On the Harbor: The race is on...to Ensenada

The Mighty AMANTE        

Courtesy of Joysailing.com

                        By LEN BOSE

Today, Friday, April 22, is the start of the 75th Newport to Ensenada Yacht Race. While writing this story on Wednesday afternoon, the weather models were shifting from epic to tragic with the forecast earlier in the week showing 20 plus knots of wind, from start to finish.

Wednesday’s forecast had the wind starting us out in 20 plus knots of wind up until 2000 hours on Friday night shifting to the north and dropping to under eight knots – which will make for some lumpy seas. No wind and I can already hear the sails slating through the night. It’s looking like we will be finishing late Saturday afternoon

Sitting up in my chair, I thought I just pulled my back out and would have to call in sick. “What am I going to do?” I will have had my seabag packed on Thursday and probably will have to avoid the pre-race party with our boat call at 9:30 a.m. on Friday.

At 62 years of age, gone are the days of showing up to the boat with a hangover thinking that a McDonald’s sausage breakfast sandwich is going to make me feel better, and that’s a special feeling once the wind stops and the sails start slapping. My plan this year, what I am calling my farewell tour, is to keep moving and don’t let my body cramp up. Drink a lot of water, try not to overeat and stay away from the beer until the finish.

My First Ensenada Race Aboard AMANTE 

Because I have not sailed on Amante in a long time, I will have to keep my mouth shut, focus on sail trim and make quiet suggestions on sail selections. For example: “At what wind range do you shift down to the half ounce spinnaker or even worse the wind seeker?” Another suggestion might be, “Are we going to have a watch system?,” because once the race slows down the race changes dramatically.

While on deck you must focus on the boat’s speed towards the mark, your focus is always on this aspect of a sailboat race; it just becomes much more difficult when the wind goes light. When it’s windy, everything is easy aboard Amante, because you just pull the spinnaker pole back and point at the mark. With the wind blowing, it is much easier to keep your concentration up. I’ll keep focused on how the weight is distributed around the boat, doing my best to keep the boat going as fast as possible.

When the wind dies down, with the cold dampness setting in, it gets tough staying awake. Either way, the morning comes and you learn that you made the right decision or the wrong one. Decision time comes normally when you approach the Coronado Islands on Amante. If the breeze is up, you stay on the course that is the shortest distance to the finish line. Should the breeze start dying, the navigator has to decide how to stay in the most breeze and within the shortest distance towards the finish line. At this moment, I am remembering why I was never really that good at being a navigator. The weather models at this time are all over the place; so the navigator has to place his Groundhog Day hat on and make a choice. From my armchair, at this moment I would just slug it out on “Rum Line” which is the shortest distance to the finish line. Odds are pretty good I changed my mind five times before Friday and five times during the race.

Amante is in PHRF A with our two top competitors very familiar with me. The favorite in our class is the XP 44 Day Dreams berthed at the Balboa Bay Club. Stan Gibbs is the skipper and is one of the best there is in optimizing a boat and finding the best crew available. He was the skipper aboard Horizon when we won the PV Race and CORW overall that year. The other boat to beat is Viggo Torbensen’s IMX 40 Time Shaver. Torbensen used to own a J-125 and we always had a battle with him aboard Horizon. If we are ahead of these two boats entering Ensenada Bay it will have turned out our navigator made the right choice and we kept the boat going fast.

Wish us luck!

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

Len Bose is a yachting enthusiast, yacht broker and harbor columnist for Stu News Newport.

How Horizon won the 2015 Ensenada overall.

It always fun to tell your competitors and friends how good a sailor you are and how you won the Ensenada race overall in 2015. So when I was asked to write this story I jumped at it. This had to have been the thirty-second time I have sailed the race and the first time I was aboard the winning boat overall.

So how did I do it? Simple I found someone looking to buy a boat and we went out and bought the best offshore boat and program we could find. Horizon a Santa Cruz 50+, if I am not mistaken, had won PHRF class A in 2013 and overall 2014. The new owner and I just stepped aboard and let the boat and crew show us how it’s done. Next thing I know we are entering All Saints Bay with the sun coming up next to Medicine Man, Pyewacket, Bolt, It’s OK and Bad Pak. These are some of the biggest and best boats in the monohull fleet. I recall they beat us across the finish line by nineteen minutes, that gave us the overall win.

What, you say it is not that easy? Well you are right, the boat and the crew where preparing for the up coming Trans Pac race and we had just completed the Island Race and the Cabo race in the same year finishing 2nd and 3rd in class respectively. It goes without saying that Horizon is one of the best prepared boats in the fleet and we showed up to the starting line ready to race.

The only thing slowing us down last year was the weather and the forecast was dismal at best. By the time dinner was served we were all looking at each other wondering if it was time to pull the plug and head back home. I recall the quote on the boat that late afternoon and early evening was “ Why do we do this to ourselves.” We had been sailing a little above rum line throughout the day and then the breeze filled in from the south-west that allowed to close reach straight at the Coronado Islands. As we got closer to the islands we stayed with our reaching spinnaker up and with one foot on the beach we took the outside track. The breeze picked up a little more and we had our 2A up running straight at our waypoint just outside All Saints Bay.

Nothing sparks the adrenaline button more than noticing that you are around some of the biggest boats in the fleet when the sun is coming up and a crew member, looking through the binoculars, first announces “ Hey, I think that big flat head main and blue hull is Medicine Man” with only about twenty miles to go to the finish line. The whole off watch was on deck to take a look, that gives me an idea. The next time we do a spinnaker change and it’s time to pack the previous spinnaker I am going to say “Hey, I think that is Pyewacket” and see how many off watch crew members will help me pack the chute.

This year Horizon has a new crew and we just won the San Diego to PV race overall. We have added two new sails, a very sexy bottom job and again the boat has never been better prepared for the race. We will be on the starting line ready to race this April 23 and hope to see you on the water.

Sea ya

Len Bose

GM Sailing Team Horizon

The Harbor Report: Getting prepped for Ensenada race Flash Bach from 2014

Linstar in last year's Newport to Ensenada International Yacht Race. (Len Bose, Daily Pilot / April 18, 2014)

By Len Bose

April 18, 2014 | 2:51 p.m.

The Newport to Ensenada International Yacht Race is quickly approaching, and I thought it might be interesting to offer my thoughts on preparing for the race and discuss race strategy.

In preparing the boat, my first thoughts are always about weight and keeping the boat as light as possible. We sail a 35-foot J 109 that rates 69 in Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) and only needs five crew members to be competitive.

To keep the weight down, I empty all the water tanks on the boat and bring only bottled water. We bring food for one breakfast, two lunches and one dinner. Chocolate candy, chips and cookies make up our snack list. I request that the crew refrain from bringing their own food.

All the food is placed in the galley, and I put all the soda and beer in an ice chest and place it next to the mast. Also around the mast are our tool kit, anchors, anchor chain rode and whatever we are using as a life raft. Sails are also kept in the middle of the boat and stacked to whichever side of the boat we want the weight.

We keep 14 gallons of diesel in the fuel tank and make sure we have emptied the holding tanks properly before race day. When we go into our night watch, everyone is asked to sleep in the middle of the boat.

Regarding the night watch, make sure you start one. Pending the weather conditions, we will keep three crew on deck. With one crew member changing out every hour, that's a two-hour power nap and you are back at it. Every 30 minutes we rotate crew positions to keep all the crew on watch alert.

Our routine is that the two watch captains are never off watch at the same time. When we rotate out we discuss true wind direction and the numbers that keep us on the favored course to the mark. Both watch captains understand when we need to change sails to obtain the best performance.

My strategy revolves around the wind strength and staying on the "rhumb line," which is the path of shortest distance between two points. As we get about four days from the start I will take a glance at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and SailFlow websites and start to fine-tune my strategy. I have overthought this race way too many times, and it always comes down to some basic tactics.

If it appears to be a moderate breeze that is forecasted to die at night, I will place my first waypoint at the Coronado Islands. If the wind appears that it might hold through the night, I will sail inside of the islands. If it looks like we will have a very long night, I will sail outside of the islands. Big, fast boats can sail great distances and hunt out the wind offshore while smaller boats have to stay on the rhumb line and hope for the best.

The race is won or lost as night falls and crew members start to get cold and tired. Extra effort has to be given to sailing your boat at its best performance to the wind's strength. All your attention is placed staying in the breeze and watching the wind direction. The navigator who can do all the above and keep the boat sailing the best angle toward the finish line wins the race to San Miguel.

I have never figured out how to get to the finish line in a dying breeze from San Miguel. All you can do is hope for the best and keep your eyes open. If you see a group of boats ahead of you stopped, sail the other direction and keep looking for the wind. Always make the effort to have the proper sails up and keep looking for more wind.

If your plan works out and you are a 30-foot boat around a lot of 50-foot boats then you have done it. If you missed the wind in San Miguel like I did last year, there is always the party to look forward to and next year's race.

Stop by my blog at lenboseyachts.blogspot.com to review other notes I have made. On Thursday night I'll post my take on the weather.

Sea ya around the pool.

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

NOTES:

I do allow beer but that’s it regarding alcohol. We bring two twelve pack’s of some type of soda and instant coffee.

Each crew member is asked only to bring the bear minimum of crew gear. Personal safety gear is always welcome aboard, but I do draw the line and ask our crew members not to bring their dive gear.

Regarding the five minute rule when changing sails. I have always leaned towards changing sails as soon as I feel the wind is picking up. If the wind is dying down and I am uncertain that this is a continued trend, I will allow five minutes to pass by before committing on changing sails.

If we feel we are getting out of faze and have a question we always wake the watch captain up to review our options.

Coronado Islands: Our boat fits in the middle and we do have to sail some of those extra miles in the lighter conditions.

On a side note, I had always called it a “rum line”, before writing this story, and assumed it was the shortest distance to the bar at the finish line.

On the Harbor: A devout appreciation for the N2E

2019 Crew of "Carbon Footprint" 1st ULDB A

By LEN BOSE

Today, Friday, April 26, is the start of the 72nd annual Newport to Ensenada International Yacht Race. Over this last year, I have volunteered as a director of the Newport Ocean Sailing Association, NOSA, the organizing authority of the race. The race was first sailed in 1947 and had its hay days in the 1980s, when 675 boats entered the race in 1983. Today, with the participation numbers at an all-time low, many observers place the blame on the violence at the border, NOSA and the downturn in participation in the sport of sailing.

Now, I am not even going down that road to explain the decreasing numbers of participants in sailing events. What I will be trying to illustrate is the history of the Newport to Ensenada International Yacht Race, by acknowledging what goes on behind the scenes and the connection between the city of Newport Beach, Ensenada and the sport of sailing. In addition, recognizing the volunteers of NOSA who make this event unique to our sport.

I participate in most, if not all, of the west coast offshore sailing events. What I have noticed is that most of these events have become more and more distant from the destination ports. In the early years of the Cabo San Lucas race, most of the town greeted the arrival of the fleet. Today, the marina operators were unable to provide slips for the fleet. Present day Trans Pac finishes are not recognized by Hawaiian news outlets, while greeting parties are becoming more difficult to find after each race.

I was pleasantly surprised in the efforts that NOSA continuously exerts year after year in keeping the original connection between the two cities. For example, for the last 20 years, Toni Baiunco, a NOSA director, has been in charge of all public relations with the city of Ensenada and has again organized the annual Mayor’s Reception where 16  Ensenada dignitaries will be attending a dinner aboard a Hornblower dinner cruiser with our local officials. Ensenada dignitaries include Marco Antonio Novelo Osuna, the Mayor of Ensenada; Carlos Manuel Luna Herrera, Delegate of Immigration in Ensenada; Captain Daniel A. Maass Michel, Ensenada Harbormaster; David Perez Tejada Padilla, Customs and Port Administrator of Ensenada; Oscar Escobedo Carignan, Secretary of Tourism, Baja California, ALMT; C.G. Dem Jose Luis Cruz Ballado, Commander; and Naval Region 2a International Affairs Director Jared Gutierrez Lopez.

It should also be noted that since 2015, NOSA has hosted an annual fundraiser, which raises $7,000 - $10,000 for Centro de Atencion Especializada Para Autistas, or CAEPA, a school in Ensenada for autistic children being operated on with a microscopic budget. Funds raised have paid for teacher and therapist salaries, allowing them to attend specialized educational conferences. They’ve fixed the roof, repaired the beat-up van, purchased office supplies and installed their own safe water system. Today, the school’s capacity has grown from seven kids to 28, with many on a waiting list.

At this point, you are probably asking yourself how does that help my rating and the division I have been placed in? Well, it’s keeping the ball rolling down the court in difficult times. I don’t want to just play in my own backyard, so the Baja races and cruises are some of the best sailing events we have on the West Coast. “Dude, I’ve caught some really great waves down the Baja coast...I don’t want to stop now!”

While attending the NOSA meetings this year, there are many more volunteers that stand out in addition to Toni Baiunco. Almost from the start of the Ensenada Race, there was Carlos Avila who was a past Mayor of Ensenada, who took great effort for over numerous years to make this event happen. Today, Avila’s wife Dolores continues to host a Sunday night dinner for the NOSA volunteers at her house and her family still plays a big part in the race. Another person that has donated more than 10 years of their time is Tom Kennedy. Kennedy is known as the ambassador to NOSA and has been involved with keeping the line of communication open between the two cities for a long time. Then, there is Susan Heinz, who runs the starting line logistics. From finding the 30 volunteers to support all the race committee boats, to orchestrating the starting sequence, it’s an amazing and thankless job. There are many more volunteers who have all poured their hearts into this event over the years. What is so often missed behind the scenes is what keeps an event alive during low tides.

The Newport to Ensenada International Yacht Race will continue with its low and high tides of participation with more notice and attention needing to be focused on the volunteers who continue to make it happen. Please take notice of its great historical and help contribute to its success, and you too, will be noticed in the annals of history. 

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

Len Bose is a yachting enthusiast, yacht broker and harbor columnist for 

Stu News Newport.

Forty years of racing aboard the AMANTE, and yes, one more run to Ensenada in my future

By LEN BOSE

My ocean racing career started 40 plus years ago when I met Tim Richley in the quad at Orange Coast College. We were dating two girls who were friends that introduced us when Richley and I recognized that we both had a strong interest in sailing. 

We would take the girls out on his father’s Newport 30 MAR for a sail and parties on the harbor. I learned that it is always better to use the companionway ladder rather than take one step down the hatch at my 20th birthday party aboard MAR. 

It wasn’t long after that Tim’s father, Mel Richley, was purchasing a custom Peterson 48 naming it AMANTE.

From day one, when the keel was poured, I was never letting Tim out of my sight after finding my new best friend. I was then introduced to Tim’s two brothers, Buddy and Steve, while taking part in the first two seasons of ocean racing aboard AMANTE.

One of our area’s big sailing events was the Los Angeles Yacht Club’s Whitney Series, which we raced in for the next decade. We also won the Newport Beach Yacht Club’s Cabo race in our division three times in a row. 

In 1983, I was also extremely fortunate to make the crew list for the Trans Pac Race to Hawaii. Part of the deal I made with the Richley family was that I would bring the boat back from Hawaii. That summer I had logged more than 28 days at sea, and close to 5,000 miles aboard AMANTE.

During the ‘80s and ’90s, I was a fixture aboard AMANTE racing down the California and Baja Coast along with annual YRU cruises to Catalina. Flashing back to all the different girlfriends I spent under the stars aboard AMANTE in Catalina brings a HUGE smile to my face. 

Becoming a yacht broker in 1989, the experience I gained from all my times at sea was priceless. As I sold other racing boats my attention went to my new customers and their boats while always feeling like a member of the Richley AMANTE family.

Now some 40 years later, I became rather efficient at offshore sailing all due to the Richley family giving me the initial break of sailing aboard their boat. 

Like any sport, there comes a time when one has to think of retiring from heading out to sea and competing in offshore sailing. I still have a good 20 years of sailing my Harbor 20 and my remote-control Volvo 70. 

I might have let go of the wheel, but I still have a good hold of my tiller. 

There is also a large amount of Tom Brady in me that wants to stay in the game. While attending the AMANTE 40th year party at the Richley home this last weekend, I signed up for this year’s Ensenada race.

All the photos when I had a full set of hair on my head and weighed 80 pounds lighter make me want for one more lap. Let’s just hope I remember to use the companionway ladder.

There is another part of this story that still must be recognized and that is there has been no other boat in my life that gets used on a more regular basis than AMANTE. You will see her competing in all the local PHRF racing and all the harbor races throughout each year. And, you will find her on family cruises in Catalina at Long Point and Moonstone at least six times each year. 

AMANTE has kept local PHRF sailing going in our area solely on her own keel, while keeping the yacht club bars full after each race inside the harbor or outside.

I am now looking forward to this year’s Ensenada Race and, as always, the old guys will be keeping this old IOR dinosaur on track and killing fish. IOR is an old rating system AMANTE was built too, while IOR boats are often called fish killers because they are displacement boats that just get deeper in the water the faster they go. 

There were also a couple of years in a row when AMANTE bumped into a whale during the Ensenada Race. That’s right – we have whale tales of stories I shouldn’t repeat to you in public. But if you’d like to come up to me at the Coral bar after the race and trade a couple of rounds with me, I promise to make you laugh until your eyes are watering while you’re gasping for air.

Wish us luck!

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

Len Bose is a yachting enthusiast, yacht broker and harbor columnist for Stu News Newport.