Helping the U.S. Real Estate Market from Mexico

The real estate market in the United States may be in the toilet, but don’t blame Jim Taylor, the long ago Race Manager at the St. Francis YC, who is having "the time of my life" cruising in Mexico with Garland Bell’s San Rafael-based Beneteau 47.7 Sooner Magic. After having a great time on the Ha-Ha, Taylor, who has been a real estate agent for many years in San Francisco and Marin, sailed down to Banderas Bay, where he’s been having at least as much fun on the bay that features the most consistent good sailing conditions in Mexico. He’s spent time at the new La Cruz Marina, claims he had a fabulous Thanksgiving alone while on the hook at Punta Mita, then sailed over to Yelapa for a couple of terrific days on the new $20/night mooring buoys.

Nonetheless, when it suits him, Taylor hits the internet cafe in La Cruz in the mornings to do a little real estate. And frankly, he’s been pleased at the results that he’s had doing business via the internet. "I’ve got three offers on houses, and two of them have already been accepted — I can’t believe it!" No wonder it occured to him that maybe he should do all his future real estate work in Northern California from a boat in Mexico. Things are going so well that he’s even decided to spring for one of the trophies for next week’s Banderas Bay Blast.

Also enjoying himself to no end has been Jim Bewley of the Richmond-based SC 50 Another Girl. Seen dancing up a storm at Philo’s Bar and Restaurant last week in La Cruz with his wife Sue, Jim is also going to enter the Banderas Bay Blast, but there’s no word yet as to whether or not he’ll put up a trophy.

While Taylor and Bewley say things have been a little dusty at the still-not-officially-open Riviera Nayarit Marina at La Cruz, there is no end to the entertainment value in watching how the Mexicans make do with what tools and equipment they have. For example, they use an old and often submerged barge, with a backhoe at each end, to do what’s left of the dredging. With no tug, how do they move the barge? Well, the guy with the backhoe at the bow, which is usually two or three feet underwater, grabs the bottom in front of the barge, and pulls the barge forward. Meanwhile — and you have to see this — the guy in the backhoe at the stern uses his bucket like a rudder. The amazing thing is that there is no communication between the two, and they move in and out of the harbor at about five knots with complete control.

Then there is the guy with an old crawler crane who is doing some dredging from shore with a big bucket. The guy swings the crane arm around, allowing him to cast what must be at least a 1,000-lb bucket, far out into the water. And man, is he accurate!  He’s like a champion fly fisherman the way he can land that bucket within just a few feet of a guy lazily sitting on the side of the barge. You just gotta love Mexico!