If you’re a devoted SailTalk reader, you know that my Beneteau 411 sloop Corvette is berthed at Marina Del Rey in Southern California.  When we moved into our current slip at Mariners Bay Marina, we were met by a most friendly and knowledgeable sailor, Dan Morrison, aboard his 36 foot Union Polaris cutter, Dazzler. Dan, a retired California Highway Patrol officer,  has lived aboard Dazzler for the past seven years and been our next slip neighbor for the past 2 years.  Dan has been working diligently to bring Dazzler to bristol condition and prepare for a circumnavigation. Whenever we’re on Corvette, I always look forward to spending time with Dan to talk all things sailing and cruising.

Dan Morrison aboard S/V Dazzer, his beloved Union Polaris 36 Cutter, at Marina Del Rey

Dan and Dazzler shoved off this week for points south and then west.  He’s finally “out there” and I’m sure couldn’t be happier.  Before he left, Dan agreed to keep SailTalk posted on his progress.  I hope to have regular postings and perhaps some podcast interviews of Dan on his adventures.

So Dan,  have a great voyage, and a hearty three SailTalk cheers to you and Dazzler.

Laura Dekker, 14, ready to sail solo (sort of)

Here’s the latest scoop in Laura Dekker’s saga to become the youngest to circumnavigate solo (sort of)  Now,  she won’t technically sail alone as plans are in the works for her voyage to become a Reality TV series. The Dutch high court is considering the new angle.

I suppose if a TV crew is accompanying her she won’t have to suffer the deleterious effects of solitude,  now will she?

Click HERE to read all about it.

Cruising rallies are an excellent way to start cruising and to jump-start a cruising social network.  Cruising rallies are part race part mobile party.  Although some boats push hard to win their class, most are just looking for a comfortable ride and good company.   You can usually use your engine if and when you want and, as long as you inform the rally committee, you can engage in any number of variations, such as starting a little early or a little late.

Underway with the Baja Haha from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas

You might even choose to take a temporary excursion off the beaten path.  Variations are usually permitted, as long as you let the rally committee know where you are.  Most organizers don’t see their role as making a lot of rules, but as facilitating everyone’s pleasure and safety.

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Ella's Pink Lady departs Sydney Harbor

In a bid to become the youngest person to circumnavigate solo and unassisted, Jessica Watson has set sail (See She Sails 9-16-09) . Ella’s Pink Lady gracefully departed Sydney (Aus.) harbor this past Sunday with 16-year-old Jessica at the helm.

Here is an article from the UK Guardian

She Sails will follow Jessica’s journey and provide weekly updates. Stay tuned…

Until next time…She Sails.

Linda

This is a really cool sailing video taken by a skipper using a kite cam. If you look closely, you’ll see the stern magically sprout a self steering windvane about half way through the video. I hope he had a waterproof housing on that camera! Enjoy.

I’m sorry to see you here, Jack, but if you’d have fought like a man you needn’t hang like a dog.

A fearsome twosome -- Anne Bonny and Mary Read

Not the typical words you’d expect to hear from your lover and partner in crime shortly before your execution, but then again Anne Bonny was not a typical 19th century lassie. No, she  was a pirate and, though she  too was sentenced to hang,  she obviously held no remorse nor sympathy for Calico Jack.

This past Sunday (September 19) was International Talk like a Pirate Day, so  I got  to thinking about pirates and wondered if there were any women who chased booty in the Caribbean alongside old Jack Sparrow? (In case you missed it, Jack Sparrow is the wildly popular hero of Disney’s Pirates of the Carribean) A quick Internet search did indeed turn up two swashbucklin’ wenches who terrorized the seas along with none other than John “Calico Jack” Rackham. Jack was  a Caribbean pirate who is credited with being the first to fly the infamous Jolly Roger. The swashbucklin’ wenches were Anne Bonny and Mary Read.

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Avast, me hearties!  Today be the 19th day in the month of September and tis the day for all you scurvy bilge rats to be talkin’ like a pirate! Any grog sloshin scrogs caught violatin this rule shall be declared the son of a biscuit eater and will be sent to Fiddler’s Green.  Now hoist your colors matey and Talk Like a Pirate!

How To Be Speakin’ Pirate-Like

Startin’ Rules

Double up on all your adjectives and you’ll be bountifully bombastic with your phrasing. Pirates never speak of “a big ship”, they call it a “great, grand ship!” They never say never, they say “No nay ne’er!”

Drop all your “g”‘s when you speak and you’ll get words like “rowin’”, “sailin’” and “fightin’”. Dropping all of your “v”‘s will get you words like “ne’er”, “e’er” and “o’er”.

Instead of saying “I am”, sailors say, “I be”. Instead of saying “You are”, sailors say, “You be”. Instead of saying, “They are”, sailors say, “They be”. Ne’er speak in anythin’ but the present tense!

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Zac Sunderland youngest American solo circumnavigator, Marina del Rey, California

On July 16, 2009, California teenager Zac Sunderland sailed his 36′ sloop Intrepid into Marina del Rey, California,  and was hailed a hero. Greeted by a festooned harbor escort  and water cannons, he was cheered by hundreds of people lining the shore.  After thirteen months at sea,  Zac became the youngest person to sail around the world alone — he was 17 years, 228 days old. I followed his journey from beginning to end on Facebook. The next month UK teen, Mike Perham, eclipsed Zac’s record by 64 days.

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Come on Aboard! It's only a three hour tour.

If you love the sea like I do, it’s only natural that you want to share your passion with your friends.  If your friends are like mine, most are landlubbers who have been conditioned by the media and Hollywood to fear anything that is more than a hundred yards off the beach and isn’t a cruise ship.  So, what to do?

Understand Your Role as Skipper

When you have inexperienced guests aboard your vessel, throw away your seafaring bravado, and recognize that you have now taken the role of teacher, caretaker, concierge, chauffeur, you name it.  As skipper, you already know you have responsibility for your vessel and all who sail aboard her.  But when you bring  landlubbing guests aboard, you now have apprehensive neophytes who are curious about this sailing thing you talk about and are trusting you to keep them safe, make them comfortable, keep them informed, and teach them a little about your love of the sea.  If you fail to do these things, you will very soon find yourself sailing alone.

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Coiled Dock Line with a Beautiful Cleat Hitch to Match

When you choose to berth your boat at a marina, you join a community of like minded people.  Some marina residents are liveaboards, some are passing through on cruising journeys, and still others are weekend warriors. But all are there because they love their boats and the boating life.  In this age of seaside condos and resorts, safe harbor shoreline is a valuable and very limited  commodity.  As such, many marina resources must be shared by everyone.  How well you share those resources and your consideration for your neighbors will determine not only your reputation in the marina, but also how enjoyable the marina experience will be for you and your guests.

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