New Boat 4 Sled

[sleddog]

Thanks to AlanH for giving us the link to a most wonderful short film on Commander Bill King. As King says in the film, "there is no chance to sin when you go to sea...." http://vimeo.com/31019844

[sleddog]

The lowest tide of the year this afternoon, and cause for walking west along the beach as far as Pleasure Point. It seemed about half the County, their kids and dogs were out enjoying the event. Only thing missing was a clothes pin for my nose, as there was a strong smell from hundreds of carcasses of Humboldt Squid decaying in the sand from their stranding event a few days ago.

[BobJ]

Continuing the sub-theme of growing up on the Estuary . . .

During the Summer while I was 13, I had a submarine.

Our family wasn't rich but we had some cool friends who were. One of these was a United pilot and engineer-type, Ernie Barter. The Barters got our family into boating with a ride on their powerboat, but that's another story. One Summer, Ernie needed a project so he built a submarine and surprised me with it. I instantly became the coolest kid at the Alameda Marina.

The hull was a 12' long surplus aircraft "drop tank," oriented with the fill cap on the bottom. Ernie attached a chunk of railway rail as a keel to keep it upright and installed a rudder controlled with two steering lines led forward to the sides of the "cockpit." Propulsion was by bicycle pedals that turned a morse-type cable led aft and through the hull to a propeller. This would prove to be the weak spot.

The "sail" was hinged on the port side so you could open it and climb in, and one of the coolest things was that with the sail closed you looked out through a screen - you could see them but they couldn't see you! The tail cone had proper-looking fins. The whole works was painted flat black and had the name "USS BRICK" painted on each side. (Brick was my childhood nickname.)

Maximum speed was maybe a half a knot until you over-wound the morse cable and it broke. It only submerged once (and permanently), on a dark night at the end of the Summer when my parents decided it had become too much of a hazard. More on that later.

[sleddog]

Just returned from "The Life of PI," a movie with stunning visual effects about a young man drifting in a lifeboat for 212 days with no companionship but a very wild Bengal tiger. The book and story took me back to a time in 2002, featuring the "The Life of PI" book and another, very different cat.

WILDFLOWER and I shared the Hanalei anchorage two different summers with EL TIBURON, Michael and Rory's Passport 42 from Pt. Richmond. Both times, 2000 and 2002, we were returning from the Pacific Cup. El TIBURON had a special interior, primarily designed as a home for their Maine Coon cat Snowball, the only cat I know to race across the Pacific twice.

In 2002, ELTIBURON departed Hanalei Bay for the mainland two days before WILDFLOWER. We'd organized a 2x/day radio gam between the two boats. On August 13 I weighed anchor and departed Hanalei for Santa Cruz

After nine days, about halfway home, I had caught up to ELTIBURON. On the radio, Rory said if we could rendezvous, they would pass over some warm sticky buns, fresh from EL TIBURON's oven. I replied that I just finished reading "Life of PI," and would pass them that book in return.

I could see El TIBURON about a mile up ahead, and was relaxing in WF's cockpit as we slowly overhauled them. Suddenly a most amazing thing happened: the blunt head of a large sperm whale arose from the sea alongside WILDFLOWER. The eye the size of a plate was staring at me from less than half a boat length away.

The whale slowly submerged and disappeared astern. I radioed my friends to tell them what I'd just seen. Michael, on the VHF, was out of breath told me THEIR story. A few minutes before, with Michael in the cockpit of EL TIBURON, a large whale had surfaced alongside. Michael was shocked, and called down the companionway to a sleeping Rory, "Whale!, bring the camera, quick!"

Rory woke up from her dream, thinking Michael had yelled "cat overboard!"

Only they know why, but EL TIBURON's cat overboard procedure was for Rory to jump in and rescue Snowball, while Michael turned the boat around.

Rory bounded up the companionway ladder to jump, which presumably would have landed her somewhere near the whale.

Luckily, she collided with Michael coming down the ladder to get the camera. They both landed in a heap on the cabin sole.

Rory woke up and said, "where's Snowball??!!" Michael replied Snowball was sleeping. Sure enough, Snowball was snoozing peacefully in her sock drawer, oblivious to the mayhem.

Michael and Rory got back up to the cockpit in time to shoot a short video of the whale swimming away (I have the clip). Presumably it was the same whale that came to visit WILDFLOWER a few minutes later.

Shortly thereafter I caught up to EL TIBURON. They tossed me warm sticky buns. My toss of the "Life of PI" bounced off the deck, and the book, wrapped in a Ziploc bag, fell into the sea.

Perhaps on some distant island, "Life of PI" drifted ashore, ready to be read, like a message in a bottle.

[BobJ]

Oops, simultaneous posts. Skip's tales are better than mine anyway.
_______________________

Ernie had suggested to my folks that once I'd had my fun with the little sub they should feel free to tow it out to deep water, open the fill cap on the bottom and let it sink.

After a few weeks the time came. Mom and Dad went over to the marina one night and towed it out to the center of the Estuary, removed the cap and it began to fill with water . . . very slowly. About that time a tour boat came along, with an on-deck party in full swing. My folks attempted to go the other way and ended up down near the Park St. Bridge before the tour boat finally turned around and headed back out. Eventually the little sub went to the bottom and that was that.

Hopefully the statute has run on non-toxic mid-Estuary submarine disposals.

[sleddog]

A lifeboat Tiger, an all black submarine on the Estuary, a curious bull sperm whale, a cat in a shipboard sock drawer racing to Hawaii, and our new SSS RC Chairperson at one time breaking into the Alameda Chief of Police's home. If you didn't know this group any better, you'd say we're crazy.

[sleddog]

The coast of Oregon is getting pummeled tonight. Winds already gusting 55 knots at Newport, and 63 knots at Cape Arago, at Coos Bay. That's serious breeze.

In the southern hemisphere, Cat.5 Hurricane Evan is over north and west Fiji.

[H Spruit]

A lifeboat Tiger, an all black submarine on the Estuary, a curious bull sperm whale, a cat in a shipboard sock drawer racing to Hawaii, and our new SSS RC Chairperson at one time breaking into the Alameda Chief of Police's home. If you didn't know this group any better, you'd say we're crazy.

Craziness is what gives this group socially redeeming value!
To quote Willy Nelson, "I've always been crazy but it has kept me from going INSANE!"

[Wylieguy]

The earlier references to Bill King sent me to the bookshelf. Stuart Woods is the detective author of the Stone Barrington and Holly Barker novels (among my favs), but long ago before that in 1976 he was living in Ireland and hatched the idea of sailing the "Observer" Singlehanded Tranatlantic Race - even though his total sailing experience was one season in a Mirror Dinghy and crewing with a few friends. He had Ron Holland build a boat, read some books, and talked Bill King into crewing with him on a race to the Azores. Eventually he did sail the "Observer" race, taking 45 days to do so. The story is a lesson in how "not" to prepare of a long ocean race - singlehanded or crewed, but King does make his appearance then disappears. It's a quick read. "Blue Water, Green Skipper" by Stuart Woods
Pat Broderick

[sleddog]

Pi, the fictional boy in "Life of Pi," is not the only one to cross an ocean with a tiger aboard. Our own Capt. Bob has done so in real life. But that's a sea story for him to tell......

Today at Santa Cruz Harbor they hauled in the remains of a giant squid, estimated to be 25 feet long. The tentacles were as big around as a human leg. You wouldn't want one of those coming aboard at night in the SHTP.

I read Alameda is getting a drone aircraft for police work. Do you think it could be rented for a few hours to patrol the restricted areas in the 3BF?