Lookin’ Good
Yes, there was a giant something-or-other in the background, but what caught our eye was the nice-looking Island Packet Peppermint Patty enjoying a pleasant reach down the Sausalito waterfront.
©2017Latitude 38 Media, LLC
If you’ve looked at this weekend’s forecast, you already know that sailing on San Francisco Bay is your best bet. Those stuck on land will be surviving 90+ degree temperatures. Those sailing the Bay will stay cooler and be lookin’ good.
For a visual bonus, on Saturday you can watch San Francisco Yacht Club’s Great Schooner Race starting at Knox buoy. There’s also plenty of racing listed in the race calendar, or just get out there and enjoy hot, slow grand Bay tour.
Superyachts Steal America’s Cup Spotlight
Forget the Warriors and Cavaliers — tomorrow in Bermuda will see a rematch for the ages, as Oracle Team USA squares off against Emirates Team New Zealand to contest the 35th America’s Cup. Racing starts around 10 a.m. local time, and will also be available on NBC television, weather permitting (the initial forecast is for light conditions).
This past week, a gazillion dollars’ worth of sailboats (likely totaling the GDP of most small nations) went head to head in the America’s Cup Superyacht Regatta, making for breathtaking scenes on Bermuda’s turquoise waters.
For those of you keeping score, 20 boats competed in four classes, in what were surely the most complicated PHRF ratings of all time. For the full results, click here.
In the J Class, Lionheart took top honors, while Bay Area-owned Svea and Hanuman took fourth and fifth respectively in the six-boat fleet. The Js will square off again in their own regatta, and Shamrock — the very first J Class yacht built in 1930 for the America’s Cup — has been added to the roster for a seven-boat fleet.
For more America’s Cup history, NBC TV will air a documentary tomorrow about Ted Turner’s 1977 campaign. "Courageous" Turner and his crew reflect on "what Australian skipper Noel Robbins characterized as ‘The Best Defense.’" The film was produced by Offshore Productions, which is helmed by local sailor Dick Enersen.
And if you haven’t had a chance to praise or complain about the 2017 America’s Cup, please drop us a line.
McWilliam Family Completes Circumnavigation
©2017Latitude 38 Media, LLC
“When we started this cruising season,” reports Chay McWilliam, “our plan was to finish the circumnavigation our family of three started 14 years ago with the 2003 Baja Ha-Ha. We would do that by transiting the Panama Canal, thus crossing our most easterly previous position with our Peterson 46 Esprit.
“But when we arrived in Panama, we learned there was a three-week waiting period before we would be given a transit date, and this didn’t work with our schedule. Jamie needed to be back in Bozeman, Montana, to start his summer internship. So we’ve postponed the Canal transit, for now.”
The McWilliam family — originally from San Diego but currently hailing from Henderson, Nevada — consists of Chay, his wife Katie, and their now-grown son Jamie.
Chay said that even though they were less than 30 miles from crossing their outbound track, because of the orientation of the Canal, they’re now actually farther west than if they were on the other side of the Canal. "So by one definition, we have ‘gone around the world’, as of May 29.
“At this point we have decided to seriously put Esprit on the market. If she doesn’t sell before the new year, we will either transit the Panama Canal over the Christmas holidays or in March during Jamie’s spring break.”
A big congratulations to the McWilliam family! Another Ha-Ha boat has completed a circumnavigation. If anyone is interested in Esprit, the McWilliam family can be contacted at [email protected].
Things Are Different in the Islands
If you want a photographic example of how life is different in the islands than in the States, check out the photo taken by Mike Stout of the Redondo Beach-based Aleutian 51 Mermaid.
Mike and Robin’s boat is currently on the hard at Jolly Harbour, Antigua, while they get ready to run a canal boat in Italy, which only has a few miles of canals. But before they left Antigua, they took a photo of what passes for trailer taillights in Antigua.
Hilarious, no? But in the Third World, you do what you have to do, not necessarily what complies with the letter of the law. And everybody understands. Just as in Mexico.
We’re just not sure what the guy pulling the trailer does for brake lights or turn signals.
What Could Be Easier?
Do it the easy way. Go online to sign your dad up for a gift subscription to Latitude 38 magazine, then write a note expressing your love of him and sailing.
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