‘Latitude 38’ May Issue on the Docks Now
Latitude 38’s May issue is out now and ready for your reading pleasure. This month we cruise through the generations with stories about junior sailors, historic vessels, and good times in between. Take a look at the preview:
A Young Sailor with a Mature Passion
We often hear sailors saying, “Start ’em young,” or, “I wish I’d started when I was that age.” Driving down the road one day, we saw our neighbor coming up the hill. It’s a narrow street, so, as you do when bumping into neighbors, we stopped for a chat.
“Hey, we were just having breakfast at Lighthouse, and Claire picked up a Latitude magazine and started reading,” neighbor Dave Wilson said with excitement in his voice. “She loves it!” Claire is 9 years old, soon to be 10, and is a youth sailor at the Sausalito Yacht Club (SYC).
“Perhaps we should do a story on Claire,” we said. And we did ….
Wind in Their Sails — Death and Resurrection
“Wind in Their Sails: Death and Resurrection is my documentary about classic wooden sailboats and the people who care for them. It’s a story grounded deep in my past. In 1954, when I was 8 years old, my family came to San Francisco when my dad attended the American Medical Association’s annual meeting. My mom, being a resourceful woman, thought that taking me to see the tall ship Balclutha would be something I might enjoy. She was right!
“Walking up to Balclutha, I was mesmerized by the tall masts and yardarms, and I visualized going up the ratlines to break out the sails.”
One Sailor — Three Boats
In August 2024, we received a story from Richard Packard, a sailor and professor of physics at UC Berkeley. Sadly, as we worked to prepare Richard’s story for a recent issue, we learned that he had passed away in November, his story unpublished. While this may sound like a somber cliché, it turned out to be an opportunity to learn more about this unassuming man for whom sailing and boats were a passion, and a way of life.
The May issue includes your favorite monthly columns:
Letters: Memories from a first ocean race, Banderas Bay Regatta, Big Geiger, old boats and lost boats, groundings at Angel Island, Santa Cruz Harbor, and a postbox full of readers’ letters and comments.
Sightings: Baja Ha-Ha’s last “Hurrah;” L.A. fires; Cayard and Spithill join America’s Cup
Hall of Fame Class of 2025; VetsBoats resurrects SV Clover; and more.
Max Ebb: “It Starts Here”
Racing Sheet: Spring classics bloom in this edition. We visit Vallarta YC’s Banderas Bay Regatta, BAMA’s Doublehanded Farallones, the SSS Round the Rocks, the Boss of the Estuary Beercans, FLYC’s Camellia Cup, BYC’s Wheeler Regatta, and SCYC’s Doublehanded Buoy Fiasco. Box Scores — including some final midwinter results — and Race Notes fill in the gaps.
World of Chartering: A group of four couples decide to give a charter in Croatia another try, reserving a Fountaine Pajot Astrea 42 through Danielis Yachting via the Kastela Marina.
Changes in Latitudes: With reports this month on Kalea’s “slingshot” cruising; Peregrine Spirit’s post-Ha-Ha adventures; Flow’s Pacific Puddle Jump; Oatmeal Savage’s last big cruise with growing kids; and an eclectic selection of Cruise Notes.
All the latest in sailboats and sailboat gear for sale, Classy Classifieds.
We appreciate all readers and all our supporters — you keep Latitude 38 in print! Please show your appreciation by supporting the advertisers who have made this issue possible.
See our distribution map to find out where you can pick up a magazine near you.
USCG’s ‘Eagle’ Is Still Coming to S.F. — Maybe Just a Little Later
Last month we shared news of the USCG’s barque Eagle coming to the West Coast and making stops at numerous ports along the coast. At the time, we wrote that the Eagle would visit San Francisco on June 25 and July 25. Now it seems those dates might change.
Eagle’s operations officer, Lt. Jonathan Lesieur, wrote to tell us, “[T]here is a possible chance that the dates for our first stop in San Francisco might change a little bit, but we should find out soon on the exact timing.”
Lt. Lesieur said he would send more information once they have a better idea of how the ship’s schedule is progressing. “Eagle does plan on being open for free public tours on all our port calls including both stops in San Francisco. Exact hours we will be open for tours is still TBD,” he added.
We took a look at where Eagle is, and found her among hundreds of vessels, having recently transited the Panama Canal.
“We do openly broadcast AIS, so people can follow our progress on various marine traffic apps if they are interested,” Lt. Lesieur continued.
Known as “America’s Tall Ship,” Eagle is a 295-ft, three-masted barque used as a training vessel for future officers of the United States Coast Guard. It is the largest tall ship flying the Stars and Stripes and the only active square-rigger in US government service. Approximately 120 cadets will crew the ship at any given time throughout her tour of the USA’s West Coast; cadets will swap out at various ports.
Eagle is expected to be open for free public tours on all their port calls, including both stops in San Francisco.
Join Club Nautique for an Open House on May 17 in Alameda
Come check out the latest new Jeanneau sailboats and pre-owned sail and powerboats for sale and register for our Charter Ownership Seminar.
Opening Day Flags Bring Color to the Bay
We were hoping for sun, but it was in short supply for much of the day. Regardless, the Bay, boats, and good cheer were all there for sailors who headed out on the Bay for this past weekend’s Opening Day. A rabbi and priest were aboard the 1949 Trumpy motor yacht Aurora V anchored in Belvedere Cove to bless all boats that came by.
Opening Day is an over-100-year-old tradition with fleet blessings on Raccoon Strait organized by the Corinthian Yacht Club, and a Cityfront parade and blessing organized by the Pacific Inter-Club Yachting Association (PICYA). The PICYA will also be hosting the upcoming annual Lipton Cup competition among yacht clubs on June 13–15.
The theme of this year’s Opening Day was “Generations on the Bay,” with the older generation well represented by Hans Roeben of CYC, who just celebrated his 96th birthday in April. He’s spent many years at the helm of his beautifully varnished Baba 35 Helgoland.
If you’re looking to join a yacht club you could visit eight clubs in Alameda this coming Saturday at their Island-Wide Open House. Admission to all clubs is free. Check it out here.
If you didn’t get out for Opening Day this year, make June’s Summer Sailstice your own personal “blessing.” It’s a great way to make sure you get off the dock and spend time on the water. In the meantime, you can still raise your sails and get out on the Bay.
Sailing on Other People’s Boats West and East
When former Bay Area sailor and Club Nautique manager Tony Gilbert moved back east he found another crew party through which to keep sailing on other people’s boats. He explains why it’s worked for him on both San Francisco and Chesapeake bays.
I found more than a few good opportunities to sail on other people’s boats at the Latitude 38 crew parties in San Francisco and Sausalito. I met a variety of skippers looking for crew for daysailing, cruising, racing, and even exotic deliveries (“I’m going to Hawaii next week and need an extra hand.”). Since moving to the Northeast, I decided to check out what a local meetup looks like.
On Sunday, April 27, I dropped in on the public crew party at Eastport Yacht Club, overlooking Annapolis Harbor with views of the Spring Sailboat Show and the Naval Academy. Hosted by SpinSheet magazine, this was the last of three spring mixers held along the Chesapeake: in Solomons, MD, Hampton, VA, and Annapolis.
If you’ve never attended a crew list party, think of it as “speed dating” for skippers and sailors. You have to put yourself out there and not be shy. The crowd is casual and convivial, and the din of laughter and conversation picks up after a few Dark ’n’ Stormies. You slap on a name tag that says whether you’re looking for a boat or looking for crew, don your Docksides, and mingle. It doesn’t hurt to bring a card with your contact info — some attendees even had “sailing résumés,” while skippers handed out cards with boat details, a few complete with QR codes.
The attention-getter at the Annapolis party was the “message masts” — tall poles taped with index cards advertising boats and the kind of crew they’re seeking (racing, cruising, casual, experienced). The crowd shuffled past, snapping photos and stopping to mingle or check name tags.
Most conversations quickly turned to, “Do you race on Wednesdays (serious) or Fridays (beer can), or are you looking for something else?” Skippers ran the gamut — from Lee, who’s unfazed by lightning so long as “you don’t touch the metal,” to Dan, who races his Catalina 25 and insists, “There’s no yelling on my boat.” The “something else” crowd included David from Dallas, retired and living aboard in Annapolis and seeking crew for daysails; Steve, looking for help to circumnavigate the Delmarva Peninsula on his Beneteau 37; and Lynn and Craig, who need help delivering their boat from charter in the BVI back to the Chesapeake.
There were also volunteer and nonprofit opportunities recruiting sailors, including the Annapolis Naval Sailing Association, Chesapeake Region Accessible Boating (CRAB), and Singles on Sailboats (SOS).
Sailing other people’s boats may not have the same swagger or bragging rights as ownership, but it often means all the fun with none of the maintenance. (Remember the 10-percent rule.) Boating Industry magazine estimates that the average American boat owner spends fewer than 19 days a year on the water. Maybe they just haven’t been to a crew party. So buck up, boatless sailors — there’s plenty of sailing out there, and skippers are looking for you.
For crew connection on the East Coast go to the SpinSheet Crew Finder List here. On the West Coast add your name to the Latitude 38 crew list here. Using our crew lists you’ll find there’s no reason not to sail because you don’t have a boat or don’t have crew. Sign up, go sailing.
Spectra Watermaker Workshop at Spaulding
