Sail: Sunday Fun

Saturday, Wendy, Scott and I went out one of the club's club Catalina 36s with Andreas who was completing his second OCSC big boat charter. The weather turned out beautiful. Sunny with gusts 15-25kts. Berkeley->Angel Island->Golden Gate->City Front->Berkeley. We also passed by the hills at Belvedere Cove. The houses there are amazing - built into the steep hills that rise out of the bay. Several of them are four stories tall has each has winding paths, ladders and tracks that lead down to private jetties where the rich and famous kept their yatchs. Reminds me of Salcombe on the South coast of Devon near where my folks live.

The kite boarders were out in force for the U.S. Kiteboarding National Championships. It looked like there were at least 30 kites buzzing around in front of Crissy Field looking like flock of party balloons.

After we got back. we checked out Trader Vic's near our marina. Its a Tiki restaurant which claims to have invented the Mai Tai. Pretty disappointed. Valet only parking (would be quicker, more convenient and pleasant to walk the 20 steps to the lot to get to your car instead of having to pay to queue), pricey and the food, drinks and service were all disappointing. Later, we went back to Berkeley. Got toasty next to the bonfire the staff had fired up after work and watched the sun go down behind the gate.

We had a lazy day on Sunday. Slept in on the boat. Breakfast. Pump out and fuel up. Debbie and her friend Marianne came by after noon bringing supplies for the grill (and some badly needed toothbrushes). After lunch, we tried servicing the furler, unfurling the sail, dropping the jibs, spraying in a ton of McLube into the bearings and rewinding the furler. Nothing seemed to help much. Still pretty squeaky. Will have to look into replacing the bearings.

We had an awesome sail in the afternoon. Wind felt to be in the mid 20s. We left Emeryville and went clockwise around Treasure Island. Wendy seems to have nailed reefing our main -- hoisting up the boom high on the #2 reef line before tensioning #1 and then snugging the vang seems to be the way to get the foot nice and tight. We sailed up to the ball park in San Francisco and terrorized the ferry boats taking the Oakland A fans back to where they came from. I'm making it my mission to get North Star on TV at the ball game -- they frequently feature the boats that hang out outside the ballpark and listen to the game. Need to set TiVo. Had to put in quick gybe to steer out of the path of one of the ferries. Somehow if left Wendy and Debbie collapsed on the cockpit floor as they sheeted in the main.

Very nice having an all women crew. Great crew, and better to look at than the Dudes.

Life is good...


When we got back, we found that the top of the jib halyard had been somehow shredded. Possibly it jumped the sheaves at the top. It could also be that the halyard wraps around the forestay when we furl the jib. Could also be that it might not be led correctly down the mast and chafes on the through-bolts that secure the standing rigging. We rigged the spare halyard that Russ had spliced. Need to cut the end off the one we took off and re-splice an eye.