September 13, 2001

Special Notice: Big Boat Series Canceled

September 13 – San Francisco

The St. Francis Yacht Club has just announced
this afternoon that the Big Boat Series will not be held at all
this weekend. Previously, we had reported that racing would take
place on Saturday and Sunday. Please see the StFYC site at www.stfyc.com for details.

Photo of the Day

September 13 – San Rafael

Our Photo of the Day is of Tom Ivicevich’s
Polynesian Outrigger trimaran, with the most unusual sail we’ve
ever seen. In fact, until we see it in person, we can’t help
but wonder if it’s not something cranked out by Photoshop. But,
we’re assured that it’s not. Tom is from Redding, and trucked
the tri down to San Rafael on Wednesday. He was/is hoping to
sail it in McCovey Cove this weekend for the Giants game (if
there is one).

Photo Courtesy Tom Ivicevich

An Update for Racers, Boaters and Travelers

September 13 – San Francisco Bay Area and
Beyond

US Sailing has notified us that, “Due
to our recent national tragedies, US Sailing has postponed indefinitely
the U.S. Women’s Championship for the Adams Trophy and the U.S.
Men’s Championship for the Mallory Trophy, scheduled to be held
September 11-15 at the Rush Creek Yacht Club in Heath Texas.”
We will let you know when and if these events are rescheduled.

We did a quick survey this morning of local
clubs and organizations and found that most events will continue
as scheduled this weekend. For a complete schedule, see our monthly
Calendar page
and our YRA Calendar page.

In addition, the California Coastal Commission
has decided to proceed with Coastal Cleanup Day on Saturday the
15th, from 9 AM to noon, as an opportunity for community members
to come together and do something positive. For locations, call
1-800-COAST 4U or see www.coastal.ca.gov.

We spoke to Lt. Commander Jeff Carter of
the U.S. Coast Guard Public Affairs Office in Alameda this morning,
and he told us that there are no restrictions locally on small
craft. However, yachts entering U.S. waters from Mexico or Canada
have a higher than normal likelihood of being boarded and inspected.
The Coast Guard office in San Diego warns that boaters should
expect significant delays when entering port. The restrictions
there do not apply to Mission Bay or Oceanside harbor. The state
of Hawaii has some restrictions on yachts. The Port of Valdez,
Alaska, was closed on Tuesday, but has been reopened. The Coast
Guard will stop and board all deep-draft (large commercial) vessels
entering the ports of San Francisco, Los Angeles/Long Beach and
San Diego before entry is permitted.

The Golden Gate Transit District is subjecting
the Sausalito ferry to an extensive inspection this morning,
expected to last a couple of hours, due to some strange behavior
aboard that vessel. The Larkspur ferries are unaffected.

Some airports are reopening, including
SFO, SJO, LAX, Denver and New York City airports. However, some
airlines will not resume flights today, and travelers should
expect severe restrictions and long delays. I would tell you
to call your airline to check the status of your flight, but
even there you will find long delays! Oakland is not open yet,
and Boston’s Logan airport is closed indefinitely. Foreign flag
carrier flights originating in foreign countries are not being
allowed to land in the U.S. at all as we write this, at noon
PDT.

Freshwater Cruising Photos

September 13 – Duluth, Minnesota

If you don’t like saltwater, you may be interested in Bob and
Jane Van Blaricom’s three-month, 1,500-mile freshwater cruise
from New York City to Duluth, Minnesota. The route took them,
“down Long Island Sound to New York City, up the Hudson
River and into the Erie Canal. About halfway along the Erie,
we would turn right into the Oswego Canal, then go across Lake
Ontario and into the Canadian Trent-Severn Waterway to Lake Huron.
Finally, we traversed Lake Superior and wound up at its western
tip in Duluth.” The couple had a great time. You can read
more about it in the October edition of Latitude
38.

Hudson River

Lake Huron

Prada Classic Regatta Postpones Racing

September 13 – Sardinia, Italy

The Prada Classic Regatta in Sardinia – a fantastic showcase
of some of the greatest classic sailing yachts in the world –
was postponed for one day yesterday out of respect for the tragedy
in New York City and Washington DC. Many of the boats flew American
flags. For some fantastic shots of the action, such as this one,
visit www.madforsailing.com.

Photo Carlo Borlenghi/Sea & See

Farr 40 Worlds Halted – Because of Strong
Winds

September 13 – Cowes, UK

With the wind blowing a steady 27 knots and even more expected,
the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes called off yesterday’s second
race of the Farr 40 Worlds. The morning race, held in 23 knots
of wind, was won by Ernesto Bertarelli, who heads the well-financed
Alinghi (Swiss) Challenge for the next America’s Cup. With his
America’s Cup helmsman Russell Coutts at his side, Bertarelli
bested 22 other highly competitive boats. With the win, he moves
into the overall lead.

Photo Stephen Hird/Courtesy www.madforsailing.com

He May not Be the Fittest Sailor, but
He’s in First

September 13 – Lake Michigan

Dennis Conner may not be the most athletic
sailor in the world, but he’s still good. He currently leads
the Etchells North American Championship at the Macatawa Bay
Yacht Club on Lake Michigan. So far he has two firsts and one
second in the fleet of 43.

YOTREPS

September 13 – 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

September 13 – Atlantic and Pacific Oceans

Atlantic Hurricanes

After an extremely slow start of the hurricane
season in the Atlantic, things have started to heat up. Erin,
the first hurricane of the year, is now blowing at 105 knots,
but is far out into the Atlantic and almost as far north as New
York City. Felix, with 90 knots of wind is also active. Initially
it was headed directly toward the Eastern Caribbean, but has
curved nearly 180 degrees and is currently moving in the direction
of Europe. Currently neither present a danger to anyone but vessels
at sea, which in any event should be expecting that kind of stuff
at this time of year. For more on Atlantic/Caribbean tropical
storm activity, see http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/atlantic/2001/index.html

There’s also a tropical storm off the coast
of Mexico heading northwest. So far this year there have been
four hurricanes and seven tropical storms off Mexico. All have
behaved well by going well offshore. See http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/e_pacific/2001/index.html

September 13 – 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/.

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