On the Harbor: Things are heating up, from bay dredging and races to yacht club openings.

 

By LEN BOSE

We are coming into summer with some heat…I’m referring to the activity around the harbor. These last couple of weeks, we have completed the Ensenada Race, Yacht Clubs’ opening days, a new Harbormaster, the starting of dredging the Lower Bay, Balboa Angling Club’s Lily Call Tournament, summer sailing and people placing strange objects in strange places.

The Ensenada Race started on April 23 with a heavy marine layer and around 10 knots of breeze out of the southwest that picked up to 15 knots out of the west by the time we reached North Coronado island. I was aboard Carbon Footprint owned by Jim Devling out of the Balboa Yacht Club. As we approached the island, I noticed Steve Sellinger’s Santa Cruz 52 Triumph only a mile behind us and sailing close to the same speed. After the island, Sellinger’s team sailed exceptionally well and wound up taking home all the pickle dishes including 1st overall in PHRF. Team IT’s OK sailed very well, finishing 1st in its class followed closely by Team Bolt, 30 seconds behind on corrected time for 2nd in class. That close a race still has to burn a little. Overall, there was a consistent breeze down the course with a few of us unlucky ones running into the light breeze, in the bay, just before the finish line. That’s the Ensenada race – “What are ya going to do?” Post-race activities, as expected, were light in attendance. Word around the docks afterward was the organizing authority was trying really hard to bring things back to normal. I for one am already looking forward to next year’s race and staying for the party.

This weekend is the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club’s and Balboa Yacht Club’s opening days. Last weekend was Newport Harbor Yacht Club’s opening day race on Saturday followed by Sunday’s opening day ceremonies. Looking at everyone’s photos and talking to a few friends, the ceremonies started to feel more like years gone by, and I am looking forward to BCYC’s opening day this Saturday. For those of you who are interested in Yachtsman Flag etiquette for dressing your vessel for the special event, go to my website at www.lenboseyachts.blogspot.com. The American Legion Yacht Club has already started their Monday night sundowners, NHYC is sailing twilights on Thursdays, and BCYC’s famous “Taco Tuesdays” start this Tuesday night.

Josh Cast 26.89 Halibut

On April 24 and 25, the Balboa Angling Club held its 58th Annual Lily Call Harbor Fishing Tournament. This year’s winners were: Fish type - Croaker: Josh East, 1.07 lbs. in 1st place; Fish type - Bass: 1st place was Kenny Knight at 2.44 lbs., 2nd place was Colin Sarfeh at 2.41 lbs.; and 3rd place was Ryan Later at 2.37 lbs. Kenny Knight also did well fishing for Corbina taking 1st place at 3.71 lbs.; in 2nd was Trenton Humphries at 2.91 lbs. and Tommy Tuman took 3rd at 2.89 lbs. Fish type - Halibut: Josh Kast crushed it at 26.89 lbs. taking 1st place; 2nd went to Colin Sarfeh at 11.8 lbs.; and Aaron Sariano took 3rd place with 5.48 lbs. I say this every year – Balboa Angling Club is the best value in town, so contact them about their Junior summer program.

I received word a couple of weeks ago that Paul Blank will be taking the helm as the city’s harbormaster. I’ve interviewed Blank many times over the years, and I can’t think of a better person for the job. Hit the link above to my website for an interview I did with him back in 2014. Very few people hold the same amount of passion and well-being for our harbor as Blank, who stays on task, is very easy to approach and quite frankly he “gets it.” This is a huge win for our harbor, and Blank has promised me an interview this month to get the full scoop from the bottom of the harbor.

Talking about scoops from the bottom of the harbor, the Army Corps of Engineers has contracted with Pacific Dredge and Construction to complete dredging of the main channel entrance and just around the corner up to the car ferry crossing. If I am not mistaken, the city will then contract with them to dredge the remainder of the Lower Bay. I’ve written about this before, and I hope that everyone understands that this a fantastic thing for our harbor.

People are placing strange things in strange places, and I thought I had seen it all. At the end of Lido Isle, a resident has opted to place a floating boat lift to support a vessel that appears to be over 30 feet tall and 70 feet in length. If I was to guess the boat’s name it would be called Eclipse, because that is what it’s going to do to the neighbor’s view of the harbor. The boat is kind of cool looking, but lifted out of the water by a floating dock lift is disgusting and just wrong. On another tack regarding placing strange things in strange places, I would like to know who ordered the piece of algae known as Caulerpa prolifera native to Florida and planted it in the main channel to slow down the dredging project? This comment has no facts backing it up, as it is a conspiracy theory that I truly hope doesn’t hold water. But, you tell me how does a piece of algae that would blow up our entire harbor’s ecosystem suddenly show up just days before dredging starts with a diver that knows what Caulerpa prolifera is, where it was located and who knew exactly who to report the findings to in order to stop the dredging? I am sure I’m wrong about this one, yet “the things that make you go hmmmm.”

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

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

BCYC attends NHYC Westside Team Racing Regatta

 

Larry Parker Photos

I’m in the grocery store looking for the best value wine, you know the one with the biggest discount. The phone rings and it is Jack Thompson asking if I would like to join the BCYC team for a team racing event in Harbor 20s organized by the Newport Harbor Yacht Club. My first thought was one of those old TV commercials of the crash test dummies, I do not know how to team race and the kids at the NHYC are some of the world’s best. Jack went on to explain that he and Christophe Killian are forming a team and they would like me to join them. I replied that I was happy to practice with them but there are many more experienced team racing sailors at BCYC they should call. 

Thompson sets up a zoom meeting a couple of days later with David Levy, Christophe Killian, and Aubrey Mayer in attendance, about an hour into the meeting I finally “get it” the notice of race indicates that one of the skippers must be over the age of sixty. “Ohhhh I understand now, you need an old guy?” I said.  This makes me a little more interested yet I still am seeing those crash test dummies.

Thompson organizes a couple of practices when I start feeling that maybe I can at least stay out of harm’s way. The kids keep telling me to sail fast, get in the lead, and don’t look back. As the event approaches, I made the mistake of looking at the other team’s rosters. Each team of three boats has at least two college sailing All-Americans some teams even the “Old guy” was an All-American skipper.

Race day arrives and the competitors gather for the skipper’s meeting, while glancing around the room I am taken back with the skill level of everyone attending. There is an old rule in sailing, make sure you know who is better than you on the racecourse. Well, I just happen to know everyone in the room, and if I did not know the person I recognized them from the different sailing magazines.

Our team name was the Corinthian Cruisers our goal was to keep our noses clean and not end up like a puppy being potty trained. Our team consisted of boat # 1 Jack Thompson & David Levy, Boat #2 Christophe Killian & Aubrey Mayer, # 3 me and Patrick Kincaid. The kids kept telling me to “Have fun and sail fast” in fact they reminded me of this so often I thought I had must have had a little accident in the corner already. We finish the first day going 2-2 and no one is saying a thing. In fact, we beat the team that won the whole thing that day, I had my first memorable moment when I finished the race and Killian looked at me and said: “ Now that’s team racing!” With a thumbs-up, and a huge smile.

Day two started at 10:00 and finished at 18:00 with ten races that day with long waits between races under the hot sun. The highlight of the day was finishing in sixth place out of twelve boats and qualifying in the gold round. Again, we all stayed rather quiet and said nothing about the BYC team, other than a large smirk on our face, not qualifying in the gold round. The day before BYC crushed us, to quote one of their teammates “That was not much of a race”. After a late afternoon break, we headed back out on the harbor for two races in the gold round. By this time I am fried, done, roasted, if my belly button was a meter it would have pooped out. At the age of 60 nothing pops any longer. We faced two of the best teams and I just got my nose rubbed in it and went back to the dock telling myself how I never want to do this “Team Racing” stuff again wondering how much could I sell my boat for?

The last day started at 10:00 on Sunday with a postponement until the Santa Ana winds calmed down at about noon. We had three races to go and although I was sailing well we lost the first two races. We still had a chance to make the knock-out round of the top six boats. At the end of the third race, going to the finish line, we pulled ahead and when I crossed the finish line I had another memorable moment with Aubrey Mayer, who had already finished, jumping up and down with a huge smile on his face. We had beat the only team with one win in the gold round and won on the tie-breaker too advanced to the knock-out round. Going into the next round we faced the team that finished in second for the event and they throttled us rather hard, winning the first two races out of three. Coming into the dock you would have thought we won the event finishing fifth out of twelve boats. Kudos with well done’s were received from all the competitors. Finishing in the top half of this event was extraordinarily gratifying with hopes of starting interest from within BCYC.

As President Biden would say “Now here is the deal” BCYC has planted the seed and has the top junior program in our harbor. You have built it and they have come, now we have to keep them. An active “team racing & match racing” program will keep the kid’s attention. If we provide the comparable tools as NHYC has we will grow because NHYC team is so deep that most of their team does not get any playing time. We have to WANT it, and the opportunity is now! Let’s take that next step up the ladder we already have most of the tools needed? Keeping young adults active and staying at the club has always been a challenge, this is one way to achieve that goal of keeping long family legacies for our history books. Huge shout out to Commodore Bacon for coming out on the water and cheering us on Saturday.

Sea ya!

Len Bose

On the Harbor: Remembering Gordon “Gordo” Johnson

                                                                        By LEN BOSE

In the early 1960s, there was a group of kids that grew up in the Bayshores community who became some of our harbor’s most knowledgeable and skilled yachtsmen. We had the Hills, Durgan, Duffield and Johnson families. Coop and Liz Johnson had three sons – Gordon, Dougal and David. All four families are extraordinarily close even after 60 years, spending time on our harbor and around the world together.

At the start of April of this year, Gordon “Gordo” Johnson passed away after a six-month battle with Leukemia. I was taken aback on hearing the news, and like so many other people from around the harbor, felt the pain of losing a close friend even if I had barely known the man. One of his biggest traits was making you feel that you are a friend.

At the age of 10, Gordo started sailing sabots, sail number 4355, at the crew base. Next at Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club, where he joined Dennis Durgan and Marshall Duffield all sailing sabots together on our harbor. The routine was simple then during the warm summer days: rig your sabot’s sail in the morning, head to Shark Island (now Linda Isle) and walk over the PCH bridge to Will Wrights for ice cream. Finish the day by participating in the summer’s evening racing.

Durgan and Gordo then went on to Orange Coast College, where they competed on the sailing team together. Winning the Douglas Cup and participating against other four-year schools, soundly beating them to the point where the sailing coach from the University of Hawaii asked if they would like a scholarship to his school and sail on the team. Both he and Durgan lived on Oahu in Kailua for a year and a half in a Quonset hut on the beach. When Gordo returned to the mainland, he enrolled at USC and became an All-American by winning the sloop and match racing championships. Somewhere during this time, he also crewed for Andy Rose and won two Governor’s Cups. Then he stayed on as the sailing coach at USC for the next couple of years.

By then, Gordo was the hot commodity as a bowman for all the Grand Prix racing boats from around the world. “When we lived on the Peninsula together, I recall someone calling on behalf of the King of Spain, explaining that there was an airline ticket waiting for him at LAX to come sail with the king, and this type of thing happened all the time,” said Gary Hill.

I asked the above group what was one of their favorite sea stories. The same story kept coming up. The year was 1975. Charles Jordon, the owner of the 37’ Paragon, called Durgan and asked if he would put a group together for the upcoming Transpac. Of course, Durgan turned to the Bayshores boys and invited Gordo and Duffield to join the team. On the fourth night of the race, which was the 4th of July, the crew had set the brand new spinnaker up. Gordo, as always, attached his mascot, “Bud-Man,” to the stern pulpit of the boat. It’s unclear whose skyrocket it was, but Duffy and Gordo thought it would be a good idea to light it on that night. The story goes that the rocket took off straight up then went straight into the spinnaker, then blew a hole in the head of it. Before the off watch came back on deck, they had taken the chute down, repaired it, then reset it. When the sun came up the next morning, there was more than one discussion on what had happened to the new sail. The team sailed to a 2nd in class and 8th overall that year.

Another great story was when Durgan and Johnson were in Hawaii and borrowed a Ranger 33 and Islander 36 and cruised the boats to Maui. On their way back to Oahu, “Gordo wanted to check out the leper colony on Molokai. I did not care for the idea that much, so we stayed aboard while Johnson went exploring,” said Durgan. “Next thing you know, Johnson was ‘streaking,’ yes he was butt naked. We just pulled out of the anchorage before the authorities arrived. He had his antics about him.”

Gordo sailed on two Southern Ocean Racing Conference (SORC) overall winning boats. He was aboard two Congressional Cups, a Lipton Cup and two Transpac overall winning boats. The list goes on and on. “He was a great shipmate on board, first to pitch in, great sail trimmer and driver. I am going to miss him. He was such a great storyteller,” shared Durgan. “My wife thought he was going with us on our honeymoon, he came over every Christmas Eve and helped me to assemble the kids’ toys, which leads to many other stories. He was always the first one to volunteer for the work parties at Moonstone. I love the guy as a brother,” said Hill.

A couple of years ago, most of the Bayshores boys gathered for lunch when Gordo pointed out that one of them was mayor of the city while the other was the commodore of the yacht club. Knowing what they all knew about the other brought out a rather deep round of laughter around the table.

While talking to Gordo’s brothers Dougal and Dave, they brought up how much he enjoyed fine wine, gardening and fashion along with a good story.

There’s nothing in the world more powerful than a good story. To recall our life, the ups and downs, the times we pulled ourselves up from the dirt, the times we are recognized for our achievements, the remembrance of a brother, the keeper of all our stories and a good friend. We are all going to miss Gordo the storyteller!

Sea ya.

On the Harbor: The epic Newport to Cabo race

By LEN BOSE

The warmth I felt on my bald head indicates that spring has arrived along with the swarming beehive under my neighbor’s eve, which reminds me of the activity on the harbor when it appears things are returning back to normal.

The word “epic” best describes this year’s Newport to Cabo San Lucas hosted by the Newport Harbor Yacht Club, which took place March 19-25. The race started in 1971 and ran through 1991; there was a 10-year break and it restarted in 2001. Two things have always attracted me to this race. First, you are sailing downwind within the first six hours of the race and two, and the odds are more than 60 percent that the month of March will provide a windy race. This year, we had a windy race that propelled Horizon to the finish line in three days and three hours, which placed us 2nd in class and 4th overall, sailing under the Balboa Yacht Club burgee. Dave Clark aboard his Santa Cruz 70 Grand Illusion, Newport Harbor Yacht Club, won his class and took 2nd overall. Craig Reynolds, Balboa Yacht Club, sailing on Bolt a Nelson Marek 68, finished 2nd in his class and 8th overall. Compadres an Andrews 77 from the Balboa Yacht Club sailed to a 3rd in class.

This had to have been the most consistent breeze I’ve seen in this race which leads to a new course record of 1 day and 22 hours set by Roy Disney aboard his new Volvo 70 Pyewacket 70. That’s an average of more than 20 knots over an 800-mile course – that’s pretty fast for seven dwarfs. Just kidding, the crew consisted of 13 sailing giants with one of the crew Ken Read, who had just flown in from New Zealand after commentating the America’s Cup over the last four months on NBC. I wish I would have seen Read on the docks for his comments.

For us aboard Horizon, the race had moments when our skills were tested on late mornings, when the moon had set, we were still two hours before sunrise when it’s pitch black and you just came on watch. Your eyes are watering up from the breeze across the deck and you are trying to figure out what’s going on all around you. How windy is it, and how high are the wind gusts? Which sail do we have up and are all the lines clear that control the sails? A quick review with the off-going watch captain on the instructions from the navigator and are there any other boats around us? Then BAM, you’re in the game. One morning I went through the above procedure and took the spinnaker sheet then clipped into the jack lines (we wear a life jacket/harness that has a tether that attaches to a safety strap that runs down both sides of the boat that’s called a jack line). So, there I am trying to clear my tearing eyes and adjust them to the pitch-black surroundings, while looking at the sailing instruments gathering information on the wind and the course that we should be driving to keep the boat from crashing. It’s always intimidating at these moments when the wind is blowing over 25 knots with the thought crossing my mind if I can handle my turn at the helm.

Aboard Amante in 1987 Cabo Race

Just then, on this dark morning, I couldn’t see past the bow of the boat when a huge wave pounds into the side that drops at least 20 gallons of water over my head. No one else on watch gets wet, but I am spitting saltwater up as if I had just been dropped into a dunk tank. Okay, okay…game on, and I bitched and moaned for a good 10 minutes, as I felt the water start to work through my gear, and felt the squish of water in my wool socks. We enter another wave, and I get thrown into the cockpit landing on my knees still trying to trim the spinnaker hoping we were not going to crash. Just then the helmsman asked if I am ready to drive. I stand back up, untangle my tether, and move as fast as a 60-year-old can behind the wheel. Now I can’t move as fast as I once did in 1983 aboard Amante, the first time I sailed in a Cabo race, but after the first wave and cutting back to balance the boat out, I uttered a big sigh, then felt like I owned this. I am the king! I never had that confidence in 1983 with my skill level at the helm. To tell you the truth, that’s what keeps me coming back for more – the personal challenge one has with the sea with the understanding that one can be drenched and knocked down to their knees at one moment then feel at the top of their game the next.

Most every boat had their moments to challenge their skills with two boats receiving challenges from below the water. Doug Baker’s Kernan 75 Peligroso hit a whale at more than 20 knots and took all the fairing off the keel. The team had to drop out of the race and haul the boat to Ensenada in order to inspect the damages. Manouch Moshayedi aboard Rio 100 had a similar problem. If I heard the story right, they lost one of their two rudders when they ran into a shark, then had to drop out of the race.

I have to give a huge shout out to the principal race officer Dwight Belden and Race Chairman John Curci for again putting on an epic race in very difficult times. The awards presentation was fun again – when is free food and an open bar not fun? A WELL DONE must be given to the NHYC team!

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

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

On the Harbor: Looking for some calm like our harbor waters

                                                                                      By LEN BOSE

Nine days before the start of this year’s Newport Harbor Yacht Club’s Cabo San Lucas Race…and my phone is blowing up. Of course, I just went into contract on my premier listing which is how it always works out when one has scheduled an offshore race.

My skipper on the Santa Cruz 50 Horizon has severe ADD and he is best known for winning most, if not all, of the Mexico races for the last 30 years. By 7 a.m., all the boat’s electronics had crashed, the running lights needed replacing and he was looking for a person with a hookah that could replace our zincs and wet sand our new bottom paint. At 7:30 a.m., we had to have all the sails off the boat and have them inspected and he was asking if he should take the online safety at sea course. At 7:45 a.m., I received a text with a recommendation to use Voltaren for my arthritis in my back. At 8 a.m., I was informed we needed to purchase a PPL test to look at the salinity of the water from our water maker, otherwise I could be slowly killing everyone. At 8:07 a.m., our emergency Man Overboard Module needs to be serviced; my skipper picked it up for me from service six weeks ago. At 8:10 a.m., I blocked his incoming messages and calls.

It’s 8:15 a.m. and the buyer of the big boat wants to move as quickly as possible and would like to close the deal before the end of next week. This is a good problem. I immediately contacted Reliable Documentation, and ordered the abstract of title, and arranged the trial run with the buyer and seller. Both agree that this Saturday works. At 8:30 a.m., the seller calls back and was reminded of a prior commitment and can we change the trial run to Sunday. All good, so I placed this on my desk until Sunday

By 8:45 a.m., I have a deal closing and I am trying to arrange a meeting time with the seller’s brother, as the seller is skiing in Tahoe. Now I am waiting for a time to exchange proceeds for the title. My 21-year-old son calls who lent his friend his car and now it has been towed. He wants to sell the car to his friend and needs the pink slip. Do I know where the pink slip is? He will be over within the hour. My wife was leaving to start her workday and asked what I needed from my car because she needs the truck today. Also, is there anything I needed from the grocery store and what sounded good for dinner tonight? My response was two bourbon snow cones and watching the America’s Cup, which was not the answer she was looking for. Not sure what she was mumbling when she walked out the door.

It’s 9 a.m. and I am still trying to put a story together for my Stu News column and just received my second friendly reminder that my column is due. Deep breath and I ask myself: What’s new around the harbor? There is the Cabo race, but I have already written about that. Last night’s Harbor Commission meeting was uneventful, yet I assume you all picked up that our Harbormaster Kurt Borsting has decided to retire after three years and the city is looking for a replacement. Towards the end of the meeting, after the Harbormaster’s report, I raised my hand at the Zoom meeting and was quickly recognized. My observation was about the amount of discarded fishing line that was showing up wrapped around props of all the boats I have been hauling out for inspection. For some reason, this has grabbed my attention and there is much more than usual in the harbor. If you think about it, fishing is an activity you can do by yourself during these COVID times. The state of California does have a recycling program and there are a couple of stations around the harbor. Most are on the Balboa Pier that probably does not help the problem with our harbor water. I have given myself the task to hunt out these recycling stations and report back to you. I did go to the state website and noticed that the fishing lines recycling stations only number three within our harbor. One is at the Balboa Bay Club docks and the other at Bayshores Marina. My gut would tell me that these are not the fishermen we should target.

During the Harbor Commission meeting, the question was brought up on the progress of our harbor having its own Marine Recycling Center. A Marine Recycling Center is for items that are difficult to dispose of such as expired marine flares, spilled transmission fluid, engine coolant, engine oil and old batteries. These items typically end up in the blue dumpster because you have to drive to your nearest dump and pay to dispose of them. It appears this task has been tabled again and our harbor continues not to have a Marine Recycling Center. 

My kid just broke down the front door and needs his pink slip now. It’s interesting how I am much more tolerant with him now that he has moved from the house and I feel lucky to see him.

Please wish me luck on my boat deal and the Cabo race. Just unblocked my skipper: My phone tells me he is stuck at the top of the mast.

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

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

On the Harbor: An early riser’s perspective

By Len Bose

I had been struggling to come up with a story this week and then I realized it had been a long time since I woke up with the harbor. I grabbed my camera and headed out the door at 5:45 a.m. toward my slip at the Newport Marina – for you old-timers that’s the Swales Marina. While driving, I thought that the best angle to observe is not toward the east. Fortunately, I had my bike in the truck and parked at the Newport Marina, then rode my bike past the grumpy guard at Bayshores to the volleyball beach.

I chuckled to myself while looking over both my shoulders when reading the sign “private dock” then realizing who is going to be concerned at six in the morning. Sitting on the bench, at the end of the dock, I looked over the harbor for the first activity of a large bait boil of small fish disturbing the sheet glass water and awakening the harbor to a warm winter day with a light Santa Ana breeze starting to stir. Just before the sun rises, three double-handed rowing shells approached from under the PCH bridge who must have started their day from the Newport Aquatic Center. While glancing toward the Pavilion, the first car ferry was crossing the harbor from Balboa Island toward the peninsula. Just then, I noticed 15 kayakers rounding the west end of Harbor Island and heading back toward the Aquatic Center. This group must have been one of the first on the harbor this morning. Twenty minutes had passed, and the sun was breaking the plain of the Saddleback mountain range when I took this photo.

While walking back to my truck, I thought I would head over toward the car ferry crossing on Balboa Island for some photos and a look around. As I was placing my bike in the back of my truck, I noticed the Newport Marina dockmaster Barbi (sorry I have forgotten her last name) already at work, and then heard in a clear voice, “Hey, thank you for the kind words in your last article, I appreciate that.” It was Bunker Hill who I assume wakes up before the fish. The time was about 6:45 a.m. when I approached the Island Marine fuel dock looking for an angle to get a good shot of the car ferry crossing the harbor. There must have been six ferry crew members and mechanics starting their day already and I introduced myself to the fuel attendant Danny Knowles at Island Marine Fuel and asked if I can take a few photos from the porch of the station. Just then another loud voice, inflicted with laughter said, “You owe me lunch; I told you, you owe me lunch now.” The proprietor of Island Marine, David Beek was joking with Knowles. Beek told me they had a bet from the night before on who would be the first to arrive at the fuel dock this morning. 

Dave Beek

Beek and I have been good friends for more than 25 years now and we quickly caught up on all the gossip around the harbor. The fuel dock reminds me of days gone by when a bunch of “Old Walters” would be shooting the poop and drinking free coffee at the barbershop for all the local news. I need to visit Beek more often other than yelling across the harbor when I sail by. Beek updated me that the Orange Coast Crew has been back on the water for a couple of months now. “The guys row in the morning and the ladies in the afternoon,” Beek shared. Of course, we caught up on our families and all the harbor issues.

I was surprised to hear that City Harbor Master Kurt Borsting has retired and will be handing over the helm on April 2nd. Returning to my desk, I called Assistant City Manager Carol Jacobs to confirm this. “Yes, Kurt will be retiring and I will be doing my best to keep the ship righted. We have started the process for looking for a new Harbor Master and if you know of anyone that might be interested, have them look up available jobs on the city website,” Jacobs said. The needed qualifications for the Harbor Master position is rather lengthy with seven years’ experience, increasingly responsible harbor management or administration experience, including commercial harbor leases experience and at least three years of responsible management and supervisory-level experience.” Good work if you can get it!

I finished my harbor wake-up call driving by Basin Marine who by 7 a.m. had everyone hard at work while the Galley Café outdoor sitting was starting to show signs of life. Harbor activity is returning to “the way it was” and I look forward to writing a story about this toward the end of the year. Where are the best places to go for breakfast around the harbor? I will share them with you.

Sea ya.

~~~~~~~~

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

PCH Bridge repair crew

2020 Arthur B Strock Service Award recipient Len Bose # 108 "Only Child"

I received the Arthur B Strock Service Award:

The Arthur B Strock Service Award may be awarded to members who have performed outstanding service for the Harbor 20, Fleet One organization.

This award means everything to me, I take a step back and smile reading my name next to past recipients Debra and Peter Haynes, Philip Thompson, Bob Yates, Michael Volk, Phil Ramser and many more who have been fortunate to be apart of the Harbor 20 family.

Thank you!

On the Harbor: Getting ready for three big races in 2021

 

By LEN BOSE

2021, the year of “All of our agents are busy at this time. Your call is very important to us. Please stay on the line and your call will be answered in the order it was received. Click…” Yes, it feels like the 2021 racing season is on hold, which is a lot better than last year’s recording – “We’re Sorry, You Have Reached a Number That Has Been Disconnected or Is No Longer in Service.”

Newport Beach has a long history with Offshore Sailboat Racing such as the Newport to Cabo Race, Ensenada Race and the Transpac Race to Hawaii. On odd years, these three races all line up between March and July. The Cabo race runs between March 19-25 with the Newport Harbor Yacht Club doing their best to keep the race from being canceled. With 24 boats entered at this time, the expectations of reaching 35 entries is very possible. There are six boats entered from our harbor with the Andrews 77-foot Compadres sailing out of BYC/NHYC. I am not clear on the whole story of this boat, but it’s my understanding that there are many parents sailing with their kids together, which is a dream of mine. John Raymont is sailing his Ker 51 Fast Exit II, which is the newest boat to our area with an abundance of potential once she is pointed in the right direction and let loose. Craig Reynolds’ Bolt, a Nelson Marek 68, has updated its keel and rudder and has brought the band/crew back together that will push the boat harder than most of its competitors. Bolt, sailing under the Balboa Yacht Club burgee, will be competing in the 70’s class, which will include Dave Clark’s Santa Cruz 70 Grand Illusion. Over the years, Grand Illusion, sailing under the Newport Harbor Yacht Club burgee, is best known for its consistency with no mistakes in preparation and performance on the racecourse, and this year will be no different. Next, sailing out of the Balboa Yacht Club, is John Shulze’s Santa Cruz 50 Horizon. Similar to Grand Illusion, she is also known for consistency with no mistakes in preparation and performance on the racecourse. Horizon has held a speed advantage over its class for more than 10 years, and has brought on board Peter Heck as captain to take the boat to the next level.

Next up will be the Ensenada Race held April 23-25 with 36 boats entered at this time. This race is on with three individual races scheduled to start on the same day: Newport to Ensenada, Newport to San Diego and Newport to Dana Point. Both the Cabo and the Ensenada races are facing a high hurdle on how the crew of these boats can get home after the race with the laws for international travel changing daily. Therefore, the odds of the Ensenada Race being shortened to around the Coronado Islands then finishing in San Diego is a very strong possibility at this time. My gut tells me that people are ready to grab their sea bags and go sailing. Most of if not all of the skippers will have their crew tested before coming aboard and will turn and burn home once their feet land on the dock. What sailor does not want to have a beverage or four after finishing a race, but that will probably have to wait until late 2021 before we can belly up to the bar again. Keep this race on your calendars, because I know you want to go sailing; if you don’t go it will be a windy year and life is too short to miss a windy Ensenada race.

The race to Hawaii, Transpac – the Big Kahuna for offshore racing on the west coast of the United States – is being held July 13-30. All the Newport Beach boats that have entered the Cabo race have also entered this year’s Transpac. Two additional boats are Manouch Moshayedi sailing Rio100 for the St. Francis Yacht Club, and odds are pretty good at this time Rio100 will be the first boat to finish with Moshayedi hiring some of the world’s best sailors on as crew. I am sure they will have to keep the boat together and keep an eye out for Roy Disney’s Pyewacket 70. This will be an interesting race to watch. Steve Sellinger will be sailing his Santa Cruz 52 Triumph under the Newport Harbor Yacht Club burgee. Triumph is always a force to be reckoned with. I am sure Triumph will be in the top four of the Santa Cruz 52/50 fleet, which again will be one of the tightest most competitive fleets in the Transpac this year.

Seems like people are ready to head back out to sea! Let’s hope we all have enough patience to stay on the line and return to bigger and better sailing events by the end of 2021.

Sea ya.

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

“2020 A Real Nutcracker”

 I cannot think of a better way to end 2020 than having a Harbor 20 sailing day named “2020 A Real Nutcracker” Saturday, December 26, 2020? The forecast is for 8-10 knots of breeze at 67 degrees air temperature. We have a targeted race committee that has shown a strong interest in helping out. Now we just need YOU to sign up, 12:30 PM Starting Five points area of the harbor, 4-5 races. For us to proceed I would like to find 5 teams to participate in “2020 A Real Nutcracker” !!!!!

No better way to celebrate the days getting longer, please RSVP… ASAP!

 

Back in the day, 1920’s-1960’s, the NHYC used to have a race week, between Christmas and New Years, that was one of the largest turnouts of the year. I do not think they called it “A Real Nutcracker”, yet I would assume they all had a memorable days on the harbor! Let’s hope more teams will show interest….

 

 

“2020 A Real Nutcracker” TODAY 12:30 Starting in the Five points area of the harbor. Weather forecast is for a warm light breeze, the crew from BYC has stepped up again as race committee.

“Lets go sailing”  JUST SHOW UP! Put on your new running shoes and run down to your boat, does not matter when you arrive.

Todays entries:

Alex Curtiss  

Greg Newman

Anne & Kurt Wiese

Tom Fishbacher

David Camerini

Ed Kimball & Kathy Sangster

Terry Gloege

Tad Springer

Len Bose

Scott Ramser

Nick Madigan

Patrick Scruggs

Michael Volk

Ed Watson

Drayton Family

Kathy Reed

 Saturday, December 26, 2020, Five Points Area of the Harbor “A REAL NUTCRACKER” Turned out to be well attended with 18 boats showing up. The day was perfect with a cool 65 degrees with 6-9 knots of shifty breeze.

Fleet 1 “Nuts” series is unique in many ways, one of my favorite features is that we have one start which allows A’s, B’s & C’s to race together. This can be both positive and negative for the participants yet for the most part it is a good thing. For example, the first race Bob McDonald, a strong B fleeter, had a good lane off the start and found breeze on the left-hand side of the course. I had started on the pin and was looking to get to the right ASAP, after tacking and ducking a boat McDonald pushed me back to the left. “Hey Len, Let’s dig in on the left side and see how we do?” McDonald said. I replied, “ I don’t think so Bob I feel the right side is favored”. We stayed on starboard for maybe a minute longer when he tacked to port, out of the tack McDonald was correct the left had the pressure and we were rolling over the top of the right side boat. McDonald lead around the weather mark and never looked back, I mean he never looked back at the fleet once and we still had three legs to go. McDonald won the race and a couple of other B and C fleet racers were at the front of the fleet. Smiles all around and today with everyone wearing face masks off the racecourse it was heartwarming to see.

Sailing boat 75 “Harbor Master” was Tyler MacDonald who always sails well during the “Nuts” series this year. After the first race, he was constantly crossing the fleet after the start and leading into the first shift. MacDonald was not sailing his boat and I did not recognize him at first, I could not make up my mind if the kid was lucky or good. He and his crew were laughing and having such a good time it appeared that they did not know they where in second place. Finally, I put two and two together and placed the face, while MacDonald pressed the pedal down and finished the day with a 1,2. 

It was also good to see the Madigan family out, who has just gone into a partnership on boat 78. After race 3 the Madigan’s put the dots together and finished with a 3,3.

Special shout out to Chris Bretschger and his team for providing Race Committee. One of the quotes of the day came from Fleet Captain Anne Wiese “ I have never seen Race Committee having such a good time.” Thanks again Chris hope to see more of you and your team in 2021.

So that is it for the 2020 Sailing season, don’t tell anyone but I am sure you all know just how lucky we are!

Sea ya Next year.  January 2nd BYC Sunkist & January 3 NHYC Winter Series