'Lectronic Index

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Photos of the Day

February 27 - Hawaii

Manon Belzile, who sails Zubenubi out of Pillar Point Harbor, was feeling nostalgic for warm and sunny weather one recent cold and gloomy day, so, "I looked back through my photos of this summer's trip to Hawaii.

"I found a few enlightening pictures. The first one is of a Pacific white sided dolphin (with me and the boat in the reflection) and the second one is of Admiral Finn on watch. The admiral was then 8 months old. Is he the youngest sailor to have sailed SF to Hawaii and back before turning 1? We'd be interested in hearing if there are others."


Photos Manon Belzile


Doublehanded Farallones Turns 25

February 27 - Gulf of the Farallones

The San Francisco Bay Area Multihull Association is holding its Silver Anniversary of the Doublehanded Farallones race, testing crew and boat (monohulls and multihulls alike) in the rough waters outside the Gate, on Saturday, March 27. To help celebrate this milestone anniversary, BAMA is breaking with tradition and awarding trophies appropriately in silver. Other changes include an award for best team finish (top three finishers from a club/association as indicated on the entry form) as well as a new award for best co-ed crew finish. See www.sfbama.org for race entry forms, race information, and stories of past races. Be prepared for conditions that range from mild to wild. BAMA is celebrating its 26th year and is a charter member of SFYRA.


Spindrift, an Express 37, rounds the Farallon Islands in last year's Doublehanded Farallones. See more photos at www.sfbama.org/2003/dhf/photos/index.html
Photo Courtesy BAMA


Racing Begins in Acura SORC

February 27 - Miami Beach, FL

A consistent breeze between 14 and 17 knots allowed for three races to be held in the Acura SORC's first day of racing just off Miami Beach yesterday.

The Farr 40s kept the action going on the Acura Course, with three different boats registering wins on Day One. Jim Richardson's Barking Mad took first place in the opening race and topped the class with nine points for the day. Peter De Ridder's Mean Machine trails closely with 11 points, tallying second and third place finishes. Steve and Fred Howe's Warpath notched a first place win in the second race, but rested in third place overnight.

Hasso Plattner's Morning Glory rebounded from an 11th place showing with two third place finishes, ending the day in fourth place overall. John Kilroy Jr.'s Samba Pa Ti, featuring Paul Cayard, finished first in the final race of the day and sits in fifth place. Returning Acura SORC champion Massimo Mezzaroma's Nerone sits in ninth place overall. H.M. King Harald V of Norway, racing Fram, highlighted his day with an 11th place finish in the second race of the day.

The Sailing World Course was also alive with activity as the IMS and three PHRF classes kept the action rolling. On Friday the J/105 class joins the action. Racing continues through Sunday the 29th. See www.acurasorc.com for all the info, results and wonderful action-packed photos by Sharon Green.


Orange Restarts

February 27 - Ouessant, France

Orange, Bruno Peyron's maxi cat, restarted her Jules Verne Around the World Record attempt yesterday morning, after putting in to repair the crash box on the starboard bow.


Orange this morning, restarting near Ouessant (Ushant) Island
Photo Gilles Martin-Raget/Orange

Rival Frenchman Olivier de Kersauson, on his trimaran Geronimo, re-started nine hours earlier than Orange yesterday and reported a 495 nm first day. The two multihulls are currently engaged in a dual off the coast of Portugal.

Meanwhile, on the same attempt, Steve Fossett's maxi cat Cheyenne has rounded the Cape of Good Hope 850 miles ahead of the previous record, set by Peyron's previous Orange in 2002. A chill is in the air and the crew is beginning to sight late summer icebergs. Must be the Southern Ocean!


Update on Capsize off Ocean Beach

February 27 - San Francisco

Randy Reid, owner of the sailboat which capsized off Ocean Beach on Wednesday, February 18 [covered in 'Lectronic Latitude on February 20], comments on the loss in a letter to the Newport owners' group.

"Yes, it was my Newport 30 that was lost off San Francisco. I had purchased the boat in Marina del Rey, sailed it for a week in January and left it in Santa Barbara. Myself, my son Erik and a friend, Brad, went back down on February 13 to Santa Barbara and were sailing up to San Francisco when the accident happened.

"My son has not been found. Most of the newspaper articles are totally inaccurate and should be read with a large grain of salt. There were no helicopters involved, the winds are exaggerated, and there are many more inaccuracies.

"The subject is difficult to talk about at this time, but if you would like to debate something worthwhile it might be whether to wear the harness or flotation devices, in what scenario or when? My son was at the helm and was wearing the harness and tether as was our practice all the way up the coast. Brad was wearing a Mustang floater coat and I was not wearing either. I was the one who should not be here today. The tether is likely to have been the cause of my son's death, as it seems he was not able to release himself from the boat when it went down. Only speculation is possible why not, but no definitive answers.

"The boat to my best guess went down in approximately 45 seconds. The waves were 15 seconds apart and we got hit broadside by three when Brad and I were washed overboard. My son was still aboard the boat at this time, and I saw one more wave coming at the boat then. The boat was never seen again. I believe the safety harness dragged Erik down with the boat."


YOTREPS

February 27 - The Pacific Ocean and Cyberspace

Who is out making passages in the Pacific and what kind of weather are they having? The YOTREPS daily yacht tracking page has moved to www.bitwrangler.com/psn.


Weather Links

February 25 - Pacific Ocean

San Francisco Bay Weather

Check out this guide to San Francisco Bay Navigational Aids: http://sfports.wr.usgs.gov/sfports.html.

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.

The National Weather Service site for San Francisco Bay is at www.wrh.noaa.gov/Monterey.

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/Maps/Southwest.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

The site for the Pacific Ocean sea states has moved to http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/shtml/PacRegSSA.shtml.
For views of sea states anywhere in the world, see http://www.oceanweather.com/data.


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