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September 5, 2012

l’Hydroptere Sets Bay Record

l’Hydroptere set the San Francisco Bay speed sailing record on Friday.

© Erik Simonson / l’Hydroptere

The long Labor Day weekend was filled with exciting sailing news, but arguably the most thrilling of all was Alain Thébault’s 60-ft foiling trimaran l’Hydroptère DCNS‘s setting the nautical mile speed sailing record in San Francisco Bay. Thébault and his all-star crew of French sailors Jean Le Cam, Jacques Vincent, Yves Parlier, and others pushed the ‘flying fish’ to an average speed of 37.5 across the Bay on Friday. Rumor has it that, while thrilled to set the record, Thébault was a wee bit disappointed that their average speed wasn’t higher, as they’ve been sustaining blistering speeds since they arrived on the Bay in July.

Nicolas Baverez, Yves Parlier, Jacques Vincent, Alain Thébault, Rob Douglas and Jean Le Cam were thrilled to set a new record.

© DR / l’Hydroptere

Later in the day, l’Hydroptère unofficially took part in the Ronstan Bridge to Bridge, a speed race for kiters, windsurfers and dinghies from the Golden Gate to the Bay Bridge. The big boat wisely started on the seven-mile course a few minutes ahead of the horde of 69 racers so they wouldn’t run anyone down.

Boat Stolen from Ballena Isle

Club Nautique’s Hunter 41 Unleashed was apparently stolen from Ballena Isle Marina last night. Please keep an eye out for her.

© Club Nautique

Marianne Armand of Club Nautique reports that one of their fleet — the Hunter 41 Unleashed — was apparently stolen out of Ballena Isle Marina within the last 24 hours. "It was last seen yesterday at 5:30 p.m.," says Marianne, "and was possibly seen leaving the marina with no lights around 8:30 p.m."

Unleashed could be anywhere on the Bay, up in the Delta or on her way up or down the coast, so please pass the word that she’s been stolen.

© Club Nautique

If you see Unleashed or know anything about the theft, please call 911. And spread the word to all your friends up and down the coast.

Big Boat Series Revs Up

Ready to rumble. Starting tomorrow, 66 boats will compete in the 48th Rolex Big Boat Series.

© Rolex/Daniel Forster

With less than 24 hours until the first gun of the 2012 Rolex Big Boat Series, 66 boatloads of sailors are busy today making final preparations. Celebrating its 48th year, Big Boat competition will run Thursday through Sunday (September 6-9), with several new twists.

Wet toes are sometimes a liability of Big Boat racing on the Bay!

© Rolex/Daniel Forster

Perhaps the most notable change this year is the addition of a high performance catamaran class — this first-ever decision was inspired, we’re told, by the recent America’s Cup World Series competition here. The class includes a variety of designs more than 35 feet (with no limitations on technology and design). They’ll be handicapped using BAMA-issued PHRF ratings and will compete on courses similar to those used during the ACWS.

This year’s event also serves as the IRC North American Championship, in which 24 of the total fleet (in four divisions) will vie for top honors, and is expected to attract many of the country’s top racers. Also notable this year is the debut of the new HPR scoring system, developed to make racing in dissimilar light-displacement boats more equitable. Interestingly, boats will be scored by both IRC and HPR in an effort to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the new system.

Knock-downs and torn spinnakers are common most years. But if the predicted light air materializes, carnage could be minimized.

© Rolex/Daniel Forster

The wild card this year may be the weather. NOAA is predicting very light air — at least along the Cityfront — for both Thursday and Friday, with improving conditions over the weekend. But then, forecasters are often wrong. Besides, with several hundred sailors praying for good breeze, who knows what might result.

We’d encourage you to check out the action from your own boat, but please stay clear of boats that are obviously racing — regardless of right of way. And if you can’t get out on the water, be aware that races will be streamed live via the St Francis YC website (click the "webcam" button). As always, Big Boat action is a show you don’t want to miss.

Mexico-Only Crew List Party Tonight

If you’re planning to sail to Mexico this fall — whether in the Baja Ha-Ha rally or on your own — an extra pair of hands to take on a few of those interminable middle-of-the-night watches will make your trip down the coast much more relaxing and pleasurable. Of course, you can always check out our free online Crew List — and while you’re there, sign yourself up as a ‘Skipper Looking for Crew’ — but meeting potential crew face-to-face before they climb aboard is a really good idea, and tonight’s Mexico-Only Crew List Party & Baja Ha-Ha Reunion is the perfect place to do it. The venue has changed to Berkeley YC, so drop on by between 6-9 p.m. to meet eager sailors looking for crew spots — or to find yourself a ride.

Registered 2012 Baja Ha-Ha skippers and first mates get in for free, everyone else pays just $7. A no-host bar and free snacks will keep you going well into the evening. Many Ha-Ha sponsors will be on hand to share their knowledge and demonstrate their products.

If you can make it by 4:30, Paradise Village Harbormaster Dick Markie and Marina El Cid Harbormaster Geronimo Cevallos will be giving a free talk on cruising Mexico. Bring your questions, then stay for the party, where Ha-Ha vets attending the reunion can fill you in on anything else you’re curious about. See you there!

Red Sky at Morning, Sailors Take Warning

Saturday’s dawn was spectacular in San Diego.

latitude/Richard
© Latitude 38 Media, LLC

Last Saturday we awoke at 6 a.m. aboard Profligate at an end-tie at Driscoll’s Boat Yard in San Diego. It was calm and there was a magnificent red dawn. Naturally it called to mind the famous saying, "Red sky at morning, sailor take warning." We didn’t pay it much mind. After all, it was San Diego calm, and all we had planned was a fast motor up to Catalina, making our way north to the start of this Sunday’s SoCal Ta-Ta in Santa Barbara.

What could go wrong indeed.

We started the two engines as Doña de Mallorca went down to the dock to disconnect the shorepower cord and docklines. Ever the gentleman, we decided that we should join her on the dock to undo the lines. True, that would mean nobody would be left on the 63-ft by 30-ft cat with the engines running, but as we said, it was dead calm.

Profligate has very high freeboard, nearly six feet when you’re standing on the dock. And the lifelines are 42 inches high. So when you throw the lines aboard, you have to whip them over the top of the lifelines. With just the very long stern line remaining, we whipped the last spring line over the lifelines.

"Wow," we thought you ourselves, "that came pretty close to hitting the MicroCommander box." The MicroCommander is the cat’s fly-by-wire engine control system. Just the slightest nudge on the lever(s) puts the engine(s) in gear.

Still half asleep, it suddenly occurred to us that something was very wrong. Profligate was quickly moving aft and away from the dock. Shit, the line had hit the MicroCommander and put the starboard engine in reverse! Profligate was moving away fast. Thanks to the last remaining stern line, she was being swung in the direction of one of the boat yard docks.

Our mind flashed on the boats in Profligate‘s path: a 65-ft sportfishing boat, Chuck Driscoll’s J/105, the S&S 48 Endymion that Dennis Conner had just bought from the Driscoll family and added to his fleet; a big Jeanneau on a sales dock; a lovingly restored little speedboat; and our friend Karen’s just-sold Columbia 45. Shit, shit, shit!

We had but one chance, and that was to attempt a flying ‘scissor kick’ high jump onto the rapidly departing port back steps of Profligate. We made it halfway, which left us clinging to that no man’s land between being on the boat and being about to fall into the water. Then we heard the gnashing of fiberglass. That inspired us to hump like we’ve never humped before, which is what got us onto the back steps.

We dashed to the MicroCommander and slammed both engines into forward. The long one-second delay the MicroCommand takes to shift gears seemed to take forever. But then the props spun in forward, just inches before we hit the big sportfishing boat and the J/105. Having averted disaster, we stood there in a combination of shock and relief. The torturing of fiberglass? That had been our SSB antenna being ripped down by the long stern line. We needed a new one anyway.

Red sky in morning? We’ll be a little more careful in the future.

The motor up to Catalina was easy. As we passed by White’s Landing, we were amazed to see the size of the surf crashing just to the north of it. We hadn’t realized that a south swell wraps so far around the island. But it was just gorgeous there, with a spectacular blue sky and warm sunshine, and hundreds of boats.

We got the hook down about an hour later on Harbor Reef, which is a shallow area about 600 yards out from the most offshore of the Two Harbors mooring buoys. It’s open to much of the prevailing swell, which is often 90 degrees to the direction of the wind, so it’s really only suitable for big cats. Thus we always have it to ourselves.

Anyway, just about dark there was a shout: "Profligate, hey Profligate!" It was Stephen Driscoll, Chuck’s son. He was in a small inflatable with three others. While the Wanderer snoozed, Stephen explained to de Mallorca that he and three others had been diving at mile-distant Ship Rock. But when they were done for the day, they couldn’t get the dinghy engine started. They couldn’t call for help because they hadn’t brought a VHF or cell phone with them — which was almost as foolish as having one’s unmanned boat motor away from the dock without you.

Even though Ship Rock is a mile away from Harbor Reef, Stephen was able to recognize Profligate as she approached and set her anchor. With their options being drifting toward Mexico or swimming for Profligate, the group chose the latter. So it was that Stephen and a friend, wearing wetsuits, swam in the direction of Profligate, the nearest boat, towing the dinghy with their two friends.

Given the fact that it was Saturday on Labor Day Weekend, and the area between Ship Rock and Harbor Reef is pretty much in the middle of the nautical highway between Two Harbors and major mainland marinas, we’d have thought that they’d be seen by one of the many boats coming to or from the island. Heck, we’d have thought they might be run down. But they weren’t able to flag down any vessels. Finally, after they’d been swimming toward Profligate for 40 minutes, they managed to get the attention of a passing boat. They were towed to Profligate, from which they called friends on the Cal 40 mothership at Howland’s Landing to pick them up.

We had no idea a south swell could hit the face of Catalina so hard.

latitude/Richard
© Latitude 38 Media, LLC

So there were three big lessons from Saturday: 1) If the engine(s) is running and the dock lines are off, make sure somebody is on the bloody boat; 2) if you’re going on a dinghy adventure, make sure you bring a working VHF and flashlight; and 3) the less Chuck Driscoll knows about what nearly happened to his boat and to his son, probably the better.

It’s important to learn from the foolish mistakes of others. Do you have one you’d like to share, hoping to save other sailors from grief?

Today is the day that the September edition of Latitude 38 hits the streets all around the Bay Area, just in time for your Labor Day weekend reading pleasure!