Long Beach to Cost Rica

Sailing with Dummies (California to Texas, Day 4)

Tuesday, June 12, 2009

by Mike

We have decided to stop and explore Isla Socorro. This will add about 80 miles to our journey. It should also check us in with Mexican customs, making it easier for us to stop and get fuel if we want to. Which means that we might use the motor more often to go faster.

We started with a little more wind this morning. It’s coming from right behind us which means we have one sail off to the left and one off to the right (that’s called goosewinged). No fancy sailing tricks or anything. The wind is just plain blowing us across the water. In this setup we can go about 40-45% of the wind speed. If the wind is coming from the side we can go 50-60% of the wind speed (using fancy sailing tricks and stuff).

Going directly downwind is usually avoided by most sailors, especially monohull drivers. A monohull uses a heavy weight at the bottom of the boat (in the keel) to keep from tipping over when the wind pushes on the sails. In light wind a typical monohull will lean over maybe 10 degrees. In medium wind it will tilt 15-25 degrees. When the wind is coming directly from behind, with the sails goosewinged, a monohull will alternatively lean to the left and then back to the right as the driver or autopilot try to keep it in a straight line. Even in a light wind, this is a tiresome ride. And in a medium wind it gets downright unpleasant.

A catamaran, or multihull, uses a wide base to keep from tipping over when the wind pushes on the sails. In a light or medium wind, The Minnow doesn’t tilt at all. It has 43,000 pounds holding both hulls down firmly on the water. In a heavy wind from the side it might tilt a degree or two, but it’s not noticeable. When the wind is coming directly behind, goosewinged, it will yaw back and forth slightly and slowly as the autopilot continually corrects the course (we almost never steer by hand). There is no discernable tilt either way.

Going downwind in The Minnow is relaxing. The swells creep up from behind and disappear underneath the boat. In a 17-knot wind with the boat moving at 8 knots, the air moving over the boat is a gentle 9-knot breeze. A mild back and forth motion occurs every 8-10 seconds;

left ……… then right ……… left again ……… almost like the boat is alive and breathing easily. Great reading conditions – but can be a slight challenge staying awake.

Fishing Report:

Ho hum … another day, another tuna. This time a nine-pounder. We think it was a bigeye, but it might have been a yellowfin.

 

Fine Arts:

The sky after sunset was brilliant. Bob took a picture.

 

Fine Dining:

Feeling it was time to get back to food basics, I started the day with bacon and eggs. And Coke Zero. And then iced tea.  And then another Coke Zero. Sometimes I have a drinking problem in the wee hours of the morning. Eventually I turned back to salad, fruit, and tuna sashimi. Oh, and I cleaned up the leftover oatmeal cookies. For the sake of my health.

Friday night we ate in style. Chef salad, baked potatoes, and tuna ala New Orleans. All on paper plates. And unlimited iced tea served in plastic. Style!