Saltspring Island Marina and Moby's Marine Pub Welcomes You

      Editor's Note: Folks have visited Saltspring Island Marina and mentioned they thought it was all private docks. Not true. Leslie Cheeseman wants everyone to know there's plenty of public moorage available for visitors to Saltspring Island Marina, and Moby's Marine Pub is ready to slake your thirst. You can call the marina at 1-800-334-6629, or call on VHF 66A.

It's a Bird Eat Bird World

      My wife and I are lucky enough live in a small community between the village of Poulsbo and Agate Passage and we are avid water wildlife watchers. Seasonally, we get to see all manner of water foul, ducks and geese to egrets, but our favorites are those magnificent Blue Herons. We also spot the occasional coyote, sea otter, and whale. And, of course the harbor seals are constantly cruising the shoreline or resting on the floating docks of Liberty Bay. It is wonderful to have all this along with mountain views in one's backyard and we are excited to see it improve as we (Puget Sounders) start the process of cleaning it up.
      However, the improved environment has brought with it certain local conundrum. Thankfully, after decades of near extinction, we have a flourishing population of Bald Eagles which we enjoy to no end. Until, that is, early last summer and this summer when that flourishing population discovered and decimated the Heronries of the Great Blues in the stands of firs across the street from us. The cacophony from the Bald Eagle attacks on the nests of young Herons is deeply saddening. The adult Herons frantic prehistoric squawks and duck-like sounds of the panic stricken young, mixed with the triumphant shrieks of the raiding Eagles, is almost too much for me to bear.
      One morning several weeks ago, on my way out to the street to get the newspapers, I came across a plucked, naked, partially devoured baby Heron lying on my driveway. Was the Eagle's appetite satiated to the point it let the remainder fall to the ground, or are raptors naturally malicious; dropping dead prey from the air in dramatic defiance of the defenseless Heron parents?
      Mother Nature is a wonderful thing to witness! Unfortunately, wonderful doesn't always carry the happy connotation Mr. Disney raised us all to believe.

Rich Clayton
Poulsbo, WA

      Ah yes – when the lion lays down with the lamb, it's usually not because it's a perfect world, but because he's not hungry.

Chris Witkowski August Cover Artist

Artist credit and contact information for the August cover should have read:

Chris Witkowski
www.chriswitkowski.com
Wooden Boat Festival at www.woodenboat.org

Problems Dealt With Quickly and Succinctly

      Yacht Masters Northwest saves the day with high standards in planning, excellent execution and hard work with a project completion ahead of schedule.
      Over the last 60 years, with my personal high standards, I have not been happy very often with work done by others. Yacht Masters has been a pleasant exception. In talking with others, their performance is consistent. They deserve recognition as a valuable resource for the Northwest yachting community.
      Our story begins 20 years ago as I began construction of our T-Bird Orca, with completion finally scheduled to coincide with the Thunderbird 50 year anniversary celebration festivities in Gig Harbor on August 1st, 2nd and 3rd.
      Within hours of delivering Orca from Colorado Springs, arrangements were made with Yacht Masters to complete all standing and running rigging on Orca. Immediately after defining a scope of work and understanding my expectations, critical parts were ordered and scheduled for fabrication to be integrated within a tight schedule. As problems and options arose, they were dealt with quickly and succinctly. The tenseness of a tight schedule was always defused with respect for one another and a great sense of humor. On July 8th, Orca was put into my hands two hours ahead of schedule and sailed on a perfect day to her summer home at Arabella's Landing in Gig Harbor. What a great day after 20 years. Thanks again Kent, Tim and everyone at Yacht Masters.

Sincerely,
Terry and Shar Raat
Colorado Springs, Colorado

      Congratulations on the new boat, she's a beauty. Was lucky to sail on "Thunderbaby," at the Thunderbird 50th Celebration and took the above picture of "Orca" during the Sunday sailing. Click to read the full 50th TBird Celebration story is online.

IN PRAISE OF OLD BOATS

      These old gals, with new sails and gear, can be a lot of fun on the race course, and a lot cheaper than a new boat. Twice in the past 6 months an old (35 years) boat has taken a first over all in two, fairly prominent races in Puget Sound. Smilin' Jack, a Morgan 27, built in 1972, was first to finish, first in class and first overall in the Foul Weather Bluff Race (short course), sponsored by CYC Edmonds, last October. The race, sailed in 20 plus knots of breeze, was a triangle course of running, reaching and weather work.
      This past weekend, Smilin' Jack again showed good speed by taking first in class and first overall in Seattle YC's first short course race of the 2008 Tri-Island series, the Double Bluff Race. Again the wind was above 15 knots. Smilin' Jack averaged 5.3 knots, elapsed time, over the entire 35 mile course. Not bad for a 7000 pound, 35 year old boat. But more impressive was its average speed over the 41 miles actually sailed – 6.4 knots! Granted the heavier boats favor the heavier winds, and in lighter winds don't fair as well, but she still manages to beat newer designs, boat-for-boat, often enough. The M27 was originally designed by Charlie Morgan, in the late ‘60s, to the Midget Ocean Racing Rule. The boat was well ahead of her time in concept, and built to very high standards. Smilin' Jack came to her present owner, in pretty much original condition: 1976 sails, original winches, traveler, genny tracks, and accommodations. The first thing done to upgrade the boat was to buy new sails, then replace the winches with Anderson self-tailers, replace the traveler with a Harken windward sheeting traveler, and make the short genny tracts longer to allow sheeting for a 100% jib.
      The new sails were UK, a tape drive 153% genny, and a Dacron main. Today Smilin' Jack is sailing with the Dacron main, and two Ullman jibs, a 153% and a 100%. Any of today's sailmakers will turn the old dog into a greyhound.
      Accommodations were altered to allow sleeping 3 adults in full width berths. There has been no attempt to "lighten" the boat. There is a raft of gear aboard, from tools to extra life jackets. The through-hull head was replaced with a portable, camper toilet to comply with current regs. The out board engine is a big 4 cycle, electric start monster that weighs over 100 pounds. This M27 consistently sails in the upper reaches of its class, and now and then does really well. This old boat has been and is a delight to sail, as are many other older boats, and they can be recommended to anyone who wants to be competitive without incurring the expense of a brand new boat. The expense of new boats is astronomical relative to what can be purchased on the used market, and there are many boats out there that can be made competitive with something as simple as new sails.
      Old boats don't "rule," but they do have their moments now and then, and can be as much fun as the newer ones.

John Wade

      No doubt old boats can be as much fun as the newer ones. No doubt the majority of boat owners will agree with you. The Morgan 27s have really had their moments on Puget Sound. "Nasty Jack," "Chimera," "Impulse," and others really gathered more than their share of trophies in the past (30 years ago?). Great to hear the tradition is being carried on. In a day where a 20-foot sportboat can cost $50K, older boats are an affordable way to get out on the water and compete without breaking the bank. You can do that later when the racing bug really gets you and you want to plane in 10 knots of wind and tangle with the go-fasters.

Of All People, He Should Have Known Better

      On a recent trip to Anacortes I moored at Cap Sante Marina. I was assigned a slip on their reciprocal "P" dock. On approach it became evident that there was no way I was going to be able to get my 40-foot boat into the slip due to the configuration of the next dock.
      My only recourse was to turn the boat around and back in, which would allow for an easy exit in the event other boats were on "Q" dock, which would have been across from my position. As most sailboaters know, sailboats do not back up or respond as well as we would like them to in reverse. So, I was carefully maneuvering our boat to get it lined up to slide into the slip. Right at the critical do-or-die moment, a power boat (a Viking 33), a member of the Coast Guard Auxiliary (I will not name the boat but hopefully this will dawn on the culprit), decided he was going to barge past us and thus put a halt to my attempt to dock.
      Naturally, I was PO'd and had to start over. One of the locals watched on and could not believe the ignorance of this person, particularly being a "Coast Guard Auxiliary."
      Maybe the training manual should include a little bit on rules of the road and boating etiquette.

Thank you
Lindsay Norris

Long Legs and Blond Hair?

      Aloha, Happy to hear you got all the stuff for my 48° North column okay. (Galley Essentials with Amanda)
      All's well with us. We've been in the boatyard for a week having a bow thruster installed… yep, we're getting old. Had looked at a new boat but we're getting too old for all that work to keep the bank happy.
      Managed to catch up with Nigel Calder and his wife Terry as they are outfitting their new diesel/electric Malo in the next yard… and we thought we had electrical problems. Fun to spend time with them.
      Hope you're having a great summer. It's been rather blowy here (around 25 knots) but that does not stop those rock lizard Swedes... darn all those long legs and blond haired babes. Can't wait to get to the U.K with its less attractive eye-candy distractions for our male crew.

Cheers
Amanda Swan Neal
Mahina Tiare

      It's going to be very interesting to hear how Nigel and Terry Calder like their diesel/electric. More and more boat hybrid power is becoming available and with their experience, they certainly can give an informed opinion on their system.

Hoax Emergency Calls Cost Time, Money, and Possibly Lives

      SEATTLE - The Coast Guard is once again urging people to not make hoax calls to emergency responders. Though Tuesday's case (July 22, 2008) involving an emergency call from a young girl to the Coast Guard has not officially been ruled a hoax, it is important for people to know the risks and costs involved when the Coast Guard and other emergency services respond to false reports.
      "Hoax and prank calls not only diminish the Coast Guard's ability to respond to real emergencies and cost taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars, they also needlessly place Coast Guard men and women and other first responders at risk," said Rear Admiral John Currier, Coast Guard District 13 Commander.
      Every moment spent responding to a false report takes away from time that could be vital in the case of a genuine emergency. Every time a crew goes out to respond to a case, they are putting themselves in danger and the resources including fuel, manpower, and other equipment costs also end up costing taxpayers. It costs approximately $1,200 per hour to operate a Coast Guard 47-foot motor lifeboat, while a helicopter or larger cutter may cost from $9,000 to $12,000 per hour. Another important factor to consider is the cost to those who are found guilty of making false reports. Children especially should be informed of the risks involved with making false reports.
      Two Oregon youths were found guilty of making several false reports in 2005 and fined a combined total of $63,884.30 and were ordered to serve a combined total of 40 days in juvenile hall.
      The Coast Guard would like to remind individuals that false distress calls place unnecessary risk on would-be rescuers and interfere with legitimate search and rescue cases.

Petty Officer Shawn Eggert
Office of Public Affairs
U.S. Coast Guard Thirteeth District

      Since we received the above notice, we've received two more regarding hoax calls. The last one involving a young kid who said his boat was sinking, then later calling with another emergency. This sounds funny to some folks but not so to someone who is truly having an emergency but can't get help because the CG is responding to the hoax. I certainly have no problem with very heavy fines for anyone making a false emergency call.