What Kind of Boat Do You Need To Do the Ha-Ha?
Spring is just around the corner, and summer will be here soon after. The coming months are the perfect time to get yourself sorted and set up to do the Baja Ha-Ha next fall. Yes, it’s still several months off, but if you want to give yourself the best chance at having a good time cruising to Mexico, it’s a good idea to start getting yourself, and your boat, ready now. With that in mind, we share some of the Ha-Ha Poobah’s thoughts on suitable boats for doing the Ha-Ha. For example, would the Poobah do the Baja Ha-Ha aboard a Catalina 27? Let’s find out ….
“No. But that’s just me, and because I’m older than I used to be, and a pretty big guy.”
Some people are under the impression that you need a large and expensive boat, equipped with an entire West Marine store, to safely do a Baja Ha-Ha. Experience has shown that’s not necessarily the case. While the nominal Ha-Ha rule is that a boat needs to be designed, built, and maintained for offshore sailing, and at least 27 feet in length, the Poobah has given special dispensation to a number of very experienced sailors with smaller boats.
Examples include a Cal 24, a Pacific Seacraft 20, and in the most extreme case, a 17-footer. The latter owner actually did two Ha-Ha’s. If the Poobah were younger and maybe only 6 feet tall, he’d be happy to do a Ha-Ha in something like a Catalina 27. In fact, here’s a report from several years ago by Steve and Charlotte Baker, who did just that.
“Having become dissatisfied with our suburban Santa Rosa lives, in 2009 we bought Willful Simplicity, an outboard-powered 1973 Catalina 27. The only person who encouraged us was Richard Spindler, the Poobah of the Ha-Ha. Had we listened to the naysayers rather than Richard, we would have missed out on the nine best years of our lives.
“We started our new life with 135 other boats in the 2009 Baja Ha-Ha, which is the 750-mile cruiser rally from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas. That Ha-Ha is generally considered to have been the windiest of the 24 Ha-Ha’s as of that date. We and our Catalina 27 Willful Simplicity didn’t have any problems.
“Many people told us we couldn’t enjoy Mexico with our ‘mini-cruiser.’ They were wrong. We saw many beautiful places and enjoyed countless great anchorages on the way down to Cabo and up into the Sea of Cortez. But the absolute best part of our cruising was meeting the locals, especially the children, and coming to appreciate their natural way of life. We have become better people for what we’ve learned from the people of Baja.
“For nine years, our homeport was more or less the tiny fishing village of San Evaristo, a popular anchorage about 50 miles north of La Paz by water. And for many of those years, we lived aboard on the hook.”
The Poobah would like to say that he doesn’t recall “encouraging” the Bakers, just not discouraging them.
“I don’t want to give anyone the impression that more expensive modern boats don’t typically offer much more space and conveniences,” he adds. “But if properly checked out, the classics from the ’70s and ’80s are all a younger sailor might need.”
Baja Ha-Ha XXXI starts on November 3. Entries will be accepted starting at noon on May 9. For details, visit www.baja-haha.com.
If you’re thinking about signing up for this year’s Baja Ha-Ha and need a boat, consider some of the options available in Latitude 38’s classified listings. Many of these boats are the older boats the Poobah is referring to and would be perfect for someone looking to get into a vessel at a lower price in exchange for doing some cosmetic or minor maintenance work themselves. Below are some examples:
27.93 FT Pacific Seacraft 25 Mk II 1978
You get the idea? Check out Classy Classifieds for more options. And remember to put May 9 on your calendar and sign up for the 31st Baja Ha-Ha.
Hi,
Can you do the Baja in a powerboat? It seems to me that I had read that in some years powerboats had been involved. However, I admit to not having read the actual “rules.”
Thanks,
Armand
Yes you can. Each year there are about 3-5 powerboats that ‘sail’ south in the ‘Non Comprende’ division.