5) 2010 Baja Ha-ha sailing clips

Latitude 38 was gracious to pick up one of my You Tube clips and post it in their on-line newsletter:

Nov 15, 2010

Here is what they wrote:

Bountiful Sailing off Baja

November 15, 2010 – Baja, Mexico

Some folks think there isn't much good sailing on the way from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas. It's true that it can be light but, as you can see from David Berke's YouTube video of Cliff Shaw's Emery Cove-based Crowther 10m Rainbow, there is actually great sailing to be had.

S/V Rainbow Crowther 10m 17.6 knots 10.31.10 1130am Baja, CA  (You Tube clip w/Cliff at the wheel, John on the rail)

While the wind didn't fill in for the second leg until about 4 p.m., when it did it was wonderful. We were carrying a full main on Profligate along with a Santa Cruz 70 chute in what we estimated were 17 to 19 knots of true wind, and we were constantly surfing in the low- to high-teens. It was so smooth that if you were inside the salon, you could hardly tell — except for the sound of the water passing the hulls — that the boat was moving. It was some of the best sailing we've ever had. Around about 3 a.m., a bit of a cross swell developed, so it wasn't quite as smooth as before, and thanks to overstanding the layline, we had to go to white sails after gybing. Nonetheless, the Baja coast proved to once again be a cat's playground.

Spinnaker sailing off Baja can be really spectacular.
© 2011 Mark Leonard  

Yes, the sailing was spectacular with high winds and small seas.

(You Tube clip)

Sailing Rainbow off Baja, CA 10.31.10 

Cliff at the wheel and John on the rail.

(You Tube clip)

Blowin' by a mono-hull

We blew right by this mono-hull.  Granted, it could have been a full-keel but in reality this cat is flat and mono-hulls suffer in sloppy seas at a certain heading.  You can see the sails collapse when the boat heels and that effectively puts the brakes on extending the duration of the passage.

Cliff cleaning a fish.

...and the boys caught a tuna. 

I found a quick meal in a bag.

(You Tube clip)

Overtaking that same mono-hull 

(You Tube clip)
...off the bow 

(You Tube clip)
dolphins off the bow 

(You Tube clip) 
Sunset