Latitude 38 Magazine July Issue Out Today!

It’s July! Summer is here, Independence Day is on the calendar, and the latest issue of Latitude 38 is on the docks! Do you have yours yet? Not to worry, they’ll be available at all our Bay Area distributors by the end of the day, and farther afield any moment. Although, if you took advantage of either of our recent subscription promotions, you don’t even have to leave home as yours will be arriving in the mail. (Though we do encourage you to go outside and sail whenever you can.)

Riding Magic Mountain — My First Offshore Sail, Rig Failure, and Fog

I felt the nerves settle in my stomach, accompanying the seasickness I had finally grown accustomed to. Thankfully, the second thoughts I’d been having were not present as I was slowly gaining my sea legs. It was my first offshore sailing experience, having only sailed a handful of times in the warm, welcoming waters around Vancouver Island, BC, Canada. We were three days into our passage to Ensenada, Mexico, with 1,000 miles to go. My partner Jason is a confident and seasoned sailor, so despite my uneasiness, I sat in the cockpit of our 1976 Cheoy Lee Offshore 41, Sitka, trying to silently make peace with Poseidon.

Two Brothers, Two Antrim Designs — One Pac Cup Showdown

“We’re racing for pink slips,” said Jim Partridge of the upcoming Pacific Cup, where he’ll be sailing against his older brother, Cree. “Whoever wins gets the other guy’s boat,” Jim added, only half serious — we think.

The competition between the Partridge brothers will see them going head to head in their Jim Antrim-designed custom boats, both of which were built at Berkeley Marine Center. Cree, who owns BMC, will be sailing Glass Slipper, officially described as a boatbuilder’s 40-ft carbon fiber sled, born from the same hull plug as the Antrim-designed Class 40 California Condor. “This boat is a culmination of everything that I’ve ever done in the past,” Cree, 77, said of Glass Slipper.

Nikko’s Pacific Puddle Jump — San Francisco to Hiva Oa

Adin Bonaparte and I (Keith) motored out the Golden Gate in our Fraser 41 sloop Nikko, bound for Hiva Oa. It took three years to get the boat ready to sail the South Pacific. Jason and I bought the 1982-built Nikko in Washington state, and refitted it for the adventure: new rigging, new seacocks and thru-hulls, the addition of a spinnaker setup, AIS, Starlink, storm sails, etc. We sailed her down to San Francisco in 2022 to complete preparations.

Here’s more of what’s inside:

• Letters: America’s Schooner Cup Aboard Schooner Quascilla; A Light-Wind Singlehanded Farallones, On the Other Hand, Tested Patience; Speaking of Oregon …; A Posse of Optis Took Over the Bay in April for Earth Day; and many more readers’ letters.
• Sightings: Brigadoon Celebrates 100; High School Highs to Annapolis and Back; Will SailGP Save Sailing?; Remembering Vadura; and The Beer Can Ten Commandments.
• Feature Stories: Master Mariners Regatta Reels in Families; Brotherly Love in the Pacific Cup; Riding Magic Mountain.
• Max Ebb: “The Other Checklist” — What’s with the bucket in the head?
• Racing Sheet: CORW = Spinnaker Cup, Coastal Cup + SoCal 300. The Delta Ditch Run was not for beginners. The YRA runs the Duxship, Bluewater Bash and Full Crew Farallones. StFYC hosts a Match Racing Qualifier, the Elvstrom-Zellerbach, and a Sailing League inaugural regatta. OYC sails the rescheduled Rites of Spring; SCYC hosts 5O5s, 470s and ILCAs; and ABYC runs the RS Tera NAs. Plus we round up Box Scores and Race Notes.
• Changes in Latitudes: With reports this month on Nikko’s Pacific Puddle Jump; Sweethaven’s “jump” from Mexico to Florida; JOIA‘s Puddle Jump and quick return home; and some interesting check-ins with interesting folks in Cruise Notes.
•  Loose Lips: A wrap-up of June’s Caption Contest(!).
• All the latest in sailboats and sailboat gear for sale, Classy Classifieds.

We appreciate all readers and all our supporters. You keep Latitude 38 in print! You can show your appreciation by supporting our advertisers who have made this issue possible.

P.S. — For anyone heading south with the Baja Ha-Ha this year, our annual First Timer’s Guide to Mexico is out tomorrow!