November 1, 2001

Photos of the Day

November 1 – San Diego

With a 8-10 knots blowing out of the norhwest,
106 boats crossed the starting line of the eighth annual Baja Ha-Ha Rally off Coronado
Roads, many flying colorful asymmetrical chutes – or trying to.
For once, many of the competitors in the fleet actually arrived
at the starting line at the same time – we saw the tightest clustering
of boats ever – with the Deerfoot 62 Raven leading the
pack, followed closely by the custom three-masted schooner Millennium
Falcon (top photo).

As in years past, photographer Tom Lyon
arrived in a helicopter to take aerial portraits of each entry.
The photos will be for sale in Cabo, with all profits going to
the La Paz orphanage.

The fleet spread out as it approached the
Coronado Islands, but all were experiencing the same ideal conditions:
flat seas, gentle breezes and sunny skies. The wind built during
the afternoon with the arrival of moderate cloud cover, reaching
a peak during the night of about 18 knots. The fleet was blessed
that first evening by the setting of the sun in the west, while
an almost-full moon rose in the east. Many were said to be lathering
up with ‘moon lotion’ to avoid a moon burn – at times, it was
literally light enough to read by.

Photos Latitude/Andy

Day Two began with light winds and sloppy
seas, with increased winds predicted by the official Ha-Ha weather
routers, Commander’s Weather, for later in the day. At this writing,
it is a gloriously sunny day with 360 degree clarity.

The Rally Committee boat, Latitude 38’s
Profligate, reports having experienced two ‘full-immersion
baptisms’ of its brand new spinnaker, a one-hour wrap of an old
chute and one broken halyard – par for the course based on past
experience.

Great Pumpkin Day 1 Photos

November 1 – Pt. Richmond

As promised, here are some scenes from
Saturday’s heavily overcast (but thankfully not rainy) one design
Great Pumpkin Regatta. Tomorrow, we’ll have photos from Sunday’s
pursuit race. For top finishers, see yesterday’s
report.

Commodore Tompkins’ Flash Girl sailed in the mixed-rig
Wylie 39 class

Wyliecat 39 Enfinity chases eventual winner Lilith

Farr 40 Non Sequitur

Bob Bloom took Jarlen out for one last
race before he headed off on a catamaran in the Baja Ha-Ha.
Photos Latitude/Rob

NYYC Postpones Transatlantic Challenge

November 1 – New York

Charles A Dana III, commodore of the New
York Yacht Club, has announced the postponement of the Transatlantic
Challenge, presented by Rolex. The transatlantic race, from New
York to England, will be sailed in May 2005.

The recessionary economy and the tragic
events of September 11 and their
aftermath have raised concerns about security and have led to
the possibility of some competitors being reluctant to compete
in May 2002.

World Disabled Sailing Championships

November 1 – St. Petersburg, FL

St. Petersburg Yacht Club hosted the IFDS
World Championships October 24-31. Here are the top finishers.

Sonar (15 boats): 1) Brian Mackie, CAN,
24 points; 2) Andy Cassell, GBR, 31; 3) Jens Kroker, 33; 4) Ken
Kelly, CAN, 39.

2.4m Class (14 boats): 1) Heiko Kroeger,
GER, 8; 2) Thomas Brown, USA, 28;
3) Bjornar Erikstad, NOR, 36; 4) Jostein Stordahl, NOR, 38.

For full results see www.spyc.org/World/Results/results.htm.

Volvo’s Only Couple?

November 1 – Cape Town, South Africa

Photographer Carlo Borlenghi sent us this
photo of Assa Abloy crewmember Neal McDonald welcoming
wife Lisa McDonald, skipper of Amer Sports Too, to Cape
Town. Could it be that they are the only husband/wife combo to
ever race against each other in the Whitbread/Volvo?

Photo
Carlo Borlenghi/SEA&SEE

YOTREPS

November 1 – 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/

Weather Updates

November 1 – Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean
Sea

Tropical Depression
15, which we told you about on Tuesday, has become Tropical Storm
Michelle and is currently headed for the western tip of Cuba.
Storm watches and/or warnings may be required for portions of
the northwestern Caribbean later today. South Florida and the
Keys should closely monitor Michelle. At 1500 GMT, she was located
near 17.2N 83.9W and moving north-northwest at 6 knots. Winds
are at 60 kts with gusts to 75. Seas are up to 12 feet.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Lorenzo continues
into the middle of nowhere in the North Atlantic. To track both
these storms, see http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/atlantic/2001/index.html.

Graphic Courtesy Unisys
Weather

November 1 – Pacific Ocean

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/.
(Note: This page seems to be working correctly again.)

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.

Pacific Winds and Pressure

The University of Hawaii Dept. of Meteorology
page posts a daily
map of the NE Pacific Ocean barometric pressure and winds.

Pacific Sea State

Check out the Pacific Ocean sea states
at: http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/RSSA/PacRegSSA.html.

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