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Corona Virus Impact (Covid 19)

brianb

brianb

Olson 34 Driver
Due to the Covid 19 Virus issue we are considering the following (note the word considering):

Given the guidance coming from medical officials, the shutting down of non essential establishments, and the shutting down of yacht clubs it seems we should go virtual with all future meetings. Boat inspections could also be a problem. The Pacific Cup, as an example, has just cancelled all inspections in the Bay Area for the time being.

Given the above I am suggesting the following steps:

- All seminars will be online. We can use the conference call system we have in place to do this. Kristen - can you confirm that it will support slide presentations ? Do we need to purchase a subscription to allow a full set of features and up to 20 dial ups ? Please let me know.

-Inspections will delayed until April 30 th. Lets hope the Bay area travel and meeting restrictions are lifted by then.

-We can discuss solutions for the skippers meeting and luncheon at a later date. Let us hope that the virus will be under control by the time of the start of the event and those can be held as planned. The same applies to the finish party and use of the "Yellow House".

One advantage of a single handed race to Hawaii - you will he well socially isolated once you are under the Golden Gate. Crewed races will have a challenge in this regard.

Hoping for a quick recovery to the area, the Nation, and the Planet.

Brian
 
If the curve is flattened as we all ardently hope it will be, the timing is going to be very tight. Hoping for the best.

The Real Jacqueline and I are huddled down with a couple of cases of sardines and some trail mix.

That's what you call emergency surf and turf.
 
If it takes 14 days to get there, haven't we served our sentences concurrently?

I Googled for the text of the order but can't find it. Understandably, the articles emphasize arrival by aircraft.
.
 
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Actual Order is attached.
Found the link here.

To Bob's question, the answer is no, not to the letter of the order.
Emphasis added.

§2 Mandatory Quarantine. All persons entering the State
shall be subject to mandatory self-quarantine, except those
persons performing emergency response or critical infrastructure
functions who have been exempted by the Director of Emergency
Management. The period of self-quarantine begins from the time
of entry into the State and lasts 14 days or the duration of the
person’s presence in the State, whichever is shorter.

having said all that I also note that, at least for now, the order expires May 20th.

Standing by, without a boat (for now).
DH
 

Attachments

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Larry Conklin called, asked that the SSS will “ help keep Kauai green” when we come. I promised we will spend money when we come. BTW, the Wake Up cafe is for sale.
 
Cruise-out to the Pacific High?

If Hawaii does shut down, or time runs out to hold the SSS TransPacific Race to Hanalei - anyone interested in a cruise-out to the Pacific High?

I spent four days in the High on one of my return trips from Hawaii; I found it to be a surreal place to be - middle of the ocean, flat calm pancake mirror sea, gigantic clouds hanging above and not moving, visibility clear to the pencil-line horizon in all directions. The stars at night are amazing.

I am considering a sail out to the High as a backup plan if Hanalei or something similar doesn't make sense or work out given current world affairs. As Cliff/Rainbow mentioned, perhaps we could organize a cruise-out to a specific Lat/Lon. No USCG permit required, I'll bring the barbecue, and we can search for the half-way barge. Going for a swim mid-ocean is an unusual experience. Might even allow double-handers or fully-crewed yachts to participate :)

- rob/beetle
 
That sounds like a good journey Beetle and Pork Chop may be down for following you out for a bit. We launched today from Brickyard and parked the boat next to our live aboard in the city. It was a pleasant if somber sail home. Looks like we are hunkering down for a bit.
I guess this officially begins my prep for 2022.
 
March 26, 2020
Hello SHTP 2020 Racers,

The recent Covid-19 issues are an issue with regards to conducting races of any kind in the Bay and to distant destinations. At present the Coast Guard will not issue any permits that don’t comply with current local and federal rules. In addition, the State of Hawaii, and the County of Kauai have instituted strong, “shelter in place” orders for their residents as well as visitors. The County of Kauai has also put in place beach use restrictions to reduce groups for sharing the same space. Nonresidents must acquire a permit, $5/person, for each day they are on the beach. Additionally, parking a car in the vicinity of the beach requires the payment of a $50 / day parking fee. Lastly, use of the beach by a group will require a separate permit. Lastly, and most important, if you were to arrive in Hawaii today you would have to undergo a mandatory quarantine of 14 days. Another issue is the on the water portion of the race. While it is a solo event, therefore there is no issue with crew separation, the issue of someone contracting the disease while at sea, and that resulting in a rescue by another vessel/aircraft, will raise concerns with the USCG permitting process.
We have decided to continue race planning and revisit the question of holding the event on April 15. At that time we will hold a meeting and then inform all of you of our decision.
This note is going to all racers, the board of the SHTP, and the board of the Single-Handed Sailing Society.

Be careful out there.
Regards,
Brian Boschma
 
Tiger Beetle Cruise Out

I once proposed a race around the P High, "The Great Pacific High Race". This sounds very interesting. I presume we will all sea anchor out ?
 
That's brilliant - a "bring your own sea anchor" event. In calm conditions we could raft up for a couple of hours and barbecue, then wobble off a little ways from each other and drift for the evening. If it's bouncy then it would be into the dinghying to shuttle between boats. Most difficult part is going to be finding everyone - there's a lot of water out there and it will take time to get together.

There's an interesting site put together to facilitate satellite email traffic among a group of boats - followingsea.net. This was recommended for the Pacific Puddle Jump 2020, and it seems to work fairly well. This setup could prove useful to the SSS TransPac for making it easier to broadcast [short] email traffic across the fleet. It could also be used for a Pacific High Cruise Out to help out boats that do not have HF-radio capability.

- rob/beetle
 
I'd only do that if I'm promised a refund if I don't find a glass fishing float.

Seriously though, I'd rather do a coastal trip with some other boats. Maybe a harbor-hop from Bodega Bay down to the Channel Islands, with the veterans showing us newbies how to do it.

This assumes the restrictions have been lifted, but could be planned on short notice.
 
BobJ said:
Seriously though, I'd rather do a coastal trip with some other boats. Maybe a harbor-hop from Bodega Bay down to the Channel Islands, with the veterans showing us newbies how to do it.
Click to expand...

I would hardly call Surprise! and skipper a newbie - you've been there done that, probably have the anchor to prove it!

I'm already down south in Channel Islands Harbor (Oxnard). For my runs along the coast I've tended towards straight shots down the coast when the weather is good and reserve the harbor hopping for waiting out bad weather and for the trip north. I keep an eye on the weather and will not leave one port unless I'm certain I can get into the next one - that holds true traveling north and south. The high quality of the weather forecasting here makes it a reasonable to avoid really bad weather provided you have time to wait for the weather to be in your favor.

Places I enjoy are Half Moon Bay, Santa Cruz if the channel hasn't silted in following a winter storm, Monterey if you take a slip (I anchored in the bay outside the harbor one trip and was rolling 30 degrees each way on the swell - don't do that again!), Morro Bay is a fun stop, and then you're around Arguello and into Southern California.

I've not stopped at San Simeon or San Luis Obispo and have no information on those anchorages.

My current plan is to hang out here in Oxnard while avoiding people and attending to small boat projects that I never quite took the time to do (currently I'm making no-see-um screens for the three hatches and the companionway). At some point the virus health concerns should recede and then I'd like to go explore the Channel Islands.

There are not a lot of great overnight anchorages in the Northern Channel Islands, nothing as protected and big as Drakes Bay. San Miguel has Cuyler Cove, Santa Rosa has Johnsons Lee and Bechers Bay, Santa Cruz has the east end (though not good in an easterly), Anacapa doesn't really have any. I've only been into Cuyler Cove once and that was just for a few hours - that's one place I want to visit in good weather and spend a couple of days there if possible.

Cliff/Rainbow is up in San Francisco and he's thinking about cruising Southern California, Lee/Morning Star is in San Diego and he's mentioned cruising the northern islands. If you're thinking about bopping down this way, let the gang know and we can figure out a fun place to explore as a group.

It's pretty easy to spend a summer down here - lots of things to see and places to go between Santa Barbara and San Diego, plenty of snorkeling and diving, fishing, exploring the islands by kayak or dinghy, and it's a lot warmer than San Francisco!

- rob/beetle
 
Morning Star will remain in her slip at SGYC, and I will remain in Phoenix, so long as strict social distancing is appropriate. I had planned on sailing this past week, possibly up to Oxnard and the out to the islands, but thought better of it and came home to ride out the current situation. Brought home some boat projects I can work on here, and it’s all good.

As to future adventures, the idea of a race around the East Pacific High is intriguing. The objective would be to be the first boat back under the Gate after reaching the other side of the High. The High, of course, moves and changes constantly, so the navigational challenge would be an interesting puzzle.

The NWS radio fax titled “Sfc Analysis NE Pacific (Part 1) 20N-70N 115W-175W” gives the actual, not forecast, location of the High four times a day – as of 00Z, 06Z, 12Z, and 18Z. Draw a line from the Golden Gate to the center of the highest point of barometric pressure as shown on the current chart, and your turning mark is any point on the eastward extension of that line -- as it lies when you get there. That is, you turn when you have put the barometric center of the high between you and the Gate.

The total distance sailed will depend on where the center of the high is located once you’ve made your turn, so I’m not sure how any handicap system would work. But I remember how much fun it was trying to shoot for the bottom (or top) of the High on the way back from Kauai in 2018. A race with that constantly moving target as the turning mark would be a real test of . . . . something. Sounds like a lot of fun to me.
 
As you are all aware we are going to have some decision in several days. I suspect it is either cancel the race for 2020 and start a discussion on something in 2021, or jump to 2022, or wait until the first of May to make a final call. Here are a few issues that likely all of you are aware of:

Kauai:
- All marine events are cancelled.
- All inter island travel is prohibited.
- All DOBNR offices are closed. (Dept. of Natural Resources).
- All commercial use permits are closed. No estimate of re opening - re consideration on May 1.
- Some boat ramps are closed.
- Beaches are not locked down but non locals must obtain use permits daily, $5 each, and parking in the area is $50 / vehicle.
- Rental properties are asked to rent only for essential business use.
- Hanalei mooring permits are cancelled and are not being issued.
- All of the above, or some of the above will undergo reconsideration on May 1.

Add to this that large gatherings, think awards or tree meetings, are not allowed.

SF Bay:

- USCG is discouraging boat usage. Partially because they don't want their people to be exposed in a rescue effort.
- All permits currently are cancelled. We have a permit pending but unless the local governments let things go back to normal it isn't likely USCG will issue the permit.
- The CYC is currently shut down, that is our start line.

These are a few items that will go into our decision in the next few days.

Brian
 
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