October 24, 2000

---

Photo of the Day

Swimming to Ireland

October 24 – Dingle Peninsula, Ireland Think it would be chilly sailing across the Atlantic to perpetually rainy Ireland? We did. But John Neal and Amanda Swan-Neal, who recently did it as part of their six-month, 11,000-mile trip from Victoria, BC, to Sweden, report that it was actually warm. In fact, they hove to every day to swim, all the way to Ireland. The photo here is of the Dingle Peninsula off the southwest coast of Ireland. When the Neals and their crew arrived on August 16, it was 80 degrees! More on ‘Mahina Tiare’s trip in the November issue of Latitude.

Photo John Neal

---

Weather Updates

October 24 – Pacific and Atlantic Oceans

Tropical Weather

Once again, it’s all quiet in the hurricane regions of Mexico
and the Atlantic/Caribbean.

San Francisco Bay Weather

To see what the winds are like on the Bay and just outside
the Gate right now, check out http://sfports.wr.usgs.gov/wind/.

California Coast Weather

Looking 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.: www.ndbc.noaa.gov/stuff/southwest/swstmap.shtml.
And Robert Block of ‘Connemara’ in Santa Barbara sent in the following
link; check it out! http://facs.scripps.edu/surf/buoylist.html
(however, be warned that the Java Script may not work yet
with some browsers on Macs).

Pacific Ocean Weather

You can view the University of Hawaii Department of Meteorology
satellite picture by clicking
here.

Pacific Sea State

Seas are normal in the Pacific, but you might check at: http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/RSSA/PacRegSSA.html.

For another view, see http://www.oceanweather.com/data/global.html.

---

Cruising

On the Borderline?

October 24 – Baja Ha-Ha World Headquarters

Photos Latitude

It’s just one week to the start of the Baja Ha-Ha cruisers’ rally
from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas with stops at Turtle Bay and
Bahia Santa Maria. If you’re on the borderline of going or not,
perhaps these photos will influence you. In the first, two sun-loving
gals on the committee boat wave to two of the 126 boats as they
start the second leg near Turtle Bay. It was 10 a.m., the wind
was blowing at 12 knots from aft, and it was about 85 degrees.
In the second photo, Bear, Heather, Dona, Sue, and Tom model the
fact that they didn’t have a clew after the .8 poly kite exploded
from sloppy conditions.

YOTREPS

October 24 – 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/

---

Racing

Middle Sea Race

October 24 – Mediterranean

That good things happen to people who persevere was evidenced
again early this morning when Robert McNeil’s R/P 74 ‘Zephyrus
IV’ crossed the finish line at Malta after smashing the old 620-mile
Middle Sea Race record by close to eight hours. The Middle Sea
Race starts in Malta and sails clockwise around Sicily before
finishing at Malta.

McNeil, who hails from up in the canyon behind ‘Latitude 38’ in
Mill Valley, didn’t have the best luck when ‘Zephyrus’ was first
launched. She was built for the TransPac, but almost immediately
dropped her rig. The next year she started the West Marine Pacific
Cup to Hawaii, and promptly dropped her rig again. Undeterred,
NcNeil had her shipped to South Africa for the Cape Town to Rio
Race. She had a great sail and set a new course record. Her next
race was the Middle Sea, and another new record. John Bertrand,
who was raised in Marin County and long sailed for the St. Francis,
was the primary rock star. We don’t know what’s next for ‘Zephyrus’,
but it would be great if she did next February’s classic Miami
to Jamaica Race.

Zephyrus IV competing in the Middle Sea Race Photo Anthony Camilleri

Miami to Jamaica Race

October 24 – Caribbean

One of the classic yacht races that fell on hard times but
has been coming back, the 2001 Miami to Jamaica Race will be headlined
by, oddly enough, several West Coast boats. Leading the way will
be Roy Disney’s R/P 74 ‘Pyewacket’, back from her great European
adventure in Ireland and the South of France. By the way, read
Roy’s account in the November
Latitude. Also from the West Coast will be Doug Baker’s Andrews
70 ‘Magnitude’, which gave Disney’s ‘Pyewacket’ a good run for
her money in the last TransPac. Southern Californian Mike Campbell’s
Andrews 70 ‘Victoria’ will be there, although she’s now owned
by Rick Orchard of Atlanta and called ‘Grins’. If Robert McNeil
decides to bring ‘Zephyrus’, a near sistership to ‘Pyewacket’,
back across the Atlantic – there’s nothing to do in the Med in
the winter – it could be a heck of a great race.

Race Notes

October 24 – Planet Earth

Thanks to Larry Ellison’s full throttle America’s Cup effort
for the St. Francis YC – they’re already sailing down in New Zealand,
the first of any syndicate – his much-traveled and often victorious
Farr 82 ‘Sayonara’ will sail a greatly reduced schedule in 2001.
According to skipper Billy Erkelens, ‘Sayonara’ is only slated
to do Antigua Sailing Week – which Ellison enjoys winning – in
April and Sardinia in the late summer.

Sausalito’s Mark Rudiger, who gained considerable fame as the
navigator for Paul Cayard’s victorious ‘EF Language’ in the last
Whitbread Around the World Race, has been named co-skipper and
navigator for the Swedish entry ‘Assa Abloy’ in what’s now known
as the Volvo Ocean Race. Rudiger is best known to West Coast sailors
as being the winning navigator in four TransPacs, for ‘Sayonara’
in the deadly Sydney to Hobart Race and for ‘Zephyrus’ in the
Cape Town to Rio record run.

Northern Californian John Kostecki was long ago announced as the
skipper for the German entry in the Volvo.