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.
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