The Harbor Report: The overqualified Noel Plutchak is making our harbor cleaner 2/1/2016

Learn just how easy it is to use our pump out stations

Len Bose

I have a story for you this week that you will not see coming and I will do my best to stray away from all the pun’s that can flow from it. Over the last year I kept hearing about the person who has been maintaining our boats' pump-out stations around the harbor and what an outstanding job this person had been doing.

He is Noel Plutchak, who moved to the Los Angles area in 1974 and began working at USC in the Environment, Geography and Marine Sciences department. Later that year he moved over, as chief scientist, to Interstate Electronics, where is stayed until 1992.

He moved next to the Raytheon Co. and later ran his own consulting firm. Today he works for Blue Water design group, which provides planning for marina and waterfront resorts. As a side job, he maintains our harbor pump-out stations for the Chuck South Mooring Co.

And I thought I was overqualified to be a part-time dock master.

Every three months Plutchak makes the rounds to inspect all six pump-out stations and is on call when one breaks down. Each station takes about an hour to inspect for pressure and flow rates.

"These things are really key, if the pumps are performing or not," Plutchak said.

He also checks oil levels and grease fittings and looks for corrosion.

If you are a regular reader you already know that one of our problems at the pump-out stations is boaters placing the nozzles into their bilges and sucking out hazardous materials, such as motor oil, engine coolant and transmission fluid, not to mention fuel pads, nuts, bolts and razor blades.

Sharp items can cut the vacuum hoses inside the pumps at a replacement cost of $1,000 apiece. Over the last two months, at the 15th Street stations, two hoses have needed replacement.

We are still trying to save every dollar we can to improve our harbor. If you happen to see someone bringing a pump-out station hose from below decks, take down the type and name of the boat and send them in an email to or call the harbor department.

I asked Plutchak what not to do when pumping out waste.

"Do not open the valve until (the) nozzle tip is in place," he said. "I have watched boaters open the nozzle, then take the hose and nozzle over the deck flange without making a good connection. With the vacuum valve open, the waste will rise quickly and spray out the side of the nozzle until inserting the nozzle into the flange properly. Make sure you do not open the nozzle until the tip is inside the flange."

The same advice works when removing the nozzle from the deck flange. Turn the vacuum off first, then remove the nozzle. It is also good practice to gently lay down the nozzle on the ground because many nozzle tips are made from hard plastic, and if banged onto the ground will crack.

Next, take the water hose and place a couple of gallons of water into your holding tanks, and then pump out the fresh water. This will clean your holding tank and the pump-out equipment. Return the vacuum nozzle and hose to the stand and turn off the pump. The fewer hours on the pumps, the longer they will last.

Now, if you are like me, and you are wondering how a chief scientist can ever pick up extra work as a pump-out station repair man, then you will have to thank our harbor resources manager, Chris Miller.

While Plutchak was working for Mooring Systems Inc. in 2006 and 2007, Miller worked with Plutchak on another harbor project. And when we received our new pump-out stations a couple of years ago, Miller knew just the person to call to take care of it.

I have not met Plutchack yet but from what I have heard from around town is “he is the sh*t” and over the phone I head a person that loves our harbor and is doing his part in making it a cleaner harbor.

LEN BOSE is an experienced boater, yacht broker and boating columnist for the Daily Pilot.

On the Harbor: Transpac Part ll

HORIZON Finishing 2021 Trans Pac                                 Photos by Sharon Green | Ultimate Sailing Photography

By LEN BOSE

I left you about a month ago rounding the west end of Catalina headed to Honolulu, Hawaii, in this year’s Transpac race aboard the Santa Cruz 50 Horizon. We talked about all the hardships of the race like living on a 20-degree angle for the first four days, serving food while getting bounced around the boat and gearing up for the first few cold nights. I ended that story with the question: What keeps us coming back?

“It’s a cool thing to do,” quoting Peter Eisler who is one of the world’s most sought-after navigators sailing aboard Roy Disney’s Pyewacket. Aboard Horizon, the race could not have gone any better. We had an intensely close race with Steve Sellinger’s Santa Cruz 52 Triumph, who had put together an exceedingly strong team with local sailors Justin Law and Brad Wheeler aboard, taking the lead from the start then holding that lead most of the way to Hawaii. At about 600 miles out from the finish line, Triumph had about a 15-mile lead on us. Horizon found a wind shift, then fell into favorable conditions which allowed us to take the lead at about 180 miles from the finish line. It was early morning when we crossed the finish line with Triumph only 22 minutes behind us after sailing about 2,300 miles. Horizon and Triumph had both beaten the course record for a Santa Cruz 50/52, which was set by the boat Allure in 1897 at 9 days, 6 minutes and 23 seconds. Triumph had sailed the course in 8 days, 23 hours and 46 minutes, Horizon at 8 days, 23 hours and 25 minutes. Sailing against strong competitors while making Transpac history is only part of the reason as to what keeps us coming back. 

Notice Triumph spinnaker in background.

Working through the mental and physical challenges can be wearing on the body. After being in the sun for close to nine days, then working on the boat for the next two, I was speaking in tongues, well the Mai Tais might have a little something to do with it also. I still need to apologize to Debi Springer, who I was talking to on my return home in front of Santa Monica Seafood, as I thought she was Terry Duffield. The pitch-black nights can also be very intimidating while racing. I had come on watch, walked back behind the wheel, turned around and there was nothing in front of us other than a black wall. James Malm and I were on the same watch together and after he came on deck, he just started laughing, “Hey Len, is that a black wall in front of us – are we going to SLAM right into it?” Malm asked. During these dark nights, while doing your trick at the wheel, you would get these large wind gusts of eight to 10 knots with the swell deciding to take another direction. Working your way through these conditions can really pucker you up. You can also get a little intimidated while waiting in the on-deck circle wondering if you can do this.

Sailing downwind for five days in the warm Pacific tradewinds will be a fond memory, sighting sea life, cloud formations, rainbows, moonbows, passing ships in the night – they will always be etched into our memories. While waking up for my watch, my nickname had changed from Lenny B to Lenny Beats because I left my funk playlist playing and the on-watch had been dancing the whole four hours. For some strange reason that made me feel good; music will break tension, gelling us more as a team while gaining on our opponents. I have been dancing across the Pacific while listening to Michael Jackson since my first Transpac in 1983.

My last three Transpacs have been day finishes which are always an added bonus. Hearing a crew member shout “Land Ho” is always refreshing along with a relief of tension that the water maker, refrigeration, battery charging system, head and electronics are all still working. When approaching the islands from a southerly route, you will first see parts of the Big Island, Maui, and then sail right next to Molokai before entering the Molokai Channel. This channel can quickly slap you upside the head because of the increased wind strength and sea conditions. I recall four times, over the years, when the channel has picked us up and laid us on our side while I was blowing bubbles in the cockpit. Being able to take on the Molokai Channel while keeping the boat in control and sailing at top performance will always make you want more. If the channel rubs your nose in it, then around a week after the finish you’ll start dreaming that you would like another chance.

The finish line is always exciting no matter what time of day it is. The wind always seems to be blowing in the mid-20s with the wind angle at a close reach, making it difficult to keep the boat in control with a spinnaker up. You have to finish the race with a spinnaker up, because that’s what’s in the race brochure. If you are lucky enough to finish in daylight, then the camera boats are all around you and there’s no pressure.

The greeting the Hawaii Yacht Club and the Transpac Yacht Club give you is most memorable with a big alooooooha, then a review of the crew roster welcoming you to the islands and of course, the Mai Tais. Blend this with loved ones waiting for you at the dock, while trying to obtain your land legs again which makes this all a “cool thing to do.” For me, I am considering hanging up my sea boots; Horizon has been placed on the market for sale, so this might be the perfect time to call it quits while on top of the Santa Cruz 50 fleet. With 14 Pacific crossings, going out with 1st place in a division and with a new course record for a Santa Cruz 50 feels right. Yes, I will miss Horizon, but I will never forget all the memories and my lifelong friends that sailed with me aboard her.

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

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

Trans Pac 2021 "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly"

 

By the time you are reading this, I will be aboard the Santa Cruz 50 Horizon approaching Catalina Islands west end, next stop Honolulu, Hawaii. The Race is called Trans Pac which dates back to 1906 the history book is full of information with the last updated version being completed in 1981. I am thinking I should join a Trans Pac history committee to update the history book when I retire from offshore sailing. The next questions are when does one retire and what keeps us coming back?

Years ago a revered navigator Tom Leweck, the Curmudgeon, wrote a story in an electronic sailing newsletter named Scuttlebutt called Trans Pac Anonymous (TPA) a non-profit organization designed to protect yachtsman from unscrupulous boat owners who make promises of champagne sailing voyages to Hawaii on the sparkly blue water of the Pacific Ocean. It’s been years since I have read the story with the bottom line being deferred to what my father always told me “You don’t get something for nothing”. 

From my perspective, I could be wrong about this, the curmudgeon had reached a point in his life where he still wanted to compete yet the pounding of the first two or four days of the race, pending on what size boat you are on, is absolutely miserable. This is the point I feel the curmudgeon was disclosing to the crew of the competing boats. Let me set the scene for you: The start of the race is normally under the light breeze from the Catalina eddy. Once the boats are about forty miles off the coast of California they enter the offshore breeze which can easily be in the 30-knot range. This is quite often when the carnage takes place with several boats breaking down and return to port with their tail between their legs. This happened to me in 2003, and normally starts at about three in the morning your first night out. The crew struggles with the reduction of sail area with all hands on deck. With this task completed the off watch heads back down below wet and cold trying to get some sleep within the hour and a half before their watch starts. At this point picture yourself a little seasick living inside a drum on the drumline at the halftime show of a football game.

This goes on for four days with your body locking down asking you why do you do this to yourself? The crew has to learn quickly how to adapt, which includes going to the head while on a twenty-degree angle, taking on and off our foul weather gear, learning how to make coffee with one hand for the boat. Can you picture me now after struggling to stay upright after pretending to get some sleep, putting on my gear now trying to remember how to balance my coffee mug as I pour warm water into it? I learned years ago that boiling water is very hot and your first drink of coffee is a type of tsunami effect out of your canteen into your wide-open mouth. Still on a 20-degree angle mountain climbing expedition, one looks for the easiest route up the companionway ladder onto the weather rail. Just then you get hit in the face by a large cold wave with the water dripping down your slightly exposed jacket. One quickly begins the count down to one’s off watch. Just at about this time, I start getting upset because I have to get back up and start figuring out how to make the boat sail faster by trimming the sails. Which is the start of another climbing expedition traveling down to the leeward side and back up again. I’m not going to lie, I do a lot of finger pointing while asking the younger crew members to complete the trimming while I never have gone to the bow of the boat since the turn of the century. 

Day two and three are the same balancing act, one has to see me trying to take the casserole out of the oven placing it on the stovetop peeling back the aluminum foil, and sticking my finger in the middle of it to see if the casserole is ready for dinner. If it is not ready, the juggling act starts over. The first few days go by with most of the crew laughing at how the old guy tries to stay on his two feet dancing around the galley while cursing at himself.

As we go into day four this is when one receives the pleasure of living through four days of hell. The angle of the boat is less than five degrees, the crew has set one of the reaching spinnakers while the miles are clicking away towards the cold Mai Tai’s, yes I talking in the first person plural form. Morale on the boat can be severely damaged should the wrong route be taken in the early part of the race, there a no passing lanes after day five. Now, if you are one of the fortunate ones whose team has made the correct choices then you are in the race of your lifetime.

I would think more than half of my readers remember the original Batman TV series? The first show would show you how Batman and Robbin got into trouble with the second episode showing how they got out of trouble. For the rest of the story remember “Same Bat-time same Bat-channel”. While I recall why I do this to myself, you can follow us at https://yb.tl/transpac2021 wish us luck!

Sea Ya

On the Harbor: Catching up with sailor Tom Corkett aka TC Written 6/18

Tom Corkett with his trophy – War Canoe – for winning the Transpac overall in 1963

By LEN BOSE

The year was 1988, and I had just started my career in yacht sales. One day while gazing out the window, a large off-green BMW pulled up in front of the office with the initials TC on the license plate. My broker noticed where I was looking and said with an envious tone in his voice “That’s Tom Corkett.” Ever since that time, I thought that’s the person I want to emulate.

Tom Corkett – T.C. – hope you don’t mind, but I am going to use his initials because that’s how I have always greeted him from the time we used to work together at Ardell Yachts in the ‘90s until the present day as we cross tacks in the Harbor 20 fleet.

TC was born in Pasadena. His family purchased a home on the harbor in 1947, and then they made it their full-time residence in 1954. At that time, the active racing fleet in the harbor were the 11-foot Snowbirds. TC crewed for his sister, Nancy, in Snowbirds, until he wanted his own boat. He recalled the 1954 “Flight of the Snowbirds,” where 200 boats would show up at the starting line. He finished mid-fleet, yet went on to describe how Nancy won the pin end of the starting line with Tom O’Keefe, and the two of them punched out in front of the fleet. Nancy finished a close second to O’Keefe. TC also recalled that they would close down the harbor for the Flight, and other boaters would line up around the outside of the race course to spectate, as well as watch the powerboat races down the Lido Channel: those were the two big events of the summer. “We used to have power boats going 50 mph down the harbor. It was great,” TC recalled.

At the age of 21, TC started the sailing club at Ardell Yachts, where he would give sailing lessons on new fiberglass sailboats, and then after the lessons, sell students those boats. Cal, Pearson and Hinckley sailboats were the product lines that Ardell Yachts represented in the early ‘60s. During the ‘70s, interest rates jumped up and Ardell Yachts turned to brokerage boats. By the time TC was 32, he had hooked into a deal, representing both buyer and seller of a 180-foot steel motor yacht, “Pegasus II.” “That really got me going...that was the start of it all,” TC said. He described the interior with ornate furniture and chandeliers – more like a hillside mansion on the water. The vessel had 16 crew members.” TC said.

For as long as I have known TC, he is not one to tell you about his recent deals. I was always left in awe of the amount of traffic in and out of his office. From the Ardell copy room, I would constantly hear: “Hi Tom, I need another boat.” One time, I noticed a very well-known movie studio CEO come into the office unannounced, and after about 30 minutes, TC was headed out to show an 80-foot Alloy sailboat via executive jet to some far-off land. I remember him walking past the copy room and noticing me, then coming back and telling me he was not going to make twilights that night, and it was okay if I wanted to take the boat out.

TC has spent his time at sea. At the age of 21, he put a crew together for the 1963 Transpac aboard the family boat “Islander.” This boat was designed by Kirk Uhlman, and built-in 1958 by Joh de Good & Sohn in Germany. “The boat did not sail to weather very well, but it could sail to its rating downwind,” TC said. TC knew how to put together a winning team with Dr. Jack Paschall as navigator, Gary L. Myers, William Cook, a rigor from Lido Shipyard by the name of Mark Von Mills and Burke Mooney. The crew was very young, and TC was the youngest skipper to enter and win a Transpac. He had a young crew. Three were in their 20s and two in their early 40s. What they lacked in age, they made up with experience. Four of the six of them had sailed in Transpacs before, and all had done plenty of offshore sailing.

They only had one serious problem during the 14-day run. On the fourth day, their steering unit began to cause trouble. “Islander’s” wheel, mounted on a pedestal in the cockpit, was connected to the rudder mechanism by a bicycle chain working the sprockets. When two of the sprockets popped the chain, it developed so much slack, that there was far too much play in the wheel to steer efficiently. After seven hours of handiwork, the crew completed a gadget called an Idler consisting of a metal wheel at the end of a plywood handle which could be wedged from the chain to keep it taut, which held up for the remainder of the race. “We sailed rhumb line and the great circle; we sailed the shortest course and ended up winning the race,” TC said. He went on to describe that they had blown out all their spinnakers and finished the race with wung out jibe. “We should have had new sails. We purchased used sails before the race and they were tired before they even got on the boat. I found out really quickly, you cannot sail that race with used sails,” TC said.

Another offshore event that TC participated in was the 1992 Pacific Cup from San Francisco to Kaneohe. He and his longtime friend Scott Abrams double-handed the 68-foot Nelson Marek “Peregrine.” In that race, they faced the hottest navigator of our time, Stan Honey, aboard a Santa Cruz 70 named “Mongoose.” He was also sailing double-handed with the owner. TC and Abrams won on corrected time.

Over the years, TC has taken home some of the most prestigious awards that can be given out on our harbor by winning the Newport Harbor Yacht Club’s Burgee of Merit and Don Vaughn Memorial Trophy, but my favorite and maybe even TC’s is the War Canoe he won for winning the Transpac overall in 1963.

Today, you can find TC at the start of this year’s Pacific Cup aboard “Runaway” or racing a Harbor 20 with one of his 10 grandchildren.

When I ended my interview, I thanked TC and he said: I’ll sea ya on the water. 

~~~~~~~~

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

On the Harbor: Catching up with new Harbormaster Paul Blank

Harbormaster Paul Blank aboard his prized Brian Thomson wooden sabot  Joysailing photo

By LEN BOSE

I met Harbormaster Paul Blank years ago at an intercollegiate sailing regatta where he was sailing for the University of Los Angeles. Blank was recognized as a worthy opponent that we must contend with if we wanted to move on to the Pacific Coast Championships. Later, we teamed up and sailed on an active one-design keelboat class for a couple of years. Time continued where Blank served on the City of Newport Harbor Commission for eight years. Because of our history, Blank has always been easy to approach as we both have a strong passion for our harbor.

Blank grew up in Costa Mesa, was introduced to the harbor by a friend, and joined the City of Newport Beach sailing classes offered at the OCC sailing base in the summer of 1975, at the age of 10.

“I enjoyed the water and the independence sailing offered, it just really stuck. My parents then purchased a beater sabot, and dragged me down to the 19th Street beach every weekend, then deciding it would be best to store the boat at a yacht club,” he said.

Blank first joined and sailed out of South Shore Yacht Club. His first coach was Mark Gaudio. “Mark really honed the skill of how to sail efficiently while introducing me to racing,” he recalled. Blank then explained how he became our Harbormaster. “Someone within the city came to me informing me that the job would become available soon, and thought that I would be a good fit for the job. My first thought was that’s crazy, why would you ever say that. I was advised to read the job description and then think about it. Which I did overnight, returning that person’s call the next day while thinking…wow, this is a pretty good fit. There are certain aspects of this job that very few people know about more than I do. Yes, I will have a learning curve on the other aspects, but overall it’s a pretty good mix. Ok, I will apply, what the heck. I completed the application, and from the several dozen applicants, I made it into the final six. My knowledge and passion for the harbor shined through, so the selection committee felt that they would give me a try,” Blank said.

Harbormaster Blank aboard "Nate"

What will Blank focus on during his first 100 days at the job? He replied with a light laugh, “To put it accurately, I am a little unfocused. My list grows from moment to moment based on several hundred items received and considered. All comments or recommendations are considered. Our current focus is on bridge jumping. On June 5th we started citing and fining people jumping off our bridges into the harbor. We are deterring jumpers by our presence along with code informant officers who might be observing jumpers from a beach cruiser bicycle, wearing short pants, a T-shirt, and sandals. Then ticketing the jumpers on their way out of the water,” Blank said. “I am sure many of you remember the person jumping off the Lido Bridge into a Duffy a couple of years ago seriously injuring themselves and the people in the boat. In the first part of June, there were 11 citations written; the first fine is $100, the second, is $200; and the third is $500. So far, there have been no second citations given to the same person.”

His team is also concentrating on water safety. “Members of my department participated with the Costa Mesa Fire Department on water safety. The CMFD has a month-long water safety program and asked for support from my team. We then sent down two crew members on a patrol boat to review our harbor safety requirements. At this time, we are also supporting the harbor dredging. There is nothing more important to the health of our harbor than keeping it at the designed depth. We have been moving moorings and taking dignitaries out to observe the dredging,” Blank said. 

How will serve as a harbor commissioner help Blank as harbormaster? “I have a good understanding of what goes on behind the scenes. I believe there was no better education in preparation for this job than sitting on a city commission. I’m very appreciative of how to get things done, as a harbor commissioner and now as harbormaster. I can be more effective in educating the commissioners and the public on how things work. I am also at liberty to get some things done because there is a fund or budget. For example, as a commissioner, there was an idea for some signs on the Lido Isle bridge directing paddleboarders to use the channels on the shallow side allowing for more room down the middle of the channel for powerboats. This idea never got done and now as a harbormaster, I was able to implement this idea,” Blank shared.

And his harbor mentors? “Doug West first comes to mind. He has become very significant. Even though he now lives on the East Coast, I talk to him regularly. He still has a strong interest in our harbor. Nancy Gardner has always been encouraging while giving me a firm hand with my exuberance along with guidance to complete projects subtly and consistently. I follow the mantra ‘that it is amazing what you can get accomplished if you don’t care who gets the credit,’” Blank said.

For my last question, I asked Blank to describe his perfect day on the water. He responded with a great deal of laughter. “Len, I love this question – thank you. Here is my perfect day on the water, while I never have achieved it, I am pretty darn close. I would go paddleboarding on the harbor in the morning. I would go racing in the afternoon on a keelboat or small boat, then wind down the day with a really nice dinner aboard Promotion, my powerboat anchored somewhere in the harbor.”

Blank has been a good friend for many years, and I find it difficult to explain just how fortunate we are to have him as harbormaster at this time. The three main things I took away from this interview, and that I plan on keeping are: 1. We both learned how to sail off the 19th Street beach at the same time. 2. The mantra quoted from Harry Truman that “it is amazing what you can get accomplished if you don’t care who gets the credit.” 3. When Blank said, “My mission here is to make Newport Harbor the cleanest, safest and the most well-enjoyed harbor on the planet.” To that, I say Amen, brother!

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

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

Balboa Yacht Club Vice Commodore Paul Blank aboard his Herreshoff 12.5 "NATE"
Note the BYC colors in the spinnaker 
"Well Done Paul!"

The Harbor Report: Commissioner is leaving his mark on the harbor

                                               Harbor Commissioner Paul Blank                                 Photo Joysailing.com

By Len Bose

October 17, 2014 | 3:01 p.m.

This week, I had a chance to catch up with one of my favorite people, active harbor user Paul Blank.

In July 2012, Blank was selected by the City Council to sit on our Harbor Commission. At that time, I wrote, "He's very responsive, truly loves our harbor and will make a great harbor commissioner." As it turned out, our council selected one of the best and most productive commissioners I've ever observed.

Blank started to fall in love with our harbor at age 8, when he signed up for the city's beginning sailing program. He later attended Estancia High School and then moved on to UCLA and participated on the sailing team. The day after he graduated from UCLA, he moved to Corona del Mar and has lived there ever since.

Blank stays active on our harbor by sailing his Sabot, paddling his stand-up paddleboard, racing on the 49-foot, 11-inch sailboat It's OK and spending time in his True North 38 power boat.

When I asked him how he most enjoys the harbor, he replied, "Any moment I get to spend on the harbor is just a blessing. Asking me how I best enjoy the harbor would be like asking a parent to pick their favorite child."

Blank and I talked further about his role as a harbor commissioner and how he became interested in taking the seat. He expressed a keen interest in local politics.

"It's important for individuals to get involved and have a say in what their community looks like," he said.

During the last two years, he has set up a committee on stand-up paddleboards, should they be restricted within our harbor, along with making public pier recommendations. Both tasks were completed and presented in such a professional manner that it has become the standard for the Harbor Commission. One also gets the feeling, when observing this type of presentation, that the City Council can make a timely decision and things get done.

Blank is now working on the Harbor Commission's outreach committee, among other topics. An upcoming event to take notice of is the special Harbor Commission meeting scheduled for Nov. 15. The meeting will convene in a conference room in the Harbor Patrol facility at 1901 Bayside Drive, Corona del Mar.

The meeting will then be moved to one of the Balboa ferries waiting at the Harbor Patrol visitor's dock for a tour of the harbor. Copies of the route with waypoints to be called out on the tour can be found on my blog, lenboseyachts.blogspot.com.

Commissioners will address the waypoints about which they are most versed. The ferry has a capacity limit, and guests will be handled on a first-come, first-served basis.

Blank explained that the best way to prepare for the meeting would be to familiarize yourself with the waypoints and bring all of your questions and concerns.

We went on to discuss the hot topics of today and his concerns for the future. The most important topic today is our RGP 54 dredging and eelgrass mitigation permit, which should be completed in the first part of 2015. Another important topic is the development of our Lower Castaways. Both topics will be covered during the special meeting.

When we talked about the future, Blank brought up water quality and the rising sea level.

"The harbor's water quality has never been as clean as it is now in my lifetime, and it must continue to improve," he said. "Dredging and trapping debris and contaminants upstream is an extremely important element in keeping the water in the bay clean. Progress has been made; there is more to do."

While talking about sea-level rise, Blank explained the non-alarmist approach, which entails monitoring the harbor's data points and adjusting to the information.

Like Blank said, "It's important for individuals to get involved and have a say what their community looks like."

I was very pleased to hear that the Harbor Commission has added my idea of day moorings off Big Corona Beach to its description of alternative anchorage areas.

Be sure to mark your calendars for Nov. 15 and bring your questions.

Sea ya.

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

1981 Trans Pac : Hawaii race has a long and storied history (This story is 8 years old)

Horizon finishing the 2019 Trans Pac

On July 16, I will be starting my 11th sailboat race to Hawaii.
Seven of those races have been aboard Santa Cruz 50s, and this year I will be a watch captain aboard the Santa Cruz 50 Horizon. Because of my passion for this race and these boats, I looked back into history and found the first Trans Pac these boats raced in was 1981, and it was a race to remember.

Seven Santa Cruz 50s made it to the starting line in 1981, and they were the talk of the waterfront that summer. All the boats at that time were very similar, and it quickly became a race within a race among Chasch Mer, Night Train, Hana Ho, Oaxaca, Octavia, Shandu and Secret Love.

Two of these boats were from Newport Beach. Hana Ho and owner Morrie Kirk were sailing for the Balboa Yacht Club, and Michael Braun sailed Shandu for the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club/ Newport Harbor Yacht Club.

These crews were among the best sailing talent our harbor has ever assembled — fierce competitors all. Now blend in the personalities.

The crew aboard Hano Ho was made up of Kirk, skipper; Peter Isler, navigator; Dave Ullman, watch captain; and Bill Herrschaft, Tom Willson, Kevin Kirk, Jim Laws and Dennis Riehl. Aboard Shandu was Michael Braun, owner; Peter Willson, watch captain; LJ Edgcomb, navigator and MacGyver; Dennis Durgan, watch captain; and Bob Burns, Marshall "Duffy" Duffield, Rex Banks and Gordo Johnson.

To get a better feel of what happened during this epic battle, I was able to contact Kirk, Isler, Ullman, Riehl, Durgan, Duffield and Johnson.

The race started July 3. The boats had a westerly breeze of 12 to 15 to take off on. By the time the boats reached Catalina, the breeze was at 15 to 18 knots and had lifted the fleet around the only make in the course without tacking. Of the SC 50 fleet, Chash Mer was first to round the west end of Catalina in 3 hours 12 minutes, followed by Shandu, Secret Love, Octavia, Oaxaca and Hano Ho at 3:19.

On July 4, the breeze had eased some. The night before, Shandu's cheek block on the steering quadrant broke and the crew had to use their emergency tiller. Navigator Edgcomb quickly put on his MacGgyver hat and went to working fixing the problem.

The whole time Edgcomb was down below in the very back of the boat, the boat moved along at 11 knots with a reefed main and No. 2 head sail up. His repairs to the steering system lasted for the remained of the race. This is not the only time Edgcomb would need to throw on his MacGyver hat for Shandu to make it across the finish line.

On July 7, as the sun was setting, the SC 50 fleet wanted to make this race a party and start a boat-for-boat race until the end some 1,217 miles away. Shandu and Secret Love had been in contact from the second night out, and at sunset, Hano Ho appeared from the north and the party started.

That pitch-black night, the fleet started noticing trade wind squalls forming from behind them. This is when the nights of terror started, Duffield and Johnson recalled. After the first night of squalls, Shandu and Hano Ho pulled out in front of Secret Love by some 35 miles.

Duffield said, "This is when the winds started a blowin'."

Ullman recalled, "There was carnage everywhere across the fleet that night." Oaxaca was 20 miles farther south than the two lead boats.

Dennis Riehl talking with Gordo Johnson

Dennis Durgan said, "That's one of the best Trans Pacs as competitive sailing goes. You needed good drives and trimmers."

The Santa Cruz 50s were new to the race course at this time. Later deeper and better-designed rudders were added, and these have made the boats much easier to control. In 1981, these babies were a handful, and both boats were pushing hard to gain an advantage.

Ullman said, " It was like being in a one-design race, on a short course. It was getting pretty tiring. No one would even get a lead over a mile. You would just push, push and push then get nothing."

At this point, the boats were 940 miles from the finish.

"The only way we are going to take the big spinnaker down is if God takes it down." Duffield remembered thinking.

Riehl the decision was made to let only the four best drivers take the helm that night..

Duffield said, "Night was so intense."

Durgan remembered, "Scary, scary sailing pushing the boats that much harder. It was nuts, crossing gybes on those nights of terror."

At morning's light, there was Shandu right next to the Hano Ho, Riehl recalled.

Keep in mind both crews are from Newport Beach and most of them where all good friends and had grown up together. From my understanding, this is when the crews picked up the VHF radio and started talking to each other. The conversion started something like this. Shandu: Hey, did you guys keep up your big chute last night? Hano Ho: Yeah we were hoping you would do the smart thing and change down to your smaller spinnaker. Shandu: Was it scary? Hano Ho: Ya think!

Dennis talking with Michael Brau

Over the next three days and nights the boats rarely lost sight of each other. If one boat jibed the other boat would follow. If the other boat would change spinnakers and set a staysail so would they.

Around 2 a.m., referred to as one of the "nights of terror," Shundu lost a spinnaker crane at the top of the mast that held the halyard blocks. The first thought by the Shundu crew, was to take the spinnaker down and make the repair when they had daylight.

Well Edgcomb did not agree and was not about to lose any ground to his good buddies on the other boat. He grabbed the boatswain chair — a device used to suspend a person from rope to perform work aloft — and headed up the mast.

Can you see Durgan's face as he sat at the helm and Edgcomb said he was going up the mast? Durgan had to have replied, you want to go where? Edgcomb "MacGyver" then went up the mast with a bunch of kevlar line to make the repair.

"It looked something like that osprey next on that power boat on the moorings in front of the Newport Harbor Yacht Club today," Gordo Johnson said.

MacGyver had done it again and as Peter Isler said, "It was all on" from there on in.

Going into the last day, Shandu was in the lead with only 205 miles to the finish, Hano Ho had 211 miles to go. As the boats sailed past the big island, the VHF radio banter continued with the Hana crew asking who was driving and why they did not have their big spinnaker up. Shandu had lost their big chute a couple of nights before and Hano Ho still had theirs.

The sun went down and the two boats split jibes in the dark as they grew closer to the finish line. When the two boats arrived at Kalaupapa point on the island of Molokai they both made their final jibe for the finish line under a full moon with dolphins jumping from their bows.

Riehl, aboard Hana Ho, remembers first surviving the jibe and then looking to his right and seeing Shandu just 200 yards away on their starboard side bow to bow.

Gordo Johnson explained the situation like this: "Have you ever wondered what your boat looked like while surfing down huge waves with the bow of the boat out of the water all the way back to the keel? Water flying everywhere as the boat dropped into its third consecutive wave. Well, he said with a laugh, Hana Ho was right next to us and I can't tell you how many times we exchanged the lead while the other boat caught the next wave."

Morrie Kirk the owner of Hana Ho said, "We were close to those guys that's for sure."

Peter Isler aboard Hano Ho said, "I was on the helm at the jibe at Kalaupapa point. It was very intense and exhausting. Both boats were pumping their mains on every wave and the lead changed a number of times."

This all went on for more than an hour as the boats crossed Molokai channel and approached Coco head when the wind started to lighten up and Hana Ho pulled away with their larger spinnaker. Hano Ho crossed the finish line 1 minute and 35 seconds before Shandu crossed the line. Shandu won on corrected time by more than an hour but as you can guess, they wanted to be that first Santa Cruz 50 to finish.

The two boats had matched-raced some 1,217 miles over the four plus days. What a race.

Let's hope we have wind this year.

....

I have always wanted to put this story together and like the end of a movie I would like to tell some of the outtakes of the interview I did.

Marshall “Duffy” Duffield: “ The food Bob Burns prepared was extreme high end craziness, awesome beyond approach. Abalone lunches, large shrimp prawns for an appetizer before dinner, huge perfect steaks. The food was so good it was like being in front of the plane, you never wanted to go back of the plane again.”

“Hewlett Packard had provided the boat with its first GPS system and for the first time we received two fixes a day. The lights would start blinking on the machine and we could look up and see the satellites. Today we have all this on our watch.” he said with a deep laugh. “ Before we could step off the boats the guys with their white lab coats came down and took the machines off the boat and back to the lab.”

“Being on edge in the dark, Gordo and I were on the same watch and he would stand behind me and update me on the apparent wind angle. This was the only way we could keep from crashing on the nights of terror”

“I am glad I got the opportunity to be apart of this crew”

Morrie Kirk was able to sail the race with his 21 year old son Kevin Kirk and had that type of finish.  “I will remember that race and it was a lot of fun”

Dennis Durgan: “These boats were like riding in the car wash with all the water going over the boats.”  “It was pretty scary with the guy up on top of the rig at 3 in the morning.”

“Talking to the other boat on the VHF if their dinner compared to our Bob Burns special.”, “ The top of the mast was torn off.” 

Peter Isler: “This was my first Trans Pac, the first one is always the best one.”

“ We had the Allman Brothers Mountain Jam blazing on the cockpit speakers as we crossed the 

Molokai Channel.”, “ The third night out we had ice cream.”

Dave Ullman: “ At the Kalaupapa light house it was flat out, spectacular race, we spent lots and lots of time talking on the VHF.”, “ With this type of match racing we had lots of fun by far my favorite memories of Trans Pac racing.”

Dennis Riehl: “ We ate well, I can’t even explain how fortunate I was to be selected to go with this group.” 

Gordo Johnson: “Those Bob Burns sleeper steaks were killer, all those flavors and all that food would just make me want to sleep.” 

Lets hope we have wind this year.

Sea ya

There is a new Anchorage in Town!

 In my July 2nd column I will be interviewing City Harbor Master Paul Blank, while talking to Blank for over an hour today he did bring up that the temporary anchorage in the West Turning Basin is now open and will be marked by boundary buoys by this weekend. Because of the different government agencies’ approval, this was not an easy task to complete. You can contact the city harbor department at dockmaster@newportbeachca.gov with your questions.

On the Harbor: Fishing with Decker

By LEN BOSE

While watching a video the other day posted on the Balboa Angling Club’s Facebook page reviewing the Lilly Call Tournament, I noticed the speaker was Jimmy Decker. I had grown up with the Decker family all through school in Huntington Beach and thought it would make for a good interview.

Decker was the oldest of three sons all born a year apart from each other. His grandfather owned a summer home on “The Silver Coast” now referred to as the Rhine Channel.

“As soon as I was out of diapers and able to walk, my grandfather would take me out fishing and give my parents a break…he was always on the water. Back by the Cannery when the Cannery was active, I would fish off the dock. We went out with his buddies and I was the 5-year-old deckhand. I fished with my grandfather up until my earlier 20s,” said Decker.

It just so happened that Decker and I were both born in Arcadia, Calif. and our parents moved to Huntington Beach in the early 1960s.

Decker’s mentors growing up in Newport Harbor were, of course, his grandfather and Mike Gardner. “Mike Gardner was the first inshore saltwater bass guy; he was the one that started two guys on a small boat fishing in the shallows for spotted bass. I fished a lot with him, he passed away three years ago. Mike was ‘the guy’ when it came to fishing spotted bay bass in Newport Harbor,” Decker recalled. I then asked about the kids coming into the sport. “There are a lot of kids fishing, fishing is a cool thing now. There are a lot of kids 8-15 years old on their bikes, with fishing rods and backpacks. Nothing can be better,” Decker said.

“I really got into light tackle fishing about 20 years ago and became a member of the Balboa Angling Club. I’ve been a past president and on the board of directors a couple of times. I enjoy the camaraderie of the club and find being a member is one of the best values on our harbor,” Decker said.

Decker has his 100-ton captain’s license and worked Davy’s Locker boats for eight years. Today he has his own 243 Everglade Center Console boat and will provide fishing guide half-day runs for two people inshore, or full-day Catalina and San Clemente Island runs when the weather is permitting. He does offshore tuna and marlin runs later in the fall.

Decker is on the water more than anyone else I know and I wanted to get his observations, as he is one of our harbor’s best fishermen. When asked how our harbor reacted to the last dredging of the lower bay, he said: “The first dredging they dug out the shallows and it really silted out the eelgrass, you remember the harbor was brown for months. I target the spotted bay bass. If they don’t have conditions that they like, they will migrate north to the other harbors until they find more suitable living conditions. It was just getting back to be reasonably good,” he said.

Then I asked if the harbor got cleaned out from the last dredging. “The water quality has greatly improved, over the last couple of years, dude. On a clear day with a little bit of sun you can see the bottom, 17 feet down. When that happens, you know you are not going to catch anything, it is just too clear. When it’s really clear like that you know it’s going to be a tough fishing day. You can tell the water quality has really improved as all that eelgrass in the BYC moorings is really good there all the way to the back near the Coast Guard station,” Decker said.

When discussing this summer’s dredging project Decker said, “We are going to run into the same problem with silting up as last time. In five years, it will be nice because we will have a much larger flush of clean water, as we are going to have more cubic feet of water on every tide. It’s going to take a long time for the silt to get flushed out. It will make the harbor better, in the long run, more water movement gets more fish activated. Once everything gets cleaned up and settled down it will improve the fishing. We might get more species as sand bass like deeper water so we might get more sand bass in the bay from the Pavilion outwards. I am sure things will improve for the better, it’s just going to take a while.”

I asked Decker if the harbor needed another boat launch ramp. “There really is no place to put one unfortunately. The Dunes launch ramp is phenomenal, it’s a great facility with wash downs, five lanes with long docks that makes launching easy for one person. There is not a better launch ramp facility than Newport Beach,” Decker said.

I assume fishermen and sailors all have their superstitions, so when I asked Decker of his, he said, “I don’t know if they are superstitions, but I try not to fish bass in the morning after a full moon. I don’t like to fish if the wind is blowing out of the southeast when we are marlin fishing. I have the same three shirts that I wear in order, same gloves, lucky crimping tools.”

I found our interview very interesting for so many reasons. Decker and I came to the beach from the foothills, and our passion for the harbor is strong with both of us wanting the best for the harbor with access for the next generations to have the same life we have been so fortunate to have on our harbor. If you are bringing in that old school buddy of yours and you want to show them the best fishing our harbor and coast have to offer, contact fishingwithdecker@yahoo.com, as he is “The Guy!”   Hiring Fishing Guys

Sea ya. 

~~~~~~~~

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