Skip to content

Is the 20th the Best Ha-Ha?

By Richard | November 8, 2013 | Cabo San Lucas |
The view of Turtle Bay from beautiful downtown Turtle Bay. Almost every boat is the photo is a Ha-Ha boat.

© 2013 Kurt Roll

The last of the 125 boats and 520 participants in the Baja Ha-Ha from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas, with stops at Turtle Bay and Bahia Santa Maria, are pulling into Cabo this morning. Despite starting with a rainy parade in San Diego a week ago Monday, the 20th anniversary of the event has been a great one. As with almost all Ha-Ha’s, each day the weather got warmer and the sailing conditions better. While it was challenging at times, at least five boats managed to sail the entire 750-mile course.

The stops at both Turtle Bay and beautiful Bahia Santa Maria were fantastic. And we’ve got proof. San Diego’s Kurt Roll brought along his Phantom drone and GoPro camera to take mind-blowing video of starts, the beach party conga line, the Turtle Bay baseball game, the rock ‘n roll party on the bluff at Bahia Santa Maria, and much more. He’s been showing a quick six-minute mini version that will be the basis of a 20-minute film about the event, and it’s blowing minds of the participants. The photos accompanying this ‘Lectronic come from the video.

Famous Yanqui Stadium in Turtle Bay. It was here that Babe Ruth got his start in organized baseball. Currently it is home to several superb Turtle Bay teams and the Ha-Ha Cruiser Weird World Series.

© 2013 Kurt Roll
Oh Lord the coast of Mexico is so long and dry and we cruisers are so miniscule. The Turtle Bay Beach Party site.

© 2013 Kurt Roll

The only really great thing Roll missed was the 10-ft great white shark hooked and lifted out of the water by one of the Ha-Ha boats. Fishing was good this year, with several boats landing the trifecta of wahoo, yellow fin tuna, and dorado.

Ha-Ha potluck rules include: 1) You always bring more than you eat and, even more importantly, 2) No conga, no food for you!

© Kurt Roll

Speaking of blowing minds, the annual Ha-Ha ‘get wild and crazy in Cabo’ at Squid Roe last night was epic. The DJ, who has seen it all, kept repeating, "The Ha-Ha fleet is awesome, you guys are awesome, what an awesome group!" We’ve been to every Ha-Ha Squid Roe event since the Ha-Ha started, and it set a new standard in wild and crazy — but responsible — fun.

Kurt Roll’s GoPro, which took all of the photos for this piece, works great underwater, too. Wait until you see the video of the dolphins. National Geo, eat your heart out.

© Kurt Roll
It’s been our good fortune to have been able to visit many of the garden spots of the world. In early November, Bahia Santa Maria, ranks at near the top in our book. That’s Mag Bay on the other side of the sand dunes.

© Kurt Roll

We’ll have more next week, but it’s time to head for the beach party, so we’re going to let Roll’s photos speak for the event.

You want surreal? A rock ‘n roll band at Bahia Santa Maria, which, for all intents and purposes, is home to just a few mangrove fishermen for 363 days a year.

© Kurt Roll
You can’t keep a great sailor down. For yet another year, Patsy Verhoven of the La Paz-based Gulfstar 50 Talion, better known as La Reina de la Mar, was one of the few skippers to sail the entire Ha-Ha course. She finished in time to make the Squid Roe party, too.

© 2013 Kurt Roll

Leave a Comment




'Lectronic Latitude: Friday, Nov 8
Where There’s Smoke…
I’m a delivery captain and recently underwent fire training again as part of my regular STCW refresher.
More 'Lectronics »