knotmeter and/or distance measuring device?"

A GPS gives you speed and distance over ground just fine. Doesn't that qualify as a knotmeter and distance measuring device? Apparently not, or LPMER wouldn't have Rule 3.13.

It is lovely having a means to measure speed or distance through the water with an expensive electronic knot meter. That way, compared to the GPS speed, one can measure current. But are expensive and fragile electronic knotmeters really necessary as a safety requirement offshore?

Whenever possible, I always avoid thruhulls. Knotmeter paddlewheels poking out from forward of the keel are prone to breakage of the plastic vanes. They quickly accumulate accuracy degrading marine growth. And spurt a gallon of water into the forepeak whenever extracted for cleaning or repair.

I've even seen a B&G knotmeter thruhull punched into the boat when falling off a steep wave. When was the last time anyone's knotmeter was calibrated in zero current, assuming you could find a measured mile and flat calm?

There's a reason we call electronic knotmeters "Thrill Meters."

My hesitancy to put another hole in the bottom of my boat, as per rule 3.13, met its test in 1998. Pacific Cup Safety Inspector Chuck Hawley came aboard and performed our inspection. As many already know, Chuck is a stickler for rule compliance.

When we got to demonstrating WILDFLOWER's electronic knotmeter/speed measuring device, something we didn't have, I pulled out an orange. It was pre-labeled "Speed Measuring Device" Chuck's eyes rolled. He knew what was coming. The instructions, also printed on the orange, were simple: "Peel orange. Toss orange peel off bow and start stopwatch. Record time as orange peel passes stern. Speed in Knots = .6 x Boat Length in Feet/Time in Seconds." (S=.6 L/T)

Chuck Hawley admitted he had learned this trick as a kid. And so had I. The Rule requiring "a speed measuring device" was met, and I peeled the knotmeter orange and shared it with Chuck.

[DaveH]

that is beautiful Skip.
was just dialoging with chucks sister Kate re the state of theatre in the 'cruz.
longer story there... but kind of in the same spirit. some times no tech is better that high tech.
different context, same theme

Best
DH

[Harrier]

Harrier carries a well worn Walker log buried below along with a lot of other spares. Used thruout the south pacific when "sextant voyaging" in "Rival II" in the 70's.

[chautauqua]

Skip, We used a taffrail log very similar on our passages in CHAUTAUQUA, the same log my father relied on while cruising RENEGADEin the 50's. The best part of it was how well it trained human senses to reckon speed of the hull by just looking and feeling the water streaming by. There was something about the constant checking of that wonderful old mechanical dial, a recognition that you were accomplishing making good through the water... that electrical devices do not impart to me. Knowing that the spinner might be snagged on passing debris made for great appreciation of every accurate reading, and certainly kept the watch amused. It took longer than it should have to learn not to put out the fish trolling line at the same time. You could only get away with it until a fish was caught. Bonita seldom cooperated by swimming clear of the spinner while being reeled in.
I have found orange peels also tell the current very well when you are caught in light air... or when you need to reveal if the tide has turned from slack.

[sleddog]

Sometimes we are blessed to witness miracles. This morning at about 6:40 a.m., near the West End of Catalina, an Easter eaglet hatched. Mom (#91) and Dad have been alternating on the egg for about 40 days.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnBVLVqzPwM

The West End nest cam is live, 24/7, about 300 feet up a cliff. http://www.ustream.tv/west-end-cam

Another hatching is expected soon, at the Two Harbors nest, about 8 miles East of the West End nest. http://www.ustream.tv/two-harbors-cam

[chautauqua]

Very near me in Pine Mountain Lake ....an Eagle was seen and captured on camera yesterday by a resident. Amazing regal presence whenever seen.

Here are six photos:
[/B][/B]http://blog.sfgate.com/stienstra/201...6-pic-gallery/

[sleddog]

By forklift, crane, trailer, garbage can, or on his back, Dave Wahle enjoys the challenge of moving heavy things. Before WILDFLOWER's first voyage to the South Pacific, I needed to raise WF's disappearing waterline, With the boat on the hard, I recruited Dave, chalked a line on the keel, and Dave and his chainsaw quickly dropped several hundred pounds of lead onto the tarmac. A small crowd gathered. “What are you doing, Dave?” someone asked. Without hesitation, Dave replied, “Skip's going cruising, gotta raise some money and sell some lead.”

Dave is intimately familiar with molten lead keels, having poured dozens over a long boat building career. The smallest were the Santa Cruz 27 keels, a drop in the bucket compared to MERLIN and RAGE's keels, which Dave also poured. The biggest were ten 20 ton “top secret” keel bulbs Dave and Doug Brouwer poured for various America's Cup syndicates. Famously, a trucker delivered one of their keel bulbs to the wrong America's Cup syndicate headquarters in San Diego. Equally famously, Dennis Connors accepted the keel bulb, and got all its secret measurements before calling the owner and saying, “Hey Bill, we might have one of your keels over here.”

Santa Cruz in the 70's, 80's, and early 90's was the center of the universe for ultra light boat building. Today, because of property values, wages, environmental regs, and because people just got tired, Dave Wahle is the last boat builder in Santa Cruz County still standing. Dave builds Wyliecats in Watsonville near the banks of the Pajaro River. His current project is a Wyliecat 40 “workboat” for Clean Ocean projects.

Dave began building boats at an early age, helping his father build a 13' Blue Jay. Later, Dave worked to go surfing and sailing. In 1962 Dave was temporarily suspended from Palo Alto High School for flipping bottlecaps, and took the time off to come to Santa Cruz to surf. After the Blue Jay, Dave and Chris Boome raced Finns, and double trailed their boats to S. Cal and New Orleans.

To support his sailing and surfing hobbies, Dave got a job packing garbage and was my garbage man for over 25 years. Dave liked the early hours, and would run down the street from can to can. His garbage truck was always the first to finish the route, the better for Dave to go catch the waves. I would ask Dave, “How's work?” His reply was invariably “picking up!”

In the early 1970's, Dave teamed up with Tom Wylie and built the 31' MOONSHADOW, one of the premier and legendary race boats on SF Bay. While packing garbage, Dave also freelanced for Bill Lee Yachts, George Olson and C&B Marine. Dave's strength and waterman abilities were much valued on race boats. Once in his enthusiasm Dave bent double a bronze winch handle. Commodore Tompkins became Dave Wahle's mentor and they did many yacht deliveries together. To this day, Dave calls Commodore “Coach.”

During the 70's, Dave and I teamed up to climb many of Yosemite's classic rock climbs. Again, Dave's strength, no nonsense approach, and rope skills helped to get us up and down safely.

In 1981, because of his garbage man occupation, Dave was black balled for membership in the Santa Cruz Yacht Club. Ironically, in the 90's, after being accepted for membership, Dave headed up the SCYC Junior Sailing Program and brought it to a high level, producing such outstanding sailors as Morgan Larson and Dave Shelton. During this time, Dave was a one man race committee and regatta manager and also ran local SCYC races including 505, Lasers, and SCORE regattas. He was famous for his short starting lines, something I mentioned once. His response was typical:, “Get over it, Skip.”

Dave Wahle and I raced many thousands of ocean racing miles together. Sometimes we would disagree. Wordlessly, we would pull out our fists, and play Rochambeau (Paper, Rock, Scissors.) Best two out of three got to decide our course of action.

Having Dave Wahle as a long time friend, sailing and climbing partner has been a blessing in my life. With Dave, you know things will get done, and done right.

We were short tacking MERLIN up the City Front in the 1981 Big Boat Series. On a tack, the leech line for the #3 jib hung up on the spinnaker pole mast fitting, threatening to rip the jib from clew to head. No one realized what happened next, because it happened so fast. Dave Wahle reached in his pocket, whipped out his switchblade knife, cut the tangled leech cord, and the tack was completed without incident.

If you haven't met Dave Wahle, come on down to Santa Cruz and I will introduce you to one of the best and most generous sailors I know.

[Dazzler]

Sled,
Isn't there another great Dave W. switchblade story? Something to do with the SORC and East Coast preppies...

Tom

[sleddog]

Sled,
Isn't there another great Dave W. switchblade story? Something to do with the SORC and East Coast preppies...
Tom

Good recall, DAZZLER.

It was one of the East Coast meets Left Coast moments. 1971 SORC, St. Pete YC. IMPROBABLE and crew were neighbors with Dick Nye's CARINA from Greenwich, CT.

Both crews had on their "uniforms" that day. CARINA's crew, mostly from Brown University, were attired in the button down, embroidered crew shirts, Breton Red slacks, and sockless Topsider mocs, still fashionable today.

IMPROBABLE's crew were different. Pony tails, tie-dyed Easy Rider T-shirts, paint splattered Levis, wool socks and Birkenstocks.

So Dave Wahle and Steve Taft walk next door for a Looky-Loo of the competition for a berth on the Admiral's Cup Team. One of CARINA's crew is wrestling with something that needed a sharp knife. He glances up, and asks Dave, "Can I borrow your KA-BAR?"

Back then, a KA-BAR was the Cadillac of rigging knives, made in New York, and of such high quality it was issued to all Marines during WWII.

Dave Wahle didn't carry a KA-BAR. It was one of those accoutrements you wore in a leather holster on your macrame belt. Dave doesn't do macrame belts. But Dave didn't hesitate for a moment. He pulls out his switchblade and says to the Kid, "Will this do?"

The CARINA Kid takes the switchblade from Dave, and is about to open it the wrong direction. Dave says, "No, no, like this" and punches the button, causing the 4" blade to spring open. The CARINA Kid's eyes, and his friends, who were watching the exchange, got real big.

All in an IMPROBABLE day.