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May 22, 2019

Around the West Coast Sailing World

Latitude Nation — Here are a few nuggets from around the West Coast sailing world:

Matthew Turner Is on Display

The Matthew Turner is currently hauled out at Bayside Boatworks, and has some access for those hoping to catch a look.

“It is quite a sight!” said Sylvia Stompe from Call of the Sea. “We have docents on site between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. most days so visitors can take a peek, but the boatyard is not otherwise open to the public.”

The Matthew Turner is quite a sight from any angle.
© 2019 Call of the Sea

This is all part of the years-long drum roll leading up to Matthew Turner’s first sail on the Bay. We’re not quite sure when that might be, but we do feel safe in saying: soon. Matthew Turner should be sailing soon. We are more excited for MT’s launch than SailGP, the America’s Cup, or Game of Thrones spinoffs.

Also, stay tuned for news about an upcoming Call of the Sea gala.

Prepare for all things r2ak

We are just weeks away from the start of the Race to Alaska, better known by its pithy handle: r2ak. In the June issue of Latitude 38 — which hits newsstands one week from Friday — we’ll meet some of the characters from team High Sea Drifters, an entry from San Rafael that will be sailing Shad Lemke’s Olson 30 Dark Horse. 

Shad Lemke — seen here in Hanalei Bay in Kauai following last year’s Singlehanded TransPac — is “a cowboy from Montana,” according to Dean “Steve” Hocking, owner of the Beneteau 45f5 Ohana. Hocking was Lemke’s ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’, teaching the Montanan how to sail years ago.
© 2019 Latitude 38 Media LLC / Chris

In other r2ak news, Ben Shaw recently did a podcast on Out the Gate Sailing with team Shut up and Drive, a San Francisco entry that will be sailing on a Beneteau Figaro 2. Shaw spoke with team members Nathalie Criou and Satchel Douglas about the unconventional race, having eight crew on a 33-ft boat, and sharing a bucket for a bathroom.

And Now the Picture Portion of this ‘Lectronic Latitude

Doug Yamamoto sails off Hs Lordships near Berkeley Marina a few weeks ago on a 25-knot day.
Few things capture our sailing imaginations like the many island dotting the Bay. Red Rock —  seen here about a week and a half ago (in the a.m., before the breeze came up, from the top deck of the Richmond/San Rafael Bridge) — has always felt, like, Tom Sawyer’s Island or something.
© 2019 Nathaniel Beilby
This is later from that same day when the Red Rock photo was taken, and after spending a few lazy hours on the hook off Quarry Point on Angel Island.
© 2019 Nathaniel Beilby
After spending over 250 days at sea, Randall Reeves has clearly figured out all of the good angles for shooting photos onboard Moli.
© 2019 Randall Reeves
Be sure to pick up the June issue for a quick circumnavigator’s update. “We have some big business yet in the high latitudes up north,” Reeves said.
© 2019 Randall Reeves

Healthy Ha-Ha Entry List

It’s been just under two weeks since entries were first accepted for the 2019 Baja Ha-Ha, and the Grand Poobah is pleased to report that the number of paid entries has reached 93. Based on the experience of recent years, he expects the total number of entries to be in the 150 range, with about 135 actual starters. To see a complete list of current entries, visit www.baja-haha.com.

The most surprising thing so far is the low number of multihulls. In most previous years there would be a total of 12 to 15 entries when all was said and done, but last year the number exploded to 25. With only seven entered so far, it’s likely there will be between 12 and 15 again this year.

As mentioned in a previous post, the largest entry so far is also the largest Ha-Ha entry ever, Rick Jakaus’ Frers 111-ft Cygnus Montanus from Stockholm, Sweden. Rick and crew did the 2012 Ha-Ha with his Swan 77, and reports that he and his crew had so much fun that they wanted to do it again. He was concerned that his boat might be too big, but we assured him that it wasn’t a problem.

The smallest entry so far is Baron Weller’s San Francisco-based Aries 32 double-ender Sans Souci. Except in cases of special dispensation, all entries must be at least 27 feet long and been designed, built, and maintained for offshore sailing.

The average boat length so far is once again about 43-ft.

 

David and Eileen of Striker, two of the hundreds of great Canadians who have done a Baja Ha-Ha, and who, like the Grand Poobah, received assistance from Scott of Muskoka.
© 2019 Richard Spindler

Some folks have wondered if there really is “safety but also support in Ha-Ha numbers.” We just happened to come across some photographic evidence of such support from the 2016 Ha-Ha. Just before the start of the 175-mile third leg from Bahia Santa Maria to Cabo San Lucas, David Woboril and Eileen Dirner of the Solaris Sunstar 36 Striker discovered that both their engines were down, and the forecast was for very light winds.

When Scott Doran and Laurie Ritchie of the Sidney, B.C.-based Lagoon 400 Muskoka heard about this, they insisted they tow Striker all the way to Cabo San Lucas. Which, as the accompanying photograph proves, they did.

Striker under tow on her way from Bahia Santa Maria to Cabo San Lucas.
© 2019 Richard Spindler

Scott, who had previously proved instrumental in repairing a cone clutch on the Ha-Ha mothership Profligate while in Turtle Bay, and Laurie later sailed across the Pacific to New Zealand. Scott is now singlehanding in Tonga. We saw David and Eileen in Mexico a few months ago, Striker’s engines all repaired.

There actually is a danger in joining the Ha-Ha — the danger of catching the cruising bug really good. While in the Caribbean recently, we ran into Thor and Tanya Temme, who had done a Ha-Ha in 2006, before taking a break to raise a family. A few weeks after we saw them, Thor and son Tristan took off across the Atlantic aboard the family’s Aikane 56 catamaran Manu Tera.

And just the other day we learned that Ha-Ha vets Greg and Debbie Dorland abandoned a trip from St. Martin to Bermuda after 24 hours to, what the hell, sail back to the Med instead of up to New England. This would be their third trip across the Atlantic, and something like their fifth year in the Med aboard their Catana 52 Escapade.

We could go on and on and on about Ha-Ha vets who have crossed the Atlantic, crossed the Pacific, or gone around the world. But you get an idea of how addictive cruising can be. Many of these folks reported that the Ha-Ha worked for them both as a drop-dead-cast-off date and/or as a beginner course in cruising.

If you think you might be interested in doing the Ha-Ha, Notice of the Rally and entry details can be found at www.baja-haha.com. We sure hope that you’ll join us and become part of sailing history. The dates of the 26th Annual Baja Ha-Ha are November 3-16. We hope to see you there.

RYC Welcomes Doo Dah Sailors

We met Dean Hupp at Richmond Yacht Club on Saturday. We were there for the Delta Doo Dah Kickoff Party & Cruising Seminar. Dean owns the Islander 28 Jackie Oh. He entered both the Delta Doo Dah and June 1’s Delta Ditch Run. Dean started sailing in high school. He got to do three trips sailing from Coos Bay, Oregon, to Baja California aboard a Farallon Clipper — the start of a lifelong pursuit of sailing. Or so he thought. Somehow time in college, then career, turned into a multi-decade break. For adventure, he took to riding Harleys. Then, a couple of years ago, he did the Trans-America Trail on a dirt bike — 5,600 miles of almost all off-road riding from North Carolina to Oregon.

Dean Hupp at the Doo Dah Party
Delta Doodette Christine Weaver greets Dean Hupp as he arrives at the Richmond Yacht Club.
© 2019 Latitude 38 Media LLC / John

After all that, Dean decided to get back into sailing. He jumped in with both feet when he bought his first boat ever, Jackie Oh, berthed at Owl Harbor Marina in Isleton. He brushed up with a few ASA courses and has been refining his skills with all the sailing time he can find. Now it’s Ditch Run and Doo Dah time.

Owl Harbor gift bag
Later in the evening, Dean won the fabulous and colorful Owl Harbor gift bag in the door-prize drawing. To see what all the prizes were and who won what, go to www.deltadoodah.com/sponsors2019.html.
© 2019 Latitude 38 Media LLC / Chris

Many Delta Doo Dah sailors also plan to sail in the Delta Ditch Run, June 1, from RYC to Stockton Sailing Club. The 67-mile adventure offers a cruising division as well as the usual racing divisions. We’ll have a Summer Sailstice swag bag to give away to an official Doo Dah entry following the awards ceremony the morning of Sunday, June 2, at SSC. We’ll preview the Ditch Run in a ‘Lectronic Latitude post next week, but here’s a tip: Sign up by this Sunday, May 26, to save $30 on the entry fee. Registration in the Ditch Run will close on May 29. Registration in the Delta Doo Dah will continue through August, and it’s free.

Three Sheets to the Wind
As California is in the midst of being swallowed by late-season rain, a coalition of  state lawmakers and interest groups — their drought concerns satiated, but their fears of swelling vegetation and exploding pollen counts on the rise — have decided to take legal action against the aberrant weather.