Latitude 38 July 2009
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JulyCoverTemplate 6/23/09 10:06 AM Page 1 Latitude 38 VOLUME 385 July 2009 WE GO WHERE THE WIND BLOWS JULY 2009 VOLUME 385 UP A RIVER . I t seems everywhere you turn, Imagine waking up from a nap, looking up and finish — Don Jesberg's Melges 32 Viva there's a new story about the decline seeing this coming at you — these four boats — finished the 67.5-mile course at about of participation in sailing. But here in return the favor to this hapless little stinkpot. 6 p.m., after 7h and 28s on the course. Northern California, the biggest events the more amazing given that the event, "We're still waiting for someone to just aren't bearing that out. jointly run by the Stockton Sailing Club break the record," said Stockton SC's With its largest fleet ever — 152 and Richmond YC, was missing the Bay Bob Doscher. "But almost everyone fin- starters — the 19th annual Delta Ditch Area contingent of one of its stalwart ished before dark." Run was a solid rebuttal to the naysay- classes — the Melges 24s which stayed The overall winner, Scott Easom's ers. Featuring 130 monohulls, the race on the Bay to tune up for their Nationals Moore 24 Eight Ball finished less than 1.5 also brought out 22 multihulls, eight later in the month. hours later. Correcting out 42 seconds of which were F-18s — beach cats that It wasn't a real barn-burner year, behind was Ben Landon's Thompson are wildly popular around the world, yet but no one we talked to was complain- 650 Flight Risk, which finished just 1.5 relatively sparse in the States. The 20 ing as there was pretty solid breeze all minutes ahead of Andy Hamilton's Wylie percent growth over last year's race is all along the course. The first monohull to Wabbit 24 Ghost Dog which, in turn, just NO PADDLE NEEDED pipped Caleb Everett's Moore 24 Tortuga Split into three classes, the 22-boat in 5h, 13m, 46s. Eight minutes later, — which had battled with Eight Ball for multihull division had it all this year. Peter Stoneberg's Formula 40 Shadow most of the race — by five seconds. Mark Long Beach-based Olympic medallists notched the class win on corrected time English's Moore 24 Numa Boa rounded Pease and Jay Glaser brought some after Stoneberg and the Shadow crew do- out the top five. starpower to the F-18s and took away the nated a Windex to the Benicia Bridge. The trend in the top five — namely top honors in that class with a 5h, 30m, "We had a pretty exciting moment that they're all pretty light displacement 57s performance on Breakfast at Bill's. when we were blasting down toward boats — extended all the way down In Multi 2, it was Jim Lawson's Klamath the Benicia Bridge, frantically calling WWW.H2OSHOTS.COM through the top 25, which included only Falls, Oregon-based Corsair 31-RS Wa- the bridge-master to raise the railroad one boat from the heavy-displacement ter Wings that finished a little over an bridge for us, quickly pleeeeeze!!!!" divisions. By comparison, last year's hour later. But the fastest elapsed time Stoneberg said. "Our 68-foot rig, plus relatively slow race, where most people of the race came from the Multi 1 Divi- the 3 feet step-up off the water, plus a didn't finish until after dark, produced sion and Bill Erkelens' Modified D-Class pretty high tide made us very nervous ERIK SIMONSON/ pretty much the opposite result. Catamaran Adrenaline, which finished that we weren't going to make it under UP A RIVER . GRANT KIBA GRANT GRANT KIBA GRANT CAROLYN FITZ-GERALD CAROLYN GRANT KIBA GRANT WWW.H2OSHOTS.COM RANDY CAMPBELL RANDY ERIK SIMONSON/ Clockwise from top-left — "All aboard" the 'Marrakesh' Express . 37; the race is just as friendly; without their trapeze wires, these skiffies get a little out of sorts; Pease and Jay Glaser fly a hull; "What could be better than this?"; it wouldn't be a Ditch Run without Hank Easom and 'Yucca' . winning their division; not much room there at the rocks — looks like everyone was up on the rules regarding continuing obstructions?; plenty of clearance at the Carquinez Bridge; 'Uagain' tries the sideways crab to Stockton; the Viva 27 'Cat Sass' proving that not all cats land right-side up when they fall. the 72-foot mean high water bridge. Sure God it was flat water and we had some that tall. enough, the bridge-master replied that a rake, or we might indeed be buying that Of course, being that it's the Delta, train was coming, the bridge stayed down new carbon rig we've been dreaming there are hazards beyond the bridges, and our masthead Windex shattered on about." shoals and riverbanks. the bottom of the bridge just as the train That's a good point, and we asked a "The real pucker was worrying if a arrived. I wonder if the weight of the train civil engineer friend, who said the bridge water skier was going to wrap his rope on the bridge made a difference. Upon probably deflects one or two feet with a around our rig at 80 MPH and end up further inspection the top of our rig train on it — both scary and good to keep like a yo-yo at the end of his string," cleared by a mere three inches. Thank in mind in the future if you have a rig Stoneberg said. "Did you guys see the Page 90 • Latitude 38 • July, 2009 NO PADDLE NEEDED WWW.SURFCITYCATAMARANS.COM JEREMY LEONARD/ JEREMY WWW.SURFCITYCATAMARANS.COM JEREMY LEONARD/ JEREMY water ski racers behind the twin engine, earlier, but it also would mean more time Gruntled, Moore 24, Bill Erkelens; 10) Penguin, nitro-methane burning tow boat? And I for the party. Any arguments? Moore 24, Matt Dini. (130 boats) thought we were crazy." HEAVY 1 (PHRF -9-90) — 1) Yucca, 8 Me- Shadow may have had a near-miss — latitude/rob ter, Hank Easom; 2) Outsider, Azzura 310, Greg with the bridge, but Keith Rubin's Ana- Nelsen; 3) Stewball, Express 37, Bob Harford. cortes, Washington-based Viva 27 Cat DELTA DITCH RUN 6/6 (12 boats) Sass capsized. The boat was successfully OVERALL — 1) Eight Ball, Moore 24, Scott Ea- HEAVY 2 (PHRF 99-147) — 1) Arcadia, recovered. som; 2) Flight Risk, Thompson 650, Ben Landon; Modernized Santana 27, Gordie Nash; 2) Uno, If you missed this year's Ditch Run, 3) Ghost Dog, Wylie Wabbit, Andy Hamilton; 4) Wyliecat 30, Steve Wonner; 3) Dreamtime, Olson start making plans for next year; the Tortuga, Moore 24, Caleb Everett; 5) Numa Boa, 911, Roger Craine. (14 boats) date has been set for June 12th, with the Moore 24, Mark English; 6) Weckless, Wylie Wab- HEAVY 3 (PHRF 150-222) — 1) Happyhou- chance it will start an hour earlier. That bit, Tim Russell; 7) Kwazy, Wylie Wabbit, Colin ka, Cal 27, Greg Goodman; 2) Gypsy Lady, Cal would mean the buses leave an hour Moore; 8) Paramour, Moore 24, Vikki Fennell; 9) 34-1, Val Clayton; 3) Winsome Wench, Newport July, 2009 • Latitude 38 • Page 91 UP A RIVER . 30 Mk. III, Robbie Gabriel. (13 boats) LIGHT 1 (PHRF 27-72) — 1) Super Fly, Cheetah 30, Steve Mollering; 2) Gladiator Rac- ing, Cheetah 30, Eric Rimkus; 3) Skiffsailing. org, 11 Meter OD, Rufus Sjoberg. (16 boats) LIGHT 2 (PHRF 84-108) — 1) Flight Risk; 2) Bandit, Melges 24, Mike Wolfe; 3) Still Cra- zy, Hobie 33, John Shampain/Robert Plant. (11 boats) LIGHT 3 (PHRF 120-156) — 1) Ghost Dog; 2) Weckless; 3) Kwazy. (13 boats) EXPRESS 27 — 1) Get Happy!!, Brendan Busch; 2) Loose Cannon, Andy Goodman; 3) Wile E Coyote, Dan Pruzan. (13 boats) MOORE 24 — 1) Eight Ball; 2) Tortuga; 3) Numa Boa. (27 boats) OLSON 30 — 1) Dragonsong, Sam McFad- den; 2) Enigma, Randall Lesley; 3) Hoot, Andrew Macfie. (7 boats) KIBA GRANT CRUISE — 1) Ghost, Ticon 34, Bill Goldfoos; 2) Indy, Islander 36, Michael Matthews; 3) Elli, Newport 28, Doug McDougall. (4 boats) 'Dragonsong' was the Olson 30 to beat in their seven-boat division. MULTIHULL MULTIHULL 1 — 1) Shadow, Formula 40, MULTIHULL 2 — 1) Water Wings, F-31RS, F-18 — 1) Breakfast at Bill's, Capricorn, Peter Stoneberg; 2) Mystery Machine, Hobie Mir- Jim Lawson; 2) Air Apparent, F-24 MK. 1 Modi- Pease & Jay Glaser; 2) Sling Shot, Hobie Tiger, acle 20, Kent Bliven; 3) 2012, Multi 23, Al Brous- fied, Ken Schmidt; 3) Blue Water, Seawind 1100, Philip Meredith; 3) Freedom, Hobie Tiger, Mark sard. (7 boats) Michael Ropers. (8 boats) Lewis. (8 boats) Complete results: www.stocktonsc.org. 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Suite B1 Point Richmond, CA 94801 (510) 232-SAIL (7245) www.easomrigging.com Commercial Pleasure Operations Yachting • COMMERCIAL • YACHT & BOAT POLICIES POLICIES Marinas, Yards, Offshore, Coastal, Yacht Clubs, Inland and Brokers, Liveaboards Shipwrights Bill Fowler mott C er o D s c t MCDERMOTTCOSTA INSURANCE a M 70th ANNIVERSARY (925) 606-6606 Fax (510) 357-3230 1 93 08 [email protected] 8-20 July, 2009 • Latitude 38 • Page 93 NICK JAFFE Tell someone that you're planning to cross an ocean in a 26-ft boat you've never seen, much less sailed, and they're researched the cost off, Jaffe left Ber- likely to gently suggest that you're off of boats Down Under, lin, moved onto your rocker.