DECEMBER 23, 2025 STORMY WEATHER

                                                                  DECEMBER 23, 2025

                                                                   STORMY WEATHER

As noted, we cancelled the race for the 23rd because of the foul weather.  We are planning to sail again on this coming Tuesday the 30th if conditions permit.  If we race, it will be another single start with all boats starting at 3pm.   Stay tuned for further announcements or possible cacellation.

Paul Tara has come through with another pertinent ZOOP SCOOP.  

STORMY WEATHER

I started writing this on Tuesday morning, just as  Barry cancelled the day’s sail. A wise call, in my opinion.  Our Pacific storms are among the largest weather systems on the planet — last week’s Pineapple Express delivered flooding to both in Hawaii and the Pacific Northwest. Sometimes it’s hard to anticipate just how long it takes to wind those isobars up. But the same rules still apply, face the wind and the low is on your right.

Which reminds me that today, December 23rd, is the seventieth anniversary, of the 1955 Flood, one of the more seminal events in Santa Cruz history.  A 50 knot southerly, a high tide, heavy rain in the Santa Cruz Mountains, and incomplete construction of the Highway 1 bridge over the San Lorenzo River all coincided to produce disaster. The southerly and the tide backed up the river’s flow, and raised its elevation at the  mouth. Rain in the San Lorenzo Valley sent debris downstream, where it promptly fetched up against the scaffolding and forming still in place at the highway bridge.  This effectively dammed the River, which immediately excused itself and headed down River St., straight through Downtown, and back out to sea through the gap between Beach Hill and West Cliff, leaving everything in between submerged and Beach Hill sticking up as an island.  

Of course this all happened at night. There were no levees, so, eventually, much of the water was able to flow back into the river. It took about a week. (My grandparents, who had been evacuated in the bucket of a skip-loader, spent Christmas with us.) But, it’s effects lasted much longer.  Chief among these was the San Lorenzo River Flood Control Project (the levees) and the redevelopment of downtown, including the County Governmental Center. Not every storm results in disaster, but it pays to prepare.

A HITCH IN TIME

Storms require some additional seamanship.  In Santa Cruz, southerlies erase the lee normally afforded by the land.  Whenever a ‘big’ southerly is forecast, we double up our dock lines.  This requires use of one of the most basic tools of seamanship: the lowly Cleat Hitch.

Note the full turn around the base.  This allows the cleat to serve as a snubbing post, and minimizes the chance of the line jumping the cleat if the lead changes.  Also, note how the tail of the hitch lies parallel to the previous crossover.  That’s it! Do NOT keep adding crossovers to use up extra tail. Coil it down separately. Somebody’s going to want to uncleat that line eventually, which they’ll be able to do safely under load thanks to the control offered by that first turn.

Thanks Paul.   

HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice