The Stainless Anniversary

The BIG boat project this year is all new standing rigging for Magic.  So all the stainless wires and buckles and bolts and pins and stuff that keep the mast upright and in-place are being replaced.  What we have now is original and 20 years old.  Time to take the plunge and invest in that Stainless Jewelry...for Magic.

The boat summered over in LaPaz so that we could work with Jeffrey Walker of Dawn Rigging--in our opinion the only rigging option in Mexico.  So last spring we left LaPaz with a long list of everything needed to do the job.  We worked with a rigging shop in Alameda, CA to fill the order and brought everything down when we drove.  And now the fun begins.

Magic is such a special boat -- in order to re-rig we had to pull the mast out with a crane!  Alan spent several days pulling all the wires and disconnecting lights, radio, radar, etc for a clean pull.  Jeffrey coordinated with the crane and a local yard -- and today was the day.  And we were blessed with blue skies and no wind.

We got out of our slip and down to the yard on time -- and did a bit of final preparation while awaiting the crane.  And then we let the pros do the job!  ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!  

Not one knick on our newly painted mast or topsides (as we had to side tie to a travel lift ditch).

Bundles of lines and wires.  The Mast is Deck Stepped.

Jeffrey attaching the crane hook to our mast!  White wrapped bundle is the crane hook.

2 inches of air under the mast -- we are on our way!!!

Walking the mast back into the yard!  Alan in background.

Father - Son team runs the crane.  Totally professional!

Taking off the Roller Furling Foil

Strong Man...Happy Captain!

Viva La Revolucion

Mexico's Revolution lasted from 1910-1920; millions were killed or died from starvation and disease.  While it is called The Revolution -- it really was a civil war.  A few Mexicans controlled every aspect of government and daily life -- by the end of the Revolution a new constitution was in place that provided the foundation for the current government structure.  A few changes have been made to this constitution including giving rights to the Indigenous Peoples.

November 20 is the official day of celebration (but they also get off the 19th to make a nice long fiesta!) and we attended the local parade.  Every school in LaPaz marched down the malecon (beach front road and sidewalk) -- from primary schools through secondary schools.  At the end of the parade, clubs and teams marched as did the local military forces.  The parade sort of started maybe at 9am and wrapped up in the early afternoon!  No officials, no dignitaries, no bands...just kids in all sorts of combinations of Green, White, Red.  The older children wore other costumes...but we only survived the primary grades!

Waiting for the Parade.

Waiting is easier with snacks. 

Seeds, Nuts, Candy and HOT STUFF

Here Comes the Parade

The First School in the Parade:  The School for the Physically and Mentally Disabled.  Marching for Respect and Inclusion!  Note the Green, White and Red!

This Parade is Serious Business -- new shoes on all the kids and lots of ribbons sewn on!

Riding the Route!

A new use for those Umbrellas.  

Color Coordinated Hair Glitter!

Guns and Bullets....Just Kidding!

The Best Dressed Car!

Viva la Revolucion!  

A touch of home...waiting to start marching.  Go Giants!

Wrench, Race, Play

That about sums up the Baja 1000 -- one of the premier off road racing events.  Every other year the course runs from Ensenada to LaPaz and this year:  here they all came.  The contestants are in multiple categories but essentially run round the clock (less than 24 hours to cover the course...) with occasional crew/driver changes.  But speed is essential and so is keeping the vehicle together.  A bit more than half of the vehicles arrived in LaPaz.  And that is where the PLAY actually kicks in.

Sun, booze, walking, booze, eating, booze.  And driving your motorcycle or truck or buggy along the malecon.  Did I say booze?

A Mexican won....but alas he & son are from San Diego...not truly a native.

Within a few days....the streets were back to normal.

Our only taste of the PLAY was a drunk loser staying in the adjacent Marina Hotel.  At 3AM he and another competitor got to words & then blows & then by golly, the furniture came flying out the 4th floor windows and onto the grounds below & into the water.  Oh my.

Ready for the Awards Ceremony

A Weary Finisher

Imagine the Dust!  Rear Facing YELLOW lights let followers spot vehicle ahead.

BIG TIRES everywhere.  Can't see air masks & GPS & harnesses inside.

Fun Decal

Let's Go Racing!

You know we live on a sail boat, but much of the time we forget that fact since now we're in a marina and have been known to motor around a lot. So when Mike & Kathy on Orion asked me (guest writer Alan) to go out racing last Sunday, I jumped at the chance! Since I haven't actually raced a sail boat since 1965, I wasn't the most qualified crew. However Mike has never owned another sail boat (he owns a power yacht in WA for summer fun) and never raced at all. Blind leading the blind? At least Roger and Jeffrey (our rigger) knew the finer points of, say, the start and sail trim.

Sunday came with very strong winds in the 25 knot range, and this big catamaran could handle it well. Each of the crew were given tee shirts that read on the back: "ORION of the Sea of Cortez... I'd rather be trimming your sails on the seas that you roam than freezing my ass on the shores back home". My thoughts exactly! Since Mike is from Tacoma, he knows what he's saying.

The Start with Strong Air

All of the 12 boats entered were staging for the start 1/2 hour early, and with strong wind that alone was a challenge! Orion was third over the line at the start. First over the line and the fastest boat was "Aventura", who we caught on the down wing leg and Orion rounded the first turn in 1st place!

O

Hunter 41' "Aventura"

Trimaran "Sea Otter"

This tri was the only other multihull in the race.

"Shadowfax" Looking Good

They really didn't defy gravity...

The Brain Trust on "Orion"

Human Whisker Pole Alan

Many hands make light work?

"Sea Otter" has some problems...

Most of the Crew

Cats have a problem going up wind. You have to sail more "off the wind" and hence take a longer route. Aventura passed us a ways before the second buoy by sailing "higher" and hence a shorter route, and lead across the line. We didn't know it at the time that it was a handicapped race and when the results were posted on Monday, Orion won by 1 second over the first finisher Aventura!

You can tell from the tees and shorts, even with 25 knots of wind, it's not at all cold down here.

Thank you Mike & Kathy for a delightful day out on the water!

Si Habla.....LaPaz

Escribo mi blog en Espanol.   Ha Ha.

Yup, I started Spanish lessons at a school close to the marina called Si Habla....LaPaz.  I opted to start with a beginner class for 1 week with 3 other students.  We attend class for 4 hours a day with a 30 minute break.  With a bit of homework:  puff the days are flying by!  The emphasis of the class is on grammar:  get those verbos conjugated and use them in silly, practical sentences.  So I can now correctly say that I stepped on a mouse.  Watch out for me!

Alan is working his way through a boat list, after all there is always a list!  He scrubbed the boat yesterday and WOW! what a difference that made.

Our rig work begins next week...I am eager to see how a crane is going to haul the mast up & out for the work to begin!  We will take the boat down to the yard and return the same day (without the mast).  Then when the work is done...back down to have the mast restepped.  I am planning only to take pictures--not managing any lines, etc.  

This weekend the Baja 1000 Race finishes in LaPaz.  This off road/dirt race occurs every 2 years when all types of amazing trucks, buggies, motorcycles, and you name its barrel at high speed non-stop from Ensenada to LaPaz....all off road!  Once here, I gather the vehicles and crews parade along the malecon, rev their engines, swill the booze, and generally take over the town.  We plan to attend the awards ceremony.

Driving the Baja

Time to head south:  the Giants won the World Series, the winter rains were falling, and the car was loaded with boat trinkets.  Four long days in the car for about 1,500 miles and not a single picture.  We stopped in San Diego, Catavina, and Loreto.


We crossed the border at Tecate and got the "green" customs light.  There was no line and no one even wanted to make eye contact with us.  We picked up our visas in Ensenada after a drive through the emerging Mexican wine country.  Along the Baja there were several military checkpoints but they mostly waved us through and once or twice asked where we were going.

Highway 1 in Mexico was 2 lanes the entire way;  narrow with no shoulder, hilly with twisty sections through the mountains but several long level sections.  Interior cactus forests gave way to green lush hillsides on the Baja side.  There was more rain this summer than in 45 previous years and the green was everywhere!  In a few places the road was washed out (post Hurricane Paul) but only for a few 100 yards at most.

We arrived in the early afternoon on Saturday -- just so glad to be here and not in the car for another minute.  Everything is in pretty good shape, at least whatever you can expect from a boat.  So our days are about putting things back together and scheduling the work on the rig.

We will be here through the end of December so plenty of time for mixing work, play, and going to the pool.