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Photo of the Day, Word of the Day

February 14 - Baja California Sur


Profligate
Photo Latitude/Richard
©2007 Latitude 38 Publishing Co., Inc.

Today's Photo of the Day is of Profligate, Latitude 38's 63-ft cat, for the simple reason that it's also Wordsmith's Word of the Day. Here's what they have to say:
Profligate (PROF-li-git, -gayt) adjective. 1. Recklessly extravagant; Wasteful. 2. Given over to dissipation; dissolute. Noun. A profligate person. [From Latin profligatus, past participle of profligare (to strike down, to ruin), from pro- (forth, down) + fligere (to strike).] Example: "Despite Bank Markazi's tsunami of petrodollars, the IMF has warned that profligate state spending spells future budget deficits."

It's an ironic name, of course, because in our view the money we've spent on her is the best money we've spent in our lives.

- latitude / rs

 


French Circumnavigator Dismasted

February 14 - Indian Ocean


Maud Fontenoy's L'Oreal Paris was dismasted on Saturday, just ten days from completing a non-stop singlehanded westabout circumnavigation.
©2007 L'Oreal Paris Australia

Just days from completing a non-stop westabout solo circumnavigation, France's Maud Fontenoy lost the carbon fiber mast on her 85-ft sloop L'Oréal Paris. Having set off from Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean last October, Fontenoy, a 29-year-old transatlantic and Pacific rower turned solo sailor, was just 2,000 miles and ten days from completing the trip when her mast snapped in half Saturday afternoon.


So close yet so far.
Map Google Earth
©2007 www.Netency.com

"I was sailing at a speed of seven knots in the most normal of seas with a 20-25 knot wind," related the stunned sailor. Fontenoy spent several hours cutting away the mast before conferring with her support team about a plan of action. They initially assumed she would have to abandon ship, so a German freighter changed course to offer assistance, but Fontenoy has since decided to construct a jury rig with the boat's 220-lb boom and try to finish on her own. "I don't want to abandon," she insisted. "I now have a healthy boat in which I feel safe."


The gutsy Maud is pressing on under jury rig.
©2007 Jean-Christophe L'Espagnol

The weather gods appear to be smiling down on the lovely and lively French lass as better weather with favorable winds are on their way. Even so, Fontenoy is looking at a few more weeks at sea, a bitter disappointment when she was so close to her goal. But you have to admire her grit.

- latitude / ld


A Circuit of Their Own

February 14 - Alameda

Today is February 14, and you know what that means - it's only 10 days until Island YC's Sadie Hawkins Women Skippers Regatta on February 24!

The Sadie Hawkins is the first event on the new list of Women's Events in the 2007 Northern California Sailing Calendar and YRA Schedule. There's something on the list for women of every ability, with a variety of host clubs and venues (even some freshwater ones).

Now that women have their own unofficial circuit of casual events, here's our new Women of Steel challenge: Compete in as many regattas on the list of Women's Events as you can in 2007, keep track of it all via results and/or photos, and send us that proof by November 15. The woman skipper who has sailed in the most races gets a prize (probably a T-shirt), a photo in the January, 2008, issue - and the usual adulation and international acclaim that goes with it. In the case of a tie, the nod will go to the woman who participated in one or more women's seminars - as either a student or a volunteer. Note that in this contest, as in life, it's showing up that counts, not winning (you'll get prizes for that from the race organizers).

Questions? Email Chris. Need a copy of the Sailing Calendar to get the list of events? You can pick one up for free at most Bay Area yacht clubs, many marinas, West Marine stores, and other businesses that cater to racing sailors. They were also mailed to all YRA members. If you can't find one, send $5 to: Latitude 38, attn: YRA Calendar, 15 Locust Ave., Mill Valley, CA 94941, and we'll mail you one. It's also available online in e-Book and html formats. You'll find 'Women's Events' on page 30.

For more info on the Sadie Hawkins, a friendly full-crew race on the protected waters of the Alameda Estuary, see www.iyc.org/raceinfo.htm or call Joanne McFee at (510) 521-7442.

- latitude / cw


Sub Sandwich

February 14 - San Diego Bay


"Starboard!"
Photo Pete Corpstein
©2007 Latitude 38 Publishing Co., Inc.

Pete Corpstein of the J/109 Aventura snapped this great shot near the entrance to San Diego Bay shortly after the start of the Cabrillo II Race on February 3. "The Cabrillo II, hosted by the good folks at Southwestern YC, is one of a series of four races," Corpstein explains. "This 65-mile race takes boats from San Diego to around the Coronado Islands, then around Sugarloaf Rock off Rosarito, Mexico, then home. The boat on the left is Rick Day's C&C 37 Rolling Thunder, the boat on the right is Robert Pace's J/46 Andiamo, and the boat in the middle . . . well, I think that's a U.S. Navy attack submarine!"

- latitude / ld


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