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August 11 - Oracle Racing
| Perhaps it's noteworthy that the first
'official' announcement that Larry Ellison will be going after
the America's Cup comes not at a gaudy press conference, but
quietly appears at an 'under construction' site on the Internet.
www.oracleracing.com
starts out with the statement: "Winning the America's Cup
requires a team effort - no individual can do it alone. Oracle
Racing Inc. is assembling a strong organization to create a winning
team. Meet the people who are committed to making this challenge
a winner." It then lists the management team as being Bill
Erkelens, Chief Operating Officer; Paul Cayard, Afterguard; Robert
Billingham, Operations Manager; John Cutler, Sail Team Manager;
Chris Perkins, Chief Financial Officer. Most of this crew are
veterans of the AmericaOne syndicate, although John Cutler was
the helmsman for Dawn Riley's America True syndicate. In addition, Farr Yachts will be in charge of boat design while Mickey Ickart will lead the sail design. As for the sailing team, only one member has been announced: Kiwi Chris Dickson at the helm. There is no mention of the St. Francis YC, but it's almost certain the challenge will be under the club's burgee. |
 Larry Ellison Aboard 'Sayonara' Photo by Daniel Forster Courtesy Oracle Racing Bottom line? Northern California is going to make a run at the America's Cup like we've never had before, it will be stylish, and money - for once - will be no object. It will also be lead by Ellison, a man who is more than just determined not to be anything but first. This is going to be fun! |
Weather UpdatesAugust 11 - Pacific Ocean San Francisco Bay WeatherTo see what the winds are like on the Bay right now, check out http://sfports.wr.usgs.gov/wind/. Looks like it's going to be a great sailing weekend. California Coast WeatherLooking for current as well as recent wind and sea readings
from 17 buoys and stations between Pt. Arena and the Mexican
border? Here's the place - which has further links to weather
buoys and stations all over the U.S. Pacific Ocean WeatherCheck out the weather map at right. |
 University of Hawaii Meteorology Graphic |
Seas are relatively normal in the North Pacific.
Have a look at http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/RSSA/PacRegSSA.html.
For another view, see http://www.oceanweather.com/data/global.html.
Storms are dying and building in the Northeast Pacific well
off the coast of Mexico. Former Hurricane Gilma is down to 25
knots and virtually broken up, but Depression 10E looks to be
heading for Tropical Storm status soon.
In the Atlantic, Alberto is still at hurricane strength, but in
the process of making almost a 180 degree turn back toward the
Med! Depression Four, which was off Florida with 20 knot winds,
is dying rather than building, and heading north.
See http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/atlantic/2000/index.html
and http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/e_pacific/2000/index.html
for more.
 Tropical Depression Ten-E off Mexico |
 Tropical Depression Four (left) and Hurricane Alberto |
August 11 - Caribbean
Devan Mullins of Newport Beach provided us with a couple of nice cruising shots. The first is of Cayos Cochinos, a little set of islands about 10 miles off the coast of Honduras. "The shot was taken from a light tower on top of the island and it looks this way for 360 degrees," says Devan. That's 'Points Beyond', his Shannon 38, in the distance. The other shot is of 'Points Beyond' sailing off of Key West.
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August 11 - Fiji
George Backhus of the Deerfoot 62 reports from coup-ravaged Fiji, "We've received a lot of email from you wondering what we have been up to since we arrived in Fiji eight weeks ago. Yes, the political situation in Fiji is still dicey. So far, it has not affected us too much, but we have been avoiding populated areas and maintaining a readiness to head directly west to Vanuatu if the situation warrants. We keep a close ear to the short wave radio, listening to the latest news from the BBC and the local Fiji radio station which is called, believe it or not, "Bula 100." Thanks also to Cate's brother, Matthew, who regularly emails us reports on the crisis from the www.fijilive.com Website. We feel very bad for the Fijians. The racial, power and money struggle between a very few here will set back the already fragile economy by at least 10 years. The good news is that George Speight and his band of hooligan supporters are 'detained' on an isolated prison island so it looks as if the military can finally begin to reestablish peace and order to the country. We remain bound and determined not to let that #!*&$@! screw up our Fijian cruising plans!"
August 11 - Baja Ha-Ha World Headquarters
Entries are steadily trickling in for the Baja Ha-Ha 2000 Cruisers' Rally from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas. The following is a profile of one Ha-Ha couple. (For bios on all participants, see the September, October and November issues of 'Latitude 38' magazine.)
Caladesi - Hylas 44
Robert & Joyce Craven, Napa
| "We grew up in the Midwest, met at the University
of Iowa, and married. Bob followed a career in the computer business
while I concentrated on raising two daughters. It never occurred
to me during our 25 years in Silicon Valley that Bob's mid-life
crisis would mean the purchase of a sailboat. But we worked out
a deal; he could get the Venture 21 if I could get a new dining
room set. In less than a year, the trailerable boat had to be
replaced with a new San Juan 28 from the factory. We enjoyed
the San Juan for many years on the Bay, Delta and nearby coast. "Early retirement allowed Bob to crew on a 47-ft Brewer design from San Diego to Panama to Florida. Meanwhile, our move to Napa put the San Juan on a dock in our backyard. After crewing on two more trips on the 47-footer - one to the Dry Tortugas and the other around the western Caribbean - being crew no longer cut it for Bob. "In '96, a Freedom 32 replaced the San Juan, and we made plans for Mexico. That October, Bob and my brother left the dock to start the adventure. I joined them in San Diego - but only because of the 'for better or worse' promise I made back in '62. Fear to the point of terror describes my feelings as we crossed into Mexican waters. Fortunately, I had mobilized a force of family and friends to pray for me around the clock, as I was sure danger lurked behind every wave. "Ensenada was pleasant, but oh how I hated passages and the lack of privacy with three people on such a small boat. I was still cranky despite the fact that on my birthday I was given the title 'Admiral' as well as a travel iron. But the people we met and the places we visited changed my mood considerably as we made our way as far south as Ixtapa and back to Puerto Vallarta. |
 Photo Courtesy the Cravens "During that cruise, I casually mentioned that if we ever did the trip again, I'd want to leave with the Ha-Ha fleet, have a bigger boat, have only the two of us aboard, and be able to fly home for the holidays. This simple remark has turned into a Royal Order by Capt. Bob, who immediately began a quest for a larger boat. After months of searching, we found the Hylas 44 'Caladesi', which is coming down from Seattle so we can do the Ha-Ha on October 31." |
August 11 - The Pacific Ocean and Cyberspace
Who is out making passages in the Pacific and what kind of weather are they having? Check out YOTREPS - 'yacht reports' - at http://www.bitwrangler.com/yotreps/
August 11 - Hawaii
Though he wasn't in Hawaii last week, one of the big winners
at this year's downsized (29 boats) Kenwood Cup was Annapolis-based
yacht designer Bruce Farr. His office was responsible for drawing
the entire winning New Zealand team - the all-conquering 'Sea
Hawk' (Farr 47, Naohiko Sera/Ray Davies); 'Big Apple III' (Farr
45, Hideo Matsuda/Dean Barker); and 'Air NZ High Five' (Farr 47,
Mick Cookson/Harry Dodson). In winning the prestigious Kenwood
Cup for the second time in a row, the trio also finished in that
order in the IMS racer class.
Farr also designed the top three boats in the cruiser/racer division:
'Smile' (Beneteau 40.7, Simon Whiston), the hot new 'Esmeralda'
(Farr 50, Makoto Uematsu/Ken Read), and 'Fruit Machine' (Beneteau
40.7, Neill Whiston). 'Smile' and 'Fruit Machine', the race-optimized
'beach balls', were joined by the Farr 49 'Yendys' as the third
boat on the runner-up Aussie K-Cup team. The latter boat, as everyone
must know by now, is named after the boat's hailing port spelled
backwards. Hopefully, this trend will die quickly before the world
is treated to such silly names such as 'Notsob', 'Kroy Wen', or
even 'Otilasuas'.
Back to the winners: A pile of 150 gleaming silver trophies was
handed out at the awards ceremony, more hardware than we've ever
seen assembled anywhere, including some 400-boat Ensenada Races.
Only three boats - 'Andiamo', 'Glama!', and 'Tower' - failed
to score a pickle dish, while some boats needed a wheelbarrow
to haul home their booty. 'Sea Hawk' claimed 15 prizes, and the
dominant J/105, Tom Coate's 'Charade', took home 10 on their private
jet. As the final award was given out - the big one, the
Kenwood Cup itself - the entire Kiwi team was marched onto
the stage. They were presented their awards, as well as bottles
of Mumm Champagne (big mistake!) and, as the cameras rolled, Dean
Barker and the other skippers naturally used the bubbly to hose
down the front tables. It was an exuberant moment, a fitting conclusion
to this small but excellent regatta.
 'Seahawk' |
 'Smile' |
 'Charade' Photos Latitude/Rob |
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August 11 - San Francisco and Monterey Bays
The 505 North Americans are now underway at Santa Cruz YC,
with 45 boats competing. Howie Hamlin and crew Peter Alarie won
the first race, while Howie's former crew Mike Martin and his
crew Steve Bourdow took the second. Racing continues through the
weekend. . . The PICYA Chispa (Laser)/Youth (El Toro) Regatta
will take place Saturday at Richmond YC. . . San Francisco YC
will host the leadmine crowd on both Saturday and Sunday, with
65 boats now entered in their increasingly popular Summer Keelboat
Regatta. Invited classes at that one design festival are Farr
40s (8 boats signed up), Express 37s (8), Hobie 33s (6), 11:Metres
(4), Express 27s (7), Melgi (7), J/24 (7) and the roadmastering
Moore 24s (18).
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