‘Latitude 38’s August Issue Is Out Tomorrow!
The August issue of Latitude 38 is just around the corner. We’ve put together a “racy” one for this month, with reports on the 2023 Transpac and the Singlehanded Transpacific Race, and of course the monthly Racing Sheet. But you’ll have to hold fast just one more day — the magazine lands tomorrow! In the meantime, here’s a sneak peek at what you’ll find inside.
Participants revere the Transpac for its consistent, warm, sunny downwind ride to Hawaii. However, that reputation for a constant downwind pleasure ride masks the intricate subtleties that make or break competitors’ best-laid plans. As Mike Tyson said, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”
Singlehanded Transpacific Yacht Race — A Record-Breaking Year
A moderate morning southwesterly built to a good breeze outside the Gate. So good, in fact, that even the slowest boats made it out past the Farallon Islands that afternoon. By 24 hours into the race, all had left the islands far behind and had dipped south on a fast reach. Unfortunately, one of them took a knockdown. With autopilots out of order and some bruising to his body, Tony Bourque turned his Freedom 40/40 Circe around while he was still close enough to hand-steer home to RYC.
Still Wylie After All These Years
Tom Wylie has pulled off an extraordinary achievement. We’re not just talking about his boats, which are marvelous in their own right and diverse in appearance, materials and rigging, but always connected by the common thread of sleek, refined elegance. Warwick “Commodore” Tompkins, who owns the Wylie 39 Flash Girl, said of the new Wylie-designed C3, “A lovely but wicked boat,” referring to the speed that seemingly permeates from the low freeboard and sheerline. But it is Tom Wylie’s longevity that has separated him from the pack.
When it comes to accessing the waterfront in San Francisco, your first thought might be to join a yacht club or sailing school. But with rising costs of living, the typical avenues for learning to sail can be costly and out of reach for families with kids hoping to learn to sail. That’s where the San Francisco Sea Scouts come in. For more than 50 years, the San Francisco Sailing Whaleboat Association (SFSWA) has supported the San Francisco Sea Scouts.
Plus, we bring you all your favorite, regular columns:
- Letters: Kind of a Lot of Traffic on the Pacific; A Dearth of Slips South of the Border; The Starlink Debate Continues; and many, many more.
- Sightings: A Photographer’s View of Sailing the Bay; Raising a Golden Retriever Puppy on a Boat; How Can We Ever Describe Today?; and other stories.
- Max Ebb Waxes Poetic.
- Changes in Latitudes: Azimuth‘s arrival in Chesapeake Bay; a retrospective on cruising aboard Mar half a century ago; two unexpected solo ocean crossings aboard Sparklemuffin; and a forepeak full of cruise notes.
- Racing Sheet: The YRA’s Westpoint Regatta and Half Moon Bay Race, a pair of regattas north and south for classic woodies, BAMA’s Doublehanded Farallones Race, Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week and the Moore 24 Nationals comprise this edition of Racing Sheet. Copious Box Scores fill in some of the blanks.
- Loose Lips: Check out the July Caption Contest(!) winners.
- The sailboat owners and buyers’ bible, Classy Classifieds.
If you’ve subscribed to Latitude 38, you should receive your issue shortly. If you haven’t subscribed, you’re missing out, but you can still pick up your copy from your favorite distributor.