I got off to a slow and ignominious start though, when my sail fell down
just after _Manatee_ left the Estuary Park ramp. The knot had come undone
where the halyard ties to the upper spar of my lateen rig. I then had to
put into a dock and lower the mast to restring the halyard.
By the time I got underway again, Dave was already at Jack London Square,
where the recently commissioned _Bomhomme Richard_, LHD-6, was on display.
She is a flattop but a different breed of cats than the Essex class carrier
(CV-31) of the same name that I sailed on in the Korean war. In the
meantime Jon Hunolt had sailed from the Alameda launch ramp, accompanied by
Jerry Barrilleaux in _Sunshine_, and all three boats were sailing alongside
the Bonhomme, which is an assault vessel with Marine Helicopters on her
deck and a "backflap" on her stern that apparently drops down for beach
landings. I shot some video tape, then pursued the Potter fleet up the
Estuary. I lost sight of Dave and Jerry for a while, but kept in touch with
Jon. I passed a couple of protest boats labeled "Peace Navy' with signs
that read "No Gunboat Diplomacy!"
Not having to tack up the Estuary, I found myself at the mouth much sooner
than usual, and decided to head _Manatee_ across the wide open spaces to
the Bay Bridge, then zeroed in on Yerba Buena Island, with its picturesque
lighthouse blinking on the side of a hill. The Bay Bridge touches down at
Yerba Buena as it crosses the Bay from San Francisco to Oakland. Treasure
Island is appended to the other side of Yerba Buena.
It was further than I thought, but it was still early, and the winds were
favorable. The swells grew larger and the wind stronger as Manatee
approached Yerba Buena, and the Golden Gate was visible in the distance. It
was a beautiful day -- broken clouds with magnificent skyscapes enhancing
the view of the San Francisco skyline in the distance.
The Potter fleet began to regroup. Jon had been Pottering along the right
bank of the Estuary but headed out to follow Manatee to the island. I could
see Dave's _Tilly Lucy_ and Jerry's _Sunshine_ approaching rapidly from off
the end of Alameda. _Manatee_, now catching her breath in the lee of Yerba
Buena, turned back to meet the others as they converged at the island.
This was the furthest I had sailed from the mouth of the Estuary, and it
looked like a long way home, so we headed back. I hope Jon had his GPS
working because I'd like to know how fast we were going as we left the
island. With a 15-20 knot wind and a broad reach, we were moving! We must
have been pushing 5 kn. We were back at the ramp before 4 pm.
Thanks, Jon, for suggesting an Estuary sail today. And thanks. Jerry, for
bringing the mother ship and keeping us all humble about our speed. Thanks,
Dave for the good company on the road and assistance at the ramp. And I'd
like to thank my wife and children and my first grade teacher, to whom I
owe so much... oops, sorry, I was just watching the Oscars.
Nice to make the acquaintance of Potter Yachter Paul Jones from Fairfield.
Paul sailed the other way in the Estuary to visit Government Island, where
he had been stationed when he was in the Coast Guard. His P15, _Keisha II_
is named after his dog, Keisha I.
Harry Gordon
P14 #234, Manatee
Mountain View, CA
>That title is a little misleading - there was one interloper P-19, belonging
>to the infamous Jerry B. While on the subject of Jerry B. let me say I have
>taken a very rare and collectable picture - a photo of Sunshine's bow - an
>angle seldom seen by other Potterers! I'd like you to think I got this
>picture by sailing fast but such is not the case. Jerry had taken a little
>side trip (most of the way to San Francisco) and was catching up with the
>group.
>
>This improptu PY event was organized by the esteemed PY P-14/15 fleet captain
>Harry Gordon, assisted by Estela co-conspirator Jon Hunolt (accompanied today
>by very attractive crew, I might add....). The original plan was to find the
>ships associated with the Marine exercises in the Estuary (Jon and Harry are
>both Navy vets, I think) but the closer we got to the Bay the better the wind
>was. Once out of the Estuary, the wind picked up nicely and I had the Tilly
>Lucy moving along on a beam reach faster than she has ever gone under power. A
>couple times I was grateful that she doesn't have the popular cockpit rails
>since I had to put my big a** up there to keep her on her feet. Great sailing,
>Good fun!
>
>Yerba Buena Island (the island that joins the two sections of the SF Bay
>Bridge) was reached at about the right time to turn around and head back and
>being in the lee of the island gave us a moment to relax . The downwind leg
>was pleasant and still surprisingly quick. Jerry disappeared into the
>distance, of course, but Harry and I were close enough together that we could
>chat much of the time. Don't let anyone tell you that those lateen rigs are
>slow.....
>
>Once back at the ramp we spotted (John) Paul Jones and Keisha II who had
>gotten a later start and was amusing himself in the Estuary.
>
>All in all , a great day sailing, a great way to kick off Spring!
>
>
>Dave Kautz
>P-15 #1632 Tilly Lucy
>Palo Alto, CA