Bay Area Sailor Heather Richard Awarded OCC Qualifier’s Mug
Bay Area sailor Heather Richard has been awarded the Ocean Cruising Club 2025 Qualifier’s Mug. The award, created in 1993, recognizes the most ambitious or arduous qualifying voyage published by a member in print or online, or submitted to the OCC for future publication. Heather qualified for the award when she doublehanded the Pacific Cup Race from San Francisco to Hawaii with her son Julius in 2024. They completed the race aboard the boat on which she raised him. Heather is a USCG 100-Ton captain, sailing instructor, racer, cruiser, and charter owner who raised her three kids on her 43-ft aluminum sloop Carodon.
The OCC says this about Heather and her qualifying voyage:
“This qualifying voyage was unique and challenging in many ways, not so much that it was an unusual route or particularly difficult passage but that the personal challenges to make it happen were perhaps significant and noteworthy. There are not many female sailors raising their kids aboard as a single parent.
“That was perhaps the first challenge that Heather faced in preparation for the voyage, starting many years ago when son/crew Julius was not even walking. Not only did she raise her kids aboard as a single parent and take them cruising as often as she could, teaching them all to become competent sailors, she also became one of the few female captains on San Francisco Bay and one of only three female captains in the Pacific Cup Race in 2024.
“The fact that they as a mother-son team prepared the boat and finished the race in what was arguably one of the heaviest-wind years on record, doublehanded and without using autopilot took grit and determination beyond what other racers and certainly other cruisers often face on a similar passage. Their boat was 50 years old, not competitive with the others in the race, yet they managed to make the crossing within the time limit and without significant damages, unlike many in the fleet. Heather hopes her story will inspire other women to follow their dreams and break gender stereotypes.”
We hosted Heather on our Good Jibes podcast in September 2025. There she shared some of the challenges and stories of her voyage with Julius, along with stories of raising her children aboard Carodon and together cruising some 5,000 miles. In receiving the OCC award, Heather joins fellow Qualifier’s Mug recipient and Good Jibes guest James Frederick. James received the OCC award in 2021 for his first solo ocean crossing, which was also his qualifying passage to become a member of the OCC. He finally reached port after 32 days and 2300 miles at sea, 1000 of which were steered by drogue after rudder failure.
Listen to our podcast with Heather Richard here: Episode #209: Heather Richard on Sailing the World With Your Kids
Tune in to our podcast with James Frederick here: Episode #95: James Frederick on Finding Peace at Sea
You can read more about the Ocean Cruising Cub here: Oceancruisingclub.org
Caption Contest(!)
This month we have an interesting perspective on our Caption Contest(!) and on sailing. Larry Baskin supplied the image below of Little Bullet and Sir Edmund meeting at the top of the world.
See January’s Caption Contest(!) winner and top 10 in the February issue of Latitude 38: Loose Lips — Caption Contest(!) Winners
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Golden Tickets Return To Surprise Latitude 38 Readers
What a great way to start the year! Two of our readers have found the elusive Golden Ticket in their copies of Latitude 38 sailing magazine. Brian Natov from Davis, CA, picked up his copy at Newsbeat in Davis, and Jamie Rosman from Nevada collected his Latitude 38 and Golden Ticket from the Pacific Mariners Yacht Club in Marina del Rey. Both lucky winners are receiving a new Latitude 38 hat. We’re waiting to hear back from Jamie about his sailing life, but the photo he sent us (at the bottom of this page) shows him aboard a boat. That’s a great start! Brian’s photo wasn’t taken aboard a boat, but the flags in the background do set up a boaty kind of vibe. Here’s what Brian tells us about himself.
“Growing up in the City, I’ve been on plenty of boats in the Bay over the years. Unfortunately for me … that never turns out well. We once rented a yacht, just tied up at Pier 39 one night for our 10th wedding anniversary. What a disaster that was! I once did a week on the Peter- and Darcy-crewed 62-ft cat, the Sea Leopard in the BVI, (only because it was given to us for free). I would never choose to go on a boat, especially in the ocean. I blow chunks on boats. Regardless, my bride and I took all four kids. What a terrific blast that was! But I wore a patch on my neck the entire time and even got sick on that big cat. Me and boats just never really got along. BUT.…”
“I’ve loved to raft/kayak/canoe my entire life — since scouting. Even as a kid, when I would save up and go in on a raft with my brother — we’d buy it from that big raft place on Market Street in the City, way down near Gough or something. That’s been gone for decades.
“Our latest marine adventures take place on a two-man inflatable kayak from Saturn [inflatable kayaks, boats, rafts, SUP boards, etc.]. Ours is christened the Santa Maria in memory of a dear friend.”
“It has nice seating for two. My lovely bride and I tend to frequent the rivers and lakes near and far from us in the Sierra. And now we’re buying a trailer so the kayak will come with us everywhere. Ahoy!
“And even though I’m not a mariner per se, there is a definite kinship reading L38 [Latitude 38 magazine]. I love to read the letters especially — and hear of the trials, lessons, feats and triumphs. Thanks for bringing it!”
Thanks to Brian for sharing his story. We think he’s a brave soul for having tried to overcome his propensity to “blow chunks” — trying a sailboat twice, and now kayaking.… Some people we know can even feel seasick on a surfboard if they’re not busy getting waves!
We’re keeping an eye out for Jamie’s sailing story. In the meantime, here’s the photo he sent us.
Any guesses what kind of boat Jamie is on? Apart from a sailboat that is. We’ll have to wait and see what he says.
Is the America’s Cup Being Run Illegally?
Bay Area sailor and recent Three Bridge Fiasco winner John Sweeney recently posted his view on the current iteration of the America’s Cup on yacht designer Julian Everett’s Facebook page. Sweeney speaks his mind:
The America’s Cup is not merely a sport in decline. It is operating outside the Deed of Gift that governs its existence.
Since the demise of the International America’s Cup Class (IACC) at the 2007 Valencia regatta, the Cup has careened into a high-speed, foiling spectacle. Some celebrate it. Most sailors do not. But aesthetics and nostalgia are not the real problem.
The real problem is legal: The current holder of the America’s Cup is running the event in material violation of the Deed of Gift, and the New York courts — the only courts with jurisdiction — have a duty to intervene.
I intend to ask them to do exactly that.
THE DEED OF GIFT IS NOT OPTIONAL
The America’s Cup is not owned by a federation, a commercial rights holder, or a media company. It is governed by a trust instrument — the Deed of Gift — enforced for more than 170 years by the New York courts.
It has been modified before. But it has never been abandoned.
Among its core requirements are:
• Racing in yachts that comply with specified waterline limits
• Racing without stored power or engines
• Racing on a windward–leeward or triangular course
• Racing on an arm of the sea within a defined distance of the winning club’s location
• Yachts propelled solely by sailors
Today’s foiling craft fail these requirements on multiple levels.
I will not disclose every element of my legal action here. But one fact is undeniable: Foiling yachts do not comply with the minimum racing waterline requirements as clarified by New York courts, nor do they comply with the Deed’s prohibition on stored and assisted power.
Flying above the water is not “sailing” as contemplated by the trust.
WHO I AM – AND WHY THIS MATTERS
I am not a casual critic.
I trimmed the main on America True and Oracle BMW Racing. I later funded my own campaign — the Sausalito Challenge — for the 2007 cycle, which ultimately evolved into Shosholoza. From 1999 to 2007, my partner Tina and I purchased and restored four IACC yachts and ran a vintage challenge series out of the Sausalito Yacht Club.
That series attracted serious teams. Larry Ellison joined with USA-61 and USA-76. The momentum ended when Alinghi and Oracle shifted focus to the commercial Moët Cup concept.
I have spent my life inside the America’s Cup ecosystem — as a sailor, a syndicate founder, and a steward of its history.
This is not theory. It is lived experience.
WHAT THE CUP WAS MEANT TO BE
The original America’s Cup envisioned large, demanding monohulls — closer in spirit to the J-Class than to aircraft. Yachts sailed by crews of 25–30. No engines. No batteries. No flight control systems.
Just sailors.
Racing was meant to be grueling. Tactical. Human. Conducted on recognizable courses that rewarded seamanship and endurance.
Today, the Cup is sailed by pilots managing systems — not crews sailing boats.
Speed alone is not the violation. Structure is.
THE LEGAL LINE THAT WAS CROSSED
Greetings From Tenacatita, Mexico
The warm Mexico sailing season continues to gather the cruising tribe for many gatherings along the coastline. Robert and Virginia Gleser are in their 26th season aboard their Islander Freeport 40, Harmony.
Virginia sent a quick update from the coast: “Here’s a picture of the class of 2026 after the Tenacatita Romp, a regatta around the bay, a once-a-year race that had 10 boats participating this time. Lots of fun was had by all with SV Wings winning again. Tenacatita and its fine weather, warm water, and gorgeous scenery have been an anchorage that sailors return to for years during the cool winter months. A welcoming, supportive community spontaneously takes over, and once again the morning net is on the air. Bocce ball games are on the beach; swims to shore and walks down the lovely beach with friends keep everyone fit. There were more kid boats than ever this year and they love surfing on the gentle break to hone their surfing skills. The mayor’s Friday night raft-up is happening again tonight, allowing everyone to introduce themselves and share in the appetizers that the chefs of the fleet bring. It’s a special, welcoming place.”
The Glesers shared their 25-year cruising story in the December 2024 Changes in Latitudes. If you’re ready to go, the Baja Ha-Ha is ready for you: www.baja-haha.com.
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