New Boat 4 Sled

[MAGICdreamer]

I forwarded this page onto my sailing Scots friend, Peter Bruce, who lives up by Ladysmith in BC. He is always embarked upon some project or another, much to the humorous chagrin of his wife and grown sons. Just the ticket! A Wee project.

 

[sleddog]

I forwarded this page onto my sailing Scots friend, Peter Bruce, who lives up by Ladysmith in BC. He is always embarked upon some project or another, much to the humorous chagrin of his wife and grown sons. Just the ticket! A Wee project.

Ah yes. "Wee projects." I don't think it would spilling the beans to note as an anniversary present, the Magicians are in the midst of a bathroom remodel.. Notes Capt. Magician, "We are doing okay here, nursing the bathroom remodel project along bit by bit. Drywall is supposed to start Wednesday, the lath folks sometime this week as well as that most unreliable of all trades, the roofers. Cabinets about the 23rd, then the tile man….etc.

As for their mini-MAGIC schooner, "R/C servos are on hand in order to be fitted prior to decking, which might make such a process overly-awkward. ;-0"

Mum is the word whether MINI-MAGIC's purple gollywobbler will be deployable by radio control. I should also note, without turning this into a trivia question, a gollywobbler is not only a schooner's quadrilateral sail between the foremast and mainmast used for reaching/running, but also a sail used on the historical Chesapeake Bay Log Canoes (ketches,) as well as a logo of St. Michaels' wines of St. Michaels, Maryland.





And here's Vicky with a favorite schooner tool, the paint brush.

 

[MAGICdreamer]

Just to make Sleddog's gollywobbler comment...graphical (?), here you go:



Given how much running around I had to do to set or gybe the beast, I am not really sure how many servos and attendant R/C channels would be necessary to set and douse the reaching rig, but I would need a radio the size of a piano to have enough switches, perhaps.

 

[sleddog]

An old SSS adage is "run what ya got."
Yesterday, to celebrate the Solstice, I carried down hill and launched my old, 6', inflatable, Montgomery-Ward raft into our local Soquel Creek.



CHALLENGER 200 had seen better days, 2 of 3 air chambers seemed to have slow leaks. Besides the oars on my portage to launch, I carried a pump.

40 years ago, during the 1980 flood, my neighbor and I, wet suit clad, had ridden down 2 miles of Soquel Creek in a Mr. Toad's wild ride scenario. Fortunately we avoided low branches, snags, and rapids and safely made it to the ocean where we agreed we'd "never do that again."



During summers, Soquel Creek flows at a placid rate to the lagoon at the ocean's edge. Native Americans lived here, dining on venison, trout, acorns and tubers, abalone, clams, and other seafood freshly caught from their tule reed canoes.

During the late 19th century, loggers cut local forests, and there were sawmills on the banks of Soquel Creek, which drains a large watershed extending 16 miles inland to the Santa Cruz mountains.

Yesterday, joined by Annie, we embarked for a voyage up now placid Soquel Creek as far as navigable. CHALLENGER 200 was perfect size, shoal draft, and just capable of carrying her two crew, plus chips, artichoke and jalapeno dip, and Compari and Peligrino refreshment. The slow leaks in chambers 1&2 did not prove a hindrance. Soon we were being followed by a single file armada of ducks intent on a bread crumb trail of chips.

After passing under the two century old, rusty iron RR bridge, Soquel Creek narrowed and the west bank became shaded by high cliffs and 100 foot redwoods and eucalyptus. Soon, abeam the haunted Rispin Mansion barely visible in the foilage, we were in silence except for birdsong and the gentle splash of oars.

Slowly we coasted inland, the creek's bottom visible inches below.



Finally, just below the footbridge overhead, we grounded for good in about 4" of water. Retracing our wake, we passed a resident on the east bank. "Where did you come from?" he inquired. "San Jose," we replied, "Which way is Capitola?" That left him scratching his head.

By the time we reached the lagoon, we had regained civilization. Overhead, the Stockton Ave. Bridge was gridlocked by a fire truck, ambulance, and several LEO cars with flashing red lights. The ducks in our wake left us as we passed Margaritaville, chasing more lucrative appetizers. The grey marine layer (June gloom) was waiting at the ocean, necessitating breaking out fleece.

We'd run what we got.

 

[sleddog]

My first memory of sailing was likely age 3 as crew with my father aboard his centerboard sloop GLAMOUR GIRL. I know it was centerboard, because we departed and landed on a sandy beach. Recently I came across a sistership of GLAMOUR GIRL.



For a pint of Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia, now with chocolate, can anyone tell us the location in the SF Bay Area of this boat, what class it is, and what significant thing it has in common with the Snipe? (All 3 questions must be answered correctly to win the Cherry Garcia, and there is no time limit. Guess away as many times as you want.)

 

[Dazzler]

My first memory of sailing was likely age 3 as crew with my father aboard his centerboard sloop GLAMOUR GIRL. I know it was centerboard, because we departed and landed on a sandy beach. Recently I came across a sistership of GLAMOUR GIRL.

For a pint of Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia, now with chocolate, can anyone tell us the location in the SF Bay Area of this boat, what class it is, and what significant thing it has in common with the Snipe? (All 3 questions must be answered correctly to win the Cherry Garcia, and there is no time limit. Guess away as many times as you want.)

I know that location. It’s the lower floor of the San Francisco Maritime Museum (in the Aquatic Park Bathhouse Building). I wrote a paper while in college about that building and have done research in their photo archives.

The boat is a 17’ National class one-design. The sail insignia is partially visible. They were not a very popular boat in the Bay Area, but I think there were some out of Palo Alto. Palo Alto used to have a marina before it was allowed to silt in. As a teenager, I would ride my bike From Portola Valley to the Palo Alto Marina just to look at the boats.

The significant thing in common with the Snipe one-design is that they were both designed by THE RUDDER magazine Editor and small boat designer William F. (“Bill”) Crosby from Pelham, New York. Plans for home building Nationals first appeared in the January 1937 issue of the magazine.

I just found specific information about the boat in the photo: THE MAB
https://www.nps.gov/safr/learn/historyculture/the-mab.htm

 

[sleddog]

I know that location. It’s the lower floor of the San Francisco Maritime Museum (in the Aquatic Park Bathhouse Building). I wrote a paper while in college about that building and have done research in their photo archives.

The boat is a 17’ National class one-design. The sail insignia is partially visible. They were not a very popular boat in the Bay Area, but I think there were some out of Palo Alto. Palo Alto used to have a marina before it was allowed to silt in. As a teenager, I would ride my bike From Portola Valley to the Palo Alto Marina just to look at the boats.

The significant thing in common with the Snipe one-design is that they were both designed by THE RUDDER magazine Editor and small boat designer William F. (“Bill”) Crosby from Pelham, New York. Plans for home building Nationals first appeared in the January 1937 issue of the magazine.

I just found specific information about the boat in the photo: THE MAB
https://www.nps.gov/safr/learn/historyculture/the-mab.htm

Congrats and props to DAZZLER on enlightening us on the National One Design class, and the MAB on display at the San Francisco Maritime Museum. Well done, we hope you have room in your freezer for the Cherry Garcia!

As Tom mentions, William F. Crosby also designed the 15' Snipe in 1931, a still active one design class and sweet dinghy to sail that doesn't need hunky crew weight or strength, has tactical racing, and will plane given 15-20 knots of wind.

Compared to the Snipe, the 2 foot longer National One Design had a centerboard and under hull spade rudder rather than a daggerboard and transom hung rudder of the Snipe.



I believe Palo Alto Harbor, before it's demise, used to have an active 505 fleet also. More on that later.

 

[Dazzler]

My first memory of sailing was likely age 3 as crew with my father aboard his centerboard sloop GLAMOUR GIRL (17’ NATIONAL ONE-DESIGN). I know it was centerboard, because we departed and landed on a sandy beach.

This could be the start of an interesting thread drift: relating your first memory of sailing (where, when, boat type). Mine is when I was 5 or 6, my parents bought a Cape Cod Mercury 15’ S&S design, keel model. Interestingly they are still in production today.



The boat was kept on a mooring on Long Island Sound for the summer. My father built a plywood pram (very much the shape of an El Toro) for rowing out to the mooring. I don’t recall anything to do with an outboard motor, but we must have had one. We typically used a canoe paddle for “auxiliary” propulsion.

Swimming was a big part of going sailing, but I also remember my mother taking us (four brothers) out fishing while our dad was away.

 

[sleddog]

This could be the start of an interesting thread drift: relating your first memory of sailing (where, when, boat type)..QUOTE]



Forwarded from Capt. Bob "My father's first boat in Wilmington Channel (San Pedro, Ca) was ADIOS, a 25 foot woody of unknown design. You can see my 5 year old self in cockpit with Mom and Dad. Thanks to him, and all our dads on this Father's Day. Without him and his first 4 sailboats, I would not have gotten into ocean racing, Cal Maritime Academy, and become Capt. Bob. So 'Thanks Bill Buell!!'"

 

[AlanH]

I believe that Mab, or an equally stunning sistership is currently in the SF Maritime museum warehouse in San Leandro, as I saw a stunning wooden national one design there when I was invited to visit the warehouse by a buddy who had a contract electronically measure a large number f boats in the collection and draw up plans such that they could be rebuilt. It's a fascinating place.

My first sailing experience was in El Toro's at the MPYC, but shortly after that I was crewing for a family friend, Col. Oliver Wood on his plywood Mercury out of Stillwater Cove. Col. Wood transformed from a relatively quiet-spoken man to a wild and aggressive sort on the water. I got used to it, in time. If I had not bought the Piper, a Mercury would be a prime candidate for me, in "downsizing" mode.

 

[AlanH]

A paddle up Soquel creek.... you know, that just sounds excellent, right now.

 

[sleddog]

The boat is a 17’ National class one-design. The sail insignia is partially visible. They were not a very popular boat in the Bay Area, but I think there were some out of Palo Alto. Palo Alto used to have a marina before it was allowed to silt in. As a teenager, I would ride my bike From Portola Valley to the Palo Alto Marina just to look at the boats.

The story and photos of what happened in the 80's to Palo Alto Harbor and its demise are compelling SF Bay history and can be found here: http://www.paloaltohistory.org/the-palo-alto-yacht-harbor.php



There was a very competitive Bay racing class, the 505, headquartered out of Palo Alto Harbor with big name skippers and crews including Chris Boome, Dave Wahle, Dr. Dennis Surtees, Chris Gasprich, Art Lange, Dave Vickland, Jay Kunzel, Dirk Vynne, Pip Pearson, and other names we may recognize. Palo Alto roadstead, SE of the Dumbarton Bridge, was a great place to sail: smooth water on the flood, fresh afternoon winds, and soft mud that allowed you to tack a Triton with 4 feet of draft in 3 feet of water to get current relief.

You were there if you remember the navigation tool: a "South Bay Sextant."

 

[sleddog]

The Ocean Voyages Institute's sailing cargo ship KWAI pulled into Pier 29 in Honolulu this morning with more than 103 tons of marine trash hauled from the middle of the Pacific Ocean, mission complete despite the ongoing pandemic. The Sausalito, Calf.-based nonprofit, led by Mary Crowley, once again chartered the locally-based, sailing cargo ship KWQAI for the 48-day expedition that set out in early May.

“I am so proud of our hard working crew,” said Crowley. “We exceeded our goal of capturing 100 tons of toxic consumer plastics and derelict ‘ghost’ nets, and in these challenging times, we are continuing to help restore the health of our ocean, which influences our own health and the health of the planet.”

The latest haul is more than double the one from last summer, which culled 42 tons of debris after 25 days out at sea. On last year’s expedition, the institute deployed GPS-enabled satellite beacons, drones and other technology to better track the debris in the ocean, and has found it plays a key role in more effectively removing it. The beacons were placed on nets with the help of crowd-sourced yachts and other commercial vessels, based on Crowley’s theory that one tracker leads to other nets.

Crowley, a lifelong sailor, was hoping to launch a considerably larger expedition this year, with more vessels over a three-month period, but had to scale back due to the impacts of the pandemic. The KWAI, captained by Capt. Brad Ives, nevertheless embarked on the expedition, departing from Hilo on May 4 after a self-imposed quarantine of three weeks.

“We were very careful to keep the crew quarantined, and to test any new crew members coming on board because we wanted to make sure the expedition was safe from a health perspective,” Crowley said.
She hopes the pro-active approach to removing the marine debris in the Gyre — halfway between Hawaii and California — will help spare coral reefs as well as wildlife, including whales, dolphins, and sea turtles from entanglements.

“We feel that our cleanup work in the Gyre really helps address some of this debris before it arrives in the islands,” she said. “The oceans can’t wait for these nets and debris to break down into microplastics which impair the ocean’s ability to store carbon and toxify the fragile ocean food web.”

With the help of Matson, the debris collected, including large piles of ropes and fishing nets and discarded consumer plastics, will be sent to West Coast destinations to be transformed into fuel and repurposed into building insulation.

Crowley is raising funds for another cleaning expedition by the KWAI to the Gyre, expected to depart at the end of June, as well as next summer. She hopes to organize cleanup expeditions to other parts of the world as well.

“Right now when the world is dealing with this very difficult time, it seems so important to pay attention to health on all levels,” she said. “I encourage people to take very good care of themselves right now, to follow all the procedures, to wear a mask, social distancing — all of these things are important. At the same time we should be paying attention to nature and making sure we keep the planet a healthy place to inhabit.”

She noted that the institute’s advisory board member, Sylvia Earle, often cites ignorance, rather than overfishing or garbage, as having the most harmful impact on oceans today.

“Most people don’t realize how closely our own health is tied to the health of the ocean,” said Crowley. “The ocean really produces two out of the three breaths we take. So we need to keep our ocean ecosystem healthy to help us stay healthy and to help the whole planet stay healthy.”

Meanwhile, just north of Hilo on the Big Island, 21 shipping containers have gone overboard from a Young Bros. barge. 2 have been recovered by the CG.

 

[sleddog]

This could be the start of an interesting thread drift: relating your first memory of sailing (where, when, boat type). Mine is when I was 5 or 6, my parents bought a Cape Cod Mercury 15’ S&S design, keel model. Interestingly they are still in production today.

Long time friend and DH PacCup crew on WILDFLOWER in 2000, Viola from S. Lake Tahoe first sailed on Kettenberg-38 CARAVELLE in 1979 on Lake Tahoe. Here is CARAVELLE in a rail down southwest breeze looking good with snowy mountains in the back ground.

 

[sleddog]

Anyone want to virtually sail the 2020 Singlehanded Transpac with me aboard my 1975 Wylie-27 WILDFLOWER, feel free to join in the fun by clicking on the SSS FORUM event discussion 2020 Singlehanded Trans Pacific Yacht Race
at the thread "What Might Have Been."

 

[sleddog]

An "out-of-the-blue" call this afternoon from Robbie Buck onboard his Mull-30 ISIS at Hanalei. Robbie wanted to share he was looking at an "almost" triple rainbow astern towards Bali Hai....I asked Robbie how many boats were at anchor in Hanalei Bay. "We were the second, and now there are 17," was his reply.



Robbie also wanted to inquire about ISIS's history. I helped build ISIS in 1979 at C&B Marine in Soquel and we raced her in the first Pacific Cup, 1980, then called the" Kauai Race" to Nawiliwili Harbor. She was fire engine back red then.

Robbie reported ISIS still has a fair turn of speed, and has won the Labor Day Race, Maui to Oahu, 3 times. "She'll sit on 12 knots," was his compliment to a now cruising and liveaboard home.

 

[sleddog]

Good news today from Capitola Boat Club Fleet Surgeon: Dave W. is home recovering from emergency appendectomy and feeling "best I've felt in weeks." Brother-in-Law Tom has successfully weathered his first chemo infusion. Howard is riding his scooter 24 hours after cyst removal. And I just received an "all clear" on my 4th CT scan in 4 years as we monitor lung nodules resulting from many years accumulation of inhalation of boat building micro particles including fiberglas and wood dust.

 

[Philpott]

Good news today from Capitola Boat Club Fleet Surgeon: Dave W. is home recovering from emergency appendectomy and feeling "best I've felt in weeks." Brother-in-Law Tom has successfully weathered his first chemo infusion. Howard is riding his scooter 24 hours after surgery on his back. And I just received an "all clear" on my 4th CT scan in 4 years as we monitor lung nodules resulting from many years accumulation of inhalation of boat building micro particles including fiberglas and wood dust.

Excellent news on all counts, Skip!

 

[sleddog]

Though I enjoy rowing, have never understood ocean rowing, where progress, or lack of, is determined primarily by whims of wind and currents. This ocean rower's stated ambition is to break rowing records from SF to Hawaii. After 18 days, the course has been averaging south at an average speed of .9 knots. Hopefully soon the course will begin to curve south west. Even so, departing for this attempt in June means a likely possibility of becoming a sitting duck while crossing paths with Eastern Pacific tropical storms somewhere ahead.

 

[MAGICdreamer]

And, of course, today's weather forecasts are talking about tropical Storm Christine which is due to become a hurricane, located 700 miles S-SW of Cabo. I hope both rowers are able to ride out the upcoming weather in their individual craft. I am glad that I am not out there staring down to the S wondering...