Today’s Photo of the Day is of the deluge
of requests for entry packs for this fall’s Baja
Ha-Ha Eleven. Over 40 requests for packets have been received
in the 10 days since the event was announced, leading Lauren
Spindler, Ha-Ha Honcho, to believe there will be more than 100
entries again this year.
If you’d like a Ha-Ha entry pack, send
a $15 check to Baja Ha-Ha, Inc., 21 Apollo Road, Tiburon, CA
94920. Include a self-addressed 9×12 envelope with $3 postage.
By the way, the Ha-Ha made the front cover
of the May issue of Sailing magazine, with the headline,
‘Baja Ha-Ha and More: Our Top 10 Sailing Events’. “We’re
chuffed to see that Sailing saw fit to recognize the Ha-Ha
as a top event,” said Spindler. “We’ll do our best
to make it even more enjoyable this year.”
Photo Latitude/Richard
Changes for the Centennial TransPac
May 12 – Los Angeles
There are a couple of changes in store
for next July’s TransPac
from Los Angeles to Honolulu. First, the rated length of the
course is going to be extended from the actual 2,225 miles. In
part, this is because most boats sail further than that in order
to avoid the Pacific High. In addition, it gives the higher rating
smaller boats a better chance to correct out first.
Another change that will affect less people
is that any boat that doesn’t rate higher than the new MaxZ86s Pyewacket and Morning Glory will be allowed to
race. Among other things, this means that the DeVos family, with
the 86-ft Windquest (ex-Zephyrus V) will be competing.
Morning Glory
Photo Latitude/Richard
All Right, It Really Is Pretty Cool
May 12 – San Blas Islands
The Wanderer is naturally skeptical about
stuff – including new sailing equipment – until he uses it. Then
he usually becomes a true believer. For example, it took seven
years for him to break down and put a watermaker and hot water
aboard Profligate, because he felt “you don’t really
need them.” But guess who took four showers a day in the
tropics and luxuriated in all the fresh water this winter? Yeah,
that’s who.
Similarly, the Wanderer has been slow to
warm to electronic navigation programs. “Never needed one
before, why would I need one now?” he said. That was before
the folks at Nobeltec loaned us a copy of their Admiral navigation
software and some of the detailed charts from the Eastern Caribbean
to San Francisco. Now he says, “You don’t have to have electronic
navigation, but it’s really fun – and it provides a margin of
safety you wouldn’t otherwise have.”
The margin of safety comes from the fact your boat’s past and
present position are clearly displayed at all times, so if you’re
a little groggy coming on watch in an area where there are dangers,
your boat’s position is clearly displayed, so you know what you’re
up against and what the previous watch had done. We know of several
boats that would have been saved had they had this ability. For
example, we’d bet that this Hallberg-Rassy 48 on the reef at
the San Blas Islands wouldn’t have ended up there had they been
using Nobeltec and the appropriate charts.
It’s true that we can get this same basic position information
on our GPS display, but not in color or as dramatically. There
are lots of other cool Nobeltec features we’ll report on later.
The Nobeltec software comes with basic
charts for the entire world, and it’s really fun to zip around
seeing how far it is from one place to another. In addition,
you can buy detailed charts, which really make life much easier
and safer. For instance, check the accompanying photo for a good
example of the basic chart versus the detailed chart. The shot
was taken in the San Blas Islands, on the border of where the
basic chart ended and the detailed chart started. Charts aren’t
cheap, so you have to pick and choose where you’re going to need
them. And you always want to have paper charts for backup.
Photos Latitude/Richard
Not that it means anything, but on the
trip from Antigua to Panama, the Wanderer used the Nobeltec navigation
software even more than he took freshwater showers.
Profligate’s
Regress. Back In Nicaragua
May 12 – Puesta del Sol, Nicaragua
“We made it from Panama to Puesta
del Sol Marina in Nicaragua in 82 hours,” reports Doña
de Mallorca via Skymate email. “According to Nobeltec navigation
software, which has greatly simplified route planning and made
it a lot of fun, we averaged 8.5 knots burning 1.4 gallons per
hour per engine. We had one night of 20-knot headwinds, and otherwise
offshore winds in the morning and onshore winds in the afternoon.
We’ve carried the battered old jib for the last two days, and
it’s really given our speed a boost. We’ve found favorable current
close to shore.
“This is the lightning center of the
universe, and we’ve had thunder and lightning all around us.
One night it was close, and one bolt caused the MicroCommander
electronic throttle and gear controls to take the port engine
out of gear at speed and put it in neutral at idle! This, of
course, happened at 12:30 am in the middle of a very robust squall.
But it’s nothing to the lightning problems others have had.
“We’ve caught three fish and have
been enjoying sushi.
Puesta del Sol Marina Photo John Pettitt
“Robert Membrano’s marina has seen
much progress since I came through in November, as there are
new docks, a fuel dock with 4,000 gallon capacity, and a well-marked
channel with 25 feet of water coming in. The best way to reach
the marina is to contact Esperanza
Peralta, the general manager, at gm office 505 228-7974 /
marina office 505 276-0585 / cell 505 883-6913.
“We’re underway again, making 9.5
knots off the coast of El Salvador, with 800 miles to go Acapulco.
We’re praying that we arrive at cocktail hour – after the fuel
docks close! The first couple days out of Panama there was heavy
shipping traffic, but now the horizon is empty. We’re about 40
miles from having to make a decision about crossing the Gulf
of Tehuantepec. Commander’s Weather tells us there’s a low moving
across the middle of the U.S., which means there won’t be a Tehuantepecker,
so we’ll be going straight across rather than keeping ‘one foot
on the beach’.
“I’ve got a terrific crew: Bruce Ladd,
co-captain and political activist; John Pettitt, a photographer;
Wayne Bingham, a retired heli-ski operator; and Ian MacLean,
a writer. Everyone is great and treats each other with respect,
and we’re having a great time! I love them almost as much as
I do the Skymate email, the Nobeltec electronic navigation, and
Commander’s Weather – all of which make this a very different
experience.”
