Photo of the Day

August 5 - Pacific Ocean

Today's Photo of the Day is of Jonathan Livingston as seen on the way to winning 3rd overall with the Wylie 38 Naughty Hotty in the recently completed West Marine Pacific Cup from San Francisco to Hawaii. Given his outfit, some might think 'Bird' - as he is known - is an Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. There is a more satisfactory explanation. He's actually wearing a salon hatch wind scoop that was given to him and his bride-to-be, Suzie Grubler, by Warwick 'Commodore' Tompkins. Crossing the Pacific, Bird realized that he needed sun protection more than he did breeze in the main cabin, thus the KKK look.

Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

August 5 - Honolulu

The Ala Wai Yacht Harbor in Honolulu could and should be the greatest marina in the Pacific. But it's one of the worst. It has not only been falling apart for 20 years, it's stone cold ugly, thanks in a large part to the lack of vegetation. Over the years, some berth holders have tried to improve on the marina look by surrounding their berth with plants, such as those seen in these photos, taken two years ago. When we returned this year, however, all the plants were gone, leaving the Ala Wai looking more than ever like a parking lot in Cleveland. Where, we wondered, have all the flowers gone?

Aldo Alessio Regatta

August 2-4 - San Francisco Bay

St. Francis Yacht Club's inaugural Aldo Alessio Perpetual Trophy Regatta this past weekend was, by all accounts, a smash hit. Fifty-six of the best boats on the Bay sailed in the sunny and moderately windy (15-20 knots) four-race smorgasbord, which consisted of two buoy races on Friday, a splendid race to the Lightship on Saturday, and a Bay Tour on Sunday.

The 'Aldo' also kicked off the all-new San Francisco Bay Series, a five-regatta circuit which also includes the upcoming Summer Keelboat Regatta (Aug. 17-18), the Quickboat Series (Aug. 25-26), the NOOD (Aug.31-Sept. 1), and the Big Boat Series (Sept. 12-15).

Top finishers follow. Check www.stfyc.com for photos and full results.

FARR 40 - 1) Crocodile Rock, Alex Geremia/Scott Harris/Robbie Haines, 9 points; 2) Samba Pa Ti, John Kilroy/John Kostecki, 16; 3) Shadow, Peter Stoneberg/Mark Reynolds, 19; 4) Groovederci, Deneen Demourkas/Ross MacDonald, 19; 5) Non Sequitor, Dick Watts/Tom Thayer/Steve Benjamin, 22; 6) Peregrine, David Thomson/Brian Camet, 24; 7) Endurance, Mike Condon/Seadon Wijsen, 30. (14 boats)

J/120 - 1) Mr. Magoo, Steve Madeira, 5 points; 2) Chance, Barry Lewis, 8; 3) Twist, Timo Bruck, 18. (7 boats)

EXPRESS 37 - 1) Eclipse, Mark Dowdy, 5 points; 2) Golden Moon, Kame Richards, 9; 3) Expeditious, Bartz Schneider, 11. (6 boats)

J/105 - 1) Blackhawk, Dean Dietrich, 14 points; 2) Good Timin', Wilson/Perkins, 14; 3) Nantucket Sleighride, Peter Wagner, 14; 4) Tiburon, Steve Stroub, 16; 5) Wind Dance, Steve Pugh, 17; 6) Bella Rosa, Dave Tambellini, 30; 7) Orion, Gary Kneeland, 32; 8) Zuni Bear, Bergmann/Bennett, 36; 9) Jose Cuervo, Sam Hock, 36; 10) Advantage 3, Pat Benedict, 42. (22 boats)

AMERICAP - 1) Zsa Zsa, 1D-35, Bill Wright, 8 points; 2) Kaizen, 1D-35, Steve Howe, 11; 3) Wasabi, Farr ILC-46, Dale Williams, 12. (7 boats)

Svendsen's Summer Splash

August 3 - Encinal Yacht Club, Alameda

Here's a report from Troy Keipper, Director of Youth Sailing at Encinal Yacht Club:

"Saturday saw very pleasant conditions with temperatures in the low 70s and a great 8 knot westerly building to about 15 for the final race. A total of nine races were completed with one throw out. All sailors enjoyed some great chili afterwards by the pool. Thanks to the Millers and Gascons for acting as cooks for the day!

"Our CFJ Fleet displayed some very talented match racing for our viewingpleasure, but the family battle for first place in the Opti Fleet was even more enjoyable to watch. Michael Grove (about 60 lbs!) toughed out the last race in 15+ knots to edge his older sister Lindsay by one point!

"A very special thanks goes out to our sponsor, Svendsen's Boat Works, for providing terrific prizes for all the junior sailors."

Results:
Optimist Class: Michael Grove, Lindsay Grove, Jesse Hogin, Hanna Miller, Kyle Salo, Stephanie Gascon, Joe Ross.

Splash/Byte Class: Max Paulus, Aaron Dornbrand-Lo, Clair Blakey, Colin Brochard, Dan Roberts, Nathan Monroe-Yavnely, AlexanderGuidici.

CFJ Class: Megan Grove/Mary Glaser,
Will Kendrick/Thomas Brook.

Baja Ha-Ha VIII Revisited

August 5 - Cruising World, August 2002

Check out the current issue of Cruising World for "Passage Notes: The Race That Launched A Thousand Trips", pg. 21. It's a nice little article by Mark Joiner of Ku'uipo about his and his wife, Sandi's, experience of last year's Baja Ha-Ha Rally.

Profligate on Voyage of Discovery

August 5 - Two Harbors, Catalina Island

The Wanderer, the normal editor of 'Lectronic Latitude, is on a Voyage of Discovery in Southern California with Profligate. He had hoped to be in constant contact via a cell phone-based Internet connection. Alas, the phone carrier decided it was not quite ready for prime time yet. Perhaps next week.

So far, the Wanderer has lost a two-week-old folding prop - the third in the last year(!!!); been visited by world famous, if you're old enough to remember, Aynsley Dunbar, who is now selling yachts in Santa Barbara; competed in the Santa Barbara to King Harbor (Redondo Beach) Race; and cruised from Redondo to Two Harbors, Catalina. Other than having lost the prop, the Wanderer reports that he's been having a blast, particularly during the King Harbor Race and the sweet reach from Redondo Beach to Catalina in 18 knots of wind.

It's now Monday morning; the sun is out in Two Harbors and the Wanderer is off on more discoveries.

YOTREPS

August 5 - The Pacific Ocean and Cyberspace

Who is out making passages in the Pacific and what kind of weather are they having? Check out YOTREPS - 'yacht reports' - at http://www.bitwrangler.com/yotreps/

Weather Updates

August 5 - Pacific Ocean

San Francisco Bay Weather

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

Check out the Pacific Ocean sea states at: http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/RSSA/PacRegSSA.html.
For views of sea states anywhere in the world, see http://www.oceanweather.com/data/.