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By April Thygeson

This

last Sunday a student named Rich Guttchen returned to OCSC after learning to sail here twenty years ago. Though his studies here had enabled him to enjoy a decade of sailing, it had been ten years since he’d spent any significant time on the water. Captain Ray had been his instructor twenty years ago, so it was fitting that Captain Ray would be his instructor once again for his review last Sunday. Would he remember how to rig the J/24? What if the outboard motor died in the fairway? But what concerned Rich most was the dreaded Man Overboard procedure. Would he remember the sequence of detailed steps under Captain Ray’s watchful eye?

As

anyone who has been on a boat with Captain Ray knows, he is a scrupulous skipper with a penchant for precision. Given that, it might not surprise one to learn that pre-OCSC he fixed computers for the Navy. This was in the 60s, when computers were four times the size of our clubroom.

It

may, however, surprise one to learn that upon returning to the states in the late 60s after a stint in Vietnam, Captain Ray lived in the Haight district of San Francisco and worked at the Free Store, where everything was free, including the bowl of money on the counter. In the next few years he would hitchhike across the U.S. five times, exploring National Parks like Big Sur with only a backpack, and live as a candlemaker in Monterey before meeting a girl named Sandy and following her to the enchanted Hawaiian island of Kauai.

When

that relationship fizzled, Captain Ray knew he needed to leave Kauai. It was sort of Sandy’s turf, as her uncle was the mayor of the island, but he wasn’t ready to leave Hawaii just yet. He made his way over to Kona, which was lucky for us, because that’s where he learned to sail.

At

age 30, Captain Ray became a Captain. He skippered Kahlua, a 26 foot double outrigger backyard special made by a man named Beans Beans, for a Kona tourist enterprise called Pacific Sail & Snorkel. The small beach near the Kona pier, where the IronMan triathalon now begins, was his office. Captain Ray’s commute every morning required swimming out to Kahlua at anchor and beaching her to pick up their guests. It was an idyllic life. The running joke was that you could have Kahua anyway you wanted but on the rocks.

But

Captain Ray is a serious man, and eventually the Mellowest Place on Earth grew tiresome. By this time he had a 100 ton Master’s license, and he knew he needed to put it to better use. From a 26ft outrigger he moved to a 112ft Schooner called Manutea, owned by a wealthy hippie who envisioned bring technology to the poor benighted people of the South Pacific. It was a great gig until Captain Ray discovered that said Wealthy Hippie had run out on a yard bill in Samoa. Being a man of principle, Captain Ray quit and sought employment with more ethical establishments.

The

University of Hawaii hired him to skipper a boat for the Blue Water Marine Lab, a program where college students taught high school students how to teach a middle school marine science class. Captain Ray got his first taste of how rewarding teaching is. But the years he spent on a 46ft cutter doing inter-island charters in Hawaii was his best training for boat management. Every channel crossing was an ocean passage, and short ocean passages at that, making boat preparation and arrival regularities.

When

his time in the Pacific came to an end, Captain Ray returned home to visit his parents in New York. They were aging, and it was clear his father would need a hip replacement in the spring. As his mother didn’t drive, Captain Ray assured his parents he come back to New York to help out after his father’s surgery. He went back to San Francisco for a visit and happened to pick up a copy of Latitude 38, where he saw an ad for a sailing instructor position. He set up an interview with Rich and came down to look at the fleet before their meeting thinking if he didn’t like the condition of the boats he would can the interview. The fleet looked good to Captain Ray and Captain Ray looked good to Anthony and Rich, so he accepted a position here at OCSC. But he still had to return to New York for his father’s surgery, and when he forewarned Anthony of his impending absence, Anthony replied, “Family is important, Ray. It’s the honorable thing to do.” Captain Ray knew then that he had landed in the right place.

Honor

and integrity are important to him. Captain Ray considers it an honor to teach others, and he takes his work seriously. While sailing is a recreational sport, it is also serious business. He summed up his philosophy on the subject for me recently, “As a sailing instructor, it is not my job to teach students how to cut corners. It is my job to show them exactly where the corner is.” New sailors have one way to do things, so we need to teach them the one way that works in the largest number of conditions. With experience they will develop wisdom, which is the ability to use their knowledge capably.

Rich

Guttchen went out on the water with Captain Ray this last Sunday and performed his first Man Overboard Procedure for the first time in twenty years. According to Captain Ray, his execution was perfect. His review was a complete success. Rich attributes his skills to the quality of his initial training by Captain Ray here at OCSC. Thank you Captain Ray, for twenty-five years of showing students exactly where the corners are. It has served them well.

-April

Written by April Thygeson, OCSC

Amidst light, shifty, and erratic conditions during the last race of the Naples World Series Event, Chris Draper led Luna Rossa in securing a thrilling win. James Spithill of ORACLE Racing had appeared to be dead in the water early in the series, but like Draper he was up to the challenge of the tricky conditions. His recovery secured ORACLE an impressive second place.

Although Luna Rossa Challenge won the fleet racing competition, and Artemis Racing prevailed in the match racing in Naples, ORACLE Racing Spithill is now the AC World Series overall point leader, having overtaken Emirates Team New Zealand by just 1 point.

Tens of thousands of Italian fans were enthralled by Luna Rossa’s victory and the streets of Naples teemed with celebrants. “We sailed along the shore after the finish and it’s insane to see how many people are here,” said Luna Rossa’s Draper. “As a sailor you’d never imagine having so many people watching. It’s great for the sport, and great to be part of an Italian team in front of all these people. We’re very proud.”

Over 500,000 fans turned out to watch the regatta during the week of racing in Naples. 70 hours of live coverage was broadcast globally, and over 350 media were accredited on site to cover the event, resulting in coverage in more than 850 media outlets.

Straight from record-breaking crowds and triumph in Naples, the Series heads to Venice, for the second to last regatta in the inaugural America’s Cup World Series. Racing will take place from May 15th to 20th amid a nine-day festival of sailing from May 12th to 20th. The racecourse is one of the narrowest and most challenging in competitive sailing.

Fresh from a win in their first regatta in front of home country fans, Luna Rossa anticipates tough competition in Venice.  “Naples showed us that any of the teams can win on any given day,” said Luna Rossa’s skipper Max Sirena. “The racing is so close that you can’t afford to be off the pace for even one race or you will fall down the leader-board. Venice will be exceptionally tight putting a premium on boat-handling.”

The 2011-2012 AC World Series will conclude in Newport, Rhode Island on July 1st. The only certainty is that the Championship won’t be decided before then.

-April

OCSC Sailing was featured on KTVU regarding offshore racing! Listen to what Rich Jepsen and Anthony Sandberg have to say about the proposed new regulations.

Click here to watch the full video!

As printed in: Latitude 38 – Sightings
June, 2009

In San Francisco Bay, there are rocks and then there are Rocks.
Alcatraz has long been known as The Rock, even though it’s an island.
Likewise, racers often refer to the Farallon Islands as the Rock Pile, or Southeast Farallon as the Rock. We’ve also heard Red Rock called ‘the Rock’ even though – again – it’s really an island.

Now that that’s out of the way, we can address the interesting query from a reader about where the ‘hazard to navigation’ rocks are in San Francisco Bay, and which ones sailors should be particularly concerned about. Oddly, this is the first time we’ve ever gotten this question and it took a bit of head scratching to come up with a list, since not all of the ‘hittable’ rocks are noted on charts, and not all notable rocks are hittable. Anyway, here’s what we came up with.

The Berkeley Reef – While the entire area from Cesar Chavez Park to Brooks Island is hazardous and off-limits there is a particularly nasty rock located Northwest of the Berkeley Marina, about a third of the way to Brooks Island. Normally just below the surface, it’s exposed only during extreme minus tides. The rock itself sits just East of the green piling marker (FL G 2.5s 13ft 3M “1″). At night, this light can be quite dim and is very easy to miss among all the background city lights. Warning: a strong westerly combined with current and tide can put you into the reef right out of the marina!

The Berkeley Pier – It presently extends 2.5 miles with a very dim and nearly indistinguishable red marker that blends into the cityscape at night. Currently, only the first 3000ft of the pier are maintained.
Beyond that is a 50ft gap for the passage of small boats then broken pilings between the ruins and beneath the surface that could impale your boat. [Read more →]

By April Thygeson

The graceful Italian city of Naples will host the fourth America’s Cup World Series regatta, beginning tomorrow, April 11th through Sunday the 15th.

The event will feature nine boats from seven countries, including: Luna Rossa Challenge (Italy), with two boats; Artemis Racing (Sweden), skipper Terry Hutchinson; China Team (China), skipper Fred Le Peutrec; Emirates Team New Zealand (New Zealand), skipper Dean Barker; Energy Team (France), helmsmen Yann Guichard; ORACLE Racing (USA) with two boats, skippers James Spithill and Darren Bundock; and Team Korea (Korea) with skipper Nathan Outteridge.

Emirates Team New Zealand, skippered by Dean Barker, is the current leader in overall standings of the 2011/2012 America’s Cup World Series. Our home team, ORACLE Racing skippered by James Spithill, trails by only one point. The competition is intensifying, however. This week the Italian team, Luna Rossa, will once again join the America’s Cup line-up with two boats entered. Their presence in the America’s Cup will certainly ramp up the level of excitement among Italian spectators in Naples.

Like NBC, who has had the foresight to obtain the rights to broadcast the America’s Cup in the U.S. for the first time in twenty years, a coterie of international media partners are jumping at the opportunity to air the America’s Cup race events. Italian Mediaset SpA will broadcast up to ten hours of live TV coverage throughout Italy via its Italia 1 and Italia 2 channels.

Luca Tiraboschi, the Director of Italia 1 and Mediaset Italia 2, had this to say about the coverage: “Italian fans are the most passionate in the world and we are bringing them 10 hours of live coverage of this exciting sport, staged in one of the most historically important and beautiful cities in Italy.” For those of us who may not make it to Italy for the Naples regatta, the racing will be streamed to the web on the America’s Cup youtube channel. Mediaset will also provide live coverage of the America’s Cup World Series in Venice in May and Newport, Rhode Island in June.

The pressure is on for Luna Rossa to perform well on their home waters. “I think Luna Rossa might be considered the favorite in Italy,” commented ORACLE Racing skipper James Spithill, “To be honest, I would not be surprised if they were to win. They are in their home country with two of the best helmsmen in these boats.”

Hold onto your hats, sailors. The race is on.

-April

A letter we got from an old friend… We think it’s worth sharing!

Dear Anthony and Rich,

Just reading the latest e-newsletter … and realizing that I don’t know the words for how much I miss you both and OCSC … and all the good buddies I made from 1993 onward…

Nearly every day I remember some sailing “incident” and the satisfaction of surviving and learning and laughing with whoever was a witness/crew/mum about the whole thing … from Rick who saw me back a J24, very fast and straight, into the dock behind us to darling Debbie — they both came to Amy’s wedding in 2001 here in Charleston … what a treat to see them … and on and on … Gilly and her hubby John now live in the Puerto Vallarta area and we planned to see them there 2 years ago but the airline (Mexicana) went bankrupt so we just enjoyed the e-mailing and plans…

Having Linda onboard on that dark and stormy day on the J-80 … and helping her re-discover the joy of small boats (the J24s)…

My long and ongoing friendship with Kate and Maria — sailing from one Greek mooring to another to play bridge with our pal Richard…

And my last spring tune-up with Ray (2010) and a couple of very nice guys…

My last real sail was October 2010 with Sharon on her sweet Tartan 37, “Pearl of Oakland” — and it was the perfect birthday sail — out the Gate, up to Drakes Bay, anchored 2 nights, serenaded by the seals on the beach, hiked up to the view point with a picnic and deck of cards … observing the Marin Marine Sanctuary people release 3 mammals into the cove … lovely to watch as they re-joined – tentatively – their compatriots who gently approached and encouraged them to swim on out … and then, around the Farallones … the best-ever Farallones rounding for moi … because, finally! – a lovely whale sighting — her/his beautiful large curved back cresting — what grace and power

Which reminds me of Captain Wayne’s description of helming a big boat — in his Halloween duck suit … that must have been 1993, too!

Goodness…

Wishing you all a fabulous year and wishing me sometime this year to get back out there on the Bay…

Take care, write when you have time and please enjoy what you have created together…

xo,
LTM

OCSC announces the entry of ‘Courage’, a Tartan 4100 sloop that sails wonderfully! Her draft is a nice shallow 5.35’ but she is still good upwind in a breeze as she has lots of ballast. She is equipped with good electronics as well as electric winches. And is available to members who have at least 5 charters on boats over 30’ at OCSC. Located on K Dock, across the marina, she is berthed right next to Bliss, our Jeanneau 494. Bill Kinney, our Fleet Service Manager, has created a short instructional video on a few of the attributes of the boat that require some edification, such as the electric winches, the windlass and the infinitely adjustable jib fairleads.

Click here to view the video!

Plan to watch this video a few times and just before your charter to keep the details close at hand.

Article and Photos by Bill Kinney, OCSC Fleet Manager

The smallest big boat in OCSC’s fleet is the Catalina 31 Second Wind. It is a small, nimble boat, yet with an amazingly open and specious interior, and a full sized cockpit.  She can comfortably take 6 people for a day sail. Two couples would fit well for an overnight excursion.  .

She is a great sailing boat, and is fully equipped for a day sail or an overnight.  The rig is stiffer than many boats her size, so she sails better in our strong afternoon breezes.  She needs only a light touch on the helm, even when sailing downwind.  If you have sailed either the Catalina 32 or 36, you are already familiar with the way she is rigged.

If you have a smaller group, and you want the comfort of a big boat without the full cost, Second Wind might be just the ticket.

-Bill

One of the few things that appears to be on the ‘list’ for everyone I talk with is an African Safari.  And, so it was for the 2012 OCSC Tanzania Safari we just recently completed.  16 OCSC friends and members struck out together to experience the wilds of Tanzania with our Partners, Blue Odyssey, Mango Safari and the Tanzanian outfitter, Nomad Safaris.

We traveled from Arusha, THE jumping off point for most Tanzanian Safaris, through Lake Manyara, an incredibly dense game park a short plane ride away.  Then, to Serena Lodge on the rim of Ngorongoro Crater, one of the largest calderas in the world; thence to the Serengeti Plains and five days in the bush, finishing our trip in mysterious Zanzibar on a beach overlooking the Indian Ocean. [Read more →]

By April Thygeson

Larry Ellison’s Oracle Racing Team won the America’s Cup in Valencia in 2010. Although the challengers were undoubtedly disappointed to not bring home the cup themselves, in the long run they and their sport may end up benefitting dramatically from the Oracle win. Spurred by his victory, Larry Ellison has invested $300 million in the next America’s Cup.

This America’s Cup will be different from anything the sailing world has seen before. First, the boats will feature wingsails instead of fabric mainsails, which will allow the catamarans to accelerate from zero to 20 knots in just a few seconds. The speeds with which the carbon-fiber catamarans will whip around the race course will ensure a high level of crowd-pleasing drama. [Read more →]