southwindsjune2006
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June 2006For Sailors — Free…It’s Priceless
SOUTHWINDSNews & Views for Southern Sailors
Hurricane Season 2006
Regata del Sol al Sol
The Great Loopby Catamaran
2 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
4 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 5
SOUTHWINDSNEWS & VIEWS FOR SOUTHERN SAILORS
From the Carolinas to Cuba…from Atlanta to the Abacos…SOUTHWINDS Covers Southern Sailing
Preparing for a storm. Photo by Steve Morrell. Page 32.
The Great Circle Loop. Photo by John Kelly. Page 36.
6 From the Helm: Pumpout Service Goes UnderBy Steve Morrell
10 Letters
17 Southern Regional Monthly Weather & Water Temperatures
22 Bubba Torches the CompetitionBy Morgan Stinemetz
20 Short Tacks: Sailing News and Events Around the South
26 Our Waterways: Another Marina Goes Under. Objections to Onboard Treatment Systems.
32 Hurricane Season 2006. Why Prepare Your Boat for a Storm?By Steve Morrell
36 The Great Circle Loop by Catamaran, Part IBy John Kelly
38 Morgan Invasion 2006By Tom Dunn
42 PHRF Racing Tips: The StartBy Dave Ellis
44 38th Regata del Sol al Sol 2006By Stephen Evans
44 Racing Pages: News & Events, Southern Regional Racing Reports& Race Calendars
70 Race of the LemmingsBy Steve Morrell
60-61 Regional Sailing Services DirectoryLocal boat services in your area.
68 Alphabetical Index of Advertisers
69 Advertisers’ List by Category
16 Subscription Form
COVERStart of the 38th Annual Regata del Sol al Sol.
Photo by Gary Hufford. www.beachmaster.smugmug.com.
6 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
Pumpout Boat Goes UnderNo matter how you read this, it is not good.
Last December, David Bergen contacted me about adver-tising his new business, a privately run pump-out boat in theTampa Bay area. Both the boat and the business had the samename, The PumpOut Boat. Last week (early May), he calledme and said he was going to shut the business down.
I have talked to David several times in the last fivemonths about his business. In the beginning, he told me howmany calls he was getting and how quickly word of his busi-ness was spreading in Pinellas County (St. Petersburg).Boaters he approached in marinas wanted him to come byevery month and pump out their holding tanks. One chartercompany had five boats they wanted pumped out regularly.He was getting an interest from boaters at marinas, yachtclubs, private docks and cruisers passing through the area. Hewent down to Manatee County and found interest there. Hehad dreams of expanding throughout the region.
And he had barely scratched the surface of promotinghis business.
Then he started getting opposition. One large marina inPinellas County where he found tremendous interest byboth management and boat owners first told him he waswelcome, but management asked for more liability insur-ance. He came back with it, but for some reason theychanged their minds. He couldn’t work there. There wereother independent contractors working on boats at thismarina. He didn’t understand. This particular marina hadpump-out service, but you had to move your boat to a dockto use it, unlike many marinas that have their own pump-out boat or pump-out access at each slip—not requiring theboat to move. His boat would fill a major need, but he wastold: NO WAY.
He went to the city of Gulfport where he found someinterest, but the city wouldn’t let him work at the city marina.
He also ran into problems of where to pump out his hold-ing tank. The municipal marina in St. Petersburg welcomed
FROM THE HELM By Steve Morrellhim to pump out boats there and allowed him to empty hisholding tank at their pump-out station. But at other marinashe was not allowed to, like at the big marina mentionedabove. He began to run into resistance everywhere he turned.
David was doing this as a second business, on week-ends and when he could get away during the week. He tookhis dog with him and enjoyed being on the water and meet-ing other boaters. David came from the San Francisco Bayarea where there are several pump-out boats that success-fully operate as private businesses. These businesses areallowed to use the pump-out stations at private and govern-ment locations to empty their tanks after servicing boatowners. David figured this business would be in greatdemand here and be very successful. He bought himself aboat and outfitted it with equipment to operate efficiently.(There are companies in the United States who sell equip-ment, even entire outfitted boats for pumping out.)
David did not meet one boat owner who did not wanthis services operating in the area, but he did meet resistancefrom some local governments and marinas. Our govern-ments, local, county and state, should be putting advertise-ments in local and national newspapers for pump-out com-panies to come to this area and offer services. They shouldbe actively encouraging a business like David’s.Government officials and all marinas and yacht clubsshould come together and encourage everyone to promoteand support pump-out services to keep our waters clean.The St. Petersburg municipal marina welcomed David, butdoes the city know that his business was not allowed inother marinas in the city limits? These marinas should behelping him not hindering him. What are they thinking?
I have a feeling that the public does not know the resist-ance that government officials and marinas put up to putDavid Bergen’s pump-out boat out of business.
I am encouraging boat owners to ask their marinas andlocal governments to support private pump-out companiesto operate freely in our waters. Ask the marina manager,your local government officials, write to local newspa-pers—let’s get the word out and encourage a private pump-out service.
David’s boat is now sitting parked on a trailer on land,ready to go. He could still bring it back into service—it wedon’t wait too long.
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS May 2006 7
SOUTHWINDSNews & Views For Southern Sailors
SOUTHWINDS Media, Inc.P.O. Box 1175, Holmes Beach, Florida 34218-1175
(941) 795-8704 (877) 372-7245 (941) 795-8705 Faxwww.southwindsmagazine.co
e-mail: [email protected] 14 Number 5 June 2006
Copyright 2006, Southwinds Media, Inc.
Founded in 1993 Doran Cushing, Publisher 1993-2002
Publisher/EditorSteve Morrell [email protected] (941) 795-8704
Associate EditorsLisa Hoogerwerf Knapp [email protected] Pierce [email protected]
AdvertisingGo to www.southwindsmagazine.com for information about
the magazine, distribution and advertising rates.Steve Morrell [email protected] (941) 795-8704David Curry [email protected] (941) 761-0048
Regional EditorsCAROLINAS AND GEORGIA
Walt McFarlane [email protected] (912) 429-4197
EAST FLORIDARoy Laughlin [email protected] (321) 690-0137
SOUTHEAST FLORIDALisa Hoogerwerf Knapp [email protected]
SOUTHEAST FLORIDA RACINGArt Perez [email protected] (305) 380-0106
Production Proofreading ArtworkHeather Nicoll Kathy Elliott Rebecca Burg
Contributing Writers Letters from our readers Rebecca Burg Julie ConnerleyGene DeNisio Tom Dunn Dave EllisJabbo Gordon Charles Husick Gary JensenKim Kaminski John Kelly Roy LaughlinWalt McFarlane R. J. Mitchellette Steve MorrellMelanie Neale Art Perez Mike SavinoHone Scunook Capt. Steve Stevens Morgan StinemetzDave Thinel Rick White
Contributing Photographers/ArtRebecca Burg Michael Carter Tom DunnLarry Ford Gary Hufford Charles HusickPete Jernigan Kim Kaminski John KellyRoy Laughlin Steve Morrell Melanie NealeDave Thinel Rick White
EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTIONS: ARTICLES & PHOTOGRAPHY:SOUTHWINDS encourages readers, writers, photographers, cartoonists, jok-ers, magicians, philosophers and whoever else is out there, includingsailors, to send in their material. Just make it about the water world andgenerally about sailing and about sailing in the South, the Bahamas or theCaribbean, or general sailing interest, or sailboats, or sailing in some far-off and far-out place.
SOUTHWINDS welcomes contributions in writing and photography, sto-ries about sailing, racing, cruising, maintenance and other technical arti-cles and other sailing-related topics. Please submit all articles electronical-ly by e-mail (mailed-in discs also accepted), and with photographs, if pos-sible. We also accept photographs alone, for cover shots, racing, cruisingand just funny entertaining shots. Please take them at a high resolution ifdigital, or scan at 300 dpi if photos, or mail them to us for scanning.Contact the editor with questions.
Subscriptions to SOUTHWINDS are available at $19.95/year, or $37/2years for third class, and $24/year for first class. Checks and credit card num-bers may be mailed with name and address to SOUTHWINDS Subscriptions,PO Box 1175, Holmes Beach FL, 34218-1175, or call (941) 795-8704.Subscriptions are also available with a credit card through a secure server onour Web site, www.southwindsmagazine.com. SOUTHWINDS is distributed toover 500 locations throughout 10 Southern states. If you would like to dis-tribute SOUTHWINDS at your location, please contact the editor.Read SOUTHWINDS on our Web site, www.southwindsmagazine.com.
8 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
10 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
INTRACOASTAL WATERWAY OR INTERCOASTAL WATERWAY?I can’t resist commenting on your dis-cussion of “intracoastal” versus “inter-coastal.” In my previous life as anEnglish teacher, I acquired, as you obvi-ously have, an interest in words andtheir meaning. I, too, also spent sometime doing a Google search on the cor-rect form for the ICW. I think you haveit a little wrong. As you explain, “inter-state” means between “states” and“intrastate” means within a “state.”By analogy, “intercoastal” would meanbetween “coasts,” and “intracoastal”would mean within a “coast.” In effect,the ICW can be seen as an alternativewaterway to the Atlantic coast, limitedin its definition to that one relationship.To be “intercoastal” the term wouldhave to reference two coasts. By mylights, then, the Okeechobee canalcould be described as an intrastate,intercoastal, waterway.
As I reread what I just wrote, I real-ize anew why people hate Englishteachers. Thanks for your patience.
Don de Fano
INTRACOASTAL WATERWAY ORINTERCOASTAL WATERWAY?Thanks for a great magazine. In theMay ’06 issue, your editorial states thereasons for naming the ICW theIntracoastal Waterway. I believe you“missed the boat” when you made the
analogy with the highway system.In my view, the term “intracoastal’’
implies inside, within the coasts. Myanalogy follows the college sports. Weplay intramural sports within theschool, but we participate in intercolle-giate events between schools.
The Intracoastal Waterway is awaterway inside the coast so boat traf-fic does not have to go out to openocean to navigate up and down thecoast. Since the Okeechobee canal con-nects the Atlantic Coast and Gulf Coastwaterways, perhaps it should benamed the Intercoastal Waterway.
Luis DelgadoTitusville, FL
Don and Luis,I, too, saw the imperfection of my thinking,but it really does get semantical, which iswhy I ended it all with: “Because that is itsofficial name.” But you are both right. Ionly have a problem with the word coast(al)as it is not like a state where you can beinside it. A coast is a line, almost one-dimensional, although you can be “on” acoast. If it is between coasts, then is the
Pacific coast the other one? I hope not, asthis is stretching it. Intracoastal seems tosignify one coast, and intercoastal seems toimply more than one coast. The AtlanticIntracoastal Waterway implies one coast.Your suggestion, Luis, that the Okeechobeecanal should be called an intercoastalwaterway makes sense to me, since it runsbetween two coasts.
I think maybe someone wasn’t surewhat they were thinking when they namedit, or perhaps the semantics have evolved.
I think this is only the beginning ofthis discussion.
Editor
MORE “SAFE” ANCHORAGESNEEDED DURING HURRICANESI read with interest the insightful arti-cle, “Winds Of Change - ProposedLegislation May Protect FloridaMarinas and Boat Owners DuringHurricanes,” about marinas by LisaKnapp in the February issue ofSouthwinds. Like many such situations,there are many sides to the story. As aboater, I have seen public and privatemarinas pull all of the excess cash outof their operations with little meaning-ful reinvestment. Pilings are left to rot,moorings are not properly tended to,dockside bumpers not replaced, just toname a few things.
I have also witnessed the contin-
LETTERS
See LETTERS continued on page 13
“Freedom of the press is limited to those who own one.” H.L. Mencken
In its continuing endeavor to share its press, SOUTHWINDS invites readers to write in with experiences & opinions.
PRINTING OUR LETTERSWe have been swamped with letters in
recent months and don’t have the space toprint them all, and sometimes we print
some more recent letters first to maintaina variety of topics. If you have sent a letter
recently, please hold on. If we find itacceptable, we will get to it.
12 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
ued closure of small marinas, which were hurricane“safe” areas such as the Miami River, where condo develop-ment has dramatically eroded the number of holes onecould use to put one’s boat. Equally, many wealthy home-owners are becoming more proactive in petitioning localgovernments, unilaterally closing off leads to limit the abili-ty of boaters to anchor their boats in safe areas as these boats“spoil” the view from their multimillion-dollar homes. Formuch of this past season’s storms, I was able to get my boatover to the Coral Gables Waterway, and with the erosion ofalternative areas, it is getting increasingly difficult to find aproper place for my boat when the time comes to move it. Ifyou don’t get a spot within a day of the “cone of probability”being broadcast, you may well be out of luck.
With respect to local governments, the new waterfrontdevelopment plan for the Miami/Coconut Grove area willonly serve to limit anchorages and drive up the cost of boat-ing so that only the rich can afford to enjoy the sport in any-thing larger than an eight-foot pram.
What is needed are abundant safe anchorages, marinasthat have made the proper investments in their docks andmoorings and, yes, I agree, more responsible boaters. Myfear is that Mr. Needleman’s solution will only serve toallow marinas to force people out into unsafe areas orcharge high fees for staying at a dock or mooring ratherthan looking at the overall picture and trying to achieve anomnibus solution.
Thanks for your article and to Lisa, keep up the goodreporting.
Roger S. KingFlorida
Roger,I am concerned about the boater/marina relationship. I blame themarinas in some respects and the boatowners in others. Kickingthem out is not an answer, as, you are right, there are fewer andfewer places to go. Besides, people don’t have time to move theirboats. They are home, protecting their homes and/or their families.
I believe, though, marinas should make it part of their agree-ment that sailors must secure and prepare their boats properly tominimize the damage that unprepped boats can cause. It is border-ing on criminal to leave a sailboat at a dock during a storm with aheadsail on, and a marina should be allowed to some way demandthat sailors remove all canvas, particularly headsails, duringstorms. There is no one thing greater I can think of that requires theleast amount of work for the greatest amount of return in protect-ing your boat and your dock during a storm, yet during these lasttwo seasons, I have witnessed hundreds of boats whose owners lefttheir headsails up, apparently not caring about what could happen.We need to protect these marinas, as they are disappearing for otherreasons regularly, money being the main reason. And these ownerswho leave their headsails up and whose boats get damaged becauseof this negligenc cause the rates to go up for us all. I surely don’tknow of any insurance policy that gets lowered if you take yourheadsail off during a storm, as it is difficult to enforce or verify. Sothe rates go up across the board due to others’ negligence.
What we must do to keep all our rates from going through theroof is help ourselves and others to make it easier to protect ourboats during these storms. Every out-of-town boatowner shouldhave no canvas/sails up during the hurricane season. Dock linesshould be secured and doubled as a regular habit during this time.
See LETTERS continued on page 14
LETTERS
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 13
LETTERS
14 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
We must establish habits and procedures that are already in placeor those that are easily put in place for one simple reason: Thesestorms are too fast to prepare boats at the last minute.
Editor
CHARLESTON RACE WEEK COVERAGE INCOMPLETEI just picked up the May issue and read Steve Steven’s articleabout Charleston Race Week and was disappointed to findthat, except for a blurb about Defiance, a B32 out of Californiawith Dave Ullman aboard, the article paid recognition toevery division which competed except PHRF B—the mostcompetitive PHRF class of racers at the regatta, and the classthat the PHRF boat of the week was chosen from. Otherwise,there was not one other word about this division.
You might find it newsworthy that the first- and sec-ond-place winners were Florida boats (Primal Scream andShameless). They triumphed over some tough PHRF sailorsin a class which included KWRW (Key West Race Week)winner Temptress and Miami Race Week winner Defiance.
Regards,Wm. Roy Harden, skipper
Shameless – J/33Roy,My apologies that we could not cover that part of the race week. Inotified Steve about your comments, and he gave me a list of otherparts of the regatta he did not write about and just said he had todraw the line somewhere and not cover everything. Maybe, in thefuture, we will give more room to Southern boaters like yourself.All in all, I consider he did a great job of covering the regatta inthe 1200-word limit I gave him. Hopefully, we can do better in thefuture, but much is dependent on advertising each month, as thatsets the size of the magazine.
I wish we could, but we just don’t have space to cover every-thing.
Sounds like you did well in the division on Shameless.Congratulations.
Editor
ARE THE FEW GIVING SAILORS A BAD NAME?Having been on both sides of this issue, I couldn’t help butoffer a few comments from a different perspective. My wifeand I lived aboard on both sail and power for three yearswhile cruising around looking for a place to call home. Wenoticed that the majority of anchored boaters were of a typeyou would like to get to know but, like everything else inlife, there are a few who delight in thumbing their collectivenoses at those who own the land adjacent to their chosenanchorage. You know the type: They are the proud ownersof a Gypsy bumboat, which features 10 to 12 “Gerry cans”of varying colors and utility, laundry (?) hanging from everyhorizontal surface at least three times a week, parties untilall hours of the night with a decibel level higher than thecumulative IQ of the owners. On those days when the own-ers work “to add to the cruising kitty,” they leave the dog,parrot and three small children to amaze and amuse them-selves, making whatever noise they can.
Are we all guilty of this kind of behavior? No, but theseare the folks who ruin it for everyone else. These are also thefolks who write the letters claiming the right to anchorwherever and whenever they choose and are not at all shyabout pumping overboard for a couple of months because aholding tank is too expensive to install in the “Leaky Tiki.”
Now put yourself on the other sideof the equation. You have found yournirvana and plunked down severalhundred thousand dollars for a landbase, and Jungle Jim decides to park his1961 30-foot whatever in front of yourhouse for the winter season. Want tobet which side of the argument you aregoing to be on then?
While my bride of 45 years and Istill spend several weeks at anchorevery year, we try to make sure we are
good neighbors and try not to infringeon the rights of the property owners.They do have them, you know.
Don NolenM/V Brigadoon
Punta Gorda, FLDon,I understand what you are saying about thefew making a bad image for all the others. Iknow those types of boaters, but—believeme—they are not the ones who write lettersabout anchoring rights, because they prob-
ably don’t know how to write. I just aboutnever get letters from people who are justliving on their boats and going nowhere.Those letters are generally from people whocruise around a lot, and from my days liv-ing at the docks, most of them, if not all,were people that worked for a living andsaved their money to be able to go some-where and cruise around and then comeback, work some more and do it again.Don’t mix them up with people that neverleave the dock and are barely squeaking byand not being good neighbors.
But I will defend the rights of thosepeople to live. We all make the world goaround, and I can’t totally condemn eventhe lowest liveaboard bums. Might not likethem, but they are there and have somerights. Unfortunately, human nature hasprejudice so segments of society see thesepeople and judge the rest of the sailors asthe same. But I don’t want to have to tiptoearound this prejudiced group and makesure everyone acts perfectly. I fault thosewho carry the prejudice, too. We sailorsdon’t have to be a perfect group. We’reimperfect humans and those who judge usby the actions of the bums aren’t exactlyacting nobly. We gotta defend ourselves.
One of the biggest pollution problemswe have in Florida is runoff from lawn andgarden chemical fertilizers from waterfronthomeowners into our waters—along thecoast, in the canals and the inland waters.When these people complain about a boatanchoring out nearby and they are suspi-cious that the boat is dumping in theirbackyard waters that they pollute regularlywith chemicals, who do they think they are?Thankfully, we aren’t all like them.
I know we must watch our image, butwhat about these other people who are prej-udiced against us as a group? Is it justbecause they have money and power thatwe feel intimidated? They have no morerights than others. This country is more likea cooperative, where no matter how manyshares you own, you still only get one vote.It is not like a corporation, where the moreshares you own, the more votes you get,although it’s the latter which seems to runthis country. The four people living in themillion-dollar home on the waterfront havefour votes, and the four people in thegrungy, barely floating, old wood boat withragged sails have four votes. And which ofthese two groups is really polluting more?
We can understand how theselandowners feel, but we don’t have to kisstheir…feet.
Editor
See LETTERS continued on page 16
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 15
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LETTERS
ARE BOATERS A SAFE TARGET?In reading the illegal ordinance passed by the City ofMiami Beach, they cite boaters as having a: “…deleteriouseffect upon the health, safety and welfare of the residents ofthe City in that they potentially serve as a source for pollu-tion and contamination through discharge of human wasteas well as garbage, refuse, debris, oil and other obnoxiousproducts; constitute aesthetic pollution, being unsightlyand interfering with views and enjoyment by the public ofthe beautiful vistas of Biscayne Bay.” I would like toaddress each issue.
“Being unsightly and interfering with views and enjoy-ment by the public of the beautiful vistas of Biscayne Bay.”
High-rise condos line the beach; that interferes withviews of everybody. Miami is nothing more than a pile ofconcrete and steel. Retired people from other parts of thecountry purchase condos. They set up house and look outthe window to see a boat that may cost more than theircondo, and say, “Look, John, a boat is in our water, block-ing the view.”
“They potentially serve as a source for pollution andcontamination through discharge of human waste as wellas garbage, refuse, debris, oil and other obnoxious prod-ucts; constitute aesthetic pollution…”
It’s a fact that landowners fertilize lawns and gardensalong the waterfront. These products contain heavy metalsand other pollutants. Unlike sewage, they NEVER go away.Also pest control pollutes and for the same reasons. Onegood rain and it runs off into the waters of South Florida.
I have personally run the ICW and the canals of SouthFlorida where there are no anchored boats, and thegarbage, refuse, debris, and oil are everywhere. The peo-ple along the ICW are pigs.
All the arguments are unfounded and are nothingmore than words. As for the safety of the landowners: Well,when was the last time a cruising family did a home inva-sion? I bet never. It’s also been said that boats anchor 20feet off the shore. This is unreal because a cruising boatowner would never put his boat in that type of danger. It’sjust too close to shore, even if the water was deep enough.
I know what I just said means nothing, and I’m sure ithas all been written before and nothing will change. Theselittle town officials think votes, not people. As for thepolice: Well, it’s easier to climb all over two old retiredsailors than to go after the real bad guys. After all, the badguys fight back and have guns. Oh, yes—and thatanchored boat is a safe target.
Charles O’Connor
Charles,Amen.
Editor
Please mail your LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 17
NORTHERN GULF COASTPensacola, FL 72º lo – 89º hiGulfport, MS 72º lo – 89º hiWater Temperature – 84º
WEST FLORIDA St. Petersburg 74º lo – 89º hiNaples 72º lo – 90º hiWater Temperature St. Petersburg – 84ºNaples – 85º
FLORIDA KEYS Key West 79º lo – 88º hiWater Temperature Key West – 85º Gulfstream Current – 1.5 knots
SOUTHEAST FLORIDAMiami Beach –
77º lo – 86º hiStuart – 73º lo – 88ºhiWater TemperatureMiami Beach – 85ºStuart – 79ºGulfstream Current –
2.7 knots
EAST FLORIDADaytona Beach – 71º lo – 89º hiJacksonville Beach – 72º lo – 87º hiWater TemperatureDaytona Beach – 80ºJacksonville Beach – 81ºGulfstream Current – 3.5 knots
CAROLINAS AND GEORGIACape Hatteras, NC 69º lo – 81º hiSavannah, GA 68º lo – 90º hiWater Temperature Cape Hatteras, NC – 73ºSavannah Beach, GA – 80º
Southeastern U.S. Air & Water Temperaturesand Gulf Stream Currents – June 2006Weather Web Sites:Carolinas & Georgia www.ndbc.noaa.gov/Maps/Southeast.shtmlFlorida East Coast www.ndbc.noaa.gov/Maps/Florida.shtmlFlorida West Coast & Keys http://comps.marine.usf.eduNorthern Gulf Coast www.csc.noaa.gov/coos/
WIND ROSES: Each wind rose shows the strength and direc-tion of the prevailing winds in the area and month. Thesehave been recorded over a long period of time. In general,the lengths of the arrows indicate how often the winds camefrom that direction. The longer the arrow, the more often thewinds came from that direction. When the arrow is too longto be printed in a practical manner, a number is indicated.
The number in the center of the circle shows the percentageof the time that the winds were calm. The lengths of thearrows plus the calms number in the center add up to 100percent. The number of feathers on the arrow indicates thestrength of the wind on the Beaufort scale (one feather isForce 1, etc.). Wind Roses are taken from Pilot Charts.
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SHORT TACKSEvents and News ofInterest to Southern Sailors
To have your news or eventin this section, contact [email protected] us information by the 5th of the month, possiblylater. Contact us if later.
Racing EventsFor racing schedules, news and events see the racing section.
UPCOMING SOUTHERN EVENTS
EDUCATIONAL/TRAINING/SUMMER CAMPS
Ongoing – Boating Skills and Seamanship Programs. St.Petersburg, FL, Tuesday nights, 7:30-9:30 p.m., 1300 BeachDr. SE, St. Petersburg. U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, Flotilla72. Satisfies the Florida boater safety education require-ments. Eleven lessons, every Tuesday. Lessons include:which boat for you, equipment, trailering, lines and knots,boat handling, signs, weather, rules, introduction to naviga-tion, inland boating and radio. (727) 823-3753
Boating Safety Courses,St. Petersburg, FL: StPetersburg Sail and PowerSquadron. Six-week PublicBoating Course begins
every Monday. Includes safety information plus basic pilot-ing; charts, course plotting, latitude/longitude and deadreckoning. Call (727) 867-3088. www.boating-stpete.org.Satisfies Florida’s under age 21 boater requirements.
U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 14-4, Jacksonville, FL.One-day Americas Boating Course. Saturdays: June 17,July 22, August 12, Sept 16. Captains Club, 13363 BeachBlvd., Jacksonville FL. Meets Florida state boaters cardrequirements. Contact John Davis at (904) 821-9692.
Clearwater Coast Guard Auxiliary (Flotilla 11-1) PublicBoating Programs:GPS and Chart Reading: June 12 and 15. Americas BoatingCourse (2 lessons): July 15-16. Clearwater Sailing Center, 1001Gulf Blvd., Sand Key (Clearwater). Open to adults and youths.
For more information on upcoming education pro-grams or to request a free vessel safety check, call (727) 469-8895 or visit http://a0701101.uscgaux.info/.
20 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
Ruskin , FL, Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 75 OffersHome Study Safe Boating CourseThe Ruskin flotilla each month offers a Boating Safetycourse in Ruskin, but has found that many boaters do nothave the time to attend the courses, so they are now alsooffering a home study course at $30. Additional familymembers will be charged $10 each for testing and certifi-cates. Tests will be held bi-monthly. Entry into the coursewill also allow participants to attend the classes. To apply,call (813) 677-2354.
North Carolina Maritime Museum, Beaufort, NC,www.ncmm-friends.org, [email protected], (252) 728-7317. On-going adults sailing programs. FamilySailing. 2-6 people; 2-6 hours. Traditional skiffs or30” keelboat. $50-$240. Reservations/informa-tion: call The Friends’ office (252) 728-1638
Standards Accreditation, scheduled training,courses and seminars. June 21-23. Charleston, SC.American Boat & Yacht Council. (410) 956-2737.www.abycinc.org.
Train the Trainer scheduled training, courses andseminars. June 26-29. Charleston, SC. AmericanBoat & Yacht Council. (410) 956-2737.www.abycinc.org.
Marine Systems Certification, Tampa, FL. July 11-14. American Boat & Yacht Council. (410) 956-1050.www.abycinc.org.
Project Marine Discovery Sea Camp, Ocean Springs,MS. June 5-July 28Five-day sessions for ages 5-14. Field trips include trips to
Ship and Deer Islands depending on students’ ages. 8-11a.m. or 1-4 p.m. ages 5-6, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. ages 6-14. J L ScottMarine Education Center and Aquarium, 703 E Beach Dr,Ocean Springs, MS. Call or e-mail [email protected]. (228) 818-8890
Orange Beach Sail Camp for Kids, Orange Beach, FLOrange Beach Waterfront Park. $75 for Orange Beach resi-dents, $100 for non-residents. Ages 8-14. Morning sessionfor beginning sailors at 9:00 a.m.-12:00 a.m. Afternoon ses-sion for intermediate and advanced sailors at 1:30 – 4:30p.m. Monday-Friday. Applications are available at OrangeBeach City Hall, Orange Beach Recreation Center or online.(251) 981-6039. www.obparksandrec.com. Sail Camp Weeks(only those still available are listed): July 17-21; July 24-28;July 31-August 4.
Participation fee includes hands-on sailing instruction,classroom instruction, knot tying, daily snack and drink, acamp T-shirt, an award certificate and sailing manual.
Sea-N-Sail Adventure Camp, June 5-July 28. Sevenone-week sessions offered to children ages 6-13.Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum, 115 1st St,Biloxi, MS. (228) 435-6320.
Seven one-week sessions offered to children ages6-13. Curriculum includes sailing aboard thefamous Biloxi Schooners, cast netting, fishing,swimming, model boat forms, building, story-telling by American Indian Greyhawk, basketweaving, constructing a maritime mosaic artpiece and field trips to the Barrier Islands,Fun Factory and a shrimping tour on theSailfish. All counselors are CPR and first
aid certified. For more information, go towww.maritimemuseum.org.
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 21
OTHER EVENTS
Fiesta Days Celebration and Boat Parade,June 2-11, Pensacola, FLThe 57th Annual Fiesta of Five Flags celebration starts witha light-hearted reenactment of the surrender of the city to
Spanish explorer Don Tristan DeLuna, who first landed inPensacola in 1559. Immediately following is an evening ofoutdoor musical entertainment. Free. www.fiestaoffive-flags.org or (850) 433-6512.
Great Biloxi Schooner Races, Biloxi, MS, June 10Held in conjunction with the Blessing ofthe Fleet, Biloxi Schooners the Glenn L.Swetman will race the Mike Sekul. 11:00am. Race begins at the new schooner pieron front beach west of the former GrandBiloxi. (228) 435-6320
18th Annual Ocean WatchFoundation Reef Sweep andBeach Cleanup, SoutheastFlorida, June 10 The Annual Reef Sweep and BeachCleanup sponsored by the Ocean Watchfoundation will be held on Saturday,June 10 at various beaches and pierslocated between Deerfield Beach andHollywood, FL. Charter dive boats areavailable for reef dives that morning.Over 6200 volunteers participate.
The cleanup is followed by a party at5 p.m., location to be announced, to cele-brate. (954) 467-1366. www.oceanwatch.org.
Sixth Annual Summer Sailstice,Planet Earth, June 17-18The Sixth Annual Summer Sailstice, asailing celebration of the SummerSolstice, will be held June 17-18. There isno specific location of the SummerSailstice except that it occurs on the planetEarth, in this solar system, where sailorscan spend the day—or two days—sailingas a tribute to the solstice, which—astro-nomically—occurs on June 21.
The Summer Sailstice sailing holidayallows all sailors to sail locally and cele-brate globally with other members oftheir club, class, fleet or family whileconnecting with thousands of sailorsworldwide. This year’s Summer Sailsticecelebration takes place on June 17-18 onthe weekend closest to the summer sol-stice with more daylight than any otherweekend of the year.
In 2005, sailors from 48 states and 12countries in the Northern Hemisphereparticipated in this growing celebrationof sailing, with all but North Dakota andWest Virginia represented. In addition to
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News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 23
creating a global connection between sailors on the longestsailing days of the year, an added bonus for signing up as aparticipant in Summer Sailstice is the chance to win prizessupplied from many of the world’s top sailing businesses.This year’s prizes include a one-week charter in the BVIfrom the Moorings, a new Hunter Xcite sailboat, several$200 gift certificates from West Marine, a one-week FastTrack to Cruising course from Offshore Sailing, a Hobie kayakand over 200 other prizes from Summer Sailstice sponsors.Sign-up for all participants is free on the Summer SailsticeWeb site, www.SummerSailstice.com, where sailors can alsopost their sailing plans, create and host a Summer Sailsticeparty or event and find crew for their boats.
Summer Sailstice was founded in 2001. It is a globalholiday celebrating sailing annually on the summer solstice.The goal of Summer Sailstice is to encourage all sailors andsailing organizations in the Northern Hemisphere to partic-ipate by sailing and celebrating wherever they are on thelongest sailing day of the year.
Island Sun Splash. June 12-16, Key Largo. Presented by the Upper Keys Association of Dive andSnorkel Operators. This adventure for the whole familyincludes scuba classes, snorkeling and dives on the ship-wreck trail. (305) 852-1655.
Pepsi Americas’ Sail 2006: Tall Ships Come to North Carolina, June 30-July 5At the end of June, Pepsi America’s Sail 2006, a maritimefestival featuring some of the world’s most majestic tallships, will be held in Beaufort and Morehead City, N.C. TheMeka II, a 54-foot tall ship—a half-scale replica of a 17th cen-tury pirate brigantine captained by Sinbad—is one of seventall ships that have already committed to participate.Formal invitations have been extended to dozens of shipsaround the world, and event organizers have receivedstrong interest from many ships. The event expects to attract15-20 tall ships. www.pepsiamericassail.com
22nd Annual Underwater Music FestivalJuly 8, Looe Key, Big Pine Key. Divers, snorkelers and swim-mers enjoy a fun and quirky form of underwater entertain-ment. (305) 872-2411.
Hemingway Days Festival. July 18-23,Key WestThe island of Key West celebrates the legendary author’swork and life with literary readings, theater, short storycontest, exhibits and more. (305) 296-2388.
Wild Horses in the Islands: Regatta Time in Abaco, July 3-11The skippers and crews who participate in the annualRegatta Time in Abaco see an exciting series of races.However, the event is much more than your usual runaround the buoys, and sailors return every year for the irre-sistible Bahamian culture. While the regatta is a highlight,rest days in between each race allow crews to immersethemselves in Abaco’s exotic and laid-back tropicalambiance. Family-friendly parties punctuate each day, andthe fun starts with Bobb Henderson’s immense“Cheeseburger in Paradise” picnic on a sparkling white-sand beach.
The local charm will sweep you into a different timezone. Tiny mom and pop shops greet sailors who visit GreatAbaco Island and its many out-island cays. If your timing’s
24 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
right, you might bump intothe “bread lady” on Man-O-War Cay before she sells outof fresh baked cinnamon rolls.Here, a traffic jam consists oftwo golf carts meeting on anarrow side street. Enjoy thegrand ocean view with afrosty Kalik beer at Nipper’son Great Guana Cay or checkout Cracker P’s on the littleisland of Lubber’s Quarters.The peppers for Cracker P’shomemade hot sauce aregrown right outside. Withinthe restaurant is a wall offame and souvenir shop for the famous Bahamian sloop,Abaco Rage, and they seem to be running out of room forRage’s many trophies and awards. You can trade yourpaperback books in the Jib Room at Marsh Harbour, tryconch salad at a local festival, see the BahamianIndependence Day fireworks on July 10 and discover theparrots and wild horses on Great Abaco. There’s so much tosee and do.
During the races, sailboats canter along a bit like wild hors-es in the area’s prevailing 10-knot easterly breeze, and lastyear saw some firm winds near the regatta’s end. Racingdivisions include PHRF w/spinnakers, the cruising boat“Mother Tub” with no spinnakers and a division for multi-hulls. Five or more like vessels entering the race will createtheir own class. Last year’s top regatta winners includeStuart Hebb’s Aerodyne 38, Thin Ice, and Tom Bell’s C&C 38,Whisper. Many sailors return year after year with their fami-lies, like Jim Miller and Sea Turtle, to enjoy a cruising vacationas well as the sociable regatta. You don’t have to enter all fiveraces, and many cruisers come just to follow the action, crewon another vessel and be part of the festivities and social set-ting. The regatta’s quality competition attracts serious racers,and the action is close. Boats in each division are divided upaccording to their ratings, and the scoring system allowsentrants a fair shot at stardom in every race.
To be a part of the adventure, visit www.rtia.net, or inthe United States contact race committee Jon and Carol
Ewing at (305) 665-8316 [email protected].
An invaluable resource isSteve Dodge’s The CruisingGuide to Abaco, which offers awealth of local info. Onceyou’re in Abaco, the daily localcruisers’ net is broadcast onVHF 68 at 8:15 a.m. andincludes Bob Toler’s excellentweather reports. Known asBarometer Bob, you can viewhis Web site at www.barome-terbob.com.
NEWS
FCC Drags Anchor on No-Code Ham LicensesBy Gary Jensen
The latest word from the American Amateur Radio League(ARRL) is that the FCC is moving forward at glacial speedtoward eliminating Element 1, the five-word-per-minuteMorse code requirement for the General Class amateur radiolicense. In July of last year, the FCC got the cruising commu-nity excited by issuing a Notice of Proposed Rule Making(NPRM) soliciting comments from the general public to WTDocket 05-235, the official written proposal to eliminate theMorse code requirement from General Class and lower ama-teur radio licenses. According to the ARRL, more than 3800comments have been received to date, and even though thecutoff date for public comment was back on October 31, 2005,comments continue to come in. The public is obviously inter-ested in this issue, but still the FCC has not acted.
What’s the holdup? Old business—really old busi-ness—that’s what. The ARRL reports that the FCC wants toact on the Phone Band Expansion/Omnibus NPRM beforeacting on the Morse code issue. What’s that you ask? It’s atwo-year-old proposal that combines 19 petitions for rule-making, one of which dates back to 2001. Released to the
The Cheeseburgers in Paradise party that is the kick-off event forRegatta Time in Abaco. Photo by Capt. Bill Robinson.
public in April 2004 andclosed for public comment onJune 30, 2004, the FCC has yetto settle this proposal.
When will the Morsecode requirement be dropped?Unless you’re into turningblue, don’t hold your breathwaiting. Dropping the Morsecode requirement is a realproposal with an officialnumber, and it really willhappen. The FCC bureaucra-cy moves painfully slowly,but it does move, and eventu-ally it will get around to acting on WT Docket 05-235. When itdoes, the Morse code requirement will be gone, just like yester-day’s bilge water. When this will happen is anybody’s guess,but with a little luck, it will be later this year. Stay tuned…
Gary Jensen owns DockSide Radio (www.docksideradio.com), spe-cializing in SSB-based e-mail (Sailmail, WinLink), and Pactor-IIImodem sales and support. Gary and his wife Peggy sailed andcruised on their Hans Christian 38 for 10 years. They now live inPunta Gorda,FL, and can be reached at ( 941) 661-4498,[email protected], and by SSB on the Cruiseheimers Net.
New IslandCreated byHurricane Wilmain the KeysBy Rebecca Burg
Capt. Bill Robinson enjoys a beerat the enjoy-a-brewski sign onBruce Key, the new island createdby Hurricane Wilma in the Keys. Photo by Rebecca Burg.
“Hey mister,” the slim little boy held up something thatresembled a bumpy, sand-coated dinner roll. “What isthis?”
“A sea urchin skeleton,” Bill responded.“Cool!” The boy said, scurrying down the beach with
his new treasure. Bill and I returned our attentions to thehomemade wooden sign post. Bruce Key, it read. Justunderneath that, another sign mirthfully joked, Enjoy YourBrewski. Just six months ago, this thin, L-shaped island didnot exist. In late October 2005, Hurricane Wilma’s chaoticpassage so casually carved the new key into being. Now,on a hot and sunny spring weekend, the glittering white-sand getaway was full of activity. Families brought picniclunches while children splashed in the island’s shallowbay, and the men clustered together in groups, drinkingcold beer. Pelicans bobbed in the lazy ocean swell, andschools of silvery fish spiraled away from the giggling,swimming youngsters. The surrounding water’s electricturquoise shades reminded me of the Caribbean.
Located on the north side of the well-known anchor-age of Boca Grande Key (on the west side of the LakesPassage beyond Key West), the new island was discov-ered by locals after Hurricane Wilma’s eye wall hadaltered the landscape. Bruce Key used to be nothing but asubmerged and grassy flat. Now, local boaters and visit-ing cruisers have one more unique place to explore alongthe Florida Keys.
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 25
SOUTHWINDS “Our Waterways” Section
SOUTHWINDS has created this section to inform our readers about changes in our waterways. We believe thatSoutherners are in the midst of a great change occurring on our waterways—through the conversion of many boatingproperties to condominiums, restrictions on anchorages once thought to be more open and now being more restrictedand regulated, and other economic forces at work. This section will also concern itself with the environmental health ofthe waters we boat and swim in.
The waterways belong to all of us, and all of us have a right to use them. The waterways are not just for those whocan afford to live on the water, and it is up to us boaters and lovers of these waters to protect that right. We hope thatby helping to inform you of these changes, we will contribute to doing just that.
We are looking for news and information on changes, land sales, anchorages, boaters’ rights, new marinas, anchor-ing rights, disappearing marinas, boatyards and boat ramps, environmental concerns and other related news.Independent writers wanted on these subjects. Contact Steve Morrell, [email protected], or call(877) 372-7245.
OUR WATERWAYS
26 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
Company out of Jupiter, FL, bought the marina from Boca,shut down the boatyard, but allowed the liveaboards tostay. Loggerhead now owns nine marinas from Vero Beachto Miami. And the Loggerhead policy is to not allow live-aboards, even though this was overlooked for more than ayear at Maule Lake.
Things seemed to be going relatively smoothly for theLoggerhead tenants. Some members of the North MiamiBeach City Council circulated a petition against an ordi-nance that would rezone the area to allow for the construc-tion, and for a while it looked as if the construction ofMarina Grande, owned by Boca Developers, would be halt-ed. The real estate bubble in South Florida was rumored tobe slowing down. The sales office that Boca had set up in asingle-wide trailer on the marina’s premises was deserted,and new boats were showing up on a regular basis. Thefacilities were a little run-down, with only one out of thethree washing machines working, regularly clogged drainsin the showers and a lock on the women’s bathroom thatdidn’t work, but most of the tenants were willing to put upwith a few inconveniences for such a good deal on dockage.
What this means is that the already scarce market fordockage in South Florida just got even scarcer, with 85 boatsscrambling to get a slip at any marina that can take them byApril 8. Anchoring out is just too uncertain for most people,especially those that are based in South Florida and havejobs ashore.
The marina allowed new boats to sign yearly leases rightup to the last minute. Martha and Preston Shields, aboard thesportfishing boat Wild Blue, came all the way down fromVirginia to live at the marina. They first visited the marina inJanuary and signed their lease at the end of February. On March 8, the marina issued lease terminationletters to everyone. They came down so Preston could workfor Freedom Boats, a boat rental club based out ofLoggerhead. “I feel like we were just getting to know every-one here,” Martha said. “This marina had such a good feelingto it, and we were really looking forward to staying here.”
Teresa Ellenburg, who has lived at the marina on andoff for five years, said, “I’m just trying not to think about it.If I do, I’ll cry.” She and her boyfriend, Rick Kellogg, wholive aboard the 39-foot trawler Pirate Life, are moving to Key
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“If you have not removed your vessel, vehicle and person-al property by April 8, 2006, we have the right to cause yourvessel to be moved and to be moored, berthed or stored inyour name and you shall be responsible for all fees, costsand charges incurred in connection therewith. Under thosespecific terms the Company has chosen to terminate yourLease and Service Agreement ‘for no stated reason’ as noted...in your lease.”
This is part of a letter that was mailed to approximate-ly 85 boats at the North Miami Beach Loggerhead Club &Marina on March 8. By Saturday, March 11, people werewalking around the marina in a daze. The marina has beenscheduled to be torn down and rebuilt into a luxury resortthat will coexist with Marina Grande, a condominiumdevelopment, although nobody knew up to this pointwhen, exactly, the tearing-down would start.
For years, the marina was simply called Maule LakeMarina. It was one of the few marinas in South Florida thatallowed liveaboards, provided great hurricane protection,and had reasonable rates. In the summer of 2004, BocaDevelopers, a development firm out of Deerfield Beach, FL,purchased the property, including the 100-slip marina, aworking boatyard, and Tuna’s, a busy waterfront restau-rant. Loggerhead, owned by Seven Kings Holding
Loggerhead Club & Marina: Another One GoneBy Melanie Neale
Largo. Rick works in Kendall, so his commute will be aboutthe same.
Some are taking the closing of the marina as a kick intocruising gear. Mike and Brenda Buckley, who live aboard anIsland Packet named Scarlett, have been at the marina forover a year. They recently spent five months away from theboat to aid in hurricane cleanup outside of New Orleansand in central Florida. They had just gotten back home andstarted cleaning and painting and varnishing when theyreceived their notice. “Well, I didn’t buy a boat so that Icould stay in one place,” Mike said. “I’m going cruising.”They plan to head to the Bahamas in a few weeks.
Melanie S. Neale is a freelance writer and lives aboard her sail-boat, a 1969 Columbia 28 named Short Story, in Dania, FL. Shelived at Maule Lake Marina for four years. She is a USCGMaster’s Licensed Captain and also works at Bluewater Books &Charts in Fort Lauderdale.
Boater Survey Under Way in Brevard County, FLBy Roy Laughlin
The Brevard County Parks and Recreation Department andDepartment of Natural Resources have contracted with the
28 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
Sea Grant program at the University of Florida to conduct ausers’ survey in the Indian River Lagoon. The goal is toobtain information from boaters and anglers about howoften they use the lagoon, where they go, and in general,how they enjoyed (or didn’t enjoy) the experience.
Adequate sampling is crucial to obtain useful surveyresults. Sampling will occur through questionnaires mailedto three groups of users:
1. Boat owners with their craft in marinas. Survey staffershave been busy in March collecting boat registrationnumbers in marinas.
2. Waterfront property owners. County agencies will pro-vide this information to the survey and will then mailquestionnaires to owners
3. Boat ramp users. Survey staffers have already beguncollecting vehicle license tags at selected boat ramps.Public records will give them contact information formailing questionnaires. If you encounter someone writing down either boat or
car license numbers, it is probably not a nefarious scheme. The sampling program will continue throughout a 12-
month period, until spring 2007. While there are many exam-ples of filed and forgotten citizen surveys, this effort isunlikely to be one of them. County agency officials are solid-ly behind this effort and are closely monitoring its progressand preliminary results. Sailors who respond to this survey
Loggerhead Marina, formerly known as the Maule Lake Marina, will be torn down and a luxury resort built in its place. Photo by Melanie Neale
OUR WATERWAYS
will likely have few other opportunities of similar signifi-cance to affect local policies on waterway access and use.
Web pages describing the program and a sample sur-vey form is now available at:http://brevard.ifas.ufl.edu/marine. Follow the “Boatingand Waterways” link, then go to the “BoatingCharacterization Study.” The “Boating and Waterways”page is also a source of information for other components ofBrevard County’s emerging marine management plan.
Overcoming Objections to OnboardWaste Treatment Systems By Charles Husick
In recent editions of SOUTHWINDS (March and April ’06) wediscussed the current state of affairs with regard to the safe,environmentally sound disposal of waste from navigatingvessels and the technology used in two of the flow-throughMSDs (Lectra/San and Groco Thermopure 2 onboard wastetreatment systems) that are particularly effective in protectingour waters. As we have pointed out, equipment is alreadyavailable—and in use in tens of thousands of vessels—thatprovides a safe, sanitary, environmentally protective solutionto the waste disposal challenge faced by all sailors.
Our discussion now moves on to a review of some ofthe concerns that have been voiced by persons who may notbe fully conversant with the technology already in use, orwho may have reasons to restrict the use of onboard treat-ment systems, regardless of their proven capability andworth. Our goal is to both respond to their concerns and toenlist their assistance in efforts to eliminate the restrictionsthat presently limit the use of technology in service to theaquatic environment.
Dee Von Quirolo, of Reef Relief in Key West, in express-ing the opposition of the Reef Relief organization in her tes-timony before the House Transportation and InfrastructureSubcommittee on May 1, 2002, presented specific objectionsto the content of H.R 3673, a bill that proposed to amend theFederal Water Pollution Control Act relating to marine san-itation devices. She stated, “I am here today to urge you toabandon this bill, which would allow the discharge ofnutrient-laden treated sewage into No Discharge Zones.The ocean is not a toilet, and No Discharge Zones are criti-cally needed to provide extra protection for congested har-bors and fragile marine environments, such as coral reefs,that are highly sensitive to nutrients that are not removed
from even the most advanced marine sanitation devices.”(Her complete remarks can be found at; http://www.house.gov/transportation/water/05-01002/quirolo.html.)
To their credit, Reef Relief did not claim that the MSDtechnology we proposed would fail to eliminate bacteriaand viruses. (Extensive laboratory tests have proven theability of the systems to deal effectively and reliably withthese issues.) However, in our opinion, the facts do not sup-port Von Quirolo’s testimony and her concerns that the dis-charge of nutrients from an MSD would harm corals.
Humans are not herbivores. Our diet does not lead tothe presence of significant amounts of nutrients in ourwaste.
The following is taken from “Science in the PublicInterest Technical Paper No. 2’’: “Of the 2.5 pounds of exc-reta that humans produce per day, 2 pounds is urine and1/2 pound is feces. Water makes up 75% of feces and 94%of urine. The rest is:
FECES URINE
Carbon - 40-50% Carbon - 11-17% Nitrogen - 5-7% Nitrogen - 15-19% Calcium - 4-5% Calcium - 4-6% Phosphorus - 3-5% Phosphorus - 2-5% Potassium - 2-5% Potassium - 3-5%”
The LectraSan onboard treatment system. Is treated waste for thesystem clean enough to dump in some areas that are now NoDischarge Zones? Photo by Charles Husick.
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 29
30 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
When you reduce the above numbers to grams perflush, you wind up with about 2 grams of nitrogen and 0.8gram of phosphorus. Nitrogen is the most critical of the twonutrients. Dr. Brian Lapointe, director of Harbor BranchOceanographic Institution in Fort Piece, FL, a recognizedauthority on the effect of nutrients on corals (and quoted inthe Reef Relief testimony), has established the nutrient levelthat can harm coral at 0.014 parts per million (ppm) fornitrogen and 0.007 ppm for organophosphates.
Flow-though treatment systems discharge about onegallon of thoroughly treated (<10 coliform / 100 ml) wasteper use. The effluent is immediately and massively dilutedinto the tidal water in which the boat is floating, reducingthe nutrient content of water that might reach the coral tolevels far below that established as possibly harmful. In fact,virtually all of the studies by Lapointe (whom Reef Reliefrelies on for much of the data they quote) cite groundwaterrunoff and inadequate sewage treatment as the overwhelm-ing sources of the nutrients affecting the Florida ReefNational Marine Sanctuary. (Note: The many-thousand-square mile Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary NoTreatment Zone was established on the sole basis of allegedharm from nutrients from navigating vessels, even thoughthere was no evidence provided to support the allegation.)
When dealing with environmental issues, good scienceand good sense require that each challenge to the environ-ment be evaluated on the basis of its relative contribution tothe total situation. An evaluation of the impact of nutrientdischarge from a flow-through MSD provides an interestingcomparison. It would require a total of 3200 boats to con-tribute the amount of nitrogen delivered to the sea from theuse of 10 bags of 10-10-10 fertilizer on a lawn or golf course.A total of 7500 boats would be required to equal the amountof phosphorus from the same amount of fertilizer. It seemsreasonable, therefore, to address the real source of whatev-er problem may exist on the reefs rather than the erroneousassumption that nutrients discharged from navigating ves-sels might cause a problem.
The fact is that navigating boats equipped with flow-through MSDs cannot pose a significant threat to the healthof our coral reefs. We hope very sincerely that Reef Reliefand other interested groups will work with us in the appli-cation of the best available technology for the benefit of thetidal waters and coral reefs of the Southeast, the Gulf ofMexico and all other U.S. tidal waters.
Ed McKiernan, president of Dometic Corporation’sMarine Systems Division, manufacturer of SeaLand toiletsand holding tanks, is a persistent and vocal critic of the useof flow-through MSDs. His most recent (untrue) claims anda point-by-point factual response can be found online at theRaritan Engineering Web site (www.raritaneng.com) byentering the search term “white paper” (no pun intended)in the search box and then selecting Raritan EngineeringNews, environmental news, opposing point of view. In myopinion McKiernan’s statements are intended to protect hiscommercial interest in selling the products his companyproduces, a worthy effort, provided all statements made inopposition to alternate products or systems are entirelytruthful.
The facts demonstrate that it is overwhelmingly betterto use technology to eliminate problems that might be caused
OUR WATERWAY
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 31
from generation of sewage on boats at the source. Ihope that you will become convinced that biologicallysound onboard waste treatment (regardless of the spe-cific technology used) is preferable to the present non-working situation of No Treatment Zones. If you are,our next step is to formulate a plan to change the statusquo, to not only allow the use of Coast Guard-approved advanced technology MSDs (those that candemonstrate their ability to satisfactorily eliminate bac-terial hazards) but to actively encourage the installationand widespread use of the equipment.
Those of us who know and value our watersneed to work together to educate everyone interestedin the health of our tidal waters. We need to tell themembers of yacht clubs, boating and sailing clubs,members of the Power Squadrons, the Coast GuardAuxiliary and most important, members of environmentalinterest groups the facts. We need to contact our representa-tives in Tallahassee and the governor and tell them what thefacts are, that the technology needed to protect our waters isreadily available, that just as we are not willing to live withthe auto exhaust emission standards of 1976, we are notwilling to be restricted to using only the waste treatmentmethods that were available in 1976.
To probe further into the facts, you may wish to reviewmore of the testimony given before the subcommittee on 4
Links for Our Waterways IssuesAtlantic Intracoastal Waterway issues.
www.atlintracoastal.orgBoatUS Foundation. Great source of information and links on miscellaneous issues.
www.boatus.orgFlorida Inland Navigation District, a taxing district for management and maintenance of the AICW in Florida.
www.aicw.orgGulf Intracoastal Waterway.
www.gicaonline.comMarine Industries Association of Florida with links to local associations.
www.boatflorida.orgMarine Industries Association of South Florida.
www.miasf.orgNational Waterways Conference promotes, educates andlobbies on behalf of all the nation’s inland waterways.
www.waterways.orgOcean Conservancy dedicated to the protection of oceans.
www.oceanconservancy.orgReef Relief. A non-profit group is dedicated to preservingthe reefs, based in Key West.
www.reefrelief.orgGulfbase.org. A research database for Gulf of Mexico Research.
www.gulfbase.org
June 2002 (www.boatus.com/gov). Useful links can befound under the heading Issue Briefings, especially MSDUpgrade Legislation. My statement before the committeecan be found at www.house.gov/transportation/water/05-01-02/husick.html
If you agree (or if you disagree) with our position thatthere is a better way to ensure that we have the cleanest pos-sible waters than the present regulatory regime of NoTreatment Zones allow, we need to hear from you and yourorganizations. These are our waters. The regulatory agen-cies are supposed to be working on our behalf and are,according to a recent presidential State of the Union addresssupposed to be using technology to solve problems. We willsucceed only when we win the support of all interested par-ties, sailors, members of environmental communities, localand state governments and eventually the federal govern-ment. The time to begin is past. Now we have to play catch-up. Let’s get with the program!
Pumpout, No Discharge Zones, and onboard treatment systems can allwork together. Photo by Steve Morrell.
32 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
You are most likely to get hit with just tropical storm-forcewinds. Let’s see why.
Most tropical storms are the weak ones. In 2005, 27tropical storms developed. Fifteen became hurricanes, andseven of these were Category 1s. Twelve never went beyondthe tropical storm level. It is easy to prepare your boat for atropical storm or a Category 1 hurricane. In 2005, thatwould mean that for 19 of the 27 storms, you can easily pre-pare for them.
But there is one greater factor many forget: The chancesof you (or your boat) getting hit by tropical storm winds isincreased greatly because you are also likely to get hit by theouter edges of a hurricane passing nearby. In all tropicalstorms, the winds get weaker as you get farther from theircenter. Category 1 hurricane winds are above 73 mph.Tropical storm winds are from 39 to 73 mph and will not befar from the center of the storm. In larger storms, thesewinds can be a long distance from the center and will covera large area. Tropical storm winds extended 230 miles fromthe center of Hurricane Katrina. That is a tremendous area.
For those of you who think these tropical storm-forcewinds will do no damage, look again There were thousandsof unprepared boats damaged from just the outer edges ofstorms, because (except in emergencies) the boat owner (1)didn’t care (2) didn’t think he was going to get hit by thebrunt of the storm (4) didn’t have a plan (5) didn’t know
Since the ’70s, hurricanes have been few and farbetween, and many people have become complacentabout them, thinking, “Why worry?” Then along came
2004, followed by the 2005 season. Thousands of boatsthroughout Florida and the northern Gulf coast states weredamaged, many destroyed.
Now, I wonder if the pendulum has swung the otherway—only because I talk to people who think if the stormis big enough there is nothing you can do to save your boat.That could be true, but it’s not. After the 2004 season, I start-ed investigating what boat owners can do to save theirboats. I put out inquiries for stories of success and failureand every chance I got, I asked people what they did anddid it work. I went out and observed boats at docks duringstorms and saw what worked and didn’t.
What I learned was that you can save your boat. Yes, ifthe storm is big enough, even all the preparations might notsave it. But in doing nothing, you can pretty much beassured that your boat will be damaged, or even destroyed.
To maximize the chances of your boat surviving astorm, it is really quite simple what you must do:
You must have a plan.You must carry it out.
The main purpose of this article is to get boat owners todo something, and I will help show the minimum you cando for the maximum gain. Because of space constraints, weare only going to talk about boats at docks, concentrating onfixed docks, since that is the majority of cases (althoughfloating dock preparation is very similar). We will havemore on other situations, like anchoring, in future issues.We will keep this article simple for a good reason: So youwill use it.
Won’t My Boat Get Destroyed in a Large Hurricane No Matter How I Prepare it?To a certain extent this is true, but we must learn how toprepare our boats to defend against the storms we are mostlikely to get hit with.
What are you most likely to get hit with? That’s easy.
HURRICANE SEASON 2006
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Why Prepare Your Boat for a Tropical Storm?By Steve Morrell
The owner of this boat did nothing to prepare it. This is a goodexample of what can happen to a headsail that is left up. This wasin barely tropical storm-force winds that were many miles awayfrom a stronger hurricane center. The damage on the starboardside where the boat rubbed against the dock was extreme, possi-bly totaling the boat. Neighbors at this marina added extra linesafter the storm arrived, minimizing a lot of the damage. Photo bySteve Morrell.
SOUTHWINDS Hurricane Web SiteVisit the hurricane page on our Web site for the best
weather links, boat preparation information and links, and past hurricane articles in SOUTHWINDS.
www.southwindsmagazine.com
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 33
what to do or (6) didn’thave time to do anything.
A Simple StormPreparation PlanCarried Out is FarBetter than a ComplexOne Not Carried OutCreate a simple plan. Ifpeople believe that thereis nothing they can dobecause a big storm willjust destroy their boatanyway, they will proba-bly do nothing. We havejust proven how you aremore likely to get hit bytropical storm winds thananything stronger. It iseasy and takes little timeto prepare for these con-ditions.
If you create too big of a plan that takes a lot of time,you might not ever carry it out, thinking you’ll never haveenough time. So work on a simple plan and on priorities. Ifyou know you won’t ever have the time, then maybe youshould keep the boat constantly ready all season, or maybefor just that part of the season you are most likely to get hit:Remove the sails and canvas, double your dock lines, addspring lines, add some chafe protection, add fenders. It’snow ready for a lot of storm conditions. If it’s going to beworse, then maybe you will have time to beef up the prepa-rations a little bit.
Practice the plan at the beginning of the season. Haveeverything ready to be installed quickly. Use a check list.
When the time comes, you might be more concernedabout you, your family and your house than preparing yourboat, so create a plan you know you will have time to carryout. You could save your boat and thousands of dollars.
Preparing for Tropical Storm Winds or a Category 1Hurricane is EasyThis might even be true for a Category 2, or even a Category3 storm, but there are so many other factors involved withthese stronger storms that it is hard to say. Storm surge is ahuge variable, and its intensity depends on the time the stormarrives. But in preparing for the smaller storms, it is easy.
Many people seem to forget that sailboats are designedto take some pretty rough sea conditions—both in wavesand wind. The problem is when foreign objects getinvolved, objects like pilings, docks, seawalls, land, under-water obstacles, other boats and then, of course, flyingobjects. You can’t do much about the last item, but you canabout the others.
Preparing a boat for astorm is common sense,but there are just a fewbasic principles: Reducewindage, beef up yourdock lines, use springlines to prepare for astorm surge, use chafeprotection and put outfenders. Keep the boat inits slip. That’s it. Simpleand easy. Actually, get-ting your boat ready isthe easy part. The hardpart is making sure youcarry out your plan.
Reduce WindageBoats have an advantageover houses because theycan move around anddeflect the wind, taking
some of the shock by absorbing some of the energy withmoving about. Although this movement has its advantages,we want to minimize it so the boat doesn’t meet a fixedobject, like a dock. So the first thing that must be done is toremove all the sails and canvas. No matter what, remove theroller furling headsail. If it becomes unraveled, it has lots ofwindage and leverage up high for really shaking a boataround. Get rid of it.
Make sure you secure the top roller furling mechanismthat comes down when lowering the roller-furled headsail.It needs to be secured with line and/or bungee cord tosomething fixed, like a stanchion. Secure the halyard tight-ly somewhere, too.
Next, remove the canvas; dodgers, biminis, etc. Removethe canvas frames (Carry a cordless drill. It turns a 20-minute job into a 5-minute job.. Practice once so you won’trun into any unforeseen frozen screws.
In lighter winds, some people will keep the mainsail onthe boom. They will then wrap a line real tightly around thesail cover—so tightly that a woven “cocoon” is created. Ifyou have in-the-mast roller furling, you might want toremove the mainsail, as it is still weight aloft, besides theadded windage from the clew that slightly sticks out.
A well-secured boat with a “spider web” of lines should hold this Catalina 30in place. Notice docklines running across the boat at the stern, to the oppo-site side, acting like spring lines. This mainsail and cover were wrapped in a“cocoon” of lines. Also notice fenders on each side of the boat, on the star-board side nearest the closest piling and several located on the dock side.Photo by Gary Gray.
Send Us Your Hurricane StoriesWe are always looking for stories on your experiences, to
learn those techniques that succeeded and those thatdidn’t, as we can learn from both. Ideas, tips and Web site
links wanted, too. [email protected].
34 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
Make sure any looseobjects on deck, likeanchors, are stowed,(same with gear below—secure as if at sea).
Beef Up the Dock LinesYou need to double up allyour dock lines, plus adda few more as you thinknecessary. If you reallyneed a fast plan, have thelines doubled all the timeduring the storm season.If your slip has stand-alone pilings, it is a goodidea to at least have yoursecond line alreadysecured to that piling,ready to grab with a boathook. Have all your linesready and tested forlength (and marked at the securing point) and convenient atthe beginning of the season, even labeled—which line goeswhere. Have them cut for a convenient length. Store themseparately.
Make sure you know how you are going to double upyour lines. Many boat cleats are not big enough to have twolines attached. You might have to slip one through the eyeof the cleat and another secured as normal. Use otherobjects to secure to: mast, winches, sliding cleats on sailtracks, etc. Some people describe a well-secured boat asbeing in a “spider web” of lines.
Make all your lines tighter as they will stretch.
Add Spring Lines for Storm SurgeSpring lines do two things. They help hold the boat in placelike any dock line, but, with fixed docks, they are the onlyway to hold the boat in place as the tide goes up and down.The longer they are, the more surge they can handle.
In a sense, all dock lines are spring lines, as they all willallow some up-and-down movement from the tides, butthey are called spring lines when they are long, and they areconsidered those running parallel to the boat’s length.Running them both directions, fore and aft, is even better. A
30-foot spring line willallow only five inches oflateral movement (havefive inches of slack) withthe tide going up or downas much as five feet—a 10-foot range!
Storm surge is thewater being blown by thewind and piling up in acertain direction. Sincehurricanes rotate counter-clockwise in our region,then the storm’s rightfront quadrant will bepushing water toward thefront of the storm’s pathand pulling it away fromthe path on its left frontquadrant. It will begreater forward as thestorm’s forward move-
ment will also add to the piling up of water. How the stormhits will determine whether the storm is going to be creat-ing a higher than normal tide as it pushes the water in or alower tide as it pulls it out. If you anticipate higher, thenraise your lines higher on the pilings. If lower, then putthem lower.
If you are expecting a lot of storm surge, you might haveto run spring lines across the boat, crisscrossing the docklines at the stern and bow, essentially making them longer,acting more as spring lines.
If you are preparing for just tropical storm-force winds,surge is generally expected to be less than four feet and 4-5feet for a Category 1. Remember, though, a strong tropicalstorm coming at high tide can do more damage than a weakCategory 1 hurricane hitting at low tide.
Since you are most likely to be hit with only tropicalstorm or Category 1 winds, you can probably be there towatch the boat, and adjusting lines during a storm can beimportant. If you have to adjust lines, make them adjustableat the dock, not on the boat. For those lines that go to astand-alone piling, make them adjustable from the boat.
How you secure your lines to a piling that is attachedto the dock can be crucial. The best way is to go around thepiling twice, then make two half hitches to the line. Theline will always be free for adjustment, regardless of thestrain on it.
ChafeLack of any chafe protection created no problems forYachting Vacations, the charter company in Punta Gordathat was hit by Charley, a Category 4 storm (seeSouthwinds, August, 2005). But chafe was a major cause ofdamage from Hurricane Frances, another Category 4storm. Why the difference?
Charley was a small, very fast storm. Frances was aslow, very big storm. Chafe is going to destroy a boatand/or lines over a period of time. Hurricane force windsfrequently will hit an area for about four to six hours.These winds persisted for up to 18 hours during Frances.Chafe won.
Even these small fenders saved this boat’s hull. This is not damage but dirtand debris on the hull. Photo by Steve Morrell.
HURRICANE SEASON 2006
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 35
During Charley, hur-ricane force winds hitYachting Vacations forabout two-and-a-half hours.Chafe did not matter.
In preparing yourboat for the most likelyconditions, tropical stormwinds or Category 1winds, chafe will not be amajor factor. It is alwaysadvised to have chafe pro-tection, but make sure youhave it depending on thesize and speed of thestorm. Unless you have allthe time in the world, it islow on the priority list forthe weaker storms.
FendersAn old axiom holds true about fenders: You can’t have toomany. Fenders can save your boat if the slip is too small, thelines stretch, the storm surge is great, the wave action is exces-sive, or it can save you from a mistake you made. They are a“cushion” and a margin for error that can be the last savingitem. Boat repairs on a hull or rubrail are like a dent in yourcar; very expensive to repair for even the smallest dent.Watching one boat sloshing around in its slip as it bouncesagainst the dock with its fenders next to another boat that ishitting the dock without them is a picture worth a thousandlessons. They are well worth the investment.
In Summary: A Simple PlanBelow is a summary of a simple plan for the weaker storms.For stronger storms, just take these plans to a higher levelwith more of everything. This plan will also be simple
enough to minimize thetime to carry it out, insteadof the perfect plan, whichmight not ever get execut-ed because there will neverbe enough time for it. Themain idea for speed andexecution of the plan is nosurprises, so practice every-thing at least once.
• Write the plan down in priorities and have a checklist.
• Remove the roller furl- ing headsail.
• Remove canvas, maybe the frames.
• Remove the mainsail. Wrap it with line if a light storm is expected.
• Double up all lines, add spring lines and extra lines asneeded.
• Have chafe protection on lines. • Have lots of fenders.• Make sure all gear on deck and below is stowed.
If you can, be there during the storm to adjust yourlines. You will also learn a lot on what is working and whatis not. Observe other boats, too, and encourage neighbors toprepare their boats, so they don’t destroy yours.
The Most Important Part: The complex, better plan isworthless if it isn’t carried out. The simple, inferior plan issuperior if it is. Make it so easy and fast to do that you do it.
In the coming months during the hurricane season, SOUTHWINDSwill be publishing articles and information about preparing yourboat for a storm. Send us your stories and tips.
Six lines are attached to this single bow cleat. Photo by Steve Morrell.
CRUISING
T he Great Circle Loop of America is a counterclock-wise, 5000- to 6000-mile cruising loop of America.Basically it’s a waterway cruise up the East Coast,
across southern portions of eastern Canada, down LakeMichigan into the inland rivers of America’s heartland, outacross the Florida Panhandle, down the west coast ofFlorida and back up the east coast.
One can enter the loop anywhere and—weatherdepending—at any time. There are some height and depthrestrictions, and the trip can take anywhere from 4 to 12months, depending on many factors. There are on average200-300 boats cruising the Loop at any one time.
I have wanted to do this trip for some time. It’s chal-lenging, historical, and relatively mild. My wife, on theother hand, likes to go offshore, cross oceans and get thecrap beat out of us! In retrospect, this cruise has been thebest ever and lived up to all my expectations. My wifeadmittedly feels the same.
We’ve been behind schedule ever since we ordered ourboat from its South African builder. We left her unrigged aswe would be motoring, and the mast was not necessary, espe-cially with all the bridges we would be passing under. Wewanted to be northbound by June 1. It was mid-June and wewere still tied to the dock at our home port in Wilmington,
NC. I was rushing andgetting restless and irri-table. Most of the boat’ssystems were installedbut untested. Her water-line was now three inch-es lower due to unrealis-tic loading for a six-month trip.
Finally, on June 22,at oh-dark-thir ty, Ihacked away our docklines and headed up theEast Coast for New YorkCity. This portion (about600 statute miles) tookus three weeks withstops in Annapolis, MD,
Cape May, NJ, and the Big Apple. During our previous cruises, we had run the Delaware
Bay and New Jersey coast several times, always with“issues,” i.e., foul weather. This time, however, the weathergods were happy, and with a favorable “tailwind” (we weremotoring) we ran the 115-mile coast to Sandy Hook in one14-hour jaunt.
After depositing great quantities of greenbacks to thestate and inhabitants of New York City (you think it’s expen-sive to rent a transient slip in Florida—try NewYork City), wecontinued up the scenic Hudson River for the northbound,125-mile trip to Troy, NY. The Hudson River’s scenery getsmore spectacular the farther north you go, and the saltwaterbarnacles on your hull slowly die a happy death.
Around Troy, the Great Circle Loop splits: One can con-tinue north to the Lake Champlain area or hang a left andenter the Erie Canal system, which we did. By now, we were“seasoned,” having worked out most of the bugs of our newboat. The next challenge was entering the lock systems—thefirst of 145 or so we would face in the next five months.
Cataline has twin engines so there are no more excusesduring docking. She tracks like an arrow, stops on a dimeand can turn in her own length. Locking-through is basical-ly a docking maneuver requiring lots of fenders! The reason
The Great Circle Loopvia Catamaran,Part IBy John Kelly
We left the Kellys finishing up the fitting-out of their new unrigged catamaran Cataline(SOUTHWINDS, April 2005) in preparation for a 5000-mile jaunt along the Great Circle Loop of America.
Cataline underway.
36 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 37
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is that the walls of the locks areslimy with unforgiving con-crete—sometimes in ill repairwith pieces missing—and theturbulence inside the lock canbe interesting.
Instead of using expensivefenders (that orange kindmade of thick rubber used bythe commercial fishing folks),we used Wal-Mart beach ballsthat I put into mesh laundrybags. They look funny, butthey work and cost one-fourththe price!
The Erie Canal westboundwinds its way along the bot-tom of Lake Erie towardBuffalo, but we jumped offinto the Oswego canal, whichbrought us to the southeastend of Lake Ontario.
Here you make the jumpacross to Clayton, NY, (homeof the antique boat museum)and the start of the ThousandIslands area of upper NewYork and Canada—truly pris-tine and spectacular. You alsoenter Canada (just beforeKingston) and a new country’scruising areas.
We coastal-cruised alongthe northern shore of LakeOntario and entered the Trent-Severn Waterway system, a240-mile stretch of rivers, lakesand canals, which eventuallyenters Georgian Bay. The Trent-Severn system has a depthrestriction (five feet), but Cataline only draws 2 1/2 feet – noproblem.
This winding waterway with its numerous locks isquite remarkable. There is no commercial traffic, but it’schock-full of Canadian and American weekenders playingtouch tag in and around the locks. It is great sport to watcha rented houseboat with single outboard full of partying(and inexperienced) Canadians maneuvering inside thelocks. It’s a real thrill if one of those guys gets sideways andyou are inside with him!!
This waterway also houses two unique locks – a hugehydraulic lock (the highest lift in the world at 65 feet) atPeterborough, Ontario, and a railway lock at a place calledBig Chute. The hydraulic lock is like two bathtubs hookedtogether. One tub goes up as the other goes down. One hel-luva ride.
The railway lock is actually a big cage into which youmotor. It picks you up and spills the water out as it travers-es a spit of rocky land. On you go into the other side of thelake; the cage fills up and off you go. Pretty slick!
Eventually you enter Georgian Bay, an absolutely mag-nificent area of crystal-clear waters, hundreds of islands and
small towns to explore, andbreathtaking scenery of gran-ite, forests and water.Navigation gets challenginghere; so much to see and somany rocks!
During one episode, tryingto find the cruiser Holy Grail, Igot back into an unchartedplace. I should have knownbetter and promptly found notthe Holy Grail but a submergedledge, rock and/or tree andbent both props. Dumb!
The North Channel (top ofLake Huron) connects Georg-ian Bay to the top of LakeMichigan. Here we said good-bye to Canada and headedtoward the Straits of Mackinac.
At the top of Michigan, wehad completed less than halfour trip but had experiencedthe most pristine and ever-changing landscape in NorthAmerica. Cataline handledwell, consumed about one gal-lon an hour (with TWO en-gines) and gave us close toseven knots.
Unrigged she looks a bithokey, but for this trip withvery low bridge clearances, shewas perfect.
It was now time to final-ly swing Cataline south for the1650-mile trip to Mobile, AL.On the remaining legs wewould cruise down and across
Lake Michigan through Chicago, down the Illinois,Mississippi, Ohio, Cumberland, Tennessee, Tombigbee andMobile rivers to the Florida Panhandle and down Florida’ssouthwest coast.
Follow Cataline’s next legs where the Kellys meet new challengesalong the inland rivers of the United States and coasts of Florida.
Jill manning the lines inside the lock.
One of two hydraulic lift locks on the waterway.This one is at Kichner, Ontario.
38 Juny 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
T he 21st Annual Morgan Invasion and Rendezvouswas held in April at the Davis Island Yacht Club inTampa, FL. Forty-seven Charley Morgan-built or
designed sailboats enjoyed brisk winds during the first
Invasion held away from the Treasure Island Tennis andYacht Club. Charley Morgan hosted close to 200 sailorsover three days of scheduled events. “This was a wonder-ful event, and we all can’t wait for the next Rendezvous”
21st AnnualMorganInvasion atDavis IslandYacht Club,Tampa, FL, April 21-23By Tom DunnThe crew of Rolling Thunder, a Morgan 38, owned by Pete and Cheryl Moller. Rolling
Thunder has been to all 21 Morgan Invasions. Photo by Pete Jernigan.
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 39
said Charley Morgan.Traditionally held over the past 20 years at TITYC, the
Morgan Invasion was moved to DIYC this year as construc-tion of a new clubhouse at Treasure Island made hosting theevent difficult. The Morgan Invasion will be held next yearat Davis Island as construction continues. Next year’sInvasion will be on the weekend of April 21, 2007, accord-ing to Morgan Invasion Chairman Pete Moller.
The Invasion started Friday, April 21, as acting DIYCDockmaster Les Lathrop welcomed arriving Morgan own-ers. Most boats sailed in from the greater Tampa/St. Petearea with the longest distance sailed by Dave and JaniceCarl on their Morgan Out Island 33, Dragon, coming in fromPensacola, FL.
Charley Morgan hosted the Friday night festivities byholding a “Fireside Chat” near the DIYC tiki bar, recount-ing stories about his early days sailing on HillsboroughBay. Owners and crew also enjoyed dinner, drinks andcalypso music.
Saturday was race day, and crew members were awak-ened by the traditional firing of the cannon by DockmasterLes Lathrop. Winds were brisk, generally out of the westand steady at about 17 knots. The 11-mile course traversedback and forth across the bay. The first of six classes startedat 1300, and the first boat to finish, Bill Senske’s NelsonMerek 45, Hallelujah, finished at 1440. The last boat to finishwas Dragon. The poor girl was tired after that trip fromPensacola!
Post-race activities were held around the DIYC tiki bar.Close to 200 sailors and supporters gathered to enjoy dinnerand entertainment provided by Clint and Osborne. Afterdinner, Charley greeted the gathering and announced thewinners for the many traditional Morgan Invasion awards.
The Charles Hunt Jr. Navigators Award for the boatthat corrected out over its nearest competitor went to JunabAli and Sleeper, his Out Island 41. Sleeper also took home theLon Van Dorston Trophy for being the first Out Island tofinish the race.
The Steve Pardee Memorial Trophy for the first Morgan24 to finish the race went to Jack MacTowne and his M24,True Blue.
The Pete Moller Award, given out each year to the firstMorgan 38 to finish, went to Pete Moller and the crew ofRolling Thunder. Pete also won the Sally Morgan Trophy,given out as the perennial participation award. RollingThunder has been to all 21 Morgan Invasions!
Other class winners included the Under 40-Foot OutIsland winner going to Andre Balash and Gypsy Queen. TheMorgan 22 Trophy for first-place finish among the 22s wentto Bob Willard and Flash. The Morgan 27 winner went toIrish Mist, and the Morgan 30 Award went to AllenDavidson aboard Jackal.
Next year’s Morgan Invasion is back at Davis Island onApril 21 before returning to Treasure Island in 2008. Forfinal results and information on the Invasion, visitwww.MorganInvasion.Net.
Peter Fouché (third from left), sailing on Another Road, a Morgan Heritage West Indiessloop, receives the award for PHRF A class winner. Second from left is Charley Morgan.Photo by Tom Dunn.
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Maureen Morgan (on the left) and Sully Loweprepare for the firing of the cannon. Photo byTom Dunn.
40 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
I t was beginning to shape up as one of those typicalTampa Bay days. The sun was drying the decks of thethousands of boats all across the area, while I was enjoy-
ing a lunch at one of my favorite waterfront restaurants.While the bay area is a great place to sail, there are only afew waterfront restaurants where docking privileges exist.So, these places fill up pretty quickly. In fact, on that partic-ular day, the only space left at the docks was an end tiewhere a boat would have to accomplish a docking on itsstarboard side. And I’ve found space like that is usuallyalways empty and available at waterfront watering holes,yacht clubs, and marinas.
I took my last bite of the blackened grouper sandwich Ihad ordered and looked across the deck of the restauranttoward its docks. A new, 36-foot cruising sloop with a beau-tiful deep-green hull was approaching, looking for a park-ing spot. This should prove interesting, I thought, as I tooka swallow of slightly sweetened iced tea.
The boat had a crew of three, with one standing at thebow holding a bow line and another kneeling at the sternholding a stern line. I assumed that the owner of this ratherlovely yacht was skippering.
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Both dock lines were short, about 10 feet or so. Twomedium fenders were placed close together at the beam oneach side of the boat, probably where the owner had themwhen the boat was berthed in her home slip. He noticed theavailable space on the end tie and began an almost parallelapproach to it.
A slight breeze was coming across the end tie. As theboat got into position and nearer the dock, the skipperplaced his engine in neutral, and the wind found the free-board and pushed the boat sideways to port about five or sixfeet from the dock’s edge—a little too far to jump, the crewcorrectly decided.
Since another sloop was docked at the forward part ofthe end tie (backed in, port-side tie-up), the skipper placedthe engine in reverse, backing out into the fairway. So muchfor attempt number one.
“You’re going to have to come at it at an angle,” I heardone of the crew say to the skipper. So began the secondattempt at docking the sloop.
The skipper positioned the boat at a 45-degreeapproach angle to the edge of the dock. By now there werequite a few of us on deck watching. It was apparent thatthe skipper had too much power on, probably thinkingthat he was compensating for the wind that had affectedhis first approach.
As the bow approached the edge of the dock, the bowcrew shouted, “You’re coming in too fast. Too fast.” Theskipper immediately dropped the engine into reverse, giv-ing the throttle a short burst. This caused the bow to swingrapidly into the dock, the stern pivoting the opposite way,and a rather loud “k-thunk.” A customer at a table behindme cried, “Ouch!” repressing a giggle. The deep-green hullnow had a sizable white racing stripe.
The angry skipper backed the boat out into the fairwayagain, swung her around and proceeded back out into thechannel. What a shame, I thought, as I reached for my check.It’s such a perfect day for lunching out here. Wonder if hehas a good gel coat guy?
Secrets to SuccessfulStarboard DockingBy Captain Steve Stevens
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 41
Docking a Boat to StarboardDifficult for Many
Docking a boat starboard side toan end tie proves to be the mostdifficult close-quarters maneuverfor the majority of intermediateand even advanced sailors.
Most have been taught—either by a professional instructoror their yacht brokers—how tobring their boats in and out oftheir home slips. And it’s usuallypretty simple and straightfor-ward.
Position the centerline of theboat onto the centerline of theslip. Continue forward. And oncein the slip, drop the engine intoreverse, giving the throttle a shortburst to stop the boat’s forwardmotion from making contact withthe dock box.
Fenders, which are mostcommonly positioned at the beamof the boat, help to keep the boatcentered in the slip as the docklines are secured. However, a star-board-side docking is trickierbecause most sailboats have aright-turning propeller, whichmakes the boat back to port whenin reverse, swinging the bow tostarboard.
And since, when the boat istraveling in reverse, its pivot pointmoves to the rear, the bow of mostboats will pivot twice the distanceof the stern—the cause of that “k-thunk” at the restaurant docks.
There are a few basic steps that willallow the skipper to successfullyaccomplish a starboard-side dockingmaneuver in most conditions.
First, rig the starboard side with atleast four fenders. One should be at thebow, two down the beam and one atthe stern. In addition to the bow andstern lines, a long beam spring lineshould be rigged. I always use a springline that is at least two-thirds of thelength of the boat. The bow crew willmanage this beam spring line, whilethe stern crew attends to the stern line.
The skipper should approach thedock at about a 30- to 35-degree angleto the edge, aiming slightly forward ofthe cleat where he will want the sternline secured. As in any close-quartermaneuvering, the boat should be mov-
ing as slowly as possible.The bow of the boat should very
closely approach the edge of the dockbefore the skipper begins turning. Thesecret is not to “chicken out” before thebow is almost on top of the dock.Having that extra fender at the bowwill help to create some additional con-fidence in the skipper to continue toclose in on the dock.
As the turn is started, the bow crewcan then easily get off the boat, take thebeam spring line toward the stern andsecure it to the cleat where the sternline will be attached. This beam springline will control the forward motion ofthe boat.
By turning the wheel slightlytoward port and continuing to powerthe vessel, the skipper will see the
beam spring line tighten and be able tobring the stern and bow nicely paralleland into the dock. Bow and stern linescan then be secured and the beamspring converted to an aft bow springline for the final tie-up.
So, the next time you are out on thewater, find a long, empty end tie andpractice this maneuver with your crew.Then take your boat for a sail over to apopular waterfront dining spot.
You won’t have any problems withthe starboard side maneuver, and if I’mlunching on the deck, I’ll be sure toapplaud at your effortless success. Andif you are feeling especially generous,you can pick up my tab with the moneyyou have just saved on the gel coatrepair.
See you out there.
Basic Steps Needed for Starboard Docking
Approach the dock at a30-35-degree angle,aiming slightly forwardof a cleat to secure to.
The bow of the boatshould very closelyapproach the edge of thedock before the skipper begins turningthe wheel to port. Crewcan then jump onto thedock (or hand a line tosomeone on the dock)who then secures it tothe dock cleat.
With the wheel turnedtoward port, the skipper continues to power the vessel. The beam spring linewill tighten, bringing thestern and bow nicely parallel and into the dock.
PHRF RACE TIPS
T he start of a sailboat race has been deemed one of themost tense moments in sport. Is there a way to makethat moment in time in our PHRF racing game less
complicated, tense, and scary? Let’s break the proceduredown to a decent start to our race.
It is important to know that the most important part ofthe start is what your situation is a minute or two after that“GO” signal. Being right at the line at the start is nice. Butthere are more important factors.
Suppose you think that there is going to be more windor less adverse current on the right side of the course, or awind shift from the right later in the upwind beat. So starton the right side of the starting line. Duh. It would be betterto start a few seconds, or be a few boat lengths late at therace committee boat with the ability to tack as soon as youclear the anchor line than to be at the gun but with a boat onyour windward quarter so you cannot tack to the favoredright side.
Conversely, if you think that going to the left side of thewindward leg is better, start near the pin end of the line. Itis more essential to be on the starting line at the gun if youwant to continue on starboard tack.
The very pin end of the line may be crowded. You maynot be the only genius who thinks going to the left side isbest. Usually, it is best to start at a position a few boatlengths away from that perfect pin spot. Of course, if yousee that you have nobody down there with a few seconds tothe gun, reach off and head for it.
The goal is to start when the boat is going faster thanupwind speed. Yes, if you can close reach to the line andthen harden up at the gun, you will actually be going fasterat that time than anybody close-hauled and a lot faster thanthe boats luffing to the line.
Okay, you say. Just how do I do that? On our PHRFstarting lines it is rare to have the stacks of boats as at a J/24event. Most race officers give enough room for all boats,and there are always late starters. Many boats will start atthe RC boat end no matter what so they don’t have to worryabout being over-early.
So know the habits of your local fleet. After doing RCwork for a decade for the St. Petersburg Yacht Club, Inoticed that most boats started about the same way everytime. Do your homework. Often there are areas of the line,like one-third down from the RC boat, that aren’t filled untilthe last few seconds by those who got to the RC boat a littleearly and reached down. If you approach on a close reach alittle toward the pin, from there you may find clear sailing.Actually, not anymore if everybody reads this!
Get yourself in a place on the line where you won’t berolled by a bigger or faster PHRF boat and not be able totack away. I once was sailing a Santana 21 and got rolled bythe 12-meter Newsboy at a start. We sat adrift for seemingly
The Art of the StartBy Dave Ellis
42 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 43
minutes until the wind came back. Of course, if you are thebig boat in the fleet, start with the slowest boats, not next toyour nearest rival.
Much has been written about finding the “favored” endof a starting line. That is overrated. Seldom does a decentrace committee start a race with a highly skewed line. Thefastest way to check, though, is to sail to just outside of thepin and shoot head to wind. Make sure the genny is looseand make that masthead fly point right at the stem. Thenhave a crew member tell you whether the bow is headedmore toward the pin or toward the RC boat. The end of theline that the bow is angled more toward is the end closer tothe windward mark. Chances are there won’t be much dif-ference. Also, that very well may not be the “favored end”for your plans.
Incidentally, it does not matter if the windward mark isoff to one side a bit and not directly upwind. As long as youhave to make at least one tack to get there, this should notinfluence where you start on the line.
A crew member counting down the seconds is helpful.If your skipper is habitually late, cheat on him. Tell him orher when the one-minute flag and gun occurs and then hes-itate for a few seconds before starting your countdownevery few seconds. By the “GO” of your spoken countdownyou will have perhaps five to 10 seconds before the realstart, and your timid skipper will be closer to the line.
Uh, it works the other way around for aggressive guyswho are habitually early and have to stop at the line.
One way to take the pucker factor out of a start is topractice hitting the line before the starting sequence. Have aone-minute countdown and see how long it takes to getthere. How far away are you at 20 seconds? Ten seconds?Then try it at the pin end.
An easy way to tell where the starting line is when youare not at an end is to sail to the right of the stern of the RCboat and sit there. While luffing on starboard tack, take ahand-bearing compass reading from a crew’s position to thepin. From anywhere on the line the crew can tell you whenyou are getting close to that number. In big fleets, we oftendo the same at the pin end, in case you can’t see the pin forthe numerous boats. You often can see the flag on the RCboat in those conditions.
Have you noticed that there is a quick sorting-out ofboats soon after the start, and then everything settles down?Experienced skippers and crew have the sails set correctlyand the steering settled at the start. They concentrate moreon their sailing for that minute after the start than at anyother time on the racecourse.
If you get a great start at the gun going really fast,chances are you will do well. But if you don’t, remember, itis only the start. Find a lane of clear air and go from there.That’s the game.
44 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
Amigos load up on Aventura, an Island Packet 44, for the Regatade los Amigos at the docks on Isla Mujeres.
RACING
Twenty-six boats raced in the 38th Annual Regata DelSol al Sol from St. Petersburg, FL, to Isla Mujeres,Mexico. This year, the True Cruising class, with 14
boats in three classes, outnumbered the other classes, withfive in the Spinnaker class and six in the Non-Spinnakerclass. The racing is always eventful each year, but the realgoal of the regatta is to promote goodwill and aid to ouramigos in Isla Mujeres. The byproduct is the fun and thechallenge of an offshore sailboat race.
This year was perhaps a little more significant becauseof Hurricane Wilma—the strongest hurricane ever recordedin the Atlantic region—which was born and grew just offthe Yucatan Peninsula. Isla Mujeres did remarkably wellsurviving its wrath. They were prepared, and the island andits people survived the storm.
I was on Steve Fredrick’s Ocean Angel, in the Spinnakerclass, with five other crew members. We practiced for thisrace for months. Steve had prepared his boat, a BeneteauFirst 42, to perfection. This French-built boat becamefamous after one of them won the ill-fated 1979 Fast Netrace. Not all boats survived that race, and sailors died,showing the hazards of offshore racing and the value ofbeing prepared. Our crew practiced on several occasionsdoing nighttime reefing, sail changes, and man overboarddrills
Ten-knot winds and blue skies greeted us all at the start
time just before 9:00 a.m. on April 28. A downwind start,with winds from the northeast, had boats setting spin-nakers right away as the fleet headed west toward theSkyway Bridge and the Southwest Channel. With spin-naker up, we found ourselves advancing on the Non-Spinfleet, which started five minutes earlier. After a few windshifts and four drop-pole spinnaker jibes, we sailed out intothe Gulf of Mexico.
The first few hours in the Gulf went well with the spin-naker flying beautifully. Speed increased to 10 knots, then11. At 12 knots we were getting pretty excited. We are think-ing of a fast downwind course all the way to Mexico. ThenBANG! A big gust of wind forces us to round up. Thehelmsperson overcorrects, causing the spinnaker to blowout. A quick crew response and we retrieve the totallydestroyed 1000 square foot sail. Next we roll out our 150genny and continue at a much slower speed. It is quite dis-heartening to watch the rest of the Spinnaker fleet pullahead. The captain has to sit down to reassess a new strat-egy. A bit of humor is attempted with the comment,“Perhaps this could be a blessing. We have another newerspinnaker, and the race has just begun.”
Suddenly we hear, “MAY DAY, MAY DAY. MAY DAY.Sailboat taking on water and winds gusting to thirtyknots.”
That’s the kind of radio message that gets your atten-
38th AnnualRegata del Sol al Sol 2006By Stephen Evans
Photos Courtesy Mike Boom
June’s cover photo is of the race start in St. Petersburg on April 28. Photo by Gary Hufford
The waters of Isla Mujeres.
tion. We couldn’t hear which boat was requesting CoastGuard assistance, but we did hear its position to be about 30miles east of us. Our prudent captain called for a first reef inthe main. Sure enough, thirty minutes later the wind pickedup substantially. By the time it was totally dark, we wereoverpowered and needed to change headsails—no easytask as our 150 genny is very heavy and stiff. We are unableto bag the sail in the rough seas, so three crewmembersstruggle to drag the wet sail down below and lay it on thecabin floor. So much for the orderly cabin.
The wind and seas continued to increase. It was dark,
so you couldn’t see the sea state, but you could hear thewind howl and feel the spray. After a long night of handsteering, the morning sunrise revealed the full fury of theraging seas. There were gusts to 40 knots and 20-foot fol-lowing seas. At times, it looked like a big breaking wavemight engulf us, but the well-balanced Beneteau slicedeffortlessly through the stormy seas. It took a great deal ofstrength to steer and keep the boat racing efficiently. Thecompanionway and all hatches had to remain closed tokeep the cabin dry. In the cabin it was nice and quiet, but sohot that resting or sleep was difficult when off watch.
Not all crewmembers were physically able to steer effi-ciently, so we could not keep our watch schedule. Lack ofsleep was causing fatigue, and instead of our planned hotmeals, we ate only cheese and turkey sandwiches. After sur-viving such thrilling sailing conditions, the crew had bond-ed into a team with the common cause to sail efficiently toIsla Mujeres and the finish line.
On Sunday, day three, we sailed southwest of Cubawith our 150 genny, as the wind moderated to a mere 15knots. At 1:00 a.m., early Monday morning, we reached oursouthern waypoint, jibed the boat and headed west to thefinish line.
Just before 5:00 a.m., we heard the radio transmissionthat Aventura, an Island Packet 44, crossed the finish line,bolstering our reserve to quickly make the finish line. Withsunrise shortly after, morale and sailing skills improved.
Finally, at 10:05 a.m., we crossed the finish line. Thecommittee boat, a Mexican navy ship, fired off a gun tomark our finish after 73 hours and 7 minutes of serious sail-ing. Our crew celebrated with a beer, the first of the voyage.Our navigator dumps his first beer on the head of our cap-tain—an appropriate christening. Was he surprised! A navyrunabout escorts us through the reef and into the ancientport. What a thrill to pull Ocean Angel up to the customsdock. Our hosts greet us with fireworks and a bag full ofextra cold, very tasty beer. Clearing customs goes quickly,and we then began to enjoy the hospitality of this friendly
island paradise.Skyrockets mark the arrival of the slower competing
sailboats as they come in during the day. It’s fun to walk thedocks to greet the crews, each with an interesting story oftheir trip across the Gulf.
Mi Vida Loca, an Oceanic 40 CC Beneteau, captained byMike Boom, regatta chairman, got knocked down. Not theresult of high wind velocity but she just fell off the steepside of a big wave. She rolled over till the mast was in thewater. But everything was okay, as all was well secured.Even the computer was attached. With nobody hurt, it is
Mango Latitudes sails with spinnaker in the Regata de los Amigos. The awards banquet.
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 45
46 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
proof the captain was well pre-pared.
Scott Collins and crew onSeverance, a Tartan 34, were sailingalong at a good pace, when, as thewind increased, they heard thesound of a shroud parting. Luckilya few strands remained to hold themast upright. His solution was toascend the mast, rig a dock line tothe first spreader and cautiouslycontinue sailing. It certainly takescourage to accomplish such a feat instorm conditions.
The sportsman award went toLa Gitana, an O’ Day 37. What asight to see the crew members arrive late Tuesday, after 114hours and 27 minutes, their mainsail totally destroyed witha few shards of Dacron still flying from the masthead! A hel-icopter flew out to check on their safety. They refused assis-tance and finally reached the finish line sailing with justtheir jib.
Post-race festivities are the good part of the story. Thefleet carried 18 boxes of medical supplies for donation. Dr.Mitch Massie, representing the Bradenton Yacht Club, sail-ing on Reflection, an Island Packet 42, transported an ultra-sound machine, which was donated to the hospital. Healso generously gave treats and T-shirts to many of the
island children. On Mango Latitudes, an Irwin
68 in True Cruising A, it only tookCapt. Fred Bickley and crew 59hours and 4 minutes to be first tocross the finish line. On his deck hetransported a much-needed genera-tor to donate to the island.
Perhaps the best goodwill pro-jected was on Friday, when theisland kids were welcomed. Thepre-race water fight was enjoyed byall. You should hear the gleefulcheers of the children as our sleekBeneteau passes the committee boatwith a full sail and pleasant heel.
We handed out cokes and candy.Our Manatee county commissioner, Joe McClash,
showed his usual great insight as he and his wife gave outschool supplies and toothbrushes to the well-behaved chil-dren.
The final event was the awards banquet, when the cap-tains received their awards after a tasty sit-down dinner.Dressed up for the event, the women were looking especial-ly good.
The Regatta del Sol al Sol is more than a fun sailboatrace. It’s the rewards of sharing, meeting new friends, andimproving our sailing skills.
RACING
The awards table.
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 47
UPCOMING MAJOR SOUTHERN SAILING EVENTS,NEWS AND RACE REPORTS
Regatta Time in Abaco, Bahamas. July 3-11. See the pre-regatta write up in the “Short Tacks” section, pages 20-25.
One-Design Crew Training, Davis Island, Tampa Bay, FL,June 3, 10 and 17One-Design Crew Training will be held Saturday, June 3, 10,and 17 from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m.. This course is designed forthose sailors who wish to increase their knowledge anddesire to be skippers. Your previous background is of littleimportance as we will expose you to all the necessary skillsto crew on one-design boats. You will learn how to use thehoists to launch dry-sailed J/24s, as well as how to hank onsails. You will get hands-on experience on trimming jibs,genoas, mains, and spinnakers. You will be taught to tack,jibe, start, and observe the Rules of Racing.
This course is open to the public and is aimed at thosecrew members who sail in our Thursday night series. Thecost is a $100 tax-deductible contribution to the Davis IslandYouth Sailing Foundation. Class size is limited to the first 30who apply. For applications, contact King Purton at (813)760-0177.
Fred Strammer Wins Florida DistrictChampionshipBy Dave Thinel
For the third consecutive year and at the ripe old age of 17,Fred Stammer, sailing American Dream #5520, has won theFlying Scot Florida District Championship. Sailing with hisdad as crew, the duo of Fred and Fred prevailed with con-vincing victories in four of the six regattas. Consistencyseems to be the secret. Whether the breeze is light or heavy,big waves or lake conditions, he always seems to be outfront. Maybe the only exception to that was at the FlyingScot Midwinters (March 2006, St. Petersburg YC) where hewas second to Marc and Marcus Eagan in a 50-boat field. Allthe time spent competing in Lasers, 420s, and Optis hasreally paid off. Congratulations, Fred!
The championship consisted of six weekend regattaswith the four best results counting for the final score. Theseason began October 2, 2005, in Miami and continued withstops in Sarasota, Jacksonville, Eustis, Tampa and finallyMelbourne on April 23, 2006. Despite the challenges fromhurricanes, rising gas prices and a shortage of used Scots inFlorida, the season was a big success. This is a real credit tothe leadership from Charlie Fowler, the Florida District gov-ernor who has been involved with the class since 1972.Charlie and Nancy sail #5126, Two Bears Boat, and seem to bein the middle of the action most of the time. Attendance wasstrong with an average of 20 boats per regatta, up one fromlast season. Overall, 56 boats attended at least one regattacompared to 48 last year. On the flip side, only eight boatsattended four or more regattas, down from 10. The “snow-bird effect” continued again this year with an average ofonly 13 boats attending the first and last races (October andApril) since many regulars are up North at those times.Speaking of snowbirds, Darlene and Ray Miller (#3668,Amazed) joined the Tampa fleet this year and attended all six
regattas and finished 10th. Way to go! During the last year or two, used boats have been in
short supply, especially those priced below about $6,000.Thankfully, we had several motivated folks, including JeffLinton (#4925), Mark Taylor (#4321, Blast-Off) and AndyHayward (#4318 Chimichonga), who traveled to New Jersey,Pennsylvania, Maryland and Ohio to purchase used boatsand bring them back to Florida. We have likely missed somenew members along the way and currently have a list ofinterested parties in need of a boat. However, we are spoiledby having one of the best new boatbuilders (and parts sup-pliers) in the business in Harry Carpenter, owner of FlyingScot Inc. Several district members took delivery of shinynew boats, which now number over 5700 and counting.
The members of the Florida District are truly fortunate tobe able to sail year round and compete for a state champi-onship. The sailors are as diverse as they can be, from folks intheir 80s to kids in their teens. We have serious competitors,casual couples and dads with their sons and daughters. Werarely have protests; in fact, we did not have any last year orthis year. Most important, we have a group that enjoys “thescene” both on the water and in the clubhouse.
Full results can be found by visiting the Florida DistrictWeb site, www.fssa.com/fldist/.
Bird Key Yacht Club Does SailboatRacing Proud, Sarasota Bay Cup, May 13By Morgan Stinemetz
The Sarasota Bay Cup, held May 13 on the bay in 10-15knots of northwesterly sea breeze, was one of those “if youbuild it, they will come” kind of sailboat races. In its first try,the Bird Key Yacht Club put together a regatta of such totalrichness that it set the all-time high-water mark for sailingevents in the Sarasota Bay area. Fifty-nine boats of varyingsizes and descriptions raced in seven classes in the 12-miler,a Sarasota Bay Yachting Association boat-of-the-year event.
A couple of hours before the race, the wind on the baywas patchy and weak, fitful as a baby with colic, but by the1 p.m. start the wind had filled in, and all the oily, slick, no-
Fred and Fred receiving their Flying Scot Florida DistrictChampionship award. Photo courtesy Dave Thinel.
smoked salmon sliced thin, fried grouper that was cookedto perfection—flaky and moist, and roast beef that was astasty as roast beef ever gets. No other sailing regatta in myrecollection has put such effort and displayed so much qual-ity in the dining end of a day’s sailing. It put a cap on theday’s fun as real as the crown jewels of England. And Ihaven’t even touched on the desserts.
The awards ceremony went off without a hitch. Theaforementioned Rich Gress did the emcee duties, kept thechit-chat to a minimum and awarded Kevlar duffles fromQuantum Sails to the skipper who had come the farthestdistance, from Tallahassee, and the skipper who submittedthe earliest entry, among others. “I tried to incorporateevery good thing for all the regattas I have been in,” Gresstold me. He succeeded beyond measure.
Certainly there were standouts. Cindy and CharlieClifton won the True Cruising Light class in Maggie, a catboat, by a whopping 48 seconds per mile over the second-place boat in their class. The second-place boat in their classbelonged to me, and I suffered a brain meltdown and head-ed for the finish line when there were still three more legs tosail. We finally got that straightened out and went back androunded the mark that we missed, but by this time we wereback with the dogs and the cats and had no idea of wherewe stood. It turned out that my misdeed had just put us far-ther behind Maggie, but we got rolled by a Pearson 33 in ourclass on the next-to-last leg. Stalwart crew member NormHale was steering at that time, and on the last leg hescrewed down his resolve tight as a submarine hatch andgot the time back, taking the favored pin end of the finishline and beating the Pearson by 10 seconds. There are timesin one’s life when you give all credit to superior judgment.This is one.
The overall winner of the Sarasota Bay Cup was GregKnighton, who sailed his more-than-30-years-old Ranger,Misty, to a convincing win in the Non-Spinnaker class.Knighton sits now in the catbird seat as far as the SarasotaBay Racing Association’s boat of the year in the Non-Spinnaker class is concerned.
Everyone who raced in this year’s Sarasota Bay Cupturned out to be a winner, because the race was every-thing—and then some—of what a sailboat regatta could beand should be. In a galaxy of millions, this was the starwhose brightness eclipsed all others, and the Bird Key YachtClub and all the volunteers who made this sailing day onefor the ages did themselves proud.
From this sailor, thanks.
REGIONAL RACINGReports, News And Race Calendars
Regattas and Club Racing—Open to Everyone Wanting to Race The races listed here are open to those who want to sail. Noindividual club membership is required, although a region-al PHRF rating, or membership in US SAILING or member-ship in a regional sailing association is often required. (Ifindividual club membership is required, please contact usand we will not list their races in the future.)
For publishing of your event, questions and informa-
48 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
wind spots had disappeared to be replaced by white capsthat signaled marvelous sailing.
Fifty-nine PHRF boats in one place at one time for onerace was a stunning affirmation of all the hard work put inby the people at the Bird Key Yacht Club. A couple of daysafter the race, Charlie Clifton who was on Maggie, aMarshall 22 cat boat that was unassailable in its lead in theTrue Cruising Light class, observed: “That was the mostPHRF boats I have seen on the bay in decades, and the sec-ond beat, with the all the boats stretched out, going forMarker 15 (in the middle of the bay), was just beautiful.”
Indeed it was—the stuff from which great picturescome. The race was a reverse handicap event—also knownas a pursuit race—and precise sailing instructions, goodrace committee work and a terrific course gave the racers allthe points of sail they needed to make certain they had used(or misused) all their skills.
The race was the reason for the accumulation of all thesailboats, of course. But additional treats awaited the com-petitors back at the Bird Key Yacht Club. Miller was one ofthe sponsors, so keg beer slaked accumulated thirsts. Whilethe sailors were arriving, so was a five-piece salsa band thatplayed for dancing. On top of that, Race Chairman RichardGress had materialized some dance instructors to help thosechallenged by Latino dancing get a few of the steps down.Some got the message and acquired the muscle memory.Others never did and probably never will, but it didn’t real-ly matter; the beat was as infectious as poison ivy.
The dinner was advance-advertised as a seafood buffet,but it might be better called a seafood feast. Obviously, foodis a subjective matter. So, speaking subjectively, I can saywithout fear of contradiction that the presentation was aknockout and the quality of the offerings diverse and fit forkings.
I talked to BKYC club manager Rob Edwards abouthow he and the chefs came up with such a lovely dinner. “Italked with some people at other clubs, and one guy said,‘They’re just sailors; give them hamburgers and hot dogs.’But we could do a lot better than that and I thought weshould,” Edwards told me.
Among the offerings at dinner were prawns so big theylooked like lobster tails, raw oysters on the half shell,
Rick Gress, in the lead here on Mother Ocean, went on to takefirst in the Spinnaker division in the Sarasota Bay Cup. Photo cour-tesy Larry Ford, Bird Key Yacht Club.
RACING
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 49
tion, send us your race schedule by the 5th of the month [email protected]. Send in the name of theevent, date, location, contacts (Web site, e-mail and/orphone), and, if you want a short description. Do not justsend a link in to this information.
Since race schedules and venues change, contact thesponsoring organization to confirm. For changes to be pub-lished, contact the editor. Changes can be put on our Website, if possible.
Celtic Crossing Festival, May 6, Lake Lanier, GABy R.J. Mitchellette
On May 6, the Atlanta Celtic Festival Society and theBarefoot Sailing Club held one of the best reenactments ofthe pirate days and a real Celtic Crossing. Twenty boats par-ticipated in this first festival of what promises to become anannual event, honoring people of the seven Celtic Nationswho crossed the oceans to come to America in search of anew and better life.
The festival began with the boats passing in review forthe judging of their decorations, representing the theme ofthe event, followed by a blessing of the fleet by the CelticPatron Saints.
Then a seven-leg cruise around marks strategicallypositioned on Lake Lanier commenced with Dave Payne’scutter-rigged Tayana dressed as a pirate ship in hot pursuitof its next prize (victim). Many a skipper and his/her crewwere dowsed with water from water guns,, and in one casethe skipper (this reporter) attempted a boarding of thepirate ship, which was aborted when his crew was gunneddown by the pirate ship’s water cannons. It was pretty hec-tic out there with 20 boats, crisscrossing each other, trying tobe the first across the finish line while avoiding being cap-tured or sunk by the enemy, just like in the old days.
The contest winners were George Olive in his CheoyLee for the best decorated boat with an actual fire-breathingdragon mounted on the bow of his boat, Bill Gray in hisEndevour 33 for the best choreography, Scott Dixon for themost poetic theatre in his Columbia 26 and Lance Jones, theevent’s organizer, for original thought in his Catalina 22.The overall best of everything award went to Tim Fulmer inhis Pearson 26.
The après Celtic Crossing party was a smashing suc-cess, as Celtic drinks were generously poured by the spon-sor, Castle Brands. Irish food was provided by Mechan’sAlehouse in Vinnings, GA, and traditional Irish music was
provided by Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann group, along withsinging by Lori O’Brien.
The Celtic community in Georgia requested the statedeclare May 6-14 as Georgia Celtic Week in honor of thefounding colonists, who migrated from the seven Celticnations, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Cornish, Manx, Breton andGalatian, to settle in the state of Georgia and play a majorrole in the early colonization of the state.
For more information, go to www.barefootsailing.org.
King Neptune in the Celtic Crossing Festival on Lake Lanier. Photoby Michael Carter.
50 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
RACING
SOUTHEAST COAST RACE CALENDAR
JUNECharleston Ocean Racing Association, www.charlestonoceanracing.org4 Femme Fatale17-18 James Island Regatta30 Cape Fear ChallengeLake Lanier, GA. www.lakeniersailing.com4-9 Junior Week, Lake Lanier Sailing Club17-18 Reggae Regatta, Open, Lake Lanier Sailing ClubLong Bay Sailing Association www.longbaysailing.org3-4 NC/SC Offshore Governors Cup, PHRF, North Myrtle
Beach,SC. 9-12 NC/SC Governors Cup, Little River Inlet, North Myrtle
Beach,SC. Neuse Yacht Racing Association www.nyra.org3 Oriental Cup, PHRF, Oriental, NC. South Atlantic Yacht Racing Association, www.sayra-
sailing.com3 - 4 Mayors Cup Regatta, Open, One Design, Lake
Townsend Yacht Club, Greenville, NC.3-4 Adams Quarterfinals, J24, Columbia Sailing Club-SC,
Columbia, SC.3-4 O’Day Quarterfinals, Laser, Savannah Sailing Center,
Savannah, GA.3-4 D12 Laser Championships, Laser, Savannah Sailing
Center, Savannah, GA.3-4 Pursuit of Sailing Regatta, PHRF, Outrigger Yacht Club,
Lake Norman, NC.3-4 Lighting District Champs, Lightnings, Carolina Yacht
Club-NC, Wrightsville Beach, NC.10-11 Hobcaw Regatta, Open, Hobcaw Yacht Club, Mt.
Pleasant, SC.10-11 Bottoms-up, Thistles, Lake Murray Sailing Club,
Columbia, SC.17-18 Bemis, Smythe Quarterfinals, 420, Laser, Charleston
Community Sailing, Inc. Charleston, SC.17-18 NC Governor’s Cup, Open, Carolina Sailing Club-NC,
Raleigh, NC.19-23 Y-Flyer Nationals, Carolina Yacht Club-SC, Charleston,
SC.20-25 San Juan 21 North Americans, San Juan 21, Lake
Murray Sailing Club, Columbia, SC.24-25 Lowcountry Regatta, Open, Beaufort Yacht and Sailing
Club, Beaufort, SC.
JulyLong Bay Sailing Association www.longbaysailing.org21-23 Rocket Regatta, Cape Fear,SC. 29 Wooden Boat Race, South Port, SCNeuse Yacht Racing Association www.nyra.org8-9 Handcock Regatta, PHRF-NYRA boty, Cherry Point, NC. 15-16 J-24 Weekend Regatta, J-24, Oriental, NC. 29 Parrot Head Regatta, PHRF, New Bern, NC.South Atlantic Yacht Racing Association, www.sayra-sailing.com1 Commodores Regatta, PHRF, Cape Fear Yacht Club,
Southport, SC.1-2 Independence Day Regatta, Open, Lake Norman Yacht
Club, Mooresville, NC.7 SAYRA Youth Championship, Laser, Sunfish, Optis, 420,
Savannah Yacht Club, Savannah, GA.8-9 Firecracker Regatta, Laser, Sunfish, Optis, 420, Savannah
Yacht Club, Savannah, GA.8-9 Sears, Bemis & Smythe Semifinals, Lasers, 420, J22,
College of Charleston, Mt. Pleasent, SC.15-16 Beaufort Water Festival, Open, Beaufort Yacht and
Sailing Club, Beaufort, SC.15-16 Charleston Yacht Club, Open, Charleston, SC.22-23 Hobcaw Yacht Club, Open, Mt. Pleasant, SC.29 Jolly Jordan, Optis, Carolina Sailing Club, Raleigh, NC.29-30 Carolina Yacht Club, Open, Charleston, SC.
EAST FLORIDA RACE CALENDAR
Melbourne Yacht Club ReschedulesClub RacesBy Roy Laughlin
Melbourne Yacht Club has rescheduled its popular Fridayevening Rum Race and its small boat racing on Sundays.Melbourne Yacht Club officials announced these schedulechanges after the May issue went to press. Southwinds apol-ogizes for any problems our readers experienced as a result.We believe schedule information in this issue is correct. Werecommend you always contact the club to confirm sched-ules, as changes are frequently made.
JUNEJune – Central East Florida3-4 Spring Regatta. Titusville Sailing Center.3 Mermaid Regatta. Port Canaveral Yacht Club.3-4 Jetty Park Ocean Regatta. Port Canaveral. Space Coast
Catamaran Association.4 Small Boat Racing. Melbourne Yacht Club.7,14,21,28 Wed Evening Summer Series. Indian River Yacht Club.9 Summer Rum Race. Melbourne Yacht Club.10,17,24 Summer Buoy Race #1, #2,#3. East Coast Sailing
Association.11 Commodore Cup Race 4. Smyrna Yacht Club.17-18 Daytona Summer Sizzler. Daytona Beach. Fleet 80.23 Summer Rum Race. Melbourne Yacht Club.25 Spring #5. Indian River Yacht Club.26 Make-up Race 4. Smyrna Yacht Club.
June – Northeast Florida. www.sailjax.com 3,17,24 Summer Series #2, #3, #4. Rudder Club10 Series Race. Epping Forest Yacht Club.
JULYJuly– Central East Florida1-2 Eau Gallie Cruise. East Coast Sailing
Association–Cruising.1-2 Firecracker Regatta. Port Canaveral Yacht Club.2,9,23,30 Small Boat Racing. Melbourne Yacht Club.3-11 Regatta Time in Abaco.3,12,19,26 Wed Evening Summer Series, Indian River Yacht Club.14,28 Summer Rum Race. Melbourne Yacht Club.23 Fall Women’s #1. East Coast Sailing Association–Racing.29 River Challenge. East Coast Sailing Association–Racing.
July – Northeast Florida. www.sailjax.com8 Moonlight Regatta. Rudder Club15-16 1st Annual St. Johns Optimist Green Fleet Dinghy
Regatta. The Florida Yacht Club
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 51
Bourke helming Man-O-War (Tripp 33). Sharon managed toplace first in two out of the three races beating out localfavorite, Goombay (J/27). The Coral Cup requires a womanhelmsperson. While members of the opposite sex are per-mitted to be part of the crew, they usually are relegated asworking hands, much to the delight of the women. Results:1st Pl – Man-O-War/Sharon Bourke; 2nd Pl – Goombay/Anita Hansen;3rd Pl – BlewBaYou/Kerry Gruson.
SOUTHEAST FLORIDA RACE CALENDAR
JUNE3 Key Biscayne Yacht Club Annual Regatta - BBYRA
PHRF#7. KBYC –Race #7 of the BBYRA Annual Series, Open to all boats with PHRF certificates.
4 Key Biscayne Yacht Club Annual Regatta - BBYRAOD#7. KBYC - Race #7 of the BBYRA Annual Series, Open to all One Design class boats recognized by BBYRA.
10 Cindy’s Full Moon Regatta. Cindy Saunders BBYRA. Open to all boats who like to sail under the stars.
10 J/24 summer 2. Flat Earth Racing – J24 one design racing. Must be registered with Flat Earth Racing.
11 BBYRA OD #1 – Rescheduled from January. MYC. Make-up race rescheduled from January.
17 BBYRA PHRF#8. CRYC – Race #8 of the BBYRA annualseries for PHRF registered boats.
24 BBYRA OD #8. CRYC – Race #8 of the BBYRA annual series for One Design.
JULY4-14 Regatta Time in the Abacos. See ad page 21, and “Short
Tacks” section for more info.15 J/24 Summer 3. Flat Earth Racing – J/24 one design
racing. Must be registered with Flat Earth Racing.Note: There are no BBYRA scheduled races during the summerbreak, July and August.
Legend for Above Yacht Clubs and Organizations BBYRA Biscayne Bay Yacht Racing Association.
www.bbyra.netBBYC Biscayne Bay Yacht Club. www.bbyra.netCGSC Coconut Grove Sailing Club.
www.cgsc.orgCRYC Coral Reef Yacht Club.
www.coralreefyachtclub.orgKBYC Key Biscayne Yacht Club. www.kbyc.org.MYC Miami Yacht Club.
www.miamiyachtclub.net.
BBYRA #5 Sunburn Regatta, Miami,April 29-30By Art Perez
This year’s BBYC Sunburn Regatta turned out to be a bustfor the one-design portion of the event. Scheduled over atwo-day period, the regatta saw only a total of three boatsshow up for the start of the one-design race. The cause ofthis unfortunate turn of events was the product of a strongcold front that passed through the day before, leavingbehind winds in the 25- to 30-knot range and gusting. Thesmaller one-design boats wisely decided not to go out inthis kind of weather leaving it to the Etchell fleet to duke itout among themselves. But even that fleet had secondthoughts because only two out of the three boats thatshowed up actually raced. After the first race, the RC decid-ed that was enough and sent everyone home to dry out.
When Sunday morning rolled around, the winds werestill quite strong, but more manageable for the larger boatsin the PHRF fleet. PHRF 1 and 2 had their usual strong turn-out, making up the bulk of the fleet. The RC did a great jobof getting everyone off the line on time, and to make surethat all got their money’s worth, they ran three races insteadof the usual two.
With only three J/24s making up the fleet, the battlebetween I’ll Go and Joe Cool took center stage, with I’ll Gowinning two of the three races, losing the last race by onlytwo seconds.
In the big boat events, Chris Woosley, aboard MostlyHarmless in PHRF 1, took top honors in his class, out-duel-ing Pipe Dream XIV, which settled for second place. In PHRF2, Cai Svendsen, helming Cara Luna, left everyone in hiswake with three first-place finishes. Cai’s lifetime of racinggave him the leading edge over the rest of the fleet.
Results:Etchell; 1st Pl – Scott Piper; 2nd Pl – Jeff Nehms: Sunday Results:PHRF1; 1st Pl – Mostly Harmless/Chris Woosely; 2nd Pl – Pipe DreamXIV/Tom & Scott Piper; 3rd Pl – Sazerac/Gordon Ettie; PHRF2; 1st Pl –Caraluna/Cai Svendsen; 2nd Pl – Jammin/ Russ & Vicky Horn; 3rd Pl –Blackbird/Pat Cacace; PHRF3; 1st Pl – Sailing for Life/Karen Mitchell;PHRF4; 1st Pl – Deadline/Gerry Marston; 2nd Pl – Maiden/Lea Hume;3rd Pl – Special Warfare/Stuart Sorg; J24; 1st Pl – I’ll Go/Gonzalo DiazSr.; 2nd Pl – Joe Cool/Lionel Baugh; 3rd Pl – Hot Water/Randy Lenz;Melges 24; 1rd Pl – TBD/Dave Helmick; 1st Pl – Group Therapy/TomSeghi; 3nd Pl – Huzzah!!!/George Coggeshall
36th C-Gull Cup, Miami, May 6By Art Perez
The winner of this year’s 36th Annual C-Gull Cup,designed to promote women’s racing, was won by Sharon
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RACING
KEY WEST RACE REPORT
South Florida Sailors Win Hogsbreath-Keys 100 Race, Keys Sailor Takes Third, April 29-30By Rick White
Brian Lambert of Fort Walton Beach and Jamie Livingstone ofMiami finished just out of the trophies in fourth place in theHogsbreath Race. Photo by Rick White.
Miami area sailors took first and third places in the AnnualHogsbreath-Keys 100 Race, on April 29-30, a 100-mile trek inheavy winds and seas from Key Largo to Key West for high-speed catamaran sailboats. The first-place boat finished the100 miles in just over five hours, averaging nearly 20 mph.
Eleven catamarans started on the bay side of KeyLargo in Buttonwood Sound with very windy conditions,between 20 and 25 knots. The course ran down theIntracoastal Waterway to the Channel Five Bridge, wherethe fleet sailed to the Atlantic Side of the islands. Theystopped in Marathon on the first leg and completed thejourney to Key West on the following day, finishing atSmathers Beach in Key West.
Three boats had to withdraw from the windy conditionson the first day with breakdowns in equipment. One sailorwas separated from his disabled boat and could have easilybeen lost at sea. But another competitor picked up the sailorand brought him back to his boat. A fisherman came to theirrescue and pulled the crippled boat to shore.
Team Tybee Island, sailed by John Casey and KennyPierce of Miami, won both legs with pretty good-sizedleads. Tavernier sailor Steve Lohmayer sailed on TeamCastrol with Miamian Jay Sonenklar and took third placeoverall. Second spot went to a team from the Florida
Panhandle, Mark Murray and Mark Herendeen.The race is sponsored by the Hogsbreath Saloon of
Key West, Calvert Sails in Islamorada, Catamaran Sailormagazine and www.OnlineMarineStore.com. Specialthanks go to the Upper Keys Sailing Club for hosting thestart of the race.
For complete results, go to www.catsailor.com.
2006 Wreckers Cup Series Finale, Key WestBy Rebecca Burg
Undaunted by a small craft advisory, the third race of theseries began on Sunday, March 26. Motivated by some 20knots of north winds, 30 sailboats crashed over foamingseas with rolling waves in an offshore drag race to Sand KeyLight.
The lean, mean visage of a large trimaran rocketed fromthe bouncing pack of sails and gained so much ground thatshe beat the race committee to the finish line. You’d neverthink that a sailboat could generate such a large rooster tail.The trimaran, Lucid, was sailed by Donny Hall and earnedfirst overall. Robert Graham and his multihull, Oralee, tookthird behind the big cat, Caribbean Spirit. Heeling far over inthe wind and showing her curvy bottom, Mike Bankester’sIrwin 31, Moonspinner, pounced into second in the hard-won category of monohull-over-30 feet. Mike was passedby first-place taker Constellation, Greg Petrat’s slipperySwan. Chris Harlan’s Passing Wind found herself in the mid-dle of the fleet, but still having fun. Harlan’s long-timefriend and crewmember, Tom Reynolds, flew all the wayfrom Indianapolis to join the wild and windy fun. “It’s fan-tastic. We really do have a good time,” says Passing Windcrewman Dick Odgers.
On April 30, race four began in about 15-knot windsunder the area’s typical sunny skies. A friendly new face,San Dino’s Grace, set a new standard for the monohull-over-30 class. The 54-foot Hylas, helmed by Dave Hutchinson,slid over the finish like a silent dancer. Unfortunately,Grace’s quick and elegant stride on and off the crowdedstage was missed by the committee boat, and during theawards ceremony, first place was given to Greg withConstellation. Graciously, Greg gave the San Dino’s Gracecrew her rightful prize, and a correction was made. After areview of the race video, Mike’s Moonspinner finished in thetop three, but had also been missed in the crowd. Sean’sCapitiana and Bill’s Defiant were shoulder to shoulder forthe entire race, with Capitiana slipping out ahead at the finalmoment. Schooners Mistress and Liberty Clipper vied for aclass first in a rather aristocratic, sail-flexing fight for domi-nance. Mistress took first in the third race while Libertyregained the prize for the last race.
“We put the FUN back in DYSFUNCTIONAL” readsthe crew T-shirts of the J/24 Thin Ice. Matt and Ivy’s J/24remains at the top despite the best efforts of Colin’s J/24,Harley, and Evalena’s elegant Freya. John Smittle was backin action with Class Act. Mark Fox’s antique wooden vessel,Clay Basket, was a poised and elegant winner in the classicdivision.
For complete results, go to www.schoonerwharf.com(“special events” page).
Sam Chapin Regatta, April 29-30, Key WestBy Rebecca Burg
Saturday’s winds gusting to 30 mph and Sunday’s firm 15-to 20-mph winds didn’t chase away this tough crowd ofLasers and small boats. Overall, 18 vessels joined the eventand battled for top honors in the 2nd Annual Sam ChapinRegatta. Some boats literally dropped out and were dunkedin the gusts. The spray was flying as first place was earnedby James Cook and Bud Case. Jeff Serrie and Walt Matthewssailed into second while third was won by Tom Theisen andJack Worth. Wet and windblown, the crowd enjoyed anafter-race grill-out, party and a raffle of valuable prizes.
KEYS RACE CALENDAR
Key West Sailing Club. Every Saturday – Open House at theKey West Sailing Club. 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (305) 292-5993.www.keywestsailingclub.org. Sailboat Lane off Palm Avenuein Key West. Come by the club to sail. Non-members andmembers welcome. Wednesday night racing has begun for thesummer season. Skippers meet at the clubhouse by 5:00 p.m.and boats start racing at 6:00 p.m. in the seaplane basin nearthe mooring field. Dinner and drinks afterward.
Upper Keys Sailing Club. www.upperkeyssailingclub.com.
One-Design Crew Training, Davis Island, Tampa Bay, FL,June 3, 10 and 17. See beginning of race section, page 47, formore information.
West Florida PHRF Annual Meeting. June 24. SarasotaYacht Club. Discussion of classes, calendar, rules andorganization. Presentation of Boat of the Year awards forWest Florida regions. Open to all members and those inter-ested in West Florida racing. For more information, contactJay Tyson, WFPHRF president at [email protected].
RACE REPORT
Update on the Sinking of the SailingVessel Naboo at the Gasparilla Regattaon Tampa Bay, Feb. 11By Gene DeNisio
In the March issue, I mentioned that several boats spottedthe sinking boat, and they picked up its crew, which wastaken to the committee boat. I would like to set the record
straight. As I was busy with my own boat problems at thetime, I was not aware of the sinking or of the rescue, andrelied on second-hand information for the original article.
I would like to tell everyone of the first-rate seamanshipdisplayed by the captain, James Myers, and crew of the racingsailboat, Renegade. With high winds blowing and the sea staterising and confused due to both the wind and the number ofboats in the area. Capt. Myers was able to maneuver his boatinto position to pick up two of the three crewmen who werestill able to swim to Renegade, While attempting this rescue,Renegade suffered some damage herself, but kept on going.The third crewman was at this point too tired to swim over toRenegade and clung to the mast of Naboo, a Santana 20, whichwas still sticking above the surface of the water. Capt. Myersmade another pass upwind of the stricken Naboo and droppedoff their ship’s life ring, so that it floated down to the tiredcrewman. Once the crewman had the ring, he was able to letgo of the mast, float free of the sunken boat and give Capt.Myers and his crew a chance to pick him up without the run-ning his boat into the mast sticking out of the water. Renegadeis a type of boat that doesn’t have much of a stern, about eightinches is all it has, but the about-to-be-rescued crewman wasat this point too exhausted to even climb aboard this small dis-tance and required the assistance of two of Renegade’s crew toget aboard.
During the rescue, another boat also dropped out of therace to offer its assistance, and that was Bill the Cat withDavid Taylor and crew.
The crew of Naboo all made it home safely and that isdue in very large part to the seamanship of the captains andcrews who came to their rescue. To all who helped in therescue, I say, “Well Done.”
Jabbo Gordon Invitational Regatta,Englewood, FL, April 22By Jabbo Gordon
Fred Hutchinson of Fort Myers won all six races to win the 10-boat Sunfish class in the third annual Jabbo GordonInvitational Regatta on Lemon Bay in Englewood on April 22.
Sarasota’s Abby Featherstone captured three races, tooka third and finished fourth twice to grab the 20-boat Red,White and Blue Optimist division, which was the largest ofthe five-class regatta that attracted 54 skippers from as faraway as Eustis, FL.
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54 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
Liam McCarthy of Naples skippered his InternationalOptimist to four firsts, a third and a fifth in the 11-boatGreen fleet, which is for first year competitors.
Mike Dowd of Sarasota’s Youth Sailing Program sailedhis Laser Radial to five firsts and a second to take thePortsmouth division, which had eight boats. MaxFamiglietti and Chelsea Carlson, also of Sarasota, also hadfive firsts and a second to win the five-boat 420 class.
The regatta featured three races in the mornng and threein the afternoon over a trapezoid course off Indian MoundPark. Sailors were treated to moderate winds, which shiftedfrom southerly to southwesterly during the day.
Proceeds from the event go to the Lou Gehrig’s DiseaseAssociation of Southwest Florida. Sarasota’s JohnJorgensen, president of the association, which serves vic-tims and their families from Tampa to Naples, presentedtrophies along with LGDA board member Rich Brooks.Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS, or LouGehrig’s Disease, attacks the neurons that control voluntarymuscles. It has no cure yet. Results (Trophy winners and their scores): Portsmouth: (1) MikeDowd, Sarasota, 7. (2) Will Stocke, Sarasota, 13. (3) Samuel Dolby,Englewood, 21. (4) Glenda Libby, Eustis, 22. 420s: (1) Max Famigliettiand Chelsea Carlson, Sarasota, 7. (2) Jackie Sims and Molly McKinney,Venice, 11. Sunfish: (1) Fred Hutchinson, Fort Myers, 6. (2) KevinPierce, Fort Myers, 16. (3) Damien Lin, Fort Myers, 18. (4) MikeMierswa, Sarasota, 24. Optimist Red-White-Blue: (1) AbbyFeatherstone, Sarasota, 14. (2) Christopher Stocke, Sarasota, 32. (3)Jasper Curry, Sarasota, 37. (4) Matt Dowd, Sarasota, 40. (5) Ian Nora,Sarasota, 46. Optimist Green: (1) Liam McCarthy, Naples, 12. (2) SethHart, Venice, 14. (3) Ben Mohney , Venice, 16. (4) Andrea Schmidt, St.Petersburg, 28. (5) Carmela Zabala, Naples, 33.
Leukemia Cup Regatta, CharlotteHarbor, FL, April 22-23By Mike Savino
The 2006 Leukemia Cup Regatta, a Charlotte Harbor Boat ofthe Year event, was conducted on Charlotte Harbor by theIsles Yacht Club and the Punta Gorda Sailing Club. The firstday of the two-day, three-race event was in a brisk souther-ly breeze on Saturday, April 22. The Spinnaker and Tri-Hullboats used a windward/leeward course, and the Non-Spinnaker and Cruising fleets used a triangle course.
The second day had no wind at start time, causing thestart to be postponed for an hour and 20 minutes. Finally asouthwesterly breeze of five knots kicked in, and the racewas able to start. The overall winner of the Leukemia Cupwas Rooster Tail, a S-2, 7.9-meter boat in the Spinnaker fleetskippered by David Flechsig of the Punta Gorda SailingClub. The rest of the crew was Paul Alessandroni, JohnHouse, Scott Endicott, Kande Blubaugh and Fred Hannon.
The real winner of the Leukemia Cup Regatta was theLeukemia and Lymphoma Society, which was the benefici-ary of over $90,000 raised from the generous sponsors ofthis event.Results: Spinnaker Fleet; 1st Rooster Tail, S-2, 7.9, David Flechsig;2nd Crime Scene, S-2, 7.9, Peter New; 3rd Bama Slammer, S-2, 7.9,Bob Knowles; Non-Spinnaker Fleet; 1st Fancy Free, Soverel 39, JerryPoquette; 2nd Frisbee, Able Poitn, Bill McClean; 3rd Learning To Fly,J-32, George Buckingham; Cruising Fleet; 1st Oui Oui, Swan 40, DonLevy; 2nd La Boheme, Irwin 38, Ron Scalzo; 3rd Desert Fox II, Hunter340, Roger Rommel; Multi-Hull; 1st Bahama Hunter, Farrier F-33, TomBragaw.
WEST FLORIDA RACE CALENDAR
On-line West Florida Race CalendarGo to [email protected] to view the annualon-line race calendar on the Southwinds Web Site with linksto clubs and information and changes to schedules. To haveyour race listed, or changes in your race schedule, e-mailthe information to the editor, Steve Morrell, [email protected].
The West Florida list of yacht clubs and sailing organi-zations is also on line.
Club Racing Bradenton YC. Evening Races Daylight Savings time of
year. Races at 6:30 p.m. PHRF racing on Manatee River. Forinfo call Larry Lecuyer, (941) 729-5401.
Venice Sailing Squadron. Saturdays. First Saturday ofeach month, PHRF racing. Start at mouth of Venice Inlet.www.venice-sailing-squadron.org
Edison Sailing Center, Fort Myers. Sunfish and dinghyracing once a month, year-round [email protected]
Port Charlotte. Third Saturday of month, [email protected]
Boat of the Year Races (BOTY):Southwest Boat of the Year (SWBOTY), Charlotte HarborBoat of the Year (CHBOTY), Sarasota (SBOTY), SuncoastBoat of the Year (SBOTY)
West Florida PHRF Annual Meeting. June 24 Sarasota Yacht ClubDiscussion of classes, calendar, rules and organization.Presentation of Boat of the Year awards for West Floridaregions. Open to all members and those interested in WestFlorida racing. For more information, contact Jay Tyson,WFPHRF president at [email protected].
JUNE3 St. Petersburg YC. Darlene Clark Bikini Cup. 3-4 Tampa Bay Catamaran Society. Jetty Park Ocean
Regatta, Catamarans. 4 Caloosahatchee Marching & Chowder Society. Ladies
Day Race, PHRF. 6 St. Petersburg YC. Calendar organizing meeting for
Tampa Bay area clubs. 10 Cortez Yacht Club Commodore’s Cup Series (CYCCC).
Race #2. Cortez YC.10 Tampa Bay Yacht Racing Assoc. Trans-Bay Race, PHRF 17 Dunedin Boat Club. Larkin Regatta, PHRF in the Gulf
off Clearwater Pass 17-18 Summer Sailstice. Worldwide celebration of sail 24 Caloosahatchee Marching & Chowder Society.
Sunworshipper’s Race, PHRF. 25 Tampa Bay Catamaran Society. 45 x 45 Catamaran
Distance Race
JULY4 Sarasota Sailing Squadron. Firecracker Race. 4 Tampa Bay Catamaran Society. Race For Liberty,
Catamarans. 8 Cortez Yacht Club Commodore’s Cup Series (CYCCC).
Race #3. Cortez YC.22 Caloosahatchee Marching & Chowder Society.
Firecracker Night Race, PHRF.
RACING
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 55
coastal waters of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama witheven more submerged debris still needing to be removed.
Because of this clean-up status and because the smallboat harbor of Gulfport, MS, (starting location for the race)was still inaccessible to boaters, organizers considered can-celing this year’s event. Instead, they decided to change theformat to continue the event. The decision was made tohold a long distance off-shore race from Pensacola (tradi-tionally the finish line) out to a gas-oil rig approximately 50miles to the south of Pensacola Bay, then to proceed west tothe Perdido Bay Sea Buoy and back to the Pensacola YachtClub entrance channel marker as a racecourse for allSpinnaker class boats entered into the competition. Non-Spinnaker participants will sail a different course headingout of Pensacola Bay, then proceeding to the east toward theDestin Sea Buoy and back to the Pensacola Yacht Clubentrance channel marker.
Through this creative racecourse, an alternate competitionhas been offered to the Gulf Coast community sailor. It is thehopes of the race organizers that this alternate opportunity willbe a challenging and fun contest. Registration and informationfor the race can be found at www.pensacolayachtclub.org
LOCAL RACE REPORT
MacDonald and Thomas Win 29thAnnual Performance Midwinters East,Pensacola Beach, March 25-26By Julie B. Connerley
Some multihullers just can’t get enough, or maybe it’s justthat “nothing drives like a rental,” as one competitor saidduring the 29th annual Performance Midwinters East heldon Pensacola Beach, March 25-26. Eleven teams used thesame Nacra 20s sailed in the Hobie Alter Cup just two daysbefore. Three others raced Nacra F-17s.
For other sailors, like the Teets family of Dublin, OH,the competition, hosted by Key Sailing on Pensacola Beach,is part of the family’s vacation and has been for the past 18years. Mike Teets, 42, and his son Austin, 13, were the onlyfather-son team. Austin was also the youngest competitor.
Consistently finishing in the top three places in all nineraces (electing to throw out one fourth-place finish) wasJohn MacDonald, 37, of Gulf Breeze, FL, and his crew, TonyThomas, 30, of Pensacola. MacDonald has 25 years experi-ence, Thomas 12. “We’ve been sailing together for abouttwo months,” smiled MacDonald after accepting the first-place overall trophy.
Jake Kohl and crewmember David Mosley came in sec-ond with 22 points. Kohl, of Greenville, SC, is a member ofTeam Seacats, a catamaran sailboat racing team focused onracing events all over North America. He served as vice-chair for the 20th annual U.S. Multihull Championship.Kohl assumes chair duties for the 2007 competition beingheld in Melbourne, FL.
Third place went to Pensacola sailors Mark Smith andBubba Barberi with a total of 31 points.
2006 Challenge Cup, Pensacola, FL,June 23-25By Kim Kaminski
The 2006 GYA (Gulf Yachting Association) Challenge CupRegatta will be held over a three-day period on June 23-25at the Pensacola Yacht Club. This annual competitioninvites all yacht clubs which are current general members inthe GYA. Each club may enter no less than three and nomore than four boats in the different classes, which include:Class A handicap rating of 15 to 72, Class B handicap ratingof 75 to 111, Class C handicap rating of 114 to 150 and ClassD handicap rating of 153 to 213.
In addition, the skipper, the helmsman and at least halfthe crew must be current members of the yacht club theyrepresent.
On Thursday, June 22, a race briefing will be held at thePensacola Yacht Club. Traditionally, this competition hasbeen held at the Gulfport Yacht Club in Gulfport, MS, butdue to Hurricane Katrina, the event was moved toPensacola.
The regatta will have seven races, and no races can bethrown out in final scoring. A yacht club’s points for a racewill be the sum of the scores of the best three boats of thatclub in the race, lowest total points winning. The winningfour-boat entry yacht club will be awarded the Spring HillCollege Gulf Yachting Association Offshore Challenge CupTrophy. The yacht club with the lowest point total amongthe three-boat entry teams will be awarded the Mobile YachtClub Trophy. The G.S. Buddy Friedrichs Trophy will begiven to the boat that places first in the A fleet.
For more information, go to www.pensacolayacht-club.org, or contact Fleet Captain John Matthews at (850)492-4802.
Race Changes: Pensacola Bay OffshoreRace (formerly the Gulfport toPensacola Race), June 30-July 1By Kim Kaminski
Every June, sailors of the Gulf coast look forward to the excit-ing 100-mile coastal race from Gulfport, MS, to Pensacola, FL.This year, even months after Hurricane Katrina, race organiz-ers were still uncertain as to whether this much anticipatedand well-attended event would even be held.
Coastal water debris clean-up is still under way (evenafter 10 months of debris removal has been executed). Severalthousand tons of materials have been removed from the See NORTHERN GULFCOAST RACING CALENDAR on page 60
56 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
58 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 59
60 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
BOAT LETTERING
CANVAS & CUSHION SERVICES
SCUBA CLEANSee ad in Underwater Services
CHARTERSMAHINA LA SAILING . . . . . .(941) 713-8000MacGregor 65 * Two hours to two weeksSouth Tampa Bay Area in CortezDaily Sunset Cruises or Sail to the Keys www.floridasailingtrips.com
YOGA SAILING CHARTERS (305) 989-7181Enjoy a Magical week of Yoga & AdventureSailing in the Bahamas or Belize Oct. 05 orJan & May 06 www.dutchlove.com
CAPTAIN SERVICES
CAPT. KEVIN MURPHY . . . . .(340) 277-1026USCG Licensed Master, Deliveries, Instruction [email protected]
TOPSAIL SERVICESDeliveries • Consulting
Power • SailUSCG Licensed Master • Unlimited TonnageDon Charland (910) 279-6315
COMMUNICATIONSDOCKSIDE RADIO www.docksideradio.comPactor II/III Modem Sales & Support; FCCMarine Radio License filing; SailMail WinLinkInstallation & Training . . . . .(941) 661-4498
CUSTOM BOAT SERVICES & REPAIRS
ELLIE’S SAILING SHOP . . . . . . . . . .Clearwater Lifelines, rigging, hardware, repairsServing small boat sailors Since 1958Sunfish Boats and Parts . . . . .(727) 442-3281________________________________________
GLASTECH YACHTS . . . . . . .(727) 544-5512Full Service Marine Yard & Mobile ServicePower & Sail • Serving West Floridawww.glastech34trawler.com________________________________________
Industrial Marine Supply . . . . . . . .Tampa BayGas/Diesel Repair & MaintenanceCertified Electrical & Plumbing Underwater work . . . . . .(775) 771-8515 cell
FISHING GUIDES
FL KEYS BACKCOUNTRY TRIPSWith Pro Guide Capt. “BR”Exploring, Sportfishing, Birding(305) 304-2258 www.keywestsportfish.com
MARINE DIESEL SERVICE
INLAND MARINE DIESEL . . . . . . . . . .AtlantaService/Parts for all makes of diesel auxiliaryNew Engine Sales–Universal, Beta, Yanmar,and Westerbeke . . . . . . . . ..(404) 513-4414
MARINE SURVEYINGTAYLOR MARINE SURVEYING &CONSULTING, LLCSpecializing in Sailing Vessels (813) 625-0448www.taylormarinesurveying.com
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REGIONAL SAILINGSailing Services Directory starts as low as $10 a month.
Advertise your services here
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Northern Gulf Coast Race Calendar
JUNE 3-4 Ladies PHRF Championship –
Southern Yacht Club, New Orleans, LA3 Ladies Fleur De Lis – CSA, Lake
Pontchartrain. Women’s Sailing Association, NOYC, SYC
3 Mobile Bay Marathon - FYC3 Cancer Society Regatta (Amanda
Werner Trophy). PYC3 School’s Out Regatta (one design).
PONTYC3-4 Chandler Regatta (Capdevielle).
SABYC3-4 Ladies PHRF Championship. SYC3-4. Ladies Fleur de Lis - CSA, LPWSA,
SYC, NOYC3-4 Mobile Bay Marathon. MYC10 Commodore’s Cup #3. NYC10 Race to the Coast. SYC10-11 Billy Bowlegs Regatta. FWYC22-25 GYA Challenge Cup. PYC24-25 GYA 420. NOYC
24 Glorious Fourth. LFYC24 We Found the Bay Regatta. PYC30 PYC Championship #2. PYC30-July 1 Pensacola Bay Offshore Race. PYC
JULY1-2 Horn Island Hop (one design/
multihull). OSYC1-3 U.S. Junior Olympic Festival. PYC8-9 Meigs Regatta (Capdevielle). FWYC8 Around the Lake. CSA8 Commodore’s Regatta. (Sunfish).
SERVICES DIRECTORYCall (941) 795-8704 or e-mail [email protected]
RIGGING SERVICES
Bay RiggingTAMPA’S MOBILE RIGGING SERVICE Yacht Rigging • Furlers • Lifelines
Cell (727) 215-0704www.bayrigging.com
SSMR. INC. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .727-823-4800Complete Rigging Services
On-Site Crane, Splicing & SwagingCommissioning Services
On Salt Creek at Salt Creek Boat WorksFax 727-823-3270 . . . . . . . . . .St. Petersburg
SAILING INSTRUCTION
ADVENTURE CRUISING & SAILING SCHOOLA sailing school for Women and Couples• ASA • West Florida and Chesapeakewww.acss.bz . . . . . . . . . . . . .(727) 204-8850
YACHTING VACATIONS Punta Gorda, FL Sailboat Charters 22’-48’ ASA instructionLive-aboard/non-live-aboardwww.yachtingvacations.com (800) 447-0080
SEA TIME SAILING SCHOOL . . . . .Miami, FL Offshore trips/Sailing courseswww.seatimesailing.com . . . .(954) 636-9726
SAILMAKING, REPAIRING& CLEANING
ADVANCED SAILS . . . . . . . . .(727) 896-7245Quality Cruising Sails & Service
Closest Sailmaker to St. Petersburg MarinasKeith Donaldson . . . . . . . . . .(727) 896-7245
C’S CANVAS AND SAIL REPAIRSee ad in Canvas & Cushion Services
MASTHEAD USED SAIL . . . .(800) 783-6953www.mastheadsailinggear.comLargest Inventory in the South (727) 327-5361
PORPOISE SAILING SERVICES – Sarasota
*New/Used Sails * New Custom SailsRoller Furling Systems & Packages
(800) 507-0119www.porpoisesailing.com
Scuba Clean Yacht ServiceSee ad in Underwater Services
UNDERWATER SERVICES
Scuba Clean Yacht Service• Underwater Services • Canvas Shop • Sail Cleaning & Repair • Detailing
Serving Pinellas, Hillsborough, Sarasota,Pasco & Manatee Counties.
(727) 327-2628
NYC8 Patriot’s Day Regatta. PBYC8 Single-Handed Regatta. FYC8 Race for the Case. GYC8 Rhodes 19 Nationals. FYC15-16 Summer Regatta (Capdevielle). MYC15 Fast Women Regatta. PYC15 Bastille Day Regatta. NOYC15 Night Race #2. FWBYC22-23 Weatherly Regatta (Capdevielle).
GYC22-23 U. S. Junior Women’s Single-
Handed Regatta, Leiter Cup. Houston Yacht Club
22,29 Summer #1, #2. CSA22 Bikini Regatta. NYC29-30 Junior Lipton Cup. SYC29 Race for the Roses. PBYC29 Cruising / Raft-up. PYC
Wednesday Evening Fun RacesPensacola Yacht Club. 2nd & 4th Wednesdays of the Month - April- OctoberFort Walton Yacht Club. April thru October
ADVERTISEIN THE
SERVICE DIRECTORY
Starting at $96 a year
(941) 795-8704
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 61
BOATS WANTED___________________________J/24 Trailer. Single or dual axle. Needing somerepairs okay. Call (904) 264-7957 (6/06)___________________________Trailer wanted for Catalina 28. [email protected]
BOATS & DINGHIES___________________________Life Raft. Viking 4 person. Offshore ResuYouPro (automatic self-righting, double inflatablefloor, inflatable boarding ramp), in valise.Purchased new 11/04, never used. $2250OBO. E-mail: [email protected] or call(727) 367-4647. (6/06)___________________________Inflatable Dinghy for sale. 8’ 8” PlastimoP270K. Solid Wood floor. PVC. Oars. NeverUsed in Perfect Condition. $850/Best Offer. Bradenton, FL. (941) [email protected].___________________________27’ ERICSON. Carefully maintained, fast, stur-dy, many upgrades & extras, roller furlinggenoa, autopilot and remote, A/C, Bimini,inboard runs great, sailaway, 1 mo. free slip!Reduced! $9,400 offers. Call (727) 364-6710.(7/06)
Catalina 30, 1990 Std Rig, Wing Keel, 2001Westerbeke 26 HP 525 Hours, two 155 Jibs, 2Mains, Spinnaker, Profurl, A/C, Refrigeration,Propane Stove, Hot Pressure water, FullCanvas covers, Auto Pilot, Full electronics,Beautifully Maintained. Call for Specifications$47,500 (239) 768-9205. (8/06)
1975 Hunter 30, shoal draft, diesel, cruise-equipped, great liveaboard, electronics, pilot,full batten main, boat in good condition, locat-ed Bay St. Louis, MS. Slip available, two jibs,lots of gear, $8500, (228) 342-6277. [email protected] (6/06)___________________________1982 30 ft. Olson. Performance racing sloop.Race with the best for a fraction of the cost.Good sail inventory. $6500. Jack Scragg (239)482-8370. Fort Myers Beach. (6/06)
31’ Catalina 310 2000 – Furling Mast, A/C,Bimini, Windshield, Chart Plotter, Radar, AutoPilot, Inverter, AGM Lifeline Batteries 10/05,Balmar Alternator, Davits, Electric Windlass,Exceptional Boat! $77,500. Massey Yacht SalesFt. Myers – (239) 334-3674, Palmetto – (941)723-1610, St. Pete – (727) 824-7262. (8/06)
• Classified ads with text only for boats are $25 fora three-month ad for up to 30 words. $50 for adwith horizontal photo ($65 if vertical photo). Checkor Credit cards accepted. Must be for sale by owner– no business ads. Boats wanted ads included.• Free ads for boats under $500 (sail and dinghiesonly), all gear under $500, and windsurfingequipment. For sale by owner ads only.• All other ads (including business ads) are $20 amonth for up to 20 words, add $5 a month foreach additional 10 words. $10 a month for a hor-izontal photo. Frequency discounts available.Contact editor.• All ads go on the SOUTHWINDS Web site. For aone-time $10 fee, we will place your ad on theInternet before going to press on the next issue. • No Refunds • The last month your ad runs will be in parenthe-ses, e.g., (10/06) is October 2006.
• Ad must be received by the 10th of the month.
TO PLACE AN AD:1. On the Internet www.southwindsmagazine.comThis applies only to the $25 and $50 ads above withand without photo. Pay with Paypal and put yourad in the subject line. If a photo, then e-mail [email protected] as a separate jpegattachment.2. Via E-mail and Credit Card. E-mail your ad [email protected]. Text can be put inthe e-mail. Send photos as a separate jpeg attach-ment to the e-mail. Pay by mail (see below) or creditcard. You can call us with a credit card number. Giveus the credit card number, expiration, billing addressand name on card. Call (941) 795-8704.3. Mail your ad in. Mail to SOUTHWINDS, PO Box1175, Holmes Beach, FL 34218-1175. Send a checkor credit card number with information as listed in #2
CLASSIFIED ADS — 3 Months for $25Place your ad early on the Internet for $10
above. Mail the photo in (35mm best). If you wantthe photo back, enclose a SASE. Add $5 for a typingcharge.4. Telephone or fax your ad in. Call (941) 795-8704and give us your ad over the phone. There is anadditional $5 typing charge. If you have a photo,you can mail it in. We can take your credit card num-ber, or you can mail a check. Fax: (941) 795-8705.5. Do a combination of the above. E-mail, call in orsend the ad text in via Paypal on our Web site. E-mail the photo directly to the editor. If you don’thave a scanner, mail the photo to us separately. Callthe editor at (941) 795-8704 with any questions.6. We will pick up your ad. Send the editor a checkfor air flight, car rental, hotel, travel, eating andentertainment expenses, and he will come to yourlocation and pick up the ad. Any ads to be pickedup on tropical islands or other resort destinationswill be free.
DISPLAY CLASSIFIEDSAdvertise your business in a display ad in the classifieds section. Sold by the
column inch. 2 inch minimum.(3 column inches is 1/8 page)
MONTHLY COST MINIMUM TOTALADS PER INCH INCHES COST
12 $19 2" $386 $22 2" $443 $25 2" $501 $29 2" $58
62 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
ADVERTISEYOURBOAT
Startingat
$25 for 3 months
C L A S S I F I E D A D S
32’ HUNTER 320 2001. Freshwater, ICW,loaded w/extras, In-mast furling main, autopi-lot, 80-watt solar panel, bimini, dodger, stereosystem, companionway teak doors. $69,500/obo. Luka, MS, (731)394-1897, [email protected]. (8/06)
33’ Glander Tavana 1985 center board masthead sloop. Newly painted bottom, hull, top-sides and non-skid. New rub rail, teak hatch-es. New jib sail. 30 HP Vetus diesel. GreatFlorida and Bahamas boat, draws 3’ board up.A no- nonsense boat offered below market at$12,900/best offer. Needs TLC. Call MajorCarter (941) 792-9100.
32’ Anastasia Double-ended Cutter, main, jiband staysail, Yanmar 3 cylinder diesel, hull per-fect, house needs completion and minorrepairs, No storm damage, Pensacola,$10,000 OBO, Photos on [email protected]. (7/06).
1973 S&S DEB 33 centerboard sloop. 3’7” -6’3” draft, diesel, tiller autopilot, good sails,Bimini, dodger, VHF, depth, roller furling,AC, 8’ dinghy w/OB. $20,000 OBO. (941)918-9310 (941) 320-7505. (8/06)
1977 Trident Warrior 35. Well-maintainedand equipped for offshore. Call for Details.(850) 866-4490. $46,500 OBO.
1995 Hunter 35.5 Only 615 hrs on Yanmar27. New canvas, Navico autopilot, ST 60depth, ST 60 speed, Furuno GPS, SGC SSBradio, Apelco VHF, dinghy w/OB engine, rollerfurling, full batten main w/dutchman, solarpanel, S&L windlass, holding plate refrigera-tion, SS propane stove, 12000 BTU marine air,TV, stereo. Ready to sail with performance andpleasure. $69,900. www.cortezyachts.com.(941) 792-9100
1994 Hunter 35.5 Yanmar 27 HP recentlyserviced with 780 hours, NEW stereow/remote control, NEW refrigeration, NEWIsenglass in dodger, NEW Batteries (3), NEWBottomsider cockpit cushions, NEW AC ther-mostat, NEW electric windlass w/remoteswitch in cockpit, MarineAire AC, 16,000BTU, recently serviced, Davits, inflatable and2-hp Honda 2-stroke recently serviced.Massey Yacht Sales & Service (727) 824-7262.
1970 Ericson 35 MKll - Bruce King classicdesign hull #164. Universal 30 HP diesel,Wheel steering w/ emergency tiller, All lineslead aft, Newer sails; 130% UK Kevlar, 170%dacron genoa, & fully battened main w/ reef-ing system. Lazy jack system, Harken dualsheet traveller, Harken roller reef, dodger w/dodger, bimini & full canvas cockpit enclosureincl screens. updated interior cushions, 150’chain w/3 anchors, electric windlass,AM/FM/CD stereo w/cockpit speakers &power amp, Marine Radio, Auto Pilot 4000,Many upgrades incl. opening port lightsthroughout, newer AC & DC throughout.Documented. Great sailing boat w/ lots ofnice gear. Partial trade for smaller trailerableboat considered. $19,000. (727) 363-4000.(7/06)
DISPLAY CLASSIFIED ADSSTARTING AT $38/MONTH
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 63
ALL CLASSIFIEDS ON WEB SITE:
www.southwindsmagazine.com
C L A S S I F I E D A D S
Catalina 36, 1984. Full racing/cruisingupgrades, Tall mast, 5’10” draft, rigid boomvang, upgraded flat travel, AC, self-tailingtwo-speed winches, good condition, newheadsail, roller furling, cockpit shower, 3 GPSunits, 2 VHFs, bimini and dodger, 4 batteries,all lines lead to cockpit. $48,900. Autohelm4000. (941) 795-4646. Tampa Bay. [email protected]. For pictures and more info,go to www.catalinaowners.com and do asearch for this boat in classifieds. (7/06)
IRWIN 37’ cruise equipped, AutoPilot, diesel,center cockpit, watermaker, GPS’s, VHF/HFradios, solar panels, Wind-Gen. Dinghy & OBSpares, complete, working, everything youneed, needs TLC $29,900 (305) 731-3911. [email protected]. (8/06)
38’ Lagoon Catamaran. 2002. Excellent con-dition. One of the best on the market for themoney. Very well-equipped. Lots of new andupdated equipment. $295,000. Call Bob,owner, at (507) 951-1625, or call YachtingVacations (800) 447-0080. Burnt Store Marina,Punta Gorda, FL. (7/06)
Columbia 40 1966 centerboard diesel sloop.This classic Maine yacht needs elbow grease onthe bright work. First $21,000 firm. Lying FortMyers. (239) 454-6404. (8/06)___________________________Cheoy Lee Offshore 40 yawl, 1978, with St.Pete Municipal Marina slip available. Newmainsail, headliner, dodger/bimini. Low enginehours. Many upgrades. $64,000 E-mail [email protected]. (6/06)
1984 LANCER 45 CC Sloop with 85 HPPerkins, 3 staterooms, 2 heads, walkthru toaft cabin w/ centerline bed. Marine air. Rollerfurling main and jib. Depth and wind instru-ments at the helm. CPT autopilot, Furuno CRTradar, GPS, VHF, stereo CD, TV, full galley,electric windlass, dodger, 11’ Alliance RIBw/OB. www.cortezyachts.com. A great live-aboard or cruiser. $79,900 (941) 792-9100
45’ 6” LOA Bayfield 40, Hull # 34 full keel 5’draft, cutter ketch designed by H.T.Gozzardbuilt in 1984. Exceptional condition with lotsof new gear. Harken roller furling on all sails.Marine air, WS, WD, depth, VHF w/remote,SSB, cd/radio, autopilot, chartplotter, Radar,dinghy, life raft $114,000 Call Major Carter orvisit www.Cortezyachts.com
BOAT GEAR & SUPPLIES___________________________Two Montague folding, full-size bicycles;perfect for cruising. Like new, with manyextras, including soft carrying cases. “A bicyclethat folds, not a folding bicycle.” $350 each.(941)743-7156 or (941)504-3302. (8/06)___________________________CQR 25 Anchor for sale-No Rust. $75.00.Pompano Beach (954) 558-1360. (8/06)___________________________Wanted. Used Aluminum Boom forLightning. (904) 794-0937. (7/06)___________________________Gimballed stove, 3 burner with oven, pro-pane. Winches, misc. hardware, & gear,Perkins diesel with clutch, (228) [email protected]. Located Bay St.Louis, MS. (6/06)___________________________Tohatsu 18 hp long shaft model. Recentlytuned. Propped for maximum thrust at lowoperating rpms. Dependable. Ideal for 27-footsailboat. Capable of 6 knots to weather in snot-ty seas. Tilt mechanism recently reconditionedand now smooth as butter. Sexy paint job withflames on cowl. Silver cowl and blue shaft.Offers. (941) 722-9022. (6/06)___________________________Boat Diesel Engine.Volvo Penta 3000. 27 hp.Two cylinder. Total hours 3338. Includes manynew parts. Instruction manual. Parts list.Running condition. $2500 negotiable. BestOffer. Ask Mark at (772) 283-1947 from 8 a.m- 4 p.m. (7/06)___________________________Anchor CQR plow. 25 lb. Never used. $200.St. Pete. (727) 344-2092. till 7 p.m. (7/06)
64 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
SEE CLASSIFIED INFO ON PAGE 62
C L A S S I F I E D A D S
Yanmar 10hp 1GM10 Diesel. ExcellentCondition. All gauges and controls. Tank, propand shaft, extra filters and parts. $1600. (727)804-4508.
Used Boat Gear For Sale - Force & MagmaGrills, Folding Bikes, Windscoops, Drogues,Lifesling, Type 1 Life Jackets w/strobe, Blocks,Turnbuckles, Anchors, Line & Chain. NauticalTrader (941) 488-0766.www.nauticaltrader.net. (7/06)
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 65
C L A S S I F I E D A D S
BOOKS & CHARTS___________________________Ocean Routing – Jenifer Clark’s Gulf StreamBoat Routing/Ocean Charts by the “best inthe business.” (301) 952-0930, fax (301) 574-0289 or www.erols.com/gulfstrm
BUSINESS/INVESTMENT___________________________Licensed contractor with experience in high-end residential work, both new and remodel-ing, seeks to qualify a builder as an active,advising, part-time, non-working partner. I ama very responsible, honest experienced builderwith excellent qualifications seeking the sameto work on projects in residential work. Onlyvery quality-oriented and responsible builders/carpenters need contact me who are in theManatee/Sarasota counties area. I also amonly interested in enjoyable, interesting work— not the rat race. [email protected].
CREW AVAILABLE/WANTED___________________________Visit SOUTHWINDS “NEW” boat and crewlisting service at southwindssailing.com
DELIVERY SERVICES___________________________DELIVERIES. ICW, Coastal, Caribbean & Gulf,Sail or Power, by USCG Licensed Captain with30 Years professional experience Includingtwo transAtlantic deliveries. (443) 243-4925or www.marylandsailing.com (8/06) ___________________________
HELP WANTED___________________________Articles and race reports in the Carolinas andGeorgia. [email protected].___________________________
Edwards Yacht Sales is expanding! Yacht bro-kers needed to sell sailboats on either coast. Willtrain! Excellent commissions, group health insur-ance, bonus plan. Contact Roy Edwards at (727)725-1600, www.EdwardsYachtSales.com___________________________Writers, Reporters, Articles, Photos Wanted.SOUTHWINDS is looking for articles on boating,racing, sailing in the Southern waters in allregions, the Caribbean and the Bahamas. Weare also looking for other articles on the follow-ing subjects: marinas, anchorages, mooringfields, disappearing marinas and boatyards,marinas and boatyards sold for condos,anchoring rights, sailing human interest stories,boat reviews, charter stories, waste disposal—and more. Photos are wanted on all these sub-jects, plus we want cover photos (pay $65 forcover photos) of both race and non-race sub-jects, but about sailing. Cover photos must bevery high resolution and vertical format.___________________________Service Dept. Rigger. Massey Yacht Sales isaccepting applications and resumes for sailand/or powerboat riggers/outfitters. Manyemployee benefits including paid holidays, paidvacations, health insurance, workmen’s compinsurance, performance bonuses, and goodhourly salary. Must be hardworking, honest, haveown tools and be a team player. Excellent servicedepartment support and organization. Call AliceWinter, ext. 10, service dept. mgr. at (941) 723-1949, or fax resume to (941) 729-7520.___________________________Writers and Ideas Wanted on WaterwaysIssues. SOUTHWINDS is looking for writers, act-ing as independent subcontractors to researchand write articles on subjects discussed in the“Our Waterways” section. Must be familiarwith boating, good at research, have comput-er skills, high-speed Internet access and workfor little pay. Most important, you must havean interest and passion for the subject andwant to bring about change and improve-ment of boaters rights, waterways access, anddisappearing marinas and boatyards—andhave lots of ideas and energy to help bringabout improvements through various means(that are, of course, legal and principled). Youmay choose your subject within these param-eters. We would also like to get an organiza-tion going to promote these interests if youcan help. Writers, photographers, cartoonists,jokers, magicians, philosophers and others ofquestionable professions may apply. Send infoto: [email protected]. ___________________________Marine Parts Counter Person Wanted.Experience with marine industry beneficial.Full time with benefits. Snead Island BoatWorks (941) 722-2400. Palmetto, FL. (5/06)___________________________Massey Yacht Sales Positions-Sail and/orpower yacht sales positions available in theMassey St. Petersburg and Palmetto dealer-ship offices. Best marina dealership loca-tions, excellent sales, marketing and servicedept. support. We are new yacht dealers forCatalina, Hunter, Albin, True North, NordicTugs, plus offer a large inventory of broker-age sail and powerboats. Applicants must becomputer literate, have successful yachtsales history, good knowledge of yachts andbuilders, be a team player, motivated and hardworking. Best yacht sales income potential onFlorida west coast. Call Massey general salesmanager Frank Hamilton at (941) 723-1610 orfax resume to (941) 729-7520.___________________________
Murray Yacht Sales is adding professionalyacht brokers and customer service personnelto its successful team. Immediate needsinclude: yacht broker in St. Petersburg office,yacht sales experience required; Rigger/ServiceTech in New Orleans office. E-mail résumé [email protected].
HOMES FOR SALE OR RENT___________________________
For Sale - Shows Like A Model - 3BR, 2 fullbaths, 2-car garage with enclosed Floridaroom, patio and vaulted ceilings. Builtlate 2003 on premium lot. Surrounded bymature palms, sprinkler system, well andground lighting. Upgrades galore. Appliancesstay. Generator and hurricane-ready. Located inprivate community in Edgewater, Florida. Closeto beaches, ICW and parks. $284,900. Call(386) 846-9185 for details. All offers enter-tained. (8/06)
Sailboat Lover’s Dream Home!!! Open TampaBay view, deep sailboat water. 6’ at low tide, boatdock, 2200 sq ft, 3 br, 2.5 bath home, fireplace,bonus room, 2 minutes to I-275 and downtownSt. Petersburg. Asking $695,000, 3620 BeachDrive SE, St. Petersburg, FL 33705. (727) 515-1423 or [email protected]. (6/06)
Sarasota, FL Waterfront Townhouse w/Deepwater boat slip For Rent. 3br/3ba, 3 floors, 2fireplaces, gated, pool, tennis. Protected boatslip accommodates up to 70-foot Boat. Directaccess to Gulf. Walk to restaurants and shop-ping. For info call (561) 213-2390. (6/06)
66 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
See Classified Info on pg 62
C L A S S I F I E D A D S
INSURANCE_________________________
LODGING FOR SAILORS___________________________
Ponce de Leon HotelHistoric downtown hotel at the bay, acrossfrom St. Petersburg YC. 95 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, FL 33701 (727) 550-9300 FAX (727) 896-2287www.poncedeleonhotel.com
MARINE ART___________________________
SAILING VIDEOS___________________________
SAILING INSTRUCTION___________________________
SAILS & CANVAS__________________________
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News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 67
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68 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
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Laurie Kimball Realtor 13Leather Wheel 60Lex-Sea Charters 63Life Captions Video 18Massey Yacht Sales 9,10,13,27,30,63,IBCMasthead Enterprises 4,19,67Mike Chan Fiberglass Repair 28Murray Yacht Sales/Beneteau 57,IBCNational Sail Supply 45Nautical Trader 29Noble Awards 68North Sails 25,67Patricia Knoll Realtor 14Porpoise Used Sails 67Precision Yachts 6,7Quantum Sarasota 3RB Grove/Universal and Westerbeke 20Rparts Refrigeration 32Sailboats Florida, Inc. 63Sailing Services 8Sailtime Fractional Sailing 22Sarasota Youth Sailing Program
donated boats 56Schurr Sails 23Scurvy Dog Marine 29Sea School 23Sea Tech 38,65Snug Harbor Boats 7SSMR 16St. Augustine Sailing School 67St. Barts/Beneteau BCSuncoast Inflatables 17Sunrise Sailing Services 61,65Sunstate Realty 14Tackle Shack 7,46Tampa Sailing Squadron Youth Program 42Turner Marine 27UK Halsey Sails 15Ullman sails 8Vista Galleries/Sail Portraits 67Watersports West 65Weathermark 19Wellfound Yachts 10West Marine 12,IFCWhitney’s Marine/Sail Center 10Windcraft Catamarans 20Zarcor 64
LEMMINGS continued from page 70
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As we headed toward the finish, ourconversation centered around our error,and as we looked back, we noticedother boats rounding the same wrongmark, although we also noticed severalthat were rounding the correct mark.Drinking beer and laughing, we knewthis would be a real conversation piecearound the tiki bar back at the yachtclub. Thankfully, we weren’t the onlyones who made this mistake, and thefact that the well-known racer wasamong our group was even more com-forting.
We predicted correctly that it was
the conversation to be part of, and themore beer we consumed, the funnier itgot. We were all practicing the art oflaughing at ourselves and didn’t mindwhen those from the other boats, whorounded the correct mark, laughedalong with us.
But there was one question thatdawned on me as we all joked aboutour error: Why didn’t any of us onthose three boats—upon realizing ourmistake—immediately change direc-tion and head toward the correct mark,shaving a few minutes off our times?Why did we instead continue to round
the wrong mark?
By the way, we took first place in TrueCruising. And our captain did have theright heading to the correct mark.Strangely, none of us brought the binocu-lars out as we approached the wrong mark.Others in the class rounded the same wrongmark, and another boat, although it round-ed the correct mark, went the other wayaround the island, but it was a bad decision.I believe all the boats in the Spinnaker classrounded the correct mark. Of course, noneof this really happened.
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News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS June 2006 69
70 June 2006 SOUTHWINDS www.southwindsmagazine.com
F rom space, a sailboat race mightappear like a group of small ani-mals moving across the surface in
the same direction, and when they allturn around the same point to headoff in another direction, it mightappear they are just moving alongtogether like a herd, but actually,they are rounding a mark.
Recently, I was crew in a 20-plus-mile race in a far off galaxy.Fortunately, no one knows thisplace, so it can’t be verified thatthese events actually happened. Tomake it easy, we will use Earthterms, e.g., north, south, PHRF, etc.
The start of the race was insidea very large bay bordering on anopen sea. Along the western borderof the bay was a long, narrow island.The boats were to sail west a fewmiles from the start, come up to thefirst marker on the east, bay side ofthe island and then go around a seriesof marks that surrounded the island.They would then return to the firstmark and then on to the finish. At thefirst mark, you had the choice to goclockwise or counterclockwisearound the island. Fourteen boatsraced in three classes; Spinnaker,Non-spinnaker and True Cruising.
With 15-plus knots of wind,clear skies, warm weather andwarm water, conditions were aboutas good as you get for sailing, espe-cially for this length race. The racehad a pursuit (reverse handicap)start—at 10 a.m.—where the PHRFrating determines when you cross thestart line, the highest rated boatscrossing first.
I was one of a crew of three on a30-foot sloop in the True Cruisingclass. With a high rating, we were sec-ond to start. It was a beautiful day,and we three were truly enjoying thissail. Because of the wind and wavedirections, we made the choice to goaround the island clockwise.
As the morning progressed,winds picked up, and we were mov-ing along at a comfortable 7 to 8 knotsin 17-18 knots of wind. We turned leftat the first mark and headed southtoward the second mark, which wassouthwest of the island. After round-
ing the second mark, we headednorth, sailing on a broad reach, stillmaking a comfortable 7 to 8 knots.Other boats were catching up with usfrom the rear, which we expected. The
faster Spinnaker and Non-Spin-naker boats started behind
us and should, by allrights, slowly catchup. There was one
True Cruisingboat in front ofus that we were
catching up to.Our GPS and
charts toldus wherethe next
markwas. Iwas at
the
helm, and the captain gave me aheading, which I endeavored to main-tain. We could not yet see the mark inthe far distance quite yet, but as weapproached it, we noticed the otherboat in front of us was not going tothe same place we were, but headingto what appeared to be a mark fartherto the right (east). I asked the captainto double-check our heading, whichhe did, and he confirmed we were oncourse. We then noticed the other boatright behind us also heading towardthe same, more eastward mark, and Iagain asked the captain to check on it.He still felt we were doing well, butwe three began to wonder about these
other boats. After all, we all makemistakes. Could we be wrong?
As we continued along, all of asudden the boat in front of us turneda bit to the left, its course crossing ourpath. This confused us. Then wenoticed the boat right behind us didthe same thing. I again asked the cap-tain to double-check everything. (Itwould be important to note that theboat behind us was captained by avery well-known local racer, and wecouldn’t imagine him not going to theright mark.) After a bit of time, whenwe watched these boats more steadilyhead to the left and toward a markover in that direction, we decided per-haps something was amiss and alsoveered to the left.
At this point, we three boats wereall aiming at the same mark, and itamazed us that, here we were, just overhalfway around a 20-mile course, andit looked as if we were all going toround this mark at the same exact time!We were going to have to give room tothe boat we had caught up with tomake the rounding (taking it to star-board), and the boat that had now
caught up with us was going tohave to give us room, also.
As we approached this mark,we noticed (with the nakedeye), at perhaps a couple hun-dred feet away, that the numberon this mark indicated it was not
the mark that we were supposedto be rounding, but the one about
a mile and a half to the west of it.We were so close to the other boats thatwe were all yelling and joking with eachother that it was the wrong mark. Wewere doing probably 6 knots, so wecame up to this mark very quickly. Wecontinued to round it, being careful togive the boat on the inside the room itneeded, plus we had to jibe as we madethe rounding. We also kept an eye on theboat to the outside, as it gave us theroom we needed. We all made therounding and were now on an easterlycourse, heading, actually, to the nextmark, which was the one we were real-ly supposed to round. We all passed iton the correct side.
Race of the LemmingsBy Steve Morrell
See LEMMINGS continued on page 68