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2018 Seminars

Hi All -
here is the link for the recording of seminar #1.
you'll need to sign in/up to view or download.

Thanks

DH
 
Thank you

Hi Folks,

Thank you to Dave for the webinar, Jackie for organizing this and the extra pics (I got the gist of the erudder talk, but the pics helped a lot) and Bob for the great presentation. I've read the safety requirements doc, but seeing all the gear and talking about it gives a better understanding (and a good visual about how much stuff there is). Thank you also to the other folks that helped out. I've been following the races, lurking and dreaming for a few years, this lets me get involved a little bit more, and makes me want to participate in some way.

Feedback on the feed -
I wasn't able to respond to Dave's questions asking if we could we hear or not, but maybe it was user error (me not logged in properly or something)
The audio wasn't that great at times (static), I think the mic was being held to close?
Watching live I was able to resize the video and the powerpoint to zoom in on different screens which was nice.
I'm able to view the replay too (but not resize, so the video part is small)

I'm looking forward to the next seminars and following along and will try to make it up there to see one or two in person.

Cheers
Shane
 
Feedback on the feed -
I wasn't able to respond to Dave's questions asking if we could we hear or not, but maybe it was user error (me not logged in properly or something)
The audio wasn't that great at times (static), I think the mic was being held to close?
Watching live I was able to resize the video and the powerpoint to zoom in on different screens which was nice.
I'm able to view the replay too (but not resize, so the video part is small)

I'm looking forward to the next seminars and following along and will try to make it up there to see one or two in person.

Cheers
Shane

thanks, Shane. and for the feedback. It was very constructive and we can problem solve ways to address them. Our byline might be "We are not exactly the BBC". The seminars are fun. Lots of talking 'bout boats.
 
I want to give extra thanks to Bob J. for clearing out his boat and garage to bring all his gear to display for our enjoyment and education!
Thanks to all for putting the seminars together.

I attended the seminars for the 2016 SHTP and learned a lot. I'm still learning!
Always great to get more ideas to improve and supplement the gear needed to do this race.

See you at the next one.
 
Medical and Nutritional Provisioning April 18 2018

The good news is that our own SSS singlehander Todd Olsen has agreed to address the Medical Provisioning segment at the April 18, 2018 Seminar. Todd is a surgeon and will be able to advise which limbs and organs are expendable, which are to be saved as well as how to make those determinations while sailing toward Kauai next summer.

But seriously, folks. Dr Olsen will advise future Singlehanded Transpac participants regarding potential medical issues that might arise offshore, planful choices regarding broad spectrum antibiotics, other medications and sensible supplies that one might obtain to take along on the voyage.

Todd has sailed Windrip Infinity during previous SSS races, and is the current record holder of the prestigious Take Alcatraz competition. He is now the proud owner of a Corsair F31R, and plans to participate in the Three Bridge Fiasco race on January 27, 2018. Be there or be square.

The second part of the April 18 seminar will concern nutritional provisioning. In other words, what kind and amount of food and liquids should you eat offshore to maintain strength, how much of each should you take and finally, what are the circumstances aboard your vessel? In other words, do you have a Cal 40 named Green Buffalo or an Express 27 named Archimedes? Do you have a Garcia Passoa 47 named Mouton Noir or a Pogo 2 named Libra? The boat you sail may determine whether or not you bring gelato bars along, bake cinnamon rolls in the morning, or decide upon Peet’s dark roast for your French press. On the other hand, maybe your boat is more comparable to a pup tent with no galley to speak of and you prefer dried fruit and nuts with granola bars for two or three weeks. Either way, this seminar will address those issues: as soon as we find someone who will cover them.

As suggested, LaDonna Bubak was invited to make this presentation, like she did back in 2012. But LaDonna declined graciously, writing this: “All I did was chat with a nutritionist about the race and racers' nutritional needs”. Huh. Who knew? Either way, everybody thought she was great.

So, here’s the thing: All the nutritional provisioning information online focuses on boats with crew. It doesn’t take into consideration small galleys on small boats, or even no galleys on small boats. It assumes someone else is cooking while you are sailing. But that isn’t what will happen when you go sailing offshore alone, is it?

There are some people who do know how to eat enough to arrive alive in Kauai. Who knows how to do that? Our own sailors. So, please, those of you who have gone before, tell us what worked and what didn’t work for you. Joe Balderamma told us his red pudding story at a recent skipper’s meeting. That was a sobering tale that needed to be told.

By the time April comes around maybe we will have found someone who can encapsulate all your knowledge into a presentation that can then be videotaped for everybody out there in LaLa Land. Won’t that be useful?
 

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Hi Jackie -

I just came in off a 20 day singlehanded run from Tahiti to Oahu (Tiger Beetle is in Ala Wai Harbor at the moment). I'll toss in my two cents as regards provisioning for a passage. I've also done three SSS TransPac races, so I'll consider that as well. Here's what I do:

Summary is: I eat less offshore than I expect, if something isn't easy to prepare and consume then I'm unlikely to prepare and consume it, take foods that you normally eat at home, don't try for an exotic/unusual menu of 'new' things, and carry extra of whatever you do like so you don't worry about running out. Anything easy to prepare and consume is what you are most likely to actually eat during the race; pre-prepared foods are the best choice.

The run from Tahiti to Hawaii is around 2600 miles, a tad longer than a Singlehanded TransPacific Yacht Race. My SSS TransPac's were on the order of 14-18 days, I figured three weeks + a bit to get to Hawaii from the island of palm trees to the south. The significant difference is I would be sailing across the equator with the sun and heat load that entails.

My shopping experience consisted of 90 minutes at the local Tahiti grocery store (Carrefour, for those that know Tahiti). For the first TransPac I did, food was something of a show-stopper as I had never considered how much, exactly, of any one thing, did I actually eat in a three week period? I went nuts measuring out portions of pasta, cereals, eggs, bacon, even milk. When I did a Baja Ha Ha run much the same thing happened, I had not equipped the boat for a three week run in quite a while, particularly with three other people on board, and scoured around looking for my menus and lists of what people eat for each day of the trip.

By now I've relaxed considerably from worrying about foods on board and running out. Tiger Beetle has a reasonably well equipped galley - 3 burner Force 10 stove (works great as a Faraday cage to keep the spare GPS in when lightning is flashing through the squalls), a fridge that works when it is turned on, a double-gimballed SeaSwing stove with a little Coleman propane bottle attached (this is super for heating up single-can soups), forks and knives, and two double-bowl dog bowls for plates - I can recommend the big kind designed for big dogs, they have non-skid on the bottom and tall sides to keep spillage to a minimum. I've marinized my dog bowls by drilling a hole in the side so I can tie a line to the bowl and tow it behind the boat for cleaning purposes. West Marine will charge double-extra for marinized dog bowls, you can do it for less at the pet store and a drill.

One issue I have is I am allergic to citric fruits (lemons, limes, and fresh tomatos make me vomit), so I pop a 1000 mg Vitamin C pill every day when running offshore in lieu of carrying citric fruits.

I like The General's food descriptions: there are three kinds of food - live food, dead food, and dog food.

Live food: I like eggs (hard boiled, stored in the fridge, they last for weeks, ready to eat when you want one or three, crack, peel, eat), apples (last for weeks in the hanging net bag, slice into wedges and eat one through the day). Bread - keep it refrigerated or it will mold rapidly. I like Dark Rye, that seems to last the longest. I can bake my own bread on board (carry baking tins, yeast, flour) but that takes way too long for a passage and is better done at anchor, but don't on passage. Bananas - but be careful as they can get squished and become totally evil in the hanging net bag as they drip on you. Pre-cooked cheeseburgers are awesome, cook in advance of the race on the barbecue, wrap in foil, put in freezer, transfer to boat morning of race; when you want one take the hockey-puck size burger out of the fridge and let it rattle around in the sink until thawed, then eat (no need to re-heat - cold cheeseburgers are kinda like cold pizza the next morning, always good).

Dead food. I like pasta & parmesan cheese, this is great bomb-shelter food that lasts forever, keep the grated parmesan in the fridge, keep Bay leaves in the pasta and get the pasta out of any cardboard boxes and place into plastic sealed tubs. Don't eat the Bay leaves, they're not tasty. Cheese - carry brick form that you can slice with a knife, I like Mozzarella, Brie (carry a big wheel in the fridge), Swiss. Peanut butter & jelly, keep the jelly in the fridge. Salami, slice off some thin rounds when you feel like it.

Dog food: anything in a can. I also include here packet food such as Instant Idaho Mashed Potatos (love those). Heavy duty canned stew will keep you warm when it is nasty outside. Only get soups that you can dump straight into the pot and heat (does NOT require adding milk, water, etc. - that gets complicated).

Foods to avoid: anything that can crack a tooth. No hard nuts. Be careful of dired salami meat, they can have hard bits in them too.

Dangers: be very careful when boiling water offshore, you can scald yourself something terrible. To boil water I use either a tea kettle (completely contains the boiling water), or a pressure cooker with the seal removed and the lid put back on top of the pot (similar to the tea kettle, the water is not entirely sealed or contained, so be careful).

So back to Tahiti: I bought canned soups, fresh bread, lots of soda (I like Dr. Pepper, but they don't have that so Coca Cola would have to do), zero beer (there is no beer in Tahiti worth its weight to drag to Hawaii, though Hinano Amber is pretty good), lots of fresh unrefrigerated eggs, block sealed cheese, and large packets of beef jerky. Also some foot-long Salami, red fancy apples from New Zealand (I now appreciate the ENZA campaigns),

I'll wrap this up with a quote from Peter Hogg: When asked how he manages his food preparation for a TransPac, and he's done a few, he said, "Oh - I just go over to the market the night before the race and buy two cases of Dinty Moore canned stew. Done."

Typical menu for me, 21 day run:

60 eggs, hard boiled in advance - 3 per day
20 apples - 1 per day
1 small bunch green bananas - they will ripen
1 small bag baby carrots, don't last that long but are easy to eat
3 dried Salami - 1 per week
4 big packets beef jerky - 1 per week
30 canned stews/soups - 1 per day
3 loaves bread, big peanut butter, 2 mid-size jelly - 1 sandwich per day
cereal and irradiated box milk - one handful per day, drink the milk separately in a cup
2 x 2lb packets Sun-Maid raisins - last forever, eat a handful per day
1 tub red vines licorice - a snack, munch on until they are gone
1 12-14"wheel Brie - last until you finish it
3 pounds Mozzarella cheese - 1 per week
3 pounds Swiss chees - 1 per week

In addition to that stuff, Beetle always carries a stock of: pasta, canned tuna, tinned herring, canned garbonzo beans, lentil beans, couscous, wild rice, butter, balsamic vinegar, tortilla wraps/bread, cooking oil, flour, yeast, aluminum foil, zip loc baggies- this is what's in and around the galley and deep-stores (bomb-shelter food) that is useful.

If you are extra-adventurous, here are some other great things:

Butter-milk pancake mix and maple syrup - easy to make, tastes great. It's hot food, so not so good in the tropics, and it's complicated so not so good in the hard reaching out the Gate to the ridge.

Popcorn - easy to make, easy to eat, don't burn yourself on the oil, watch out for the husks that can get caught in between the teeth. Smells great.

Small chocolate bars. If you're a chocolate person, small Halloween chocolates are great - carry a bag of them and look out for trick-or-treaters.

Gotta have it:

Water - plan on drinking a half-gallon a day when it gets hot. If you can make the water cold (ice cubes or fridge) the water is even better. Beetle has a water maker and it works, when I run through half the tankage then I run the water maker and refill the port tank. When it is hot and sunny and toasty I find myself drinking a big cup of cold water every hour or so.

At least that's what works for me. I must admit I've always admired Mike Jefferson's Cheese Whiz sprayed on un-cooked Pop-Tarts gourmet food model - as brilliant as it is simple!

- rob
 
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With regard to Pop Corn which is an important topic to be sure. One can still buy Jiffy Pop at the grocery store. In addition to safer popping experience, one can take the opportunity to walk down memory lane during the windy reach when life is otherwise wet and miserable.

With regard to "dog food" I would like to include Spam in the discussion. Spam can be a gourmet meal IMO. Not only can one enjoy it right out of the can, one can buy it in all sorts of flavors these days. Tell me what hungry human could resist Jalapeno Spam on a dark, cold, windy night with no stars?
 
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With regard to "dog food" I would like to include Spam in the discussion. Spam can be a gourmet meal IMO. Not only can one enjoy it right out of the can, one can buy it in all sorts of flavors these days. Tell me what hungry human could resist Jalapeno Spam on a dark, cold, windy night with no stars?

You're not quite right, are you, Mike? I grew up on headcheese, pickled pigs feet, and cow tongue. Spam will never, ever land on my boat.
 
You're not quite right, are you, Mike? I grew up on headcheese, pickled pigs feet, and cow tongue. Spam will never, ever land on my boat.

Should be a fun discussion at the provisioning seminar. Meanwhile, will there be a live web cast of Wednesday's power and comm show? And/or an on-line video replay afterwards? Unlike the last time, I couldn't conjure up a way to have work pay for my trip to and from the Bay Area this week.

I think I'm in good shape on power and comm stuff -- SSB and Pactor modem working smoothly with the laptop; energy budget says I can run the fridge 8 hours a day and still only need 56 minutes a day of engine time to top up the batteries. Big thanks to Mike J for posting the worksheet for Rags with all the formulas in place.

Nonetheless I'd like to see the seminar, cuz there's always something to learn.
 
Big thanks to Mike J for posting the worksheet for Rags with all the formulas in place.

Where did he post it?

I probably need to update it again - my little 35A alternator may not cut it now that I'm supposed to have a fridge for the head cheese and spam, a motorized stripper pole, disco lights and LED track lighting.
 
Hi Folks,

A big thanks to Rob for leaving the Hawaiian islands to give this talk.

Tonights audio was much better, and I think not having to hold the mic helped the presenters.

Also I think I need to start squirreling away some funds for some communication equipment

Cheers
Shane
 
Hi All -
Webinar info for Wednesday's Rigging & Sails Seminar:



Please register for 2018 Single Handed TransPacific Yacht Race Seminar #3 on Jan 17, 2018 7:25 PM PST at:

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/144003426004643586

Join the SSS for an orientation and discussion of Rigging and Sails for the 2018 Single Handed TransPacific Yacht Race.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.


Best,
DH
 
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