Santa Cruzin'

With a strong wind out of the East and no rain on Sunday, I figured the conditions would be perfect for a fast run to Eckerd. With 30 knots of wind at the DIYC club house, it would certainly be a great oppurtunity to get Furthur surfing with the spinnaker up. I got Sheehan, Arthur and Julia to come along, and due to our usual timeliness, Furthur wasn't launched until the sun was setting. I am pretty sure I have sailed this boat more at night than during the day. The wind didn't feel like 30 knots, but over 20, so we rigged up the #4 jib and took off. Arthur put four waypoints in the GPS that would take us safely to Eckerd, and the course to the first mark was just a little to high to carry the spinnaker in that much breeze. Instead, we worked up some and made sure all the lines were run correctly for a smooth spinnaker set.

Turning down some for the next mark, we were able to carry the 1.5oz Runner with the #4 up as a staysail until the angle became too deep to keep the jib up. With more water between us and the weather shore, the chop and swell increased until we were surfing nicely. No one was watching the GPS, but I would guess we were hitting 12-13 knots when there were waves to surf. I can't wait to surf some endless Pacific rollers!

We made the trip in just over 3 hours, probably our fastest run. I don't know the mileage, but Arthur and I plan on keeping track of these runs and probably racing against each other for fun along this route. I kept Furthur at the Eckerd waterfront overnight and slept onboard, then left before anyone noticed. Furthur spent the today rafted up with Arthur's boat, but tonight I will anchor her seperately. I have class tomorrow, but plan on sleeping on the boat tonight and borrowing Arthur's dinghy tomorrow to go to class. Here are a few photos of the boats rafted up at the mooring field across from Eckerd.

Rowing from Eckerd with Indian Key and bridge leading to the Skyway in the background

Looking toward Eckerd. Furthur looks so much smaller than the Vital 26 even though she is a foot longer.