Today’s two beautiful Photos of the Day
come from T.M. Hansen. “Because of an approaching storm
front, we broke with tradition this year and spent New Year’s
Eve day rather than New Year’s Day on the water. While Mom and
Dad were breaking down the boat on the trailer, our eight-year-old
Keiran took the digital camera to take some shots of the beautiful
sunset. While wrestling with the mast, I called out to him to
turn off the flash and set the camera on a steady surface. It
wasn’t until I got home that I turned on the camera to see what
we’d got. Among a string of blurry shots and photos of blackness,
I found these gems. With a film camera, I never could have afforded
to let my son ‘waste’ film, but with a digital camera I don’t
care as long as he takes care of the camera itself.”
Photos Keiran Hansen
Terrific photos! And yet another testimony
to the benefits of digital cameras, which often perform excellently
in extremely low light. If only they could solve the wide angle
problem.
“We Love Them!”
January 26 – St. Barth, FWI
Last week we ran a letter from a reader
who said he was sick of the ‘Profligate’s Progress’ reports
from the Caribbean. Since then, we’ve got a lot of mail disagreeing
with him:
Joe Boyle – “I’ve been reading your
emails from the Caribbean and I just LOVE ’em! Screw those pussies
who only want local racing coverage.”
Sylvia Seaberg, Hawkfarm Eyrie –
“We absolutely love your warm water pics and spreads! Thanks
to your efforts, even though my toes are cold, my heart is warm
and toasty as I dream of snorkeling, sarongs, and sailing in
sunny weather. Don’t pay attention to the reader who is bummed
out by your Caribbean news, he needs to grab a Mai-Tai and take
another look at the wonderful news you so generously provide
to your appreciative readers.”
Russ Rieber, Express 27 Hurricane
– “The reader that said he was ‘sick and tired of all our
reports and photos from the Caribbean’ is a knuckle head! We
love the reports because they are well written, entertaining,
and inspiring! Keep up the awesome job!”
Shep, Ranger 28 Abaris – “Regarding
the negative comments on the Caribbean pictures, to hell with
that dip stick. Keep them coming. Sitting here in the cold weather
is lousy and one of the few things that improves my attitude
is looking at the great warm weather pictures. Having been around
the Virgins and from St. Martin to Grenada, I really like them.”
Rob Spakowski, Newport Beach – “I
can’t believe someone wrote you to say you’re spending too much
time reporting on your Caribbean cruise. I think it’s been great
and would love seeing more. I’m enjoying it for the same reason
I love reading Changes in Latitudes
each month – it’s really good first hand information from real
cruisers out there doing it. Your updates from the Caribbean
are similarly informative and entertaining, and color pics vs.
b&w of the magazine makes it even better.”
Jim Norman, Catalina 380 Sonrisa,
Long Beach – “I love ‘Profligate’s Progress’ reports,
and check ‘Lectronic Latitude daily for them! Cruising vicariously
through your reports is not the same as being there myself, but
it is still fun. I appreciate your taking time to share frequently
via the Internet so I don’t have to wait for the next month’s Latitude 38. Enjoy
your 25th anniversary cruise, you’ve earned it!”
Rick Stober – “Keep the reports coming
– especially after the last couple of dreary Bay days! Hey you
guys heading over to Sint Maarten and Maho Beach, there are unbelievably
close 747 landing shots from a great bar.”
Photo Latitude/Richard
Rick – Here’s the runway you’re talking
about. The Air France 747 lands on Thursday afternoons – bringing
the mussels from Paris they’ll serve at La Marine in St. Barth
that night. As good as the landings are, the takeoffs are even
better. You can stand right behind the plane as the pilot gives
it everything the plane has to take off from the short runway.
In fact, they don’t even fly back to France, because they can’t
take off with a full load of fuel, so they go to the Dominican
Republic first and pick up fuel and more passengers. The thrust
from the 747’s engines have knocked over cars off the little
road, and blew people right off the beach and into Maho Bay.
How they could ever allow this is beyond us.
Thanks to the above ‘mandate’, last night
we flew back to Profligate and hope to start reporting
again on Wednesday. Meanwhile we’ll leave you with these shots
of the Heineken Regatta from a couple of years ago by Max Ebb.
Incredible water, no?
Photos Max Ebb
TNT Key West Race Week Wrap-Up
January 26 – Key West, FL
The Terra Nova Trading Key West Race Week
ended on Friday after five days of competition. Bay Area heroes
include J/105s Zuni Bear, of San Diego and SF Bay, sailed
by Richard Bergmann, and Tom Coates’ Masquerade, of San
Francisco, which both scored 28. (Zuni Bear, last year’s
J/105 winner and Boat of the Week,won the tiebreaker.)
John Sylvia’s OuiB5 of San Francisco beat out the other
J/120s.
Dutchman Peter de Ridder won the Farr 40
class with Mean Machine, also snaring the Terra Nova Trading
Trophy Boat of the Week for winning the most competitive class.
Two California boats placed in the top five: Crocodile Rock,
of Santa Barbara, and Warpath, of San Diego.
When the dust settled in the Melges 24
class, 14-year-old world champion Samuel ‘Shark’ Kahn (of Santa
Cruz and Waikiki), came in second after France’s Sebastian Col.
Kahn won four of nine races and led most of the week as Col,
sailing Philippe Ligot’s P&P Sailing Team entry, was carrying
a 59-point penalty for jumping the starting line Monday. But
when Col was able to discard that score after the seventh race,
the contest turned around.
Kahn, trailing by five points, did everything
he could except put the necessary boats between himself and the
Frenchman. He match-raced Col off the pin end of the line and
chased him relentlessly around the seven-leg, 14-mile course
until passing him on the last upwind beat to the finish to win
by three boat lengths, with his father Philippe a close third
to claim fifth place overall.
For more details, results and photos, see www.premiere-racing.com.
Also see Race Sheet in the February issue of Latitude
38, which will hit the streets this Friday.
Mark your calendars now – Key West Race
Week 2005 will be held January 17- 21.
Day 5 Action in TNT KWRW Photos Jack Hardway
YOTREPS
January 26 – The Pacific Ocean and Cyberspace
Who is out making passages in the Pacific
and what kind of weather are they having? The YOTREPS daily yacht
tracking page has moved to www.bitwrangler.com/psn.
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.
