Beer Can Season Ending, Blue Angels Flying, Simon Churning
Lots of signals are in the air as we shift to some of the best seasonal sailing of the year. The Blue Angels had a great Fleet Week weekend that was cool but with bright blue skies, sunshine and fresh breezes. Jeff Berman of the Tartan 4000 Maverick joined hundreds of boats on the Bay to capture shots of the weekend air show as the planes ripped above the Bay.
The Blue Angels stood out despite the “blue-on-blue” coloring in the sky. Like racers on a starting line, they keep their wings trimmed for speed and their formation tight.
In other news: A couple of weeks ago, Greg Clausen joined the rest of the Richmond Yacht Club fleet to cruise the Bay on their last Wednesday night beer can race of the season. He joined owner Chris Case on his Cal 40 Fugu for a perfect warm, light-air evening to say a fine farewell to another summer season on the Bay.
The shorter evening had the boats finishing the short course with their running lights on.
Beer can racing may be over, but midwinter racing will be starting soon. You can find a midwinter series near you here. Sign up for something and you’ll find yourself sailing more often. Check out the events and races happening this coming weekend.
Meanwhile, farther south, Hurricane Simon is still tormenting the west coast of Mexico. Some of the wide variety of projected storm tracks showed it moving toward the coast south of Banderas Bay, while others had it staying west. At this point, the western track has prevailed, leaving the marinas and beachfront hotels in Banderas Bay mostly unscathed.
It looks as if Hurricane Simon still intends to hit a segment of the Mexican coastline hard when it makes landfall. It’s moving slowly as it heads north with a projected landfall somewhere near Mazatlán. It will continue to create heavy swells and dangerous surf along the coast as the conflicting weather models attempt to determine its final course.
After a tense weekend of waiting in Banderas Bay, the waiting game moves north while Hurricane Simon churns offshore, with its future landing now not expected to happen for five more days. The hurricane is not supposed to intensify, but wherever it lands, they will surely feel the impact.
And … there’s no rest for the weary. Much farther south another system is forming and will likely turn into another hurricane with a track heading north along the west coast of Mexico.
The offshore storms in Mexico have caused flooding and damage in Newport Beach, Long Beach and other Southern California harbors. Conversely, San Francisco Bay hasn’t felt much impact from the larger forces at work from El Niño, the Kelvin wave and whatever other mysterious weather cycles are about to unfold in the months ahead. If you’ve been on the Bay over the last few weekends, you will have savored some of the best seasonal sailing ever.
We hope for favorable outcomes for all sailors and sailing communities up and down the entire West Coast.