Archive for December 2016
John Kostecki (second from left) called tactics on Joel Ronning’s J/70 Catapult at the Worlds on San Francisco Bay in September; Catapult won the championship.
The idea of traveling around the world in 80 days by any means was once viewed as mere fantasy.
The icy docks seen all over the Bay Area recently remind us of an important lesson learned:
A few years ago I was walking down a dock toward my boat on a cold winter’s night when I heard a muffled sound that I first assumed was a seal — which was puzzling, as we never see seals in our marina.
What’s for Christmas dinner? How about freshly steamed crab?
© 2016
No, not Christmas.
Solar, as seen coming out of the shed in the Netherlands a few months ago.
Tom and Naty Marlow’s Ketch 22, towing her dinghy, was among the boats lighting up the Estuary on December 3.
Sailor on a mission: Captain Kirk Miller was all smiles when he showed up at the Encinal Yacht Club docks with a boatload of Christmas toys.
Le Souffle du Nord on December 19. The IMOCA 60 monohull hit a UFO, and her hull is breaking apart.
Dr. Olga is not only restoring the Wanderer to health, she’s restoring his faith in humanity, which is even more important.
latitude/Richard
©2016Latitude 38 Media, LLC There is a Mexican woman who has partially restored the Wanderer’s faith in humanity.
©2016Latitude 38 Media, LLC There is a Mexican woman who has partially restored the Wanderer’s faith in humanity.
The crew of IDEC Sport waved farewell this morning as they relaunched their attempt to be the fastest to sail around the world.
One frustrating aspect of living in this ‘app-happy’ era of endless innovation is that is it seems almost impossible to keep up with the latest, greatest developments.
A 75-year-old former sailor from Northern California has been arrested in the case of two 25-year-olds who were killed and dumped off a boat in 1978.
Greig and Leslie Olson’s Napa-based Brown Searunner 31 trimaran Doggone heads out toward the center of Banderas Bay during the light-air first race of the Blast.
With a little luck, you can snag a berth in front of Victoria, BC’s Empress Hotel — at the center of that sparkling-clean port’s many shoreside attractions.
If you never intend to sail your boat to Mexico, you may be weary of reading our occasional updates on obtaining, canceling and renewing that country’s mandatory Temporary Import Permits.
Wayne and Suzie Koide’s Richmond Yacht Club-based Sydney 36 CR Encore has won the ORR West Coast Championship Northern Division for a second year in a row.
Seen here racing in the St.
For decades, Avon Skin So Soft Bath Oil has been touted as an excellent ‘underground’ insect repellent by many of those who have used it in the tropics and in forested areas.
On Thursday, the government of Tonga officially requested extradition of American cruiser Dean Jay Fletcher, 54, to stand trial in that island nation’s capital, Nuku’alofa, for the alleged murder of his Canadian wife Patricia Linne Kearney last summer.
The rail on a J/24 in the 2015 Crew You Regatta was a wet ride, but not because of rain.
Footloose didn’t have any problem with her AIS at night, but when she turned on her tricolor, boats started to disappear.
Footloose
©Latitude 38 Media, LLC AIS — Automatic Identifcation System — is one of the greatest safety inventions for the modern mariner.
©Latitude 38 Media, LLC AIS — Automatic Identifcation System — is one of the greatest safety inventions for the modern mariner.
Needless to say, the development of smart phones and tablets, in combination with the specialized apps that support them, have led to dramatic changes in the way millions of people acquire information and conduct their lives — including boaters.
But with a seemingly endless flow of new mobile-device apps constantly entering the marketplace, it’s tough, if not impossible, to keep up with which of these clever programs are the most useful.
In a remote region of the Southern Indian Ocean, French solo skipper Kito de Pavant, 55, was enduring an anxious wait yesterday afternoon on his IMOCA 60 monohull Bastide Otio after he struck an object that nearly ripped keel from hull.
In anticipation of the many cold, wet days that lie ahead tthis winter — when even diehard sailors would think twice about heading out on the water — we’re working on an article that will introduce you to a variety of rainy-day projects that a typical do-it-yourselfer could handle.
Unlike Profligate, ‘ti Profligate in the Caribbean does not have a watermaker. So when the latter is taken to the water dock in St.
There has been plenty of unsettling news lately concerning the Alameda Marina complex, but Bay Ship’s acquisition of Svendsen’s is largely seen as positive.
latitude/Chris
©Latitude 38 Media, LLC In most corners of the sailing world, a boatyard changing hands would not be particularly earthshaking news.
©Latitude 38 Media, LLC In most corners of the sailing world, a boatyard changing hands would not be particularly earthshaking news.
An urgent request for type A-negative blood was broadcast to the Banderas Bay cruising fleet via VHF on Sunday, November 26, by Dick Markie, harbormaster at Paradise Village Marina.
A rare treat: a shot of Armel Le Cléac’h aboard Banque Populaire VIII, passing the Kerguelen Islands on November 30.
Our ‘cover girls’ this month are vintage Farallon Clippers Credit and VIP, seen charging upwind during October’s Jessica Cup.
In Wednesday’s ‘Lectronic Latitude, we listed a plethora of lighted boat parades that will put holiday sparkle into the next three weekends in Northern California and San Diego.
Most of the boats coming across the Atlantic in November-December rallies are cruising boats, such as the Lagoon 450 Spirit, the first of the ARC+ boats to finish.
The Grand Poobah might be biased, of course, but to his way of thinking, the Baja Ha-Ha is "all about" small boats on a big, blue, warm ocean and cruisers making all kinds of new friends.
Jérémie Beyou takes a selfie while explaining the problems that he is encountering onboard his IMOCA 60 Maître Coq.
Island Dreamer in last year’s Lighted Yacht Parade on the Oakland-Alameda Estuary.
© Fred Fago
Over the next couple of weekends, it will seem as if there are as many lighted boat parades as there are LEDs on a string of Christmas lights.
Because the Banderas Bay Blast is held in mid-December, the wind tends to be light and the air warm: mellow tropical sailing.
Leaving behind the sinking Noah, her crew drifts away.
© Dr. Bramley Murton / National Oceanography Centre
Four family members and their one crew were successfully rescued last weekend from the BH39 Noah in the Atlantic Ocean while participating in the 2,750-mile Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) from the Canary Islands to St.
The view from Nereida at sunset, off Southern California, last night.
Nereida
©Latitude 38 Media, LLC Jeanne Socrates’ attempt to be the oldest person to circumnavigate the globe singlehanded without stopping is, unfortunately, making an unforeseen stop.
©Latitude 38 Media, LLC Jeanne Socrates’ attempt to be the oldest person to circumnavigate the globe singlehanded without stopping is, unfortunately, making an unforeseen stop.