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Photos of the DayAugust 30 - San Francisco Thanks to the immediacy of digital photography, we can lead today's 'Lectronic with this morning's Windjammers start. The first group sailed over the line at 9:30, headed from the Cityfront to Santa Cruz in flat water on an ebb tide. About 50 boats are racing. See the October issue of Latitude 38 for more, including results.  The Transpac 52 Rosebud led the fleet out the Gate.  Pacific Cup winner Alta Vita was second out.  Owner Dick Cranor steering the Santa Cruz 50 Oaxaca. |
 Kokopelli2 and Oaxaca  Absolute 02 is one of three Sydney 38s racing.  The Outrageous gang. There was just enough wind at the start for riding the windward rail.  Philippe Kahn reached into his toy locker and pulled out one of his Mumm 30s for this race. |
Sail San Francisco! 2002August 30 - San Francisco More from Wednesday's windy tall ships parade. These lovely vessels are visiting for a few days, berthed along the San Francisco waterfront from Hyde Street Pier to China Basin Ferry Terminal (at PacBell Park) and open to the public. For details on the ships and how to view them, see www.sailsanfrancisco.org. We have a preview article in the September issue of Latitude 38, coming out today, and we hope to feature a photo spread in the October issue.  Gas Light, a 172-ft scow schooner out of Sausalito, carried a full complement of spectators.  The 86-ft Ka'iulani, another Sausalito charter vessel, slips under the bridge.  A good example of the sloppy seas Wednesday.  Lynx, a 122-ft schooner from Newport Beach, seen here just south of the Bay Bridge, never set sail, as she broke her bowsprit outside the Gate. |
 Unfurling one of Europa's huge square sails.  Europa, a 185-ft bark from the Netherlands, sails toward the Golden Gate Bridge followed by Niña.  Quissett of Port Townsend, a 58-ft gaff schooner, sails under the bridge.  The Coast Guard made a strong showing. They hailed us a couple of times to tell us to keep our distance from the participants. (That's Hawaiian Chieftain in the background.) |
Prologue Race to Precede Around AloneAugust 30 - Newport, RI Around Alone 2002-03 will gather in Newport, RI, and depart for a crewed Prologue Race to New York on September 12. The Prologue Race, 160 miles to Manhattan, will set off from the Newport Boat Show in Newport Harbor on the opening day of the show. It will be a unique part of the Around Alone race because the participants won't be alone: Crews of up to five sailors will be part of teams taking the boats to New York. The Around Alone start will be on September 15. It was diverted from Rhode Island to New York City to allow the race to be part of 'Sail for America', one of the events marking the first anniversary of September 11. The Around Alone takes the fleet from New York to Torbay (England), then Cape Town (South Africa), Tauranga (New Zealand) and Salvador de Bahia (Brazil), before returning to Newport in April. The official entry list of competitors consists of 14 competitors from 10 different countries; 7 in Class I and 7 in Class II. Canadian skipper John Dennis has inspired his sponsor, Bayer, to create an annual giving fund for people with diabetes. The Ascensia Dream Fund (called "Your Life. Your Dream.") will help people achieve a significant dream that would not be possible without control of their diabetes through self-monitoring. Dennis, a 57-year old commercial real estate manager from Toronto, is making history as the first skipper with diabetes to compete in a global solo sailing race. His boat is named Ascensia, after the new brand name for Bayer's monitors and services that help people with diabetes self-manage their condition.  John Dennis and Ascencia Photo Billy Black Alan S. Paris of Bermuda explains this photo (below) of his boat, undergoing one of the many tests performed to determine seaworthiness of the competitors' vessels: "As you can see by the attached picture we pulled BTC Velocity to a 90 degree angle and then attached a gauge at the tip of the mast to measure the effort being exerted to bring the boat back upright. The obvious idea here is to see that a boat entered in this challenging race has the correct geometry to right the boat should a big wave (or more than one !!) try to knock me over. We passed.  Photo Courtesy www.aroundalone.com For more on the Around Alone, see our preview in the September issue of Latitude 38, being distributed right now! |
NYYC America's Cup Team to Host FDNY FirefightersAugust 30 - Auckland, NZ Julie Ash of the New Zealand Herald reports that Team Dennis Conner will pay their respects to those who died in the September 11 terrorist attacks by hosting 20 New York City firefighters during the Louis Vuitton Challenger series. The firefighters will visit Auckland and New York YC's Team Dennis Conner en route to the World Firefighters Games in Christchurch, New Zealand, from October 26 to November 2. "We are thrilled to have the opportunity to participate in the World Firefighters Games, especially because this year's games are in honor of those who have lost their lives in the course of duty - particularly to our 343 brothers who gave their lives last September," said Vinny Plover, a New York City firefighter. "We are also looking forward to cheering on Dennis and his crew in Auckland as they work to bring the America's Cup back to New York where it belongs." |
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Looking GoodAugust 30 - San Francisco Bay Gwynne Fitzsimmons writes, "Another beautiful day on the Bay and I caught this L-36 looking good last Sunday. I would like to pass the photos on but don't know how to find the owner. All I know is the sail number, 31. I can be found at Marina Village Yacht Harbor [in Alameda] aboard Bohemia." If this is your boat, you can email Gwynne.
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YOTREPSAugust 30 - 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 UpdatesAugust 30 Atlantic Ocean Tropical Storm DollyDolly is out in the Atlantic moving west at 14 knots in the general direction of the Windward/Leewards; her storm center was located at 10.4N 37.2W at 1500Z today. Max sustained winds are 55 with gusts to 65 knots, and 12-ft seas. She is expected to develop into a hurricane. To keep an eye on Dolly, see http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/atlantic/2002/index.html. Pacific Ocean Tropical Storms Hernan and GenevieveHernan has formed off the west coast of mainland Mexico, his center located at 13.9N 103.2W as of 1500Z. His track is following the coastline, moving north-northwest at 3 knots. Winds are presently only blowing at 35-40 knots but gathering force, with 12-ft seas. Meanwhile, further north, Genevieve has fizzled down to a 30-40 knot storm, moving north-northwest well off the Baja coastline. Heck, we had more wind than that on the Bay this Wednesday. To follow these storms, see http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/e_pacific/2002/index.html. San Francisco Bay WeatherTo 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 WeatherLooking 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 PressureThe University of Hawaii Dept. of Meteorology page posts a daily map of the NE Pacific Ocean barometric pressure and winds. Pacific Sea StateCheck out the Pacific Ocean sea states
at: http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/RSSA/PacRegSSA.html.
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