Cartel Violence Erupts in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
On Sunday, the idyllic Mexico cruising life was interrupted by violence after the killing of the drug lord Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.” The violence appears to be primarily lots of fires set by cartel members who have attacked road transportation with fires set to cars, buses, gas stations and other highway infrastructure. We spoke with Richard Spindler in Punta Mita, who reported that the attacks have avoided killing civilians, with the people being allowed to leave before the cars and buses were set on fire. As he noted, the cartels are also dependent on tourism and don’t want to kill the goose that lays the golden egg. The cartels remain very disciplined and clearly are avoiding injuring people.
We heard from Craig Chamberlain of Novamar Insurance, who was down at his offices in Puerto Vallarta, that he was carjacked at gunpoint yesterday. Fortunately, like everyone else, he was allowed to flee and seek shelter in a hotel. This morning, Craig said, “One carjacking at gunpoint in my life is enough for my wife and me! Today has dawned pretty peacefully. The main road is open but only a few cars are out. We are holed up at the Sheraton until tomorrow. Our Novamar PV staff is working from home today. They tell me to wait until we see public buses rolling again — the ones that weren’t torched yesterday. It’s now another beautiful day in Banderas Bay, just no boats as the ports are closed.” He says local news reports are saying the bad guys are damaging property but not hurting people.
We’ve heard no reports of damage or injury to the marinas or cruising community, though some of the action was a little too close for comfort. We’ve seen reports that the explosions could be heard nearby. Schools and roads were shut down but people have remained safe. Now, on Monday morning, the violence appears to have subsided and we’ll continue to find out more about what’s true and what is rumor.
There were reports that the Costco in Puerto Vallarta was burned down. It turned out to be untrue; however, there were vehicles in the parking lot set on fire, creating nearby damage.
This time of year is both beautiful and busy, with many cruising and racing events along the Mexican coastline. The San Diego to Puerto Vallarta Race is scheduled to send the first starters off this Thursday, February 26. We saw a report that Carnival in Barra de Navidad was canceled yesterday. Event organizers and participants will be watching closely to see if and how this continues to unfold and how they should respond. It’s too early to tell, though all is likely to return to normal.
We reached out to San Francisco YC member Matthew Sessions, who’s in the middle of a short break in Sayulita and gave us this report: “There were zero disturbances yesterday here in Sayulita, and we think it was mostly confined to downtown PV. We just drove around Sayulita and headed most of the way to Punta Mita a few minutes ago.”
“The main coastal road, Highway 200, has reopened, and there are no checkpoint restrictions that we saw. About one-third of the shops and restaurants have now reopened here in Sayulita (versus essentially everything shut down by late afternoon yesterday). It seems like more and more shops/restaurants will be open later today.
“Looking at the United app, there look like ~8 flights from United hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, LAX, and SFO scheduled for PVR today. Two are canceled; the rest are on time. The southbound planes are 90% empty; the northbound planes are full. United planes northbound from PVR back to the USA this afternoon are essentially on time.”
“And in other news, another gorgeous day here. Crystal clear and low 80s. The ocean is about 79 [degrees] and perfect.” The Sessions are scheduled to fly home tomorrow.
It’s sad to see such beauty intruded upon by violence. We’ll keep fingers crossed that the chaos continues to subside and people are safe as life returns to normal.
South Beach YC Hosts New Kasio Cup Regatta
South Beach Yacht Club, host of the Jazz Cup and Red Bra regattas, has announced a new “fun-first, yet competitive” regatta that will run on March 14 and 15, the Kasio Cup. And while they acknowledge that the Bay Area has many existing regattas, they have planned this one to be different from the usual formats: “Think a combination of the Tour de France and Formula 1, with the same high energy and inclusive spirit as SBYC’s Red Bra Regatta and Jazz Cup.”
The regatta’s title, Kasio Cup, is the club’s tongue tongue-in-cheek response to what they say are some of the more prestigious, and often out-of-reach, regattas on the Bay that feature luxury watches. “We want to win watches too, but we want to win watches that are appropriate for sailing. Winners of the Kasio Cup will be awarded a digital, waterproof timepiece that can actually be worn while sailing hard.”
Saturday’s racing format is short-course racing that emphasizes frequent starts, close maneuvers and tactical decision making. “Like the Tour de France, Saturday is not about winning a single race, but about performance across a series of races. Consistency, judgment, and recovery matter as much as raw speed.” In addition, the day includes a “strategic game component” that was inspired by Formula 1 racing. The regatta Notice to Competitors states, “Competitors must execute one or more ‘Required Actions,’ which will be defined in the Sailing Instructions. These actions are mandatory and are not penalties. They are designed to test seamanship in a safe and engaging way and may slow a boat down if not executed well. As in Formula 1 with tire changes, the strategy comes from deciding when to deploy them. Different crews may make different choices, and those choices matter. Required Actions must be completed by the end of the final race on Saturday.” One example of a required action “could include taking a 720-degree turn…”
Sunday is set to be a little more simple with a “round-the–Mid- and South-Bay race using fixed marks, in the spirit of the Three Bridge Fiasco.” The name of this part of the regatta? The “Three-Buoy Fiasco.”
While the racing will be competitive, the event is designed to be accessible by cost, experience, and attitude, the club says. “The Kasio Cup is intended to welcome both seasoned racers and newer crews, with additional award categories that celebrate first-time racers, youth racers, and, very likely, the best dressed on Sunday’s race.” The club also advises that berthing is available for visiting boats, and that skippers may make arrangements directly with the Pier 40 harbormaster. Discounted rates are available to competitors.
This is sounding like a fun weekend! You can find more information and a link to register here: Kasio Cup Regatta.
Spaulding Marine Center — Full-Service Boat Yard and Education Center
Sailing the Pacific Cup and Want To Be Featured in Latitude 38?
Over the past two months we have been working with the awesome team organizing the 2026 Pacific Cup to highlight some of the boats that will be racing from San Francisco to Hawaii in the summer.
It’s been really cool to get to know more about the stories of the sailors who will be embarking on this endeavor, from grizzled, competitive veterans with many crossings under their belts, to first-timers looking for an adventure, and everyone in between. We highlighted Pac Cup and Transpac veteran Don Jesberg’s program on VIVA (SFYC) to kick off the series.
Since then, we have highlighted Jib Martens’ aim to fulfill a lifelong dream aboard Freedom, Rob Reis’s team of first-timers aboard Recidivist, and the couple who will be doublehanding Rum Tug Tugger to Oahu. We’re hoping to highlight as many boats as we can, and we’re looking for an easier way to crowdsource profile responses. Instead of trying to coordinate between a bunch of schedules to find a time for a phone call, or chasing boat owners down via email, we’ve created a google form for boat owners to fill out with their responses.
If you’re a boat owner or a crew member racing to Hawaii in the 2026 Pacific Cup and want your and your team’s story told, please take a few minutes to fill in the form! If you know somebody who is racing and think they would want their story told, please send this article along to them. The form can be found here, and if you have any questions you can always reach out to me at [email protected].
From Baja to the Caribbean — Don’t Stop Belize’n
Originally from the Pacific Northwest, I am used to exceptional cruising grounds with destinations only a few miles apart, each offering its unique characteristics of a common theme. After the Baja Ha-Ha, several of us who had sailed on the mothership Profligate decided to do a charter boat trip to some location. After a few group text messages, we decided on Belize.
A couple of people in the group had been to Belize several years ago, but no one was really familiar with all that it had to offer. So our friend Jennette organized the trip, and before I knew it, I was committed to taking off for two weeks, only a week after returning from the 2025 Baja Ha-Ha, where I happened to be crowned the “New-Bah” for future Baja Ha-Ha’s.
Getting to Belize was easy from Southern California, with a direct flight from LAX landing in Belize City five hours later. At LAX we met up with our friends, who had flown in from Seattle. In Belize City, we stayed in a great little hotel on the water in rooms that looked as if they should be in a Disney scene, with a pleated, diamond-tucked headboard, and a hot tub in the bathroom. The outside rooftop dining was a little more mainstream and offered traditional Belize menus.
The following morning we got onto the puddle-jump airplane for a half-hour trip to Palencia. It was a small single-engine prop plane, and the lady sitting next to me decided not to put her seat belt on, because, she said, “It really won’t make any difference in the end.” The pilot did not look as if he could see over the dash, but he said it was his 12th flight of the day.
It is probably important at this time to mention a few interesting things about Belize that make it a great destination for US citizens. First, the official language is English; second, the Belize dollar is locked at 2:1 to the US dollar. This makes it easy to get directions and understand other things that cause issues when traveling in foreign countries.
We then stayed at a very nice beach resort for the night before we got onto our Moorings-chartered Leopard 4500. I was very impressed with the boat. It has four full cabins, each with its own head and shower, three large outdoor sitting areas — two of them covered for shade and one with pulldown shades — a watermaker, three refrigerators, and a freezer. The boat was in great shape, and everything worked perfectly. As boaters, we were very impressed that we did not have to conserve water at all!
Don’t Miss the Latitude 38 Spring Crew Party
