April 5, 2002

Cat Confusion?

April 5 – Tenacatita Bay

“It looks as though you may have mixed up Elan and
Bright Wing in Mike Miller’s photos of catamarans”
(April 3 ‘Lectronic Latitude),
writes Arjan Bok of Tiger Beetle. “Looking at the
bows, the third boat from the left is Bright Wing, and
the boat all the way on the right is definitely Crazy Kid.
I should know, as I have been admiring Bright Wing in
La Paz for a couple of years. She was one slip over from Tiger
Beetle until about four weeks ago.”

Right you are, Arjan. Want to see catamaran
development? The boat on the far left is an older Catana 42,
while the third boat from the left is the more modern Catana
43. Notice the dramatic increase in freeboard and bridgedeck
clearance?

The Young and the Restless

April 5 – En route to the Marquesas

“Hello from Ali,” emails our friend who was formerly
aboard the 26-ft Blue Dragon in Mexico. “I’m now
aboard Surfer Girl, a Peterson 34, with friend Rob Jones.
We’re headed to the Marquesas and I thought I’d give a thumbs
up for the little GSC 100 pocket satellite emailer. It works
like a champ. We’re seeking the trades, twin headsails set, waltzing
downwind. It’s 0400.”

How quickly things change for the young.
When last we crossed paths, Ali was the girlfriend of Christian,
who carried six surfboards aboard his 26-footer in Mexico when
he wasn’t teaching kayaking in Sausalito. The couple split up
last summer. Instead of continuing on to the Marquesas, Christian
bought a Peterson quarter-tonner in Sausalito and took a winter
job at Northstar. While on the mountain, he met a young woman
from Europe who is a model, ski champ, and coach of the ski team
– something like that. It was love at first sight, and they were
married three days later! So while Christian got diverted from
his journey to the Marquesas, his former girlfriend, Ali, is
actually sailing to the Marquesas. We love you all!

Orange
Halfway Around the Globe

April 5 – The Sailing World

Bruno Peyron and the maxi cat Orange are halfway around
the world, having covered the distance in 38 days at an average
of over 18 knots. Peyron and crew, despite a brutal beating in
the Southern Ocean, are easily ahead of the pace to set a new
Jules Verne record.

Email

To: webmaster
Subject: A real hoot
Date: Thu, 4 Apr 2002 18:58:41 -0800

To whoever puts up the ‘Lectronic every
day, I couldn’t resist telling you
that I got a real laugh out of a phrase used by a reader in a
posting
entitled “Yelapa and Fat Thighs”
on April 2.

In regard to surviving hypothermia, they
said that through regular exposure to cold “… one gradually
builds up permanent extracutaneous fat….” That would be
fat outside the skin… yikes! I think they meant “subcutaneous”.
For what it’s worth, but I’m still trying to get the image out
of my head. Rich

SFYC Best in the U.S. – Almost!

April 5 – Southern California

San Francisco YC finished second against
a tough fleet in the just-concluded 2002 United States Yacht
Club Challenge, held April 2-4 at the Newport YC. Balboa YC – NHYC’s
longtime crosstown rival – took the three-discipline event
(Catalina 37s, CFJs, and Lasers) with room to spare, winning
the triple-weighted Catalina 37 racing and the CFJs, as well
as fourth in Lasers. Our local heroes rallied on the last day
to edge past Cal YC for a highly-respectable second place.

The SFYC squad consisted of Bill Melbostad,
who skippered the Catalina 37 to fourth, and his crew Carlos
Badell, Mark Dowdy, Steve Fentress, Bryan Moore, Tim Russell
and Vann Wilson. The CFJ team, which came in second, was Mill
Valley brothers Morgan (skipper) and Myles Gutenkunst, while
the Laser rep was Jon Goldsberry, who took fifth. Congratulations
and high fives all around!

The final results and team captains: 1)
Balboa YC (Jack Franco), 8 points; 2) San Francisco YC (Bill
Melbostad), 19; 3) California YC (Bill Petersen), 20; 4) Annapolis
YC (John Torgerson), 24; 5) Bayview YC (Mike Uznis), 25; 6) Newport
Harbor YC (John Drayton), 28; 7) Rochester YC (Eric Voss), 30;
8) San Diego YC (Betty Sherman), 34; 9) Houston YC (Alex Ascencios),
37.

See www.nhyc.org
for full results.

Big Weekend on Tap

April 5 – Around the Bay

The weekend actually begins at 1 p.m. Friday,
as the streaking Giants (3-0) take on the Padres at Pac Bell
Park in their home opener. Barry Bonds, who has hit four . .
. . Wait, wait – sorry, this is a sailing website.

Well, the sailing season really gets underway
this weekend, too – starting with the first big beer can race
tonight. The always-fun Corinthian YC Friday Night Series begins
at 6:30 p.m., with the usual revelry afterwards.

On Saturday, there’s something for everyone
– the 49th Bullship Race for El Toros (8 a.m. off the Sausalito
waterfront), BAMA’s Doublehanded Farallones (8 a.m.), the J/105
Lightship Race (11 a.m., about 25 boats), the South Beach YC’s
Spring Forward Regatta (two races).

Events that will occur on both Saturday
and Sunday are Richmond YC’s Big Dinghy Regatta, a Collegiate
Regatta in CFJs on the Cityfront, and SFYC’s Resin Regatta, which
will see 9 or 10 classes duke it out on two different race courses
near the Berkeley Circle.

Check back next week for pictures, results
and maybe even some good war stories. Have a great weekend!

YOTREPS

April 5 – The Pacific Ocean and Cyberspace

Who is out making passages in the Pacific
and what kind of weather are they having? Check out YOTREPS –
‘yacht reports’ – at http://www.bitwrangler.com/yotreps/

Weather Updates

April 5 – Pacific Ocean

San Francisco Bay Weather

To see what the winds are like on the Bay
and just outside the Gate right now, check out http://sfports.wr.usgs.gov/wind/.
The National Weather Service site for San Francisco Bay has moved
to www.wrh.noaa.gov/Monterey/.

California Coast Weather

Looking for current as well as recent wind
and sea readings from 17 buoys and stations between Pt. Arena
and the Mexican border? Here’s the place – which has further
links to weather buoys and stations all over the U.S.: www.ndbc.noaa.gov/stuff/southwest/swstmap.shtml.

Pacific Winds and Pressure

The University of Hawaii Dept. of Meteorology
page posts a daily
map of the NE Pacific Ocean barometric pressure and winds.

Pacific Sea State

Check out the Pacific Ocean sea states
at: http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/RSSA/PacRegSSA.html.

For another view, see http://www.oceanweather.com/data/global.html.