We had Gale warnings today for Catalina Channel and Small Craft Warnings in Santa Monica Bay.
I wondered if it was a good idea to carry on a planned sail with spouse and two other adults who enjoy the usual day sail but have not been in higher winds and sea.
It never blew more than 25 knots across the deck, and I put in the second reef in the slip before departure. With about half the genoa deployed the boat performed with perfect aplomb, heeling only about 10 degrees on the first long close reach and throwing only the occasional splash of water up in the air to sprinkle us all.
Off the wind we surfed 6-foot seas in a world of whitecaps and brilliant SoCal sun. A few flying jibes and two hours later we were back at the club again , dining on salads and wine while Thelonious romped in her tight slip, still heeling in the gusts.
As always I was impressed by her sea-kindliness, and also by the amount of effort it was to steer a broad reach unless I bothered the crew with getting the set of the mainsail right. Even with two reefs in, a frelaxing of the traveler or the main sheet made all the difference. I think these boats are quite sensitive to sail trim, so that frequent changes off the wind are rewarded by a less squirrelly course and helm.
They enjoyed themselves entirely, and we were the only boat on the bay. The maxim works:
"Let's stick our nose out there and see how it is. If somebody doesn't like it, we can just turn around."
GoPro: My GoPro 5 last week had a black LCD screen. I sent it back to GoPro and they had a warranty replacement in my hands four days later.
That camera went to Hawaii and back, and then in September spent 10 days hiking in the Himalayas above 15,000 feet (my son borrowed it).
GoPro is having business troubles, but the GoPro 5 remains a remarkable achievement offering extreme resolution, big capacity, six digital "lenses" from normal to super wide angle, excellent new stabilization, improved low light capability and secure waterproofing in a case even smaller than the older models.
I wish I'd had it today. At 12 megapixels, every frame of a video is a pretty good quality still, and it was too wet to even think about taking out an IPhone.
(Note: I accept no free equipment from anybody, no "test gear", and I have never endorsed anything for a fee)
I wondered if it was a good idea to carry on a planned sail with spouse and two other adults who enjoy the usual day sail but have not been in higher winds and sea.
It never blew more than 25 knots across the deck, and I put in the second reef in the slip before departure. With about half the genoa deployed the boat performed with perfect aplomb, heeling only about 10 degrees on the first long close reach and throwing only the occasional splash of water up in the air to sprinkle us all.
Off the wind we surfed 6-foot seas in a world of whitecaps and brilliant SoCal sun. A few flying jibes and two hours later we were back at the club again , dining on salads and wine while Thelonious romped in her tight slip, still heeling in the gusts.
As always I was impressed by her sea-kindliness, and also by the amount of effort it was to steer a broad reach unless I bothered the crew with getting the set of the mainsail right. Even with two reefs in, a frelaxing of the traveler or the main sheet made all the difference. I think these boats are quite sensitive to sail trim, so that frequent changes off the wind are rewarded by a less squirrelly course and helm.
They enjoyed themselves entirely, and we were the only boat on the bay. The maxim works:
"Let's stick our nose out there and see how it is. If somebody doesn't like it, we can just turn around."
GoPro: My GoPro 5 last week had a black LCD screen. I sent it back to GoPro and they had a warranty replacement in my hands four days later.
That camera went to Hawaii and back, and then in September spent 10 days hiking in the Himalayas above 15,000 feet (my son borrowed it).
GoPro is having business troubles, but the GoPro 5 remains a remarkable achievement offering extreme resolution, big capacity, six digital "lenses" from normal to super wide angle, excellent new stabilization, improved low light capability and secure waterproofing in a case even smaller than the older models.
I wish I'd had it today. At 12 megapixels, every frame of a video is a pretty good quality still, and it was too wet to even think about taking out an IPhone.
(Note: I accept no free equipment from anybody, no "test gear", and I have never endorsed anything for a fee)
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