Subject: 4 May Update
Sent: May 4, 2011 8:05 AM
Still riding out the gale. Very smooth ride considering the size of the waves. Position 33.6N 128.8W at 1036 UTC-9. Headed straight for Long Beach 530 nm 080M. 75 hours to go. Checking California offshore synopsis/forecast to see when the winds will subside. Other than that, everything is fine.
Last night was pretty rough. Literally. As we went into the evening the conditions worsened in that the wind was strong and the waves got bigger. At one point I wanted someone to sit in the cockpit and shine a floodlight aft to spot the breaking waves and alert the driver. It didn't work. The cord was too short from the nav station so we had to give that up.
Earlier in the day while I was at the helm all the crew was in the cockpit. We were all talking about the conditions and the size of the waves. At one time Bill looked up aft of me in silence. He then told me that he saw the biggest wave he had ever seen and it was looming above me.
Sometimes I would hear them coming because they were breaking and I would drop to my knees and hang on to the wheel in the hopes of not getting washed overboard. The noise of the breaking waves was scary and in the dark it was downright haunting.
It got so bad that heading into darkness I suggested that it was best to only have one on deck at a time as it was best to only lose one crew if we rolled. I then told everyone to remain fully dressed with a life-vest on in case we rolled or if all hands were needed.
To make matters worse, Clive regretfully opted out of driving as we went into the evening and for the overnight period. He knew his limits and driving skills in these conditions and we all agreed it was for the best to have him step back. He did fine in the daylight but the night is a different animal.
There is no way to prepare for these kinds of conditions other than just do it during the daytime and try to get comfortable. Even in daylight it was extremely difficult to keep the boat under control. I was intent to keep the speed up to retain rudder authority and stability. But, honestly, doing this at night was nearly impossible. This was nothing like steering with a kite up while sailing downhill. In those conditions you feel the stern rise and you counter-steer and then steer out at the bottom of the wave.
Currently, while at the helm you'd start to hear some grumbling from the breaking waves off to port and then the stern would lift and the boat would start to turn broadside to the wave. In the daytime we could see the waves and try to steer over them but at night that was impossible so you just went with it. Sometimes the wave would hit the side of the hull and jar us sideways.
There was nothing casual about this. All you could do was plant your feet, hang on to the wheel and feel the boat rise and fall.
I have vivid memories of these events. While standing at the helm in the middle of night with no lights except from the instruments and compass I could make out bodies on the floor below, sleeping in full gear. That lent some comfort. Clive took it upon himself to supply the driver with information, food and drink and whatever was needed. He made sure the next guy got up to go on watch.
With only three drivers we reverted to a 1-hour on & 2-hour off watch schedule for the next 10 hours or so. This was by far the most difficult watch schedule I have ever done. Fatigue was rampant. It is just not possible to keep your game up when you already have 13 days of fatigue due to sleep deprivation.
In the first couple days of the passage we were all fat, dumb and happy. Driving was easy. But, I had some difficulty with Bill and his ability to make his watch on time. He had a tendency to sleep in the cockpit while on watch as I drove. I let him sleep during one of our watches to see how far he would take it and I ended up driving for 2:40 hours before he woke up. This was during the day! More than not he was always late for his watch. When you are on for 4 hours with two guys you alternate the driver every hour. So, you should only be at the wheel for one hour at a time. When I witnessed his lack of honoring showing up on time it made a great impression of who he was in the sailing world.
Well, the night of one hour on I found that he could not make his way to the wheel on time. I was exhausted like the rest of them. Usually, you look at your watch and know when your time is up because you can't wait to go to sleep. You see someone down below with a flashlight and you know they are on the way so you feel relief is coming.
At some time during the night when I was at the wheel everyone below was asleep. It got so bad with Bill not showing on time to relieve me from the wheel that I stood the boat up. Literally. I would turn slightly into the wind and flog the sails and shake the boat. Clive and Mark would pop up and yell at me to turn the boat and I would respond with, "Wake up Bill!". This shows that everyone was asleep while one guy was at the wheel.
We were all wiped out. In this period I daydreamed about how boats are lost and why and I had firsthand experience of why. I also discovered that at the current level of fatigue and difficulty just about 30 minutes was the most that anyone could take at the wheel. 45 minutes was pushing it and you got lazy and distracted. 60 minutes was foolish. That's how accidents happen.
Statistics can be applied to wave theory and in our situation the 15' waves could potentially double. All it takes is a 25' breaking wave to knock this boat down. I was deeply concerned that we were now in a survival situation. One of the good things to happen was that the wind and wave angle put us on a direct path to Long Beach. It was like we were on a rail and just hanging on. We knew we had to ride it out because there was no other way out of this.
Through these last few days during the gale we had a tiny storm jib hanked on the fore-stay and a double-reefed damaged mainsail. And, we were haulin' ass! We were consistently moving along at 9-10 knots and quietly thankful that the boat was moving so fast on the exact heading needed to reach Long Beach.
In all honesty, maybe because I am partial, I sincerely believe this vessel is one of the best there is. The faster she goes the better she tracks and responds to wheel movement. Even climbing the big waves this girl handled it with no surprises.
There has been a lot of chatter in the sailing community about SC50s being good for only going downhill with spinnakers and I will now state loud and clear that SC50s can handle some really bad stuff and still keep the pointy end out front and the stick in the air.
Bill at the helm-no sound (YouTube link)
Sent: May 4, 2011 8:05 AM
Still riding out the gale. Very smooth ride considering the size of the waves. Position 33.6N 128.8W at 1036 UTC-9. Headed straight for Long Beach 530 nm 080M. 75 hours to go. Checking California offshore synopsis/forecast to see when the winds will subside. Other than that, everything is fine.
 | ||
| The breaking waves would splash in the cockpit and I thought that the beanbag might block some of it. All of our foulies were wet with no chance of ever drying out on this passage. |
Earlier in the day while I was at the helm all the crew was in the cockpit. We were all talking about the conditions and the size of the waves. At one time Bill looked up aft of me in silence. He then told me that he saw the biggest wave he had ever seen and it was looming above me.
Sometimes I would hear them coming because they were breaking and I would drop to my knees and hang on to the wheel in the hopes of not getting washed overboard. The noise of the breaking waves was scary and in the dark it was downright haunting.
It got so bad that heading into darkness I suggested that it was best to only have one on deck at a time as it was best to only lose one crew if we rolled. I then told everyone to remain fully dressed with a life-vest on in case we rolled or if all hands were needed.
To make matters worse, Clive regretfully opted out of driving as we went into the evening and for the overnight period. He knew his limits and driving skills in these conditions and we all agreed it was for the best to have him step back. He did fine in the daylight but the night is a different animal.
There is no way to prepare for these kinds of conditions other than just do it during the daytime and try to get comfortable. Even in daylight it was extremely difficult to keep the boat under control. I was intent to keep the speed up to retain rudder authority and stability. But, honestly, doing this at night was nearly impossible. This was nothing like steering with a kite up while sailing downhill. In those conditions you feel the stern rise and you counter-steer and then steer out at the bottom of the wave.
Currently, while at the helm you'd start to hear some grumbling from the breaking waves off to port and then the stern would lift and the boat would start to turn broadside to the wave. In the daytime we could see the waves and try to steer over them but at night that was impossible so you just went with it. Sometimes the wave would hit the side of the hull and jar us sideways.
There was nothing casual about this. All you could do was plant your feet, hang on to the wheel and feel the boat rise and fall.
I have vivid memories of these events. While standing at the helm in the middle of night with no lights except from the instruments and compass I could make out bodies on the floor below, sleeping in full gear. That lent some comfort. Clive took it upon himself to supply the driver with information, food and drink and whatever was needed. He made sure the next guy got up to go on watch.
With only three drivers we reverted to a 1-hour on & 2-hour off watch schedule for the next 10 hours or so. This was by far the most difficult watch schedule I have ever done. Fatigue was rampant. It is just not possible to keep your game up when you already have 13 days of fatigue due to sleep deprivation.
In the first couple days of the passage we were all fat, dumb and happy. Driving was easy. But, I had some difficulty with Bill and his ability to make his watch on time. He had a tendency to sleep in the cockpit while on watch as I drove. I let him sleep during one of our watches to see how far he would take it and I ended up driving for 2:40 hours before he woke up. This was during the day! More than not he was always late for his watch. When you are on for 4 hours with two guys you alternate the driver every hour. So, you should only be at the wheel for one hour at a time. When I witnessed his lack of honoring showing up on time it made a great impression of who he was in the sailing world.
Well, the night of one hour on I found that he could not make his way to the wheel on time. I was exhausted like the rest of them. Usually, you look at your watch and know when your time is up because you can't wait to go to sleep. You see someone down below with a flashlight and you know they are on the way so you feel relief is coming.
At some time during the night when I was at the wheel everyone below was asleep. It got so bad with Bill not showing on time to relieve me from the wheel that I stood the boat up. Literally. I would turn slightly into the wind and flog the sails and shake the boat. Clive and Mark would pop up and yell at me to turn the boat and I would respond with, "Wake up Bill!". This shows that everyone was asleep while one guy was at the wheel.
We were all wiped out. In this period I daydreamed about how boats are lost and why and I had firsthand experience of why. I also discovered that at the current level of fatigue and difficulty just about 30 minutes was the most that anyone could take at the wheel. 45 minutes was pushing it and you got lazy and distracted. 60 minutes was foolish. That's how accidents happen.
Statistics can be applied to wave theory and in our situation the 15' waves could potentially double. All it takes is a 25' breaking wave to knock this boat down. I was deeply concerned that we were now in a survival situation. One of the good things to happen was that the wind and wave angle put us on a direct path to Long Beach. It was like we were on a rail and just hanging on. We knew we had to ride it out because there was no other way out of this.
Through these last few days during the gale we had a tiny storm jib hanked on the fore-stay and a double-reefed damaged mainsail. And, we were haulin' ass! We were consistently moving along at 9-10 knots and quietly thankful that the boat was moving so fast on the exact heading needed to reach Long Beach.
In all honesty, maybe because I am partial, I sincerely believe this vessel is one of the best there is. The faster she goes the better she tracks and responds to wheel movement. Even climbing the big waves this girl handled it with no surprises.
There has been a lot of chatter in the sailing community about SC50s being good for only going downhill with spinnakers and I will now state loud and clear that SC50s can handle some really bad stuff and still keep the pointy end out front and the stick in the air.
Bill at the helm-no sound (YouTube link)
Dave at the helm-no sound (YouTube link)
Dave at the helm, big waves-no sound (youTube link)
Mark at the helm (YouTube link)
FZPN26 KWBC 041546
OFFPZ6
OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST
NWS OCEAN PREDICTION CENTER WASHINGTON DC
930 AM PDT WED MAY 4 2011
CALIFORNIA WATERS FROM 60 NM TO 250 NM OFFSHORE.
SEAS GIVEN AS SIGNIFICANT WAVE HEIGHT...WHICH IS THE AVERAGE
HEIGHT OF THE HIGHEST 1/3 OF THE WAVES. INDIVIDUAL WAVES MAY BE
MORE THAN TWICE THE SIGNIFICANT WAVE HEIGHT.
PZZ089-042330-
930 AM PDT WED MAY 4 2011
SYNOPSIS FOR CALIFORNIA WATERS
HIGH PRES TO THE W WILL WEAKEN
TODAY AND TONIGHT AS A LOW PRES TROUGH REMAINS ALONG THE COAST.
A WEAKENING COLD FRONT WILL MOVE OVER THE NRN WATERS THU. HIGH
PRES WILL BUILD E INTO THE WATERS FRI AND SAT. A WEAK COLD FRONT
WILL MOVE ACROSS THE NRN WATERS LATE FRI INTO SAT...WITH ANOTHER
FRONT MOVING THROUGH SUN.
PZZ083-042330-
POINT ST GEORGE TO POINT ARENA
930 AM PDT WED MAY 4 2011
GALE WARNING
TODAY
N TO NW WINDS 15 TO 25 KT...EXCEPT E PORTION 25 TO 35
KT EARLY. SEAS 8 TO 13 FT BECOMING 7 TO 11 FT.
TONIGHT
N TO NW WINDS 10 TO 20 KT...EXCEPT SE PORTION TO 25
KT. SEAS 7 TO 10 FT...EXCEPT NW PORTION SUBSIDING TO 5 TO 7 FT.
THU
N TO NW WINDS 5 TO 15 KT...EXCEPT SE PORTION TO 20 KT.
SEAS BECOMING 5 TO 9 FT THROUGHOUT...HIGHEST SE.
THU NIGHT
N TO NW WINDS 10 TO 20 KT. SEAS 5 TO 8 FT.
FRI AND SAT
WINDS BECOMING W TO NW 10 TO 20 KT THROUGHOUT
FRI. SEAS 6 TO 8 FT.
SUN
WINDS BECOMING N TO NW 15 TO 25 KT. SEAS 6 TO 9 FT.
PZZ084-042330-
POINT ARENA TO POINT CONCEPTION
930 AM PDT WED MAY 4 2011
TODAY
N TO NW WINDS 20 TO 30 KT DIMINISHING TO 15 TO 25 KT.
SEAS 9 TO 13 FT...HIGHEST N.
TONIGHT
N TO NW WINDS 15 TO 25 KT. SEAS BECOMING 8 TO 11 FT.
THU AND THU NIGHT
NW WINDS 15 TO 25 KT. SEAS SUBSIDING TO 6
TO 9 FT THU.
FRI AND SAT
NW WINDS 10 TO 20 KT. SEAS 6 TO 9 FT.
SUN
N TO NW WINDS 15 TO 25 KT. SEAS 7 TO 9 FT.
PZZ085-042330-
POINT CONCEPTION TO GUADALUPE ISLAND
930 AM PDT WED MAY 4 2011
TODAY
NW WINDS 10 TO 20 KT...HIGHEST NW. SEAS 5 TO 7
FT...EXCEPT W OF 120W 7 TO 10 FT.
TONIGHT AND THU
NW WINDS 5 TO 15 KT. SEAS BECOMING 5 TO 9 FT
THROUGHOUT TONIGHT. WINDS AND SEAS HIGHEST NW.
THU NIGHT
NW WINDS 10 TO 20 KT. SEAS 5 TO 8 FT.
FRI
NW TO N WINDS 15 TO 20 KT. SEAS 6 TO 10 FT...HIGHEST NEAR
POINT CONCEPTION.
SAT AND SUN
NW TO N WINDS 15 TO 25 KT. SEAS 6 TO 10
FT...HIGHEST NEAR POINT CONCEPTION.
.FORECASTER BANKS. OCEAN FORECAST BRANCH.
In the Earth shot below you can see our track is generally east and heading for the L.A. basin. Just prior to the turn to the east the track was very much south-easterly.
 |
| 12am 5/4/11 to 12am 5/5/11 (173nm/2,095) |
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