The FINE ART of BAY BASHING by Gary "Doc" Hansen
This trip didn't sneak up on me. I had been aware of it for about a month, as my wife Mary was heading to San Fran for a seminar with her storeowners. I had been invited along, but I was going for a seminar of a different type however… I was going to study "The Fine Art of Bay Bashing".
Tom and Marg are the owners of Norwood Furniture in Gilbert Arizona where wife Mary works, and besides being two of the nicest people on earth; they have a Hunter 33.5 in the Oakland Yacht Club. It seems that Tom, and his buddy Bill have been in partnership on either a plane or a boat for the past 20 something years. They are both ex-fighter pilots, and just like things that fly or sail. Bill would be picking up Tom and I from the airport, and Mary and Marg will be finishing the seminar about an hour later. The plan was then to all get on the boat, and sail to Pier 39 for a wonderful dinner at Scoma's. There was just one obstacle in the way of that plan… The Bay.
Everybody knows that San Fran has WONDERFUL weather. So wouldn't you know that the day prior to our arrival, the temperature had SOARED to 105, causing several deaths from heatstroke. This also has a MAJOR effect on how the wind blows over the Bay, rushing in from the cool ocean… and pouring into the hot valleys. Thursday was the day of our passage, and the wind outside was waiting for us with 30-40 knots.
Along the way we had some commercial traffic to look at. Now, these are the BIG Ocean going container ships that use the same channels that we sailors do. We made sure to give them "right of way", as compared to our vessel, these are the GIANTS. We watched how the tugs would maneuver them into their "parking spots" with great ease. We also notice the huge stacks of containers that they carry, and wondered how many fell off into the ocean. That's an ongoing debate that sailors and shippers argue. The shippers say it doesn't happen very often, and the sailors say that not only DOES it happen… but also they sometimes float, and cause your boat to sink on impact. I later picked up a copy of (June) Latitude 38 and they show a "few containers" tumbling off a ship on page 120. The caption reads "On January 31 of this year, three container ships encountered heavy weather in mid Pacific, resulting in the loss overboard of 391 containers. That is not a typo." Just think of screaming along those ocean waves on your way to Hawaii… with a few HUNDRED of those semi trailer boxes in your path… NO, let's not think about that.
We came out of the channel and saw the wind. It was BLOWING out there. We got the life jackets, harnesses, and foul weather gear on, and came out from behind Treasure Island. Let the BASH BEGIN. The city skyline looked wonderful, but quite a distance away, with LOTS of churning water in between… wind we guessed was between 30 and 40 knots. I didn't get the camera on deck, and with the 30-degree heel, I didn't let go of my position except to duck out of the occasional wave tossing itself onto the deck. The helmsman did an excellent job keeping the boat dry with the washing machine chop and high winds. We made Pier 39, and pulled into our slip just before sunset. Bill was down below fixing cheese and cocktails to calm the crew from the exciting ride over. It was a BLAST.
After some snacks and fine "sundowners" we jumped ship and headed down the boardwalk to Scoma's. It's a little "landmark" restaurant known to the locals for it's excellent seafood. There is always a wait, and we had about an hour. We decided to pack our party into the bar for some more rounds of cocktails and sailing talk. The dinner was everything and more than expected. I'm giving it 5 starfish.
We waddled back to the boat and as the girls were flying out the next morning early, we night sailed back to the Oakland Marina. I wish that I had the right camera equipment to have captured the sights of that night… Full moon, high fast moving clouds just covering the tops of the Skyline of San Fran… the diamond like sparkles of the ocean… simply magical. We all just kicked back and watched the show as the sights and the lights… got smaller and smaller off our stern. This is sailing in a "virtual post card" to be sure.
Next morning we saw the girls off to the airport, and after a huge breakfast at Olies, we returned to the Marina. I am not used to this many restaurants while sailing, but I tell ya, I'm not complaining. The Bay is just full of GREAT PLACES to go, and with some local guides to steer you by, it's just wonderful. As we motored up behind Treasure Island to hoist the sails, we were reminded of the ships. Ships are another thing that I wasn't used to…and the Bay has some MAJOR SHIPPING TRAFFIC. I kept my head on a swivel looking for these behemoths from this time on.
We left the double reef in the main that had done us SO WELL the previous day. That is the trick for keeping your boat on its feet in the Bay. You must have a way of REDUCING SAIL as the wind will vary from location to location. Tom took the helm and set the course, and as we poked our nose from behind Treasure Island, just like it had been planned… the wind started to pick up. I could see the boats in front of us heeling over as I climbed up to my seat on the rail. With a water temperature of 54-degrees, I wanted to find a dry spot, and the guys on the helm did a fine job ducking under… or going over the top of the BIG WET ONES. Credit should also be given to the boat, as the Hunter 33.5 is a beamy, comfy, and dry boat.
The wind was funneling thru the straight from Treasure to Angel Islands. I noticed that many of the other sailors were hugging the shore around Angel to keep in some of the shadow over there. Tom was heading for that exact location, as the gusts put us up on the rail. Not much trimming needed now, so Bill wanted to get his turn on the wheel. Some sort of deal was made, and I was elected to get some cold beverages. When I came back out with the cold drinks… Bill was at the wheel and Tom had my spot. These guys move fast, and you have to keep on your toes if you're the new crew.
Bill dials up the cell phone while on the tilt about 25 degrees, and wind on a beam reach to the San Francisco Yacht Club. After a pleasant conversation with the guy at the club, he hangs up and sez "We got us a place for the night… they are going to make room for us… even though there is a major race". I later learned that these guys KNOW most of the commodores, as well as the waiters and waitresses in all the restaurants and bars. You can really get spoiled with this kind of company and local knowledge.
Once at the Club, we head off to the bar to watch Tiger Woods clean up at Pebble Beach. Just an AWESOME performance by this 24-year-old golfer. I don't play the game myself, but you can tell talent even being a layman. After the golf, we headed off to Sams for yet another great dinner, followed by coming back to the club for cocktails. We are now in the "Bay Bash Groove", and this has become "one HULL of a neat cruise."
Next morning we are up early and readying ourselves up for a romp out the Golden Gate. This will be our last day on the Bay, and we intend to sail from sun up to sunset. We pull out of the Yacht club and set the sails right away. I get the helm, and we head out into the tricky ebb and flows of the waters and currents that fill the Bay around the Gate. I'm impressed with all the tricks that one needs to take advantage of every little change in the Bay. This is not really complicated… it's just EXPERIENCE that is collected from many years of perfecting your skills on this unusual body of water. Hanging out with Tom and Bill, and watching them work is a seminar worth attending… again and again.
While we were outside of the Gate doing that "Ocean Sailing"… we had to convince Tom that we DIDN'T have time to head to the Farallons. He sure had the bit in his teeth, and just wanted to "sail-on". Bill said that to be back in the marina by 1700 we should turn about now. This created a whole new tack for our trip home. We were on a broad reach, and the boat had the current and tide working with her… she took off like a scalded cat, leaving a wake of foam behind us. You should have seen the grins on our faces as we speed along the San Francisco Skyline. This was worth all the Bashing going to weather on the ride up. This boat was FLYING… H2O style. As to be expected we came about in front of our marina at 1630 and dropped sail. Cocktails were served at 1700 snug in the slip.
Next day being Fathers day, Tom and Bill were leaving for home. I said that I would kill the day scrubbing the boat and oiling the wood in appreciation of the GREAT SAIL I was shown. They got up at sunrise and were gone by 0700. I was having a cup of coffee and reading my June copy of Latitude 38 and noticed the Single-handed Transpac was leaving soon. In the slip behind us, was a super rigged Santa Cruz 27… that was having an inspection. I soon discovered that they were inspecting him for the RACE… WOW, a 27-foot "trailer boat" is doing the Transpac. I later got to talk to "GW", who was the owner/skipper and he was a GREAT GUY. He told me that so far, he was the ONLY boat that passed the rigorous checkout. I found out thru him, that all the boats were there, so I went looking for an ole buddy of mine…"The General".
Ken Roper, aka "The General" will be in his seventh Single-handed Transpac, and he won it a coupla years ago. I hadn't seen him in quite some time, and as I was walking thru the boats… there he was. He invited me to the Send Off Party that night, and I naturally said "YOU BET". All the skippers were there and I got to meet GW again… and several of the other guys that have TRAILERED in from all over the country. We had a good time, but I was waiting for Judy B to pick me up… so after some quick photos I wished all the best of luck, and returned to the SHINEY Hunter.
Judy arrived right on time and we drove off to her home in the near by hills. I felt very comfortable with Judy from the moment we actually "met", having got to "know her" from The Board. I think that it's just amazing how we have been able to develop such closeness thru our connections on the TSBB. I feel that I've known most of the people on there for years, although I've actually "met" very few. This is something that we should all try to do, is meet with your friends from The Board at each opportunity that presents itself. ESPECIALLY if you are sailing in an area, that the other "board-buddy" has knowledge of. The tips and tricks that you can get from their experience are very valuable. Unfortunately, Judy and I were up so late chatting, and by the time we got to her boat and did some tinkering… my flight was near. Although we didn't actually launch, we did check out the local facility that she is in. Man, what a cool deal that is!!! It's like being inside of TRAILER CENTRAL. Every possible store, shop, loft, or need is in that complex… and you can just walk over from your boat that's sitting on the hard. Very nice set-up.
Judy got me to my plane and as we said our good-byes we promised to "sail" again when Mary and I come up in August. I want to thank Judy for all her wonderful hospitality, and I was very impressed with everything that I saw in that Bay Area. It is truly a SAILORS PARADISE.
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