DECEMBER 14, 2021
A COLD WINTER BLAST
With the rain we got over the weekend and Monday, I was
encouraged to see the sky clearing somewhat on Tuesday morning, but rain was
not the only consideration. There were
predictions for 11 foot waves and small craft warnings for the afternoon. During the morning, I studied the live harbor
cam. On Monday, during the storm I had
checked the cam and it looked like victory at sea with waves breaking clear
into the harbor., resembling a washing
machine on the rinse cycle! Tuesday was
much more benign and after looking at the harbor Cam for over an hour, I did
not see any waves bigger than 5 feet and any waves that broke only broke about
5 feet from the outer jetty. This told
me that the harbor crew had kept up with the dredging and the East side of the
harbor was deep enough to get in and out.
There was one other consideration:
As I studied the entrance in the morning, we had a 5 foot plus high
tide. If we raced in the afternoon, the tide would only be 7 inches. A much lower tide makes waves break with more
force, but the harbor was obviously dredged well enough to be safe. I decided to at least take PAD out and
assembled the crew for a departure from the harbor at 2 PM.
As we were getting the boat ready to sail, the clouds seemed
to be parting and the wind was still light on the flags. As we left the harbor we were presented with
a beautiful sunny, warm day on the bay and a light breeze from the north
blowing us out of the harbor. I decided
to be lazy and only deployed the 155 jib. We breezed along in the light
northerly, admiring the large sets firing off at Steamer Lane in the distance. Were the waves increasing as the afternoon
progressed? Suddenly, we sailed into the
developing wind which was from the normal northwest direction. What was noticeable was the fact that this
new wind was about 10 to 15 degrees cooler.
I did not get any objections when I suggested we head for the
harbor. As we turned for the harbor, we
saw two more boats coming down the harbor “for the fun”. Kicks
and Sea Quake just had to come out to see if anything was happening. Having a few waves “show their muscle” at the
harbor entrance, I felt the safest place to be was in the slip and headed for
the harbor after talking to Kicks. Sea
Quake had just left the harbor and must have read our minds (or intentions) and
turned right around for the safety of the harbor!
As we approached the harbor, we saw a black cloud forming
over the ocean. We had all dressed for
the cold, but the fine misty rain
emanating from the black cloud added just enough chill to convince us we were
going the right direction. It was definitely a cold winter blast.
Since there were only 3 boats that came out and conditions
were so miserable, there is no Race QS track for this evening. We had a great time at the club with great
food, a good crowd and games that made it even more fun.
CALIFORNIA BOATER CARD:
Like many people, I have been putting off getting this card. Taking the course and getting the card is a
process that everyone that operates a boat must complete. It is being phased in by age. If you are 45 years old or younger you must
have this card by 1/1/22. The older you are, the later the date. At my ripe age, I could have waited until
2024 to get it. As you need a driver’s
license to drive a car, you will need this card to operate a boat.
To take this class, one option is to take a series of 2 hour
classes (Boating Skills and Seamanship) by the Coast Guard auxiliary for a $75
charge. Registration for these classes will be offered on Wednesday January
5 between 7 and 8:30 PM in the classroom
on the east side of the harbor by R dock (365A Lake Ave). Classes will be conducted
on Wednesdays starting Jan 12 for 13
weeks.
I found multiple online classes that complete the
requirements. The class I chose cost $29
plus a $10 fee to get registered with
the state. It took me about 4-5 hours
for the whole course and to complete the
exams. I found the process to be very
informative and well worth the time.
Lets hope for better weather this next Tuesday.
Barry Keeler
Sailing Pair A Dice
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