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Why do the organizers call the Pacific Cup the Fun Race to Hawaii? To understand that answer you have to be able to understand the weather patterns between San Francisco and Hawaii.
This time of year the predominant weather system in our area is the Pacific High that sits off the San Francisco Bay, about 500 miles or more. A great way to visualize how this High Pressure System works is to go check out the Earth Wind Model http://earth.nullschool.net/. This app is basically a google earth image that shows the outline of land masses and wind lines that move in the direction of the wind, their color shows intensity. Highs move in a clockwise direction while Lows moves counter clockwise. The pacific high right now is a ridge that covers a couple of thousand miles west southwest of San Francisco. The trick is to use that high to your best advantage which would be the sling shot effect; shooting the boat like a boomerang around the bottom side of that high. As us Cowboys from Wyoming would say, Yeeee Haaa!!!!
The Pacific Cup is basically 5 races in one. In full disclosure you have to understand this information is coming from me, who has never done this race but has tried to understand it the best as I can. I do have some cruising experience. The first race is getting out of the thermal effect off the coast. The thermals are created by the hot California central and southern valleys that heat the air causing it to rise which is then back filled by cooler air coming off the water. This affect can last for a few hundred miles off shore, typically moving north to south. So the first race is a sailing reach across the wind out of the gate for a couple of days or so. The next obstacle is to get over the ridge of high pressure that runs west/northwest to east/southeast. You can see this ridge as solid blue image surrounded by wind lines moving clockwise in the model. At the time of this writing the ridge is bow shape coming out of the northwest running southeast but then curving to the east/northeast. This ridge right now would be easy to cross without having to go too far south. This is critical because the race is usually won by the boat that crosses Longitude 130 at the correct latitude. The big question is; which latitude? Usually somewhere between latitude 28 to latitude 35 (San Francisco is latitude 38). In the Earth Wind App you can click on your mouse or touch the screen and it will display the Latitude/Longitude. You can also see a grid under the wind lines, the first grid line off the California coast is Longitude 130. My guess would be the current correct tactic would probably dictate crossing Longitude 130 at a higher latitude, leaving the boat setup for a nice run to Hawaii but then again this will probably change by the time we get out there.
The third race begins when you first enter the trades and start running downwind to Hawaii. Again the Earth Wind Model shows a steady flow of wind lines moving directly to Hawaii from that ridge. This is where the “FUN” part begins. If the conditions are right this is where the term fair winds and following seas originated. The trade wind swells are high and wide and going in the same direction. Those sailors that do this year after year, do it for this experience. I have never had this type of ride in all of my sailing; I am soooo looking forward to this.
Hopefully at this point we will be around the half way mark or better and by then we should have the rhythm down of 4 hours on and 4 hours off watches and pushing the boat as fast as we can, 24 hours per day. This ride will go for a while and as we start approaching the Island, the squalls start arriving. Now we are into race No. 4; weaving through the squalls. Again this is not an experience I have had, but my best guess would be they are like the thunderstorms that cross the plains of Wyoming. Big billowing Cumulus Clouds holding a lot of moisture that from time to time needs to be dropped. When that rather violent necessity occurs, there will be a large down draft created by the momentum of the rain falling. You always want to leave the squall to the left, otherwise you get caught in their vortex and simply sit for a long while, which isn’t moving very fast to the finish line. The 5th and final race is close to that finish line inside the Kaneohe Bay which can be tricky especially at night; then the party begins!
Check out the Pacific Cup web site, to learn more about the event. Yellow Brick Road website so you can following our track as compared to our competitors. The Earth Wind Model so you can see the wind that drives us. Then you may start to understand why; they call this the Fun Race To Hawaii!
When I tell friends and family that I am racing a sailboat to Hawaii their initial reaction is one of concern for my well being. Since safety should be our first and foremost concern I thought I would start the blog with a discussion of what we are doing to keep us safe.
Any discussion about safety as it applies to Avion has to start with a brief discussion of the 2012 OYRC Farallon Race. This is a popular race that is scheduled every year to race around the Farallon islands located 25 miles off the San Francisco coast. That year one of the yachts in the race, Slow Speed Chase, was hit by a set of waves while rounding the west side of the island in shallow waters and washed 7 crew members off the boat and 5 members perished. Avion was in that race and took the last picture of the boat before their fatal encounter with that wave set. The entire San Francisco Bay sailing community was devastated by this tragic loss. Soon after there were two additional sailboat fatal accidents off the coast of California and the US Coast Guard placed a hold on all off shore races pending investigation of the cause of these accidents. The crew of Avion stayed in close communication with the investigation team primarily to make sure that whatever went wrong couldn’t happen aboard Avion. Prior to these tragedies safety was always important but now it became paramount.
So what has the skipper and crew of Avion done about making the boat as safe as possible? Safety starts with the understanding of both the boat’s and crew’s limitations; don’t force past those limitations. From the racing and offshore practice sailing we have pushed the boat and ourselves to our limits. One thing we discovered is the boat is awesome. We have broached her multiple times, we have sailed in 40+ knot of winds with 20 foot seas, we have surfed down waves with 25 plus winds flying the spinnaker reaching speeds in excess of 13 knots and mostly she has came through the experience without incident (wait for the next post for the one exception). In the process of pushing the boat we have learned a lot about our abilities, but more importantly where we need improvement. Most of our efforts over the past year and a half has been to discover our short comings and improve our sailing ability, not just to make the boat go faster but also keeping her under control.
Each boat that enters the Pacific Cup must go through a rigorous inspection. When the inspector showed up for our initial review he brought a 34 page document listing in detail all of the items that are required. This particular inspector had a connection to Avion, he was a crew member of our closest competition during the 2013 offshore racing series. He has been doing the inspections for the Pacific Cup for a long time so he knew what he was doing and had great suggestions for us to adjust our systems to optimize our safety. At the end of the inspection he stated that this was his first inspection for this year and we have set the bar high. My comment was that we will continue that high bar all the way to the finish line.
In addition to passing the Pacific Cup inspection, skipper Tom had an insurance inspection that listed over 60 items to address. At first glance this could be interpreted that Avion had issues, but not really, they were mainly minor items that needed to be addressed so they wouldn’t become major issues. The crew spent months working on each and every item which accomplished two objectives; cleared all items off the list and allowed the crew to become intimately familiar with the boat. We now know every nook and cranny on the boat. The bottom line is that we have addressed all of Avion’s issues identified by multiple inspectors, acquired all of the safety equipment required for the race and we have performed all of the required safety drills.
Besides the boat safety equipment the Pacific Cup requires all of the crew to have personal safety gear and 30% of the crew have safety at sea certification. All Avion crew members have acquired that certification. The personal equipment that we have is the top of the line personal flotation devices, with crotch straps to keep them from hiking up over the head when deployed, whistle and a strobe light. We all have tethers that will be required to be deployed from start to finish, in other words we will be connected to the boat at all times. On the off chance that I am separated from the boat I have a personal VHF radio that has the latest technology called Digital Select Calling (DSC). Once the DSC is activated it sends a VHF signal of my current GPS location to all DSC radios within VHF radio range, which of coarse Avion is equipped.
Clothing is also an important component of safety. At the start of the race the weather will be cold and wet and at the end of the race the weather will be hot and wet. The key components here are wet and extreme conditions. Sailing is an active sport so that moisture comes from both inside and outside the gear. Waterproof, breathable, wickable and sun resistant becomes common terms when talking with fellow crew members about personal gear.
The crew on Avion has placed safety as our number one priority. Not only have I personally made that my most important priority I also tend to be hedge on the down side risk. In stead of making the best possible outcome the highest possible priority I tend to evaluate what is the worst that can happen and make sure it doesn’t. So friends and family I am doing everything possible to be as safe as I can.
Juan’s Pac Cup Adventure
or
What it takes to participate in racing a sailboat to Hawaii
Preface (June 1, 2014)
I have made a commitment. This is not one of your run of the mill commitments, like planning to exercise more, eat healthier or simply be a better person. This one is consistent with how I live my life; I have an insatiable spirit that requires that I live a full and extremely active life. The best way I have found to fulfill this need is to challenging myself to participating in endurance type of life changing adventures. This new commitment is to crew on the sailboat Avion, a Bianca 414, competing in the 2014 Pacific Cup known as “The Fun Race to Hawaii”.
My mother saw this trait when I was just a child (“Everyone is out of step except for my son Jon”). My older brother saw it when I was young (“I was playing my guitar in the back yard while my younger brother was chasing tornadoes in the front yard”). My late wife saw it when I was I a young man (“Let’s go cruising in Mexico, we can do this”). My best friend saw it during my mid-life, (“Amigo, there is this new mountain bike route call Ride The Divide that parallels the continental divide from Canada to Mexico, we can do this”). I guess Tom Abbott, Avion’s skipper, saw it when he asked me to join his crew last year to campaign Avion.
The plan for this commitment is to start racing to Hawaii out of the San Francisco Bay on July 8th, arrive 12 to 14 days later, spend a relaxing week in Hawaii with friends and crew, then sail back to San Francisco arriving sometime mid-August. Though the organizers promote this long standing sailing tradition as a “fun race”, rest assured, any race that involves a majority of the Pacific Ocean has to be taken very seriously. After all, when you are half way between San Francisco and Hawaii, you are further from any navigable land mass anywhere else in the world. Keep in mind that you are on a relatively small sailboat, a mere cork bobbing in the vastness of The Pacific. This journal is to tell the story of what it takes to participate in that quest and to show that it can be both fun and serious. (To see more about this race visit https://pacificcup.org/)
I have debated with myself as to the most creative and appropriate process to follow in telling this story. In the past I have written journals of my experiences and have used different writing styles. I have used a third person perspective to tell my adventures through Juan’s lens, and I used a more personal intimate first person to discuss my care giving experience with my late wife. Juan has been an alter-ego of mine for decades and I got into the habit of referring to Juan in the third person. I picked up this technique while journaling the adventures of Juan and Juanita (Jon and Jean) while cruising the Sea of Cortez and the waters of Western Mexico between 1998 and 2002. For those that have had the experience of viewing past events through Juan’s lens can probably verify that at times that lens can be a bit shaded. I wouldn’t say to the extent that this shading taints the truth, I would rather say that it provides a touch of color. I enjoy this technique because it tells a compelling story of a human adventure in a way that exposes the challenges and mishaps that are inevitable in such a quest. A quest that will be challenging the crew to do the best we can while competing with a strong field of competitors while dealing with the fickle grand lady of matriarchs; Mother Nature.
As in most entertaining stories (hoping this is among them) they are typically based on fact. However, in order to make them more compelling, the story-teller invokes a certain degree of artistic license. I want to make it clear, in order to stay true to the skipper and crew, most of the creative licensing will involve my mishaps, or should I say Juan mishaps; affectionately known by my close friends and family, and now even my crewmates, as Juanisms. I will do everything I can to keep the Juanisms to a minimum on this adventure but those in the know have already figured out that there will be a few that will be embellish.
So as this story unfolds I will probably be utilizing both writing styles. When I have time to generate a fun Juan adventure, especially one that involves a Juanism, I will probably write it in third person. However when I have a few minutes to update the days events during the race I will probably write it short and sweet and to the point.
As with any life adventure, one doesn’t do it in a vacuum. I’ve already mentioned a couple, cruising Mexico with my wife and crossing the better part of a continent on a mountain bike with my best friend. I could never have done ether alone. I would first like to acknowledge with the utmost gratitude, Tom Abbott, the owner and skipper of Avion, the sailboat we are racing across the Pacific. How Tom and I met and how I was graciously asked to participate in his dream will unfold as this story is told. For now I wanted to express my sincere appreciation to him for recognizing that I, of all people, would be an asset on his long-standing quest to race to Hawaii. My only hope is to make him proud.
I want to also recognize the fabulous crew that Tom has assembled. But first I have to mention a few things about Tom. Tom is a process guy. He has given much thought and deliberation into the type of boat and crew he desires to assist him, as the skipper, to race a sailboat halfway across the Pacific. I have to say I am impressed with what I have seen of that process and I feel humbled to be asked to be among the ranks of his crew; Kent Bliven, David Lyon, Nico Colomb, and John Dillow. I will attempt to portray these wonderful guys as I know they are; fun-loving in spirit, competent sailors in performance, competitive by nature, and most importantly, dear friends. I literally have had my life in their hands and plan to continue to do so. I am confident that when this adventure is over I will consider my crew mates, along with my beloved skipper, as members of a select group that I will cherish and love as life-time friends.
I cannot tell a story about sailing without mentioning my late wife, Jean, for without her, in my life, sailing would only be something that others do. This is a fact that goes back to 1982. Shortly after we were a couple, even before we were married she went for a Hobie Cat ride after work one warm summer evening. When she arrived home after the sail I asked how she enjoyed the experience for it was her first time sailing. She told me she enjoyed it so much that she had just bought a 16 foot Hobie Cat sailboat. My immediate response was “I hate those fucking things” because my experience with them had not been pleasant. She just smiled and said, “It’s your choice, learn how to sail or find a new girlfriend”. 27 fabulous years followed with that wonderful woman all of which had sailing as one of the dominant themes in our lives together. With the exception of three years since 1998 I have called a sailboat my home, living that nautical dream.
Finally I have to thank all of those friends, family and associates that have helped along the way, this life of adventure. Many of you are sailors and through your examples and spirit I have discovered that not only is sailing a fun activity, but more importantly, it has exposed me to a wonderful set of eclectic folks that seem to have a zeal for life, like no other. I have gained lifetime friendships with countless amazing people simply through a common thread that weaves itself though four key interdependent elements; the wind, the water, technology and your wits.
Sit back, relax and enjoy this new unfolding adventure of Juan’s. Who knows where it will take us, but you can count on the fact that along the way there will be lots to tell.
Avion is a Bianca 414, built by the Bianca boatyard in Denmark in 1980. Thus, the name of this blog is “avionbianca.” The motivation for starting this blog is the Pacific Cup 2014, and we start on Tuesday, July 8, 2104 at 11:30 AM, in front of the St. Francis Yacht Club.
The crew consists of 6 in total. In no particular sequence, we are as follows: David Lyon, Nico Columb, Jon/Juan Fowkes, Kent Bliven, Jon Dillow, navigator, and Tom Abbott, skipper. Jon/Juan has been keeping a journal during the past 18 months as we have been sailing as a team, and will be one of the primary contributors to this blog. Between the two of us, we will post something everyday during the race to give family and friends some idea of what it is like to sail from San Francisco to Hawaii, over 2000 miles in a race.
You are welcome to check the blog anytime, as we will be starting this week to build it out, with posting, pages for pictures, and links to the Pacific CUp 2014 race. If you would like to get an email with the latest post to the blog, we will be setting up a subscription process for family and friends to register with this blog service. So, stay tuned.
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