HELP SUPPORT SAILING IN NEWPORT HARBOR!

                                Roy Jones J 133 TANGO  Leading the 2012 High Point Series

Harbor Commissioners,

Last Harbor Commission meeting I spoke on my request for funding regarding the Newport High Point Series. The concept is to purchase 8 Annual Parking permits, $ 1,200, and award them to the winners of the series. It appears, I did not receive support from the Special Events Advisory Committee    http://newportbeach.granicus.com/MetaViewer.php?view_id=44&event_id=66&meta_id=125766.

The whole idea of this request is to promote big boat sailing around our harbor. Over the last five years participation has dropped dramatically and my thought was to return to a grass roots effort and promote sailing from within our harbor. One event that has been in place for many years is the Association of Yacht Clubs (AOCYC) Newport Beach High Point Series. This series takes place between all the different yacht clubs within our harbor. The American Legion Midwinters, the first race of the Balboa Yacht Clubs 66 Series, The first two races of Newport HarborYacht Clubs Ahmanson Series, 1st race of Bahia Corinthians Yacht Clubs Gil Knudson Series and NOSA Argosy Regatta.

There has been a large effort to bring more awareness to this event by our local yacht clubs and by myself as a harbor reporter. With the addition of some type of support shown by the City of Newport Beach IE "The Annual Parking Permits" the interest level will grow as will participation.  

Rather than placing a wall of text in front of you with all the reasons why I feel this is a win win for everyone involved. Please contact our council members and support my request for funding. I welcome you call if you would like more information.

Council votes on funding tomorrow! 

respectfully

Len Bose

(714) 916-0200

Newport High Point Scoreboard 2012

http://lenboseyachts.blogspot.com/2012/03/2012-newport-beach-high-point-series.html

                                          AMANTE In  a close second place

Hello Readers,

If any of you like this “silly Idea” of mine please contact The City of Newport Beach City Council TODAY via email! (Please Bcc the council members)

MHenn@NewportBeachCa.gov , SRosansky@NewportBeachCa.gov, RHill@NewportBeachCa.gov , lesliejdaigle@aol.com, EdSelich@roadrunner.com, NGardner@NewportBeachCa.gov, curryk@pfm.com,

Dear City Council Member,

Please consider the funding request during your review of item # 14 on your agenda tonight “Special event support recommendations” and the  “Newport High Point Series” request for 8 annual parking permits to be awarded to the winners of this series.

This request will go a long way in promoting boating and provide a positive feeling of camaraderie throughout our harbor.

These are the minutes from my presentation to the Special Events Advisory Committee

Newport High Point Series (Len Bose and Pat Schumacher) Q. Mr. Cole asked if the event is just for yacht club members; 
A. Most of them are yacht club members and half of the participants are Newport

Beach residents. 
Q. Mr. Cole asked what economic benefits there would be for the City; 
A. The boaters are using their boats and potentially using the restaurants,VonsPavilions

food, shipyard use, etc. 
Q. Ms. Dinwiddie asked if the event will still occur if the City does not provide the $1,200

to purchase the eight annual parking passes for the winning boat’s crew; 
A. Yes. The event would still go on but the parking passes would not be purchased as

prizes.

4Q. Mr. Topping asked how many boats will be involved; 
A. Hopefully about 40 boats in the event. All boats would be from Newport Beach. 
Q. Ms. Higgins asked what else besides writing about the event they could do to

promote boating in the harbor; 
A. He’s hoping with the incentive of racing for the parking passes, others will write

about it in their newsletters as well

   Check the Newport High Point Score board, Then  ask yourself if you would if you like the idea of winning annual parking permits?????

The Harbor Report: New boating season opens

        BYC Opening Day 2012
By Len Bose

May 15, 2012 | 9:12 p.m.

Place the finishing touches on your boat, go for a sail, put your favorite shirt on, break out the band, your red Solo cup, and head down to the yacht club.

That was the order of business within our harbor last week as we celebrated the opening days of the 2012 season.

The events started on May 9, with 38 boats sailing in Newport Harbor Yacht Club's Opening Day race from Long Beach to Newport. The weather was clear with a southwesterly breeze that provided us with a close reach down the course.

Everyone was out sailing, from Windward Passage to Calegama. I was helming Roy Jones J 133 Tango and, as we crossed the finish line, we all looked back in as Windward Passage and Ragtime were close on our stern.

Seeing these two boats sailing in the same waters made me flash back to the stories I read of their close TransPac finish of 1973, when the Australian splinter Ragtime beat out Windward Passage by four minutes in a 2,225-mile race to Hawaii. This time it was Windward Passage beating the splinter in this 14-mile opening day race by two minutes.

Lido Isle Yacht Club started its opening day on May 5 with an annual parade around the Isle. I later noticed a photo of the club's Commodore Carter Ford and Judy Weightman saluting the camera in perfect yachting tradition as they toured the parade route.

Wish I could have been there for that one; seeing the photo makes me smile.

May 6 marked Newport Harbor Yacht Club's turn. The crowd responded in droves. For me, the height of the day was when 15 members of USC's marching band were on the main dock and started playing "Tusk."

On May 12, the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club (BCYC), "the friendliest club on the bay," became "the proudest club on the bay" in receiving the 2011 SCYA Club of the Year and YRUSC Yachting Service Excellence awards.

Down the dock, the Balboa Yacht Club (BYC) celebrated its 90th opening day with Commodore Judi Gorski, BYC's first female commodore, christening the club's new committee boat Defiant, then commenting on the club's commitment to yachting and our harbor. With the sound of the cannon shot echoing throughout the harbor on this sunny day in May, the 2012 season was now officially open!

That means it's time for Monday nights at the American Legion, BCYC Taco Tuesdays, BYC Wednesday Twilights and Thursday beer cans.

Special attention must be given to the dredging equipment this season, which is a good thing.

Please note that this year's beer cans will have a course change. Odds are pretty good that beer cans will be more like the winter's Sunkist Series, with starting inside the harbor, a sprint out to the Balboa Pier and then finishing back inside.

Special attention is due, and another cannon should be shot for Duffy Duffield, Carter Ford, Don Stoughton, Bill Moses, George Hylkema, Mark Sites, Chip Donnelly and the other members of the Newport Mooring Assn. who saved the city hundreds of thousands of dollars and volunteered thousands of hours in realigning our mooring fields.

A well done from the harbor users would be appreciated the next time you see any of the above mentioned. They got it done, and this week you will start seeing the mooring being realigned.

For more photos and comments, please go to my blog site at lenboseyachts.blogspot.com.

Sea ya!

LEN BOSE is an experienced boater, yacht broker and boating columnist

This is my Lower Bay Dredging Update No. 5.

Hi Everyone,

This is my Lower Bay Dredging Update No. 5.

·        Please see the attached Figure No. 3.  We’ve added a new color to the map which shows where the dredger will be in the next 1-2 weeks.  This should help folks plan ahead. 

·        The larger dredge “Palomar” has moved from the Balboa Bay Club area to the eastern tip of Lido Isle.  They are digging a narrow channel that will allow them to access the larger channel along Via Lido Soud and the peninsula which is where the large volume of POLB-bound material is located. They’ll be working near the eastern tip of Lido for about 6-7 more days before they round the corner into the main channel.

·        The smaller dredge “180” took the place of the larger dredge at the Balboa Bay Club.  This dredge has a smaller bucket so the production is slower. However, there’s only about one week to go before they can move on from this area.

·        There are 3 disposal scows working at the two different dredge locations – quite a lot of activity indeed!

·        After the Balboa Bay Club area is complete, they’ll start near Collins Isle and dig their way into the channel along North Bay Front in order to reach the POLB-bound material near the Balboa Yacht Basin.

·        If you are a mooring permittee in the “D” mooring field (between Bayside Drive and Balboa Island), now is the time to move your vessel to another mooring.  Please call the Harbor Patrol at (949) 723-1002,  and they’ll be happy to assign you a different mooring elsewhere in the harbor at no charge to you.  If your boat is not moved, South Mooring Company will move both the boat and the mooring to a different, temporary location in the harbor.  We would prefer not to move the boat ourselves, so please help the project out by calling the Harbor Patrol to temporarily move the vessel yourself.   We anticipate that we’ll be working in this area for about 3-4 weeks (estimated).

·        Extended working hours:  As you may have heard by now, the dredger has been authorized to work at any hour day/night in order to meet the deadline for the Port of Long Beach window.  As previously mentioned, it is critical that we meet this disposal window, or we will not have any other feasible alternative for sediment disposal in those areas.  Therefore, we’ve allowed the dredger to “chase the tides” which means they’ll be working a full shift whenever the tide is high enough to float the fully loaded barges out of the harbor.  So, they won’t be working a constant 24 hour shift, but will be working the optimal hours to achieve the best results.  The City sincerely apologizes for the inconvenience, and we thank the harbor community for their patience during this important project. 

·        For the folks who live on Via Lido Soud, it is advisable that you please move your boat (if it overhangs beyond the end of the finger floats) for the 1 day when the dredger is in front of your dock.  They will stay at least 15’ away from your dock, but if you have a boat that overhangs past your finger floats, they will probably stay 15’ away from your boat as well. This isn’t necessarily a problem, but the closest they can get to their specified dredge footprint, the better.  It will even improve the approach to your slip as well!

·        I am recommending dock owners to move their boat regardless, because inevitably, the boats will get splashed with water and maybe mud.  I’ve been watching the operations, and frankly, it looks like a clean process, but you may not want to take the chance.  The dredger will not be responsible for cleaning up mud or water off boats or docks.

·        Sometimes access will be limited in certain areas of the harbor.  We will do our best to reduce the time we may be blocking access to and from a dock or a channel, but we ask that you please plan ahead. I will continue to provide updates giving folks as much lead time as possible.  This also applies to the tenants at the Balboa Yacht Basin and even Promontory Bay.  Again, we’ll do our best to minimize the inconvenience.

·        As always, please be mindful of the dredge operations, and please warn your family, friends and customers (boat, kayak, SUP rentals etc…) to stay clear of the dredge and tug boat operations.

·        A big ‘Thank You’ to all who attended the annual Sailing / Charter / Rental Boat outreach program yesterday when we discussed the impact that the project will have on this summer’s activities.  Again, thank you for bearing with us.

·        The anchorage has been temporarily relocated to the western end of Lido Isle for the duration of the project.

·        The information in these updates can also be viewed online at: http://www.newportbeachca.gov/lowerbaydredging  (There may be some lag time between this email and our postings.)

·        If you would like to receive these updates, please email me with your contact information.

Thank you,

Chris Miller

Harbor Resources Manager

( (949) 644-3043  * cmiller@newportbeachca.gov

The Harbor Report: My take on the Aegean tragedy "edited"

By Len Bose

May 4, 2012 | 8:53 p.m.

I have to assume you have read the Daily Pilot's reports regarding the sinking of the yacht Aegean, which claimed the lives of four crew members.

I first noticed the boat and crew on April 26, the night of the send-off party before the annual Newport to Ensenada Yacht Race at the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club. I had volunteered as a gangway attendant that allowed boat owners and crews access to their boats while keeping the general public off the docks.

The crew of the Aegean was easily spotted with its blue shirts that read, "I am on a boat," and their blue hats.

The crew walked past me many times throughout the night. Because the boat was slipped next to the gangway, I was able to watch the crew step on and off its vessel many times throughout the night.

From 25 years of being a yacht broker, I can watch people approach a boat and see how they board one and tell whether they are very experienced or not.

My observations of this crew: This was not their first rodeo. They where having fun as a team and staying under control. In fact, I recall they all had returned to their boat by 9:30 the night of the send-off party.

I am not sure what happened to this crew but, if I were to guess, they probably had their dinner at 8 p.m. just west of the border. The wind had died down to under 5 knots at about 11 p.m., and the crew of the Aegean probably started its engine and reduced the watch to one person while the engine and autopilot did their work.

What happened next, we may never know, but if I were to continue with my conclusion, the one crew member left on deck probably grabbed his blanket and placed his back to the forward bulkhead of the cockpit and was facing aft.

He then would fall asleep, wake up, take a look around, and then fall asleep again. At least that's my speculation.

I know from experience if you allow yourself to fall into that routine you will fall into a deeper sleep each time. When I catch myself doing this, like on the delivery trip home the other day, I stand up and turn on my iPod.

For what's its worth, that's what I think happened. The crew member on watch fell asleep at the wheel, and the boat ran into North Coronado Island.

Tragic, yes, but this happens in cars every year. Nothing can be said to the family for their losses, other than, "From my family to yours, we wish you the best and are sorry for your loss."

LEN BOSE is an experienced boater, yacht broker and boating columnist.

5.00 from 2 ratings

This is my Lower Bay Dredging Update No. 4.

This is my Lower Bay Dredging Update No. 4.

1.     This week, RE Staite has mobilized some equipment into the harbor, and they’ve established a mooring area near the west side of Bay Island, and near the eastern end of the anchorage area.   They’ll use this area periodically throughout the project.

2.     Please remember to give the barges, tugs and disposal scows plenty of room when you are boating in the harbor.  It takes a long time for this equipment to stop or change course when underway – don’t underestimate their size and momentum!

3.     The larger dredge, the “DB Palomar”, is currently working near the Balboa Bay Club.  This dredge has a 14 cubic yard bucket, and is most efficient for shallow cuts.

4.     The larger disposal scow, the “Weeks 261” is working alongside the Palomar.  This scow has a capacity of 2,000 cubic yards, and RE Staite intends to fill it to capacity to maximize our loads to the Port of Long Beach. 

5.     Please see the attached Figure 2 which shows the current areas under construction.  RE Staite will begin working along the eastern tip of Lido Isle within the next few days.  This figure will be updated as the contractor progresses throughout the harbor. As always, the schedule is bound to change on a moment’s notice. 

6.     RE Staite is really pushing hard to meet the June 30 deadline for disposal at the Port of Long Beach.  To do so, the City has permitted them to work from 6:00 am to 10:00 pm 7 days a week including holidays.  It is highly probable that 24 hour shifts will be required during this critical push to meet this deadline.  I will keep everyone posted once we have an estimated schedule from the contractor.

7.     Very soon, the smaller dredge barge will arrive in Newport, and it will replace the larger rig (Palomar) by the Balboa Bay Club to allow the Palomar to begin off Lido Isle.  They’ll be creating a channel around the tip of Lido Isle so they can reach the area between Via Lido Soud and the peninsula.  This large area is bound for the POLB, so they need to get there as quickly as possible.

8.     There will also be two smaller disposal scows arriving soon.  These will have a capacity of 1,000 cubic yards each.

9.     The anchorage area between Lido Isle and Bay Island will be temporarily relocated (for the duration of this project) to the western end of Lido Isle by Lido Marina Village early next week.  I have contacted the charter companies who are berthed at that end of the harbor so they are aware.  Many thanks to Chandler Bell of Hornblower, Harbormaster Tom Slayton and Chuck South who assisted in mapping out the temporary location of the anchorage.

10.  Race marker “W” near the eastern tip of Lido Isle will be removed today for the time being.  We’ll coordinate with the contractor as to when it’s safe to put it back.  Many thanks to the Association of Orange Coast Yacht Clubs (AOCYC) for their flexibility during this project.

11.  If you would like to receive these updates, please send your email request to: cmiller@newportbeachca.gov

Thank you,

Chris Miller

Harbor Resources Manager

( (949) 644-3043  * cmiller@newportbeachca.gov

The Harbor Report: The 2012 Ahmanson Cup is a success

By Len Bose

May 1, 2012 | 7:21 p.m.

Editor's note: Len Bose wrote this installment of his Harbor Report column before leaving town to take part in his 25th Newport to Ensenada race, sailing aboard Linstar, John Schulze's J 109 Linstar.

*

On the weekend of April 21 and 22, the Newport Harbor Yacht Club held the 2012 Ahmanson Cup. This year, NHYC took more of a grass roots approach to the event by running a random leg course with pursuit starts. Thirty-five local boats took part in the race.

Bob Kettenhofen and his team from Dare have all but wrapped up the series with two first-place wins. The race for second is close with David Team and his Trans Pac 52 Rebel Yell in the second pole position, followed closely by Team Tres Gordo Andrews' 49 It's OK and Manouch Moshayedi TP 52's Rio.

Then there is the giant killer, Robert Plant and his Hobie 33, Still Crazy. It can hold back those much larger boats in the final race of the series, scheduled for NHYC's Opening Day on May 5 and possibly take hold of that second place trophy.

These first two races of the Ahmanson Series were scored in the Newport High Point Series and, with the large attendance, the leader board was almost turned upside down.

Roy Jones' J 133, Tango, still holds onto first place with 44 points, the Richly family's Amante is in second with 36 points, and Kettenhofen's Dare moved up to third with 33 points.

David Team and his Rebel Yell jumped into fourth place with 32 points.

I am still hoping to receive my funding request from the city of Newport Beach for the annual parking permits to give to the winners of this event.

When I was interviewed the funding I was asked about what type of financial impact does this series have on the city .

Let's look at the attendance of last week's race of 35 boats with an average of 10 people per boat and two days of racing. That translates into 700 sandwiches made at our local delis and markets.

*

In other harbor news...

On April 25, I gave a talk to the OASIS Senior Center's Yacht Club about Balboa Yacht Club's summer beer-can races. What a huge turn out this group gets at its monthly meeting. There must have been close to 70 people in the room.

If you did not know, the OASIS Yacht Club has a Catalina 34 and Hunter 32 in its fleet and is out sailing almost everyday. If you would like to join or are an experienced beer-can skipper, please contact them and volunteer to take a group out, on one of their boats, for this summer upcoming races.

Odds are very good that you might find some very reliable crew members for your boat this summer. I need to give a big shout out to Bronny Joy for providing me with her beer-can photos. These are fantastic and you can find all of her work at Joysailing.com.

I also wanted to give my readers a heads up that the dredging of Newport's Lower Bay has started. There is a ton (no pun intended) of information about what, when, who and how this will all be done.

Chris Miller, the Harbor's resource manager and his staff will again do an outstanding job of completing this task and providing up to date information on this project.

If you would like to receive updates via email, send your request to Chris atcmiller@newportbeachca.gov. Make sure you read them before you get in your boat and take a bay cruise.

Of course, if you would like to be kept up to date with everything that's going on in Newport Harbor, you are always welcome at lenboseyachts.blogspot.com/ for the whole scope. Sea ya

LEN BOSE is an experienced boater, yacht broker and boating columnist..

2012 Ensenada Race Review

THE BAND

I sailed one of my worst N2E, missed three huge shifts and was about 3 miles behind the winners of PHRF B & C when the wind shut down. The group in front of us stayed in the breeze and finished about 4:00 PM, while we went to the wind finder with about 12 miles to the finish. It appeared we would not finish until 12 or 1 AM and we all had enough and wanted to go in for the party. We turned on the iron genoa at 8:00 PM with about 6 miles to the finish and informed the finish boat that we had withdrawn from the race. I hate to lose this way, but thats sailing. 

The group we sailed with, "the band", had a ton of laughs and had a great time Saturday night together. We will be back next year and this group will finish out the season sailing SB to King Harbor and Long Point together. 



Lessons Learned: We separated from the fleet to soon, Keep a better eye on jibe angles, don't sleep.