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June 1, 2018

June Issue Out Today!

The new issue of Latitude 38 was put on the trucks this morning and is being delivered around the Bay Area and up and down the West Coast to our ‘exclusive’ list of distributors. Looking to pick up a copy at a location near you? Check out the list here. Having a hard time finding a place to grab a Latitude? Let us know, and we’ll add you to that ‘exclusive’ list. Also traveling with our local drivers today is the 2018 Summer Sailstice poster, which we hope you’ll hang at your local yacht club, marina or other boaty locale.

The new issue of Latitude 38 is being distributed up and down the West Coast and in the Bay Area with this year’s Summer Sailstice posters (you can also find the issue ‘on line’. Get it?).

latitude/John
©2018 Latitude 38 Media, LLC

Maybe it’s our foggy memory, but it seems like just the other day it was cool and gray. That’s not the plan for this weekend here in the Bay. Looking ahead, it promises to be clear, warm, sunny and perfect for sailing. In the Pacific Northwest, Seattle will have partly cloudy weather and maybe a little rain on Sunday. San Diego looks sunny, while Honolulu will have clouds, rain and lots of wind this weekend.

A perfect weekend for kids and whale watching (no promises).

latitude/John
©2018 Latitude 38 Media, LLC

If you haven’t already started your weekend, you can get it going with Bay Area Friday night ‘Beer Can Racing’ at Berkeley Yacht Club, Corinthian YC, Encinal YC or Tiburon YC. San Diego’s beer cans are on Wednesdays, while the Waikiki Yacht Club hosts Friday night races . . . every Friday!

Days like these inspire you to get the sail covers off.

latitude/John
©2018 Latitude 38 Media, LLC

The first person to send us a photo of themselves with the new June copy of Latitude 38 wins a hat. Email us here.

If you have a slip in Sausalito — or can score a guest slip — it’s not a bad place to wake up in the morning.

latitude/John
©2018 Latitude 38 Media, LLC

Sailing in Folsom Lake

Are you looking to sail in the serene beauty of a lake? Here’s a note from Patrick Nolan:

Shallow water? No problem, when you have a trailerable boat.

© Pat Nolan

"For those of you members with trailerable boats, lake sailing is still alive and well. This is a photo of Miss Renee II, moored fore and aft, in about 1 1/2 feet of water at a nice little cove on Folsom Lake. My friend Craig brought his kayak along. Winds were light and we only got in one day of sailing, but the weather was great. The water is clear and still a little cool this time of year, and the wildflowers are beautiful. You can boat camp at Folsom a maximum of three nights, as long as the boat has a toilet. It’s just the right amount of time to enjoy a few days of beautiful
weather — it also helps that it’s only 16 minutes from my house to the launch ramp."

RBOC Urges Action on Delta Tunnels

The following call to action came to us by way of the Richmond Yacht Club Sailing Advisory Committee and Board of Directors:

"PICYA [Pacific Inter-Club Yacht Association] and RBOC [Recreational Boaters of California] have called on their member clubs to contact their congressional representatives to oppose proposed elimination of judicial review of the California WaterFix (‘Twin Tunnels’) project. RYC urged PICYA and RBOC to oppose the California WaterFix project and helped shape the direction of RBOC lobbying efforts on this topic. We encourage you to review this Call-To-Action and contact your congressional representatives. Links to US Senators Feinstein and Harris are included, but please include your own representative to the House in your correspondence. Below is some suggested text for your message:

“I am writing to voice my opposition to Section 437 of the US House of Representatives Fiscal Year 2019 Interior Appropriations Spending Bill. The passage and enactment of this provision would pre-empt state law and prevent litigation against the California WaterFix [twin tunnels], including cases filed pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act, the California Endangered Species Act, and other laws. This proposed prohibition against federal and state judicial review of the environmental provisions of the California WaterFix [twin tunnels] would be contrary to important, long-standing state environmental laws and policies. The California WaterFix [twin tunnels] should not have a special exception to these laws. Thank you for your service.”

Hood, glimpsed here from the west bank of the Sacramento River last fall, would be ground zero for tunnels construction. Like many communities in the Delta, Hood is small, but charming to visit. The most recent census counted 271 residents.

latitude/Chris
© Latitude 38 Media, LLC

Here’s more about it from RBOC: "The rider has been introduced by California representative Ken Calvert [R-Corona]. It is Section 437 of the US House of Representatives Fiscal Year 2019 Interior Appropriations Spending Bill. It reads: ‘The passage and enactment of this provision would pre-empt state law and prevent litigation including cases filed pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act, the California Endangered Species Act, and other laws.’

"RBOC is concerned that the proposed prohibition against federal and state judicial review of the environmental provisions of the California WaterFix [twin tunnels] would be contrary to important, long-standing state environmental laws and policies. The California WaterFix [twin tunnels] should not have a special exception to these laws." For more information, go to www.rboc.org/call-to-action. Also see www.restorethedelta.org.

SV ‘Delos’, Pt. 1

In the March edition of Latitude, writer Greg Winters explored the phenomenon of so-called ‘YouTube Sailors’, a group of cruisers and amateur (but increasingly professional) videographers who have highly successful, highly viewed ‘channels’ showcasing their sailing exploits — in rare cases, some of these cruisers are making a living from their videos. 

As always, we want to know what you think about this trend in sailing. Do you watch La Vagabonde, Captain Rick Moore, Gone with the Wynns or SV Delos? Who’s your favorite? Does watching these channels inspire you, and make you want drop everything and go cruising? Do you think YouTube Sailors are good for the sport as a whole? We’d like to know.

We’ll refer you to Greg Winters’ piece for the full review of the most popular YouTube Sailors. We wanted to look at one particular channel, Sailing SV Delos, which has more "lifetime views" than the US Navy, the Volvo Ocean Race, Emirates Team New Zealand, Oracle Team USA and Yachting World. When it comes to sailing on YouTube, Delos is king.

The "core" Delos crew. Clockwise from bottom left: ‘Mr.’ Brady Trautman; Karin ‘Kazzatron’ Syrén; Captain ‘Breeyawn’ Trautman. 

© 2018 SV ‘Delos’

"It’s really inspiring and humbling to hear statistics like this," Brady Trautman, one of the core crew members of Delos, told us via email. "Compared to the America’s Cup, Volvo Ocean Race, etc., I think we’re relatable to a larger audience. We are just normal people who love sailing, diving, filming and editing, and it turns out there are a lot of people out there into the same things. 

"I think we’re successful because we’ve always stuck to the same basic rules. We always make the episodes for us. We edit how we want and show the things that we’re interested in or laugh at. A common question we ask ourselves is, ‘In 20 years when I watch this, will it make me smile?’ If the answer is yes, then we’re on the right track. I think authenticity is super-important, and making YouTube videos for the sole purpose of making money is not the right way to go about it — we make videos because we love doing it!"

Delos, a 53-ft Amel Super Maramu ketch, makes her way across the Southern Atlantic from Ascension Island to Brazil.

© 2018 SV ‘Delos’

Brady’s older brother Brian Trautman quit his corporate job in his mid-20s and started his own business in Seattle. "Seventy-hour work weeks were the norm. The business succeeded but at the expense of my personal relationships and quality of life," Brian wrote in a blog. "Then one hot summer day in Seattle, I ventured into the library for some forgotten reason. A book with a beautiful blue picture of the Pacific Ocean on the cover caught my attention. The title was something like Cross the Ocean in Your Own Boat!

Brian started saving and planning to go cruising, and four years later bought Delos. The 53-ft Amel Super Maramu ketch, which hails from Seattle, has been through the Pacific, Southeast Asia, across the Indian Ocean to Africa, and through the South Atlantic. She’s currently on the hard in Grenada. Sailing SV Delos has been ‘on the air’ on YouTube for over seven years.

"Before Sailing, working 70 hour weeks . . . And After Sailing, catching 70cm fish," Brian Trautman wrote in a blog.

© 2018 SV ‘Delos’

We’ve heard that lots of non-sailors have been turned on to the sport by watching Delos, and asked Brady if he and the crew see themselves as representatives, ambassadors, and defacto spokespeople for the sport and lifestyle of sailing, or an inspiration for people to go cruising. 

"When we first started making the episodes and noticed other people starting to watch, Brian and I would always say, ‘Well, there has to be a saturation point somewhere, how many sailors are actually out there watching YouTube?’ When the channel continued to grow, we realized that it wasn’t just sailors watching. It was travelers, adventurers, lawyers, car salesmen, veterans, etc. We realized people from all walks of life were interested in alternative lifestyles and seeing the world. To me, this has to be my favorite part about the project — being able to make someone smile or to inspire someone in a positive way is an amazing thing. I still get chills when we receive e-mails or messages from people who had no idea about the world of sailing."

The crew of Delos, as seen in the opening "credits." Other crew members have rotated through over the years. "There have been more than 50 different participants, some of whom won a slot through the "Who wants to be a Delos pirate?" contest," Greg Winters write in the March issue of Latitude.

© 2018 SV ‘Delos’

"The first message is usually something like ‘Hey, I came across your YouTube and love the idea of sailing. I’m gonna join the local yacht club and learn to sail!’ Then, about six months later: "Hey guys! I’ve fallen in love with sailing and I’m looking at buying a boat!’ We always try and answer these messages, although it usually is a few months behind. Then we get that final, amazing message: ‘I’ve done it guys! I bought the boat and sold my house to live aboard, now it’s time to save money and meet you guys out there!’

"Being in a position like that is an honor, for sure. If we can inspire someone to do what they love then we’ve succeeded in our eyes. The message is the same no matter what: Whether you’re into sailing, mountain biking, reading, walking, or collecting sea shells, the message is follow your heart and do what you love."

We’ll bring you part 2 of our interview with Delos in an upcoming ‘Lectronic.

What does this guy know that you don’t know? latitude/John
© Latitude 38 Media, LLC Those of us who dwell on the surface can have a hard time understanding what’s happening in the depths below and how it might affect our life on top.