Sad Indicator of Tough Times

It is a sad illustration of the tough times we’re in that the sleek Marple 50 cat Crystal Blue Persuasion washed up on Santa Cruz’ Seabright Beach on Friday. According to scuttlebutt within the Santa Cruz sailing community, it wasn’t that owner Gary Burgin didn’t understand the risks of leaving her anchored out in Monterey Bay all winter, but that he simply couldn’t afford to keep her in a proper berth. A lifelong sailor, Burgin did his first TransPac at age 12 and has logged thousands of sea miles aboard this cat.

Apparently she’d broken free from a Capitola mooring months earlier also. This time, some local sailors reportedly found her floating free, unattended. She was eventually towed into the yacht harbor by Pacific Salvage and Towing, where she now lies awaiting repairs. A cursory inspection is said to have revealed only damage to her rudders. 

When Burgin did the 2008 Baja Ha-Ha rally, we learned, as he put it, "Building this boat has been my father’s lifelong dream." After the rally, he pursued his plan to run her as a charter boat in the Yucatan, on Mexico’s Caribbean coast. But a variety of daunting problems quashed that effort, and Burgin eventually slogged home to Santa Cruz. We were heartened to learn that the damage to this well-built vessel was not too serious, and we sincerely hope Burgin can find her a safe berth soon.