We don’t normally hype stand-up paddle boarding events in far-flung destinations, but this year the British Virgin Island’s annual Painkiller Cup definitely has a West Coast hook. Adopted sons of San Francisco Jimmy Spithill and Shannon Falcone — key members of the winning Oracle Team USA America’s Cup team — have confirmed that they’ll attend this year’s event, slated to take place January 25. More »

Someone forwarded us a copy of Marc Myers’ June 6 interview with 71-year-old singer/songwriter/mind-altering-substance abuser David Crosby. Boomers know him as a founding member of The Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash, and as being in the center of 1970s rock ‘n roll. More »

Once again, the holiday season is upon us. If your reaction to that statement was ‘Oh crap!’ instead of ‘Oh joy!’, maybe it’s time to clean out your dock box and lazarettes to earn a few extra bucks for shopping. More »

Electrical fires account for more than half of all boat fires. © 2013 Rob Murray It’s that time of year again, folks. The time to check your shorepower connections in an effort to prevent incidents like this one. More »

Parts of the Philippines were devasted by Haiyan, and it’s likely to have been the deadliest natural disaster to hit the island nation. © 2013 Aaron Favila After learning of the terrible destruction dished out to the Philippines by Super Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful in history, we feared for the safety of longtime friend David Addleman of Monterey. More »

The banking group Mirabaud is once again sponsoring this year’s Yacht Racing Image Contest, and it looks like some local shutterbugs are up for the grand prize.  San Francisco’s Abner Kingman has long been a star on the local sailing photography scene, and this year had the opportunity to work for the America’s Cup Event Authority, where he took one of the most iconic shots to come out of the event (you might recognize it as the cover to the October issue of Latitude). More »

Brutal seas and hurricane force winds battered racers participating in this year’s Clipper Round the World Race. The 12 identical Clipper 70s started Leg 4 from South Africa heading toward the ‘Roaring Forties’ via the Indian Ocean. More »

"I’ve been writing to the New Zealand government about pet policies and received tons of paperwork," writes Vicky Plett from the Vancouver, BC-based Hans Christian 38 Inspiration at Sea. Currently in American Samoa after having visited Hawaii, Palmyra and Fanning Island, Vicky is preparing to set sail for Tonga, Fiji, and hopefully New Zealand. More »

Half Moon Bay is a popular cruise-out spot for Bay sailors. latitude/LaDonna
© Latitude 38 Media, LLC Frequent Half Moon Bay visitor Larry Blank alerted us yesterday to a change in the harbor’s fee schedule, noting a new anchoring fee. Indeed, More »

If you’re of a certain age, you’ll remember that multiple Oscar winning actor Dustin Hoffman became famous for his role in the 1967 film The Graduate. He played Benjamin Braddock, a confused and disillusioned young man who, after being seduced by the wife (Anne Bancroft) of his father’s business partner, falls in love with her beautiful young daughter (Katherine Ross). More »