Walnut Creeks’s Shana Bagley, who sailed several legs in the 2009-10 Clipper ‘Round the World Race aboard California, shared the following photos of crew overboard training aboard the 51-ft John Alden ketch Pegasus. Though Pegasus’ primary objective is to introduce disadvantaged youth to the joys of sailing, she also takes out private charter clients as a way to subsidize their non-profit program.

"What a beautiful winter sailing day," she wrote. "Pegasus had a crew training day filled with safety procedures and MOB drills. We all had a great time and the day went by far too quickly — until we had to swab the decks, that is. Sure beats last year, when Team Cork had holed on a reef in the Java Sea and Team California and Team Finland had to rescue the crew from liferafts!"

Crew overboard training is an essential part of any boat’s safety regimen, so if you haven’t bothered to hold sessions, now is the time. Winter’s mild winds make it easier to get the hang of using your MOB gear, so the next time you’re out, chuck a cushion overboard and practice, practice, practice. You’ll be happy you did if you ever find yourself in a real life-and-death situation.

Do you have some good MOB or MOB-training stories? If so, email them to LaDonna, along with any photos you may have.

After singing the lines, "It’s been a lovely cruise, I’m sorry it’s ended," at a concert at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney, Australia, last night, Jimmy Buffett, the muse to many a sailor, made an unintentional face plant off the stage. The 64-year-old was reportedly knocked unconscious for five to 10 minutes and, having suffered a gash in his head, was rushed to the hospital. A note on his website says the singer is doing well and will be released from the hospital tomorrow.

We’ve always been a fan of Jimmy’s because he’s come up with some fine tunes, had a playful attitude toward life, and never took himself that seriously. We hope he’s fine and quickly recovers from any injuries he might have suffered.

When surfers talk about riding waves on the North Shore, they are inevitably referring to the North Shore of Hawaii and all the famous world-class breaks there.

But when West Coast sailor-surfers talk about the North Shore, they are sometimes referring to the Pita Mita area of the North Shore of Banderas Bay, which is about 15 miles from Puerto Vallarta. While the waves may not be as big or as consistent as Hawaii’s North Shore, Mexico’s North Shore does have some advantages: 1) You can easily paddle to any of about 10 spots from your safely anchored boat; 2) You can get lots of waves to yourself; 3) No ‘stink eye’ from a Big Bruddah.

We’re not going to claim that Punta Mita and the North Shore get consistently great waves — and that’s probably a good thing, or it would surely end up as crowded and as youth-oriented as Sayulita. But check out the following photos from Monday of this week. And the swell is still running pretty strong.

The water along in the Western Pacific has been cold since last spring, so the water temp on the North Shore was reported to be anywhere between 68 and 72 degrees. Bloody freezing for mainland Mexico. However, thanks to light winds and 85-degree air temperature, not everyone wore wetsuits, and most who did wore little ones.

When a decent swell hits Mexico’s North Shore, all kinds of great breaks appear, seemingly out of nowhere. So while the most crowded spots had perhaps 20 people, you could pick a break and have every single wave to yourself. Lots of waves went to waste, even at the most crowded breaks.

If any other sailor-surfers have been catching some good waves, we’d like to hear from you and see some photos. And no, you don’t have to identify the spot. But for now, here’s a selection of shots we took during a two-hour period in the mile or so stretch from the panga marina at Punta Mita to The Point. Enjoy.

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