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Shootin' the Breeze
As spring arrives and America’s favorite pastime is in full swing (pun intended), the Bay Area is preparing for the arrival of the foiling cats — and we don’t mean some mischievous felines that are playing with a roll of aluminum foil.
Whatever Floats Your Boat
“People who do not know that a sailboat is a living creature will never understand anything about boats and the sea.”  
Casual Racing
Monday's 'Lectronic Latitude rolled out the beer can season, which ramps up in a big way this month. Sometime back in medieval times, Latitude 38's late great racing editor, Rob Moore, penned the Ten Commandments of Beer Can Racing. They bear repeating every few years.
Cruiser's Rally
Meet ‘Baja Mitch’ at the Latitude Booth at This Week’s Boat Show Mitch Perkins, who is the advertising manager at Latitude 38, which is title sponsor of the Baja Ha-Ha, will be on ‘Ha-Ha watch’ at the Latitude booth of the Pacific Sail & Power Boat Show Thursday through Saturday from 3 to 5 p.m.
A new age of sail?
Will there be a new age of sail? In the April issue of Latitude 38, we take a look at the modest but promising proliferation of wind-assisted commercial ships around the world. This
Inland Cruising Rally
This is the year that Delta Doo Dah "turns it up to 11," and you could be part of it. We opened registration for the loose-knit cruising rally yesterday.
Because of continued ensnarement in environmental litigation, skyrocketing costs of waterfront real estate, and dogged declining participation in both the sport and lifestyle of sailing, a group of lawmakers has quietly been discussing an outright ban on recreational boating in San Francisco Bay.
Race After Work
If you're new to racing, beer cans are a great place to start. Pick a series that's convenient geographically, but also consider the race's culture. Some are more competitive than others; some have series scoring; some have daily prizes; some have overall awards.
Nautical News
Another Bay Area Boat Rounds the Horn Just over a week after Randall Reeves completed his carousel circuit of the Southern Ocean and made his second rounding of Cape Horn, another Bay Area boat was on his heels.
Pacific Sail & Power
Latitude Nation — As you may or may not know, the Pacific Sail & Power Boat Show is coming next week, April 4 to 7, at the Craneway Pavilion and Marina Bay Yacht Harbor in Richmond.
Regattas Galore
April Showers Us with Regattas: All of a sudden our race calendar has gotten quite full.
Nacra 15 Qualifier
"We were nervous going into the second day. When we saw the forecast, we were super-excited.” The forecast called for a 15- to 20-knot westerly — classic Bay racing conditions.
Let's Have a Discussion
About 10 years, ago we hosted a group of six folks for a charter aboard ‘ti Profligate in the Caribbean.
US Sailing
The pressure to climb the pyramid, at the expense of long-term participation and well-rounded skill development, has parents, instructors and program leaders looking to US Sailing for guidance and a different approach. They've seen too many kids drop out.
Steampunk Sail
A steampunk sailing adventure to celebrate the last weekend of winter, and the first really nice weekend for months.
A case of the mondays
On Monday’s we like to surf the www-dots to see what kind of sailing news percolated over the weekend.
Round the World Race
Since it began last July, we’ve been calling the 50th anniversary of the Golden Globe Race the most grueling ocean racing event in recent memory.
Offshore Yacht Racing
Of the 31 boats entered, 24 completed the 800-mile race. The Swan 60 Good Call! made a good call to hunt for some breeze offshore. The move paid off.
Circumnavigators
We got the following email from Randall Reeves not long after we posted ‘Lectronic on Wednesday:  Well, Mo is around and has passed for the second time this passage under Cape Horn, thus completing her circuit of the Southern Ocean via the Capes, non-stop and solo.
Boat Show Raffle
You saw it here first. Jim DeWitt painted this original watercolor, titled Kids at Play, specifically for the cover of our April issue. You could take home the framed painting. We'll conduct a raffle, with the proceeds benefitting Bay Area youth sailing programs.
Aussie 18 Racing
California sailor Katie Love is a woman on a mission. “I want to prove that women can sail 18-ft skiffs just as good as men.” To that end, the 30-year-old skipper left her job running tugs on the West Coast and went to Sydney, Australia, to compete in this year’s 18-footer racing season and JJ Giltinan Championships.
Calls for help answered
A few months ago, a Latitude reader asked what they should do with their used flares.
First Day of Spring
Today is the vernal equinox, the first day of spring, and, for most, the start of the peak sailing season. It's the day the sun crosses the equator from the Southern Hemisphere to the North just as members of the Pacific Puddle Jump fleet are doing the opposite — they are heading north to south.
Sailor Soccer
"The season began with a postponement, a game of Sailor Soccer, and a longer postponement back at the docks. 0.5 knots of wind with 4.5 knots of ebb made it hard to get a race off."
Nautical Trivia
Like most sailors, our maritime interests extend beyond sailing. And that news cycle has been eclectic lately. Here are just a few of the odd things that we’ve read about in the last few weeks…
National Offshore One Design
Checking in with San Diego Yacht Club from the past three days of racing in the Helly Hansen NOOD Regatta shows three days of tight racing in 12 one-design fleets.
Matthew Turner
With a little luck, the Matthew Turner has been coming along just fine. Thanks to Latitude guru John Skoriak for this epic shot.
Man Overboard
"During the Wednesday evening race, on his Moore 24, Morpheus, Rick Srigley and crew encountered heavy weather. Rick was washed overboard off the transom. His crew attempted to recover him while calling the Coast Guard."
Solo Circumnavigators
Jeanne Socrates is 160 days into her attempt to become the oldest person to sail nonstop and alone around the world. As it turns out, 160 days is the halfway point.
SoCal Racing
Starts in Newport Harbor Yacht Club's Newport Beach to Cabo San Lucas International Yacht Race began yesterday and conclude (with the two-boat Multihull Division) on Sunday.
Sailing