The final rounding at a Saturday evening buoy race off the Tred Avon YC, Oxford, MD

Spinnaker Fabric Business Model

This morning on NPR I heard a story that demonstrates, at least to me, why sailing cloth is some of the best engineered fabric in the world. The piece is about entrepreneur Cindy Whitehawk (and her husband) – for seven years they’ve been selling wallets made of spinnaker cloth, a choice of fabric that allows them to claim billfolds as “thin as a dime.” Not only does the sailing fabric make wallets of distinctive thinness, it also “breathes” and repels body moisture, rain, spills, etc. Listen to the replay on NPR here – some recent publicity has overwhelmed their two person “All-Ett”shop and now they have more order than they can fill. Sailmakers have made wallets and duffels for years but these two have obviously perfected the form. File in the “I wish I thought of that” folder.

Transat Updates & the Figawi Kicks Off Summer

Be sure to read about the latest news from the Rolex Transat here – over the last 24 hours several crew members have sustained injuries, non fatal fortunately. Mal Parker on the GBR Challenge had his arm pulled into a winch. Bill Buckly on Maximus fell and dislocated his shoulder. With the summer officially beginning it’s appropriate to mention the Figawi race (where-the-f%@k-are-we) – a summer sailing tradition in Nantucket. Here is a great article from the Cape Cod Times about the S/C Infanta, a Figawi champion Wianno Junior sloop that made her final appearance at the race this weekend – here are the Figawi results. Happy Memorial Day everyone!

Chesapeake Bay Log Canoe Under Sail

The Chesapeake Bay Log Canoe

We’re heading south to the Chesapeake Bay for the holiday weekend where I plan to get out on the water at long last. My parents have a house near St. Michaels on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. For those not familiar with the area, it’s a true blue sailor’s haven. When the weather is warm, sailboats of every stripe disembark from port towns like Oxford and St Michaels. From a sailing culture perspective there’s a special class of dinghy, the “Chesapeake Bay Log Canoe”, equal part rightful terror and delight. So wildly unstable you need to run a plank to weather and move bodies out to keep the boat upright – makes short tacking a nightmare. All of these vintage boats have a solid history – check out the Chesapeake Bay Log Sailing Canoe Association and the links to biographies and pictures of the fleet. Silver Heel, for example, was built in 1902 by Eugene Thompson on Kent Island, Maryland as a workboat for John Wesley Dickerson. Island Bird, the smallest of all log canoes now racing, was built in 1882 at Tilghman's Island, Maryland by "Captain Sid", a man of many talents. Not only did he build log canoes, but he also operated a canning factory, acted as an agent for the steamboats that regularly called at Tilghman, served as the local magistrate and taught Sunday School .

Wild Eyed Sailing Poets

It struck me today that for a sailing blog dedicated to “Voyagers, Zealots, Poets and Populists,” I’ve been overlooking any direct correlation to the “Poets” segment. When I wrote the tagline I wanted to capture what I felt were some of the better attributes of sailing culture – traveling to far flung anchorages (or dreaming of doing so), a fanatical dedication to sailboats, the importance of access as opposed to elitism and, through the term “poets” a sense of the wild-eyed romance of the sea. Maritime poetry gives voice to human themes that the ocean evokes - loss and longing, loneliness and death, awe at the vast power of nature, a love for the water. History and tradition also play a strong role in maritime poetry; the sea chanteys sung aboard tall ships are prime examples. A well known classic is the Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Coleridge. Other poets include Michael Drayton and John Masefield (one of my favorites). Here is a link to a whole page of them for your reading pleasure. Please post with your favorites.

"A WIND'S in the heart of me, a fire's in my heels, I am tired of brick and stone and rumbling wagon-wheels; I hunger for the sea's edge, the limit of the land, Where the wild old Atlantic is shouting on the sand."

- from “A Wanderer's Song” by John Masefield

Institutional Trifecta Develops Next Gen Sailors

An important component of any strong culture, sailing is no exception, are foundational institutions that develop warriors and leaders for the next generation. In the case of sailboats and sailing three primary institutions make up the front line – yacht clubs (naturally), high school teams (if you’re lucky enough to go to high school on or near the water) and sailing camps. I’ve experience with two of the three – I learned to sail at the Stone Harbor YC in New Jersey and was an instructor at Cape Cod Sea Camps in Brewster, MA. I’ve always wished that…instead of playing lacrosse & soccer...I’d had the chance to hone my skills at a young age on a high school dinghy team. I didn’t learn to ski until I was 14 and though I can get down the slope with alacrity; my form leaves much to be desired. The same could be said for my skills around the buoys at the local YC match race – I’ve made strides after many years of crewing and racing but I recognize that the snap decisions you need to make while parallel processing wind speed and direction, current, position and favored course do not come as instinctually as if they’d been ingrained when I was young. I match raced in the summer at SHYC and later on Cape Cod...but there’s something about the camaraderie and structure of a high school sports team that really cultivates a winning skill set. Take a read here on the team from Point Loma High, CA and their bid for a third straight national Interscholastic Sailing Association Team Racing championship. I’d wager you’ll be reading about senior skippers (and All Stars) Adam Roberts and Parker Shinn somewhere down the road. A final mention on this topic, let's consider the wisdom of EVk4's "first rule of sailing" and try not to frighten the youngest of sailors by refusing to bear away ;-)

Line honors : Cesar Recalde takes a leap at the Armada Argentina Regatta in Rio de Janeiro 2005 (Photo credit: Daniel Forster & thanks to Ben Ellison for the forward)

Hungry Like a Wolf

As the 2005 Transatlantic Challenge begins and we follow the competitors and their daily progress (here and here) it’s a good time to consider the offshore racer, a special breed of sailor injured to the hardships and discomfort of pushing aggressively across the water 24/7 with no regard to personal safety in the high hopes of ultimate victory. In this vein read about 46-year old Duran Duran rocker Simon Le Bon and his next adventure (besides taking his aging act on the road). Simon nearly died in the 1985 Fastnet aboard Drum when her keel came off, a story in and of itself that is partially recounted in the article. Simon is going to take his life in hand once again and enter Drum in the next Fastnet race scheduled to begin August 7. It’s hard to say that I was a “fan” back in the 80’s and I’m certainly not now but you have to give this guy points on chutzpah. Name another popstar who’d willingly put themselves in this environment again after nearly being killed. He admits to a serious case of the shakes after the Drum disaster…"I had lost my nerve. I found it hard to sleep on the boat. I had my feet crushed up against the end of the bunk…” But now he’s back on the horse, slapping on face cream, eating sensibly, confining his post-show excess to a “glass of wine and a bite to eat” and sailing in a 608 mile offshore race. And by the way, he has the balls to compare Duran Duran to the Rolling Stones. An offshore racer is, in part, someone possessesed of enough hubris that they see a low pressure wave on the weather fax as opportunity. Tighten those keel bolts Simon!

MAXIMUS practicing on New York Harbor two days before the start. (Photo credit: Rolex)

The 2005 Rolex Transatlantic Challenge Begins

The 2005 Rolex Transatlantic Challenge begins tomorrow, a very good topic to wrap up the week. This article in Sailing World by Tony Bessinger is a good read – in particular his quote from Carleton Mitchell’s book, “Passage East.” Before I read this and did research I didn't know much about Mitchell...his words are, as Bessinger notes, an inspiration. I wrote about the Transatlantic Challenge in April here and as you know, this is a race of immense historic significance. Bessinger will be reporting from the 130-foot S&S ketch Sariyah, sending daily reports to Sailing World. Sariyah is under charter to New York YC member Cortright Wetherill Jr. If you’re in New York City this weekend, at 9:00 AM a parade of sail begins down the Hudson River, past the Statue of Liberty, and out to a starting line that's roughly between Sandy Hook, N.J., and Ambrose Tower off New York Harbor. The first gun goes off at 2 p.m., and Class 1 starts at 2:10 p.m.. Class 2, Performance Cruising (Sariyah’s class) will start at 2:20 p.m., and Classes 3 and 4 will follow in 10 and 20 minutes, respectively. Fair winds and safe passage to all competitors. Have a great weekend!

"Racing a yacht across the North Atlantic is not entirely a technical feat nor even an adventure in the classic sense; but it is a great emotional and physical experience for those involved—moments of exhaustion and exultation, of cold fog and blazing sunshine, of hard driving and maddening drifting. And always watch after watch the routine of living and ship keeping goes on, day and night, with never a sense of monotony." - Carleton Mitchell

Sails for Mirabella V

Busy day so a brief posting on sailmaking. Sailmakers, as many of you may know, are not just providers of essential cloth and repairers of ravaged spinnakers – they are an intrinsic part of sailing culture. May of them are professional racers and otherwise skilled aboard a sailboat. Their profession brings them in touch with the big guns of the sport and their knowledge is valued on anything propelled on the water by wind. Unfortunately, many of them can be arrogant pricks, no names mind you but true enough to generalize. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t more than a few good apples out there – Ocean Navigator has a very interesting article here about Doyle Sailmakers' project for Ron Holland’s super-sloop Mirabella V, the largest single-masted sailing yacht yet built. Doyle is a great shop in my experience - staffed with folks who know and love the sport and don’t let that swell their heads. And that would be easy to do if you landed a project like this. Enjoy the article...

A Sailboat is a Sinkhole

I once entertained the idea of opening a “fractional” yacht ownership business somewhere in coastal CT but other things - diapers and pre-school tuitions, health care costs – intervened. I still think it’s a great idea…back in April I wrote an “Ode to Owning” that covered some of the issues around yacht ownership and mentioned Sailtime, the franchise that I’d linked up with for initial discussions around the business. They have a great model but I have to give it to 28-year old entrepreneur Ian Treibick from Stamford, CT. Read about his Greenwich-based WindPath, Inc. in Stamford Advocate – he’s founded a sailing business along the same lines as Sailtime, but without the typical franchisee stress of feeding the corporate till. According to the article he’s already filled six of the eight “fractions” available for his 2005 35-foot Catalina 350. The following quote from Treibick sums up the wisdom of fractional ownership for sailors who lead otherwise busy and cost-intensive lives. I'll add that any 28-year old who has the wherewithal to find a viable way to make a living from his (or her) passion is well worth their salt.

"A sailboat is a sinkhole in the water," said Treibick, who grew up racing small Laser boats on the Long Island Sound. "The cost is pretty overwhelming for a lot of people."

Vintage America's Cup Class yachts race on the San Francisco Bay (Photo Credit: Tony Canadas) 

How Not to Fly the Chute & other tall tales

I’m a Scuttlebutt reader and enjoy their format, particularly the daily newsletter. The recent edition had a link to a set of pictures that rang a bell for me – take a look at how NOT to work your kite…but more telling than the photos is the appropriateness of the locale. If there's anywhere you’re going to get twisted it’s the SF Bay. I have many (not so) fond memories of kite carnage from my time sailing on the Bay – one of the most spectacular was my experience on day two of the IACCSF Sausalito Cup) in June 2002 The wind piped up over 20 on the course. I was one of two mast men on John Sweeney’s boat, USA-11 Stars & Stripes. These vintage America’s Cup yachts are a thrill but huge part of the adrenaline is delivered by wondering what will break next. In this case it the topping lift went on the hoist, a seam on the kite blew and a block thru-bolted to the deck disintegrated….at least that’s how I remember it ;-) Not your typical kite twist...it removed us from the rest of the race. They called off day three due to an early blow that petered out by late morning. I remember Larry Ellison blustering to a small crowd of chin wagglers at the San Francisco Yacht Club bar while outside the stiff breeze shredded the Marin fog. It's funny how people pay attention to you when you’re worth a billion dollars. Wait, that’s a cheap shot…he’s a damn good sailor that Larry, Wired Magazine says so.

Dipping the rail aboard an unidentified classic yacht 

New Weblog Wingsail Goes Live

Fredrick Roswold has lived with his wife Judy Jensen on their 43’ sailboat WINGS for 19 years and, I'm honored to say, has become a frequent reader, posted many comments to Zephyr and recently wrote to let me know about his new "Zephyr inspired" blog, Wingssail. Fred and his wife typify the literate, itinerant voyagers who contribute immeasurably to sailing culture (and help a desk-bound brother out) by chronicling their experiences from the far flung corners of the world. Thanks for the heads up Fred - safe travels and we look forward to following your exploits...

Destination Dalmatia

It’s a knee jerk reaction I suppose but say “Croatia” and I still think tank battles, refugees and swarthy eastern European gangsters. But those days are long gone, independence came in 1992 and now Croatia is a destination in its own right. For sailing, the Adriatic’s Dalmation coast - a stone’s throw but a world away from ritzier ports-of-call in the southern Med – has revived its centuries old seafaring history to become one of the truly superb modern charter sailing grounds. Most unfortunately I can’t speak from experience but check out this article that details a recent charter aboard a 50-foot yacht (five woman and their Captain ;-)…and if you want to plan a sailing trip to Dalmatia be sure to read up here and here. The second link, the official Dalmatia sailing page from the Board of Tourism, has a wealth of information for you deskbound dreamers. In particular I enjoyed the "weather" section that explains the names of the various winds - the bura (bora) and the jugo-siroco (jugo-scirocco) are the main winds on the Adriatic. The prevailing wind in the summer is the maestral. Which begs the question, what do we call the two knot puff that tortures us in August during most hazy, hot and humid afternoons on Long Island Sound?

Bowman at Antigua Race Week 2005 (Photo Credit: Alastair Abrehart, www.caribbeanracing.com) 

Updates: Almeisan Disaster & Graeme Kendall

A few updates from previous stories to round off the work week but before I get to them I wanted to say that I hope all Zephyr readers have the chance to get out on the water over the weekend. It's still a bit early for the Northeast U.S., but by no means impossible to think that you may be spending your Saturday sailing rather than weeding and mulching (like me). Here’s a full account (may need to register to view) of the recent disaster off of the coast of VA in which sailor Thomas Tighe perished. The article relays the perspective of Christopher Ferrer, one of the three relative novices who were aboard the 45-foot sailboat, Almeisan. In the article they compare the weather the vessel encountered to the blow featured in the novel and movie, The Perfect Storm. It’s a bit of hyperbole that, while far from accurate, can be forgiven in light of the tragedy. As well check out this update on sailor Graeme Kendall’s attempt to travel solo non stop around the world via the Arctic Northwest Passage. I first posted on this back in April – it’s a very daunting voyage and I look forward to following Graeme’s progress closely. He’s set to round Cape York, Queensland, in the next 24 hours and as the article recounts, “…will pass north of Australia and then head around the Cape of Good Hope, South Africa, then north across the Atlantic to the northern coast of Canada and Alaska through the Northwest Passage. He then travels south across the Pacific Ocean, returning to Auckland. It is estimated the trip will take 150 to 180 days and cover 28,000 (40,000km) nautical miles…”