For some reason, the note Michael sent about the Coastal Cup didn't
get delivered. The text of his original note and a note he sent me
is attached.
My boat is a Santana 22 named Bonito, sail number 811. I returned to
the Bay area yesterday having finished The Encinal Yacht Club's, Coastal
Cup from San Francisco to Santa Barbara Saturday afternoon at 14:07. My
crew consisted of friends Kevin Clark and Tom Rankin whom I have been
racing with for seven years, primarily aboard Kevin's Melges 24, Smokin'
but also regularly aboard my boat. Kevin and Tom are the best sailors I
have ever had the privilege to sail with and the only two people I would
have ever contemplated doing this race with in my boat. To write that
we did well because the three of us were together is an understatement;
the fact that we were able to finish at all was a function of our
teamwork and combined experience totaling around 90 years of sailing
small boats.
We raced Bonito hard from the time we started until 20:30 on Friday
night when, about nine miles offshore between points Arguello and
Conception, we stopped racing and began sailing simply to finish with
boat intact and crew safe. We had broken our spinnaker pole in a knock
down earlier in the day, at about 07:30 which proved fortuitous in some
respects because we weren't tempted to continue trying to carry a kite
without it thereafter. Instead, we put up the class jib, a 120% sail
and continued on with it winged out opposite the main until 20:30 when
we began plain sail reaching, first further out to sea and then towards
and part way down the Santa Barbara Channel. We sailed into the
protection / lee of the Santa Barbara mountains at the earliest
opportunity and then sailed the light onshore breeze from there to the
finish.
I have mixed feelings about our doing well in the race, in terms of
placing fifth. Though the wind was never more than the boat or we were
capable of handling, the sea state offshore that comes with up to gale
force winds is beyond what a boat the size of mine is capable of being
sailed safely through. Kevin, Tom and I will never sail down the Coast
again in a boat so small. All of my friends who told me that it was not
a good idea to try were right. My mixed feelings about doing well stem
from my desire to inspire no one else to sail a similar sized boat in a
race down the Coast. Given the opportunity, I will try vigorously to
dissuade anyone expressing an interest in trying from doing so.
Michael Andrews
811 Bonito
*****************************
Thank you Bill; yes, please do send it on.
The size of the boat makes 30' waves simply too dangerous. The hazards
are many and extreme. The cockpit not draining among them but getting
rolled, having crew washed off the boat because of the minimal freeboard
and even being cart wheeled, stern over bow are dangers a boat the size
of ours face.
