Y1K Penultimate Southwestern Potter Club Sailing Excursion

Bill Boyer (antares6527@yahoo.com)
Mon, 29 Nov 1999 21:25:55 -0800 (PST)


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West Wight Potter Website at URL
http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/
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Y1K Penultimate Southwestern Potter Club Sailing
Excursion

Southwestern Potter Club had its "Next-to-the-Last"
sailing event of the Millennium on November 28, 29
1999. Dave Lang was the wagonmaster for this trip.
Many thanks to him for planning and executing the
event. The plan was to run the 18 miles, one way
between Long Beach / Los Alamitos Harbor to Newport
Beach Harbor. Normal winds are from the west from 5 to
10 knots. The logistics included launching the Potters
at Davies launch ramp at Los Alamitos, breakfast at
the Hof Hut, driving the tow vehicles and trailers to
the Newport Dunes launch ramp, shuttle back to the
boats, and sail. The group included: Dave Lang from
Long Beach, CA and his boat Go West a P15 sporting a
brand new bow sprit with a CDI roller furler; Bill
Payne from Yucaipa, CA and Japan, and his boat
Pilgrim, a P15 festooned with the names of several
sailing venues he visited during his nationwide 9000
mile Potter trailer/sailing campaign last year; Leroy
Falk from Kingsburg with his P19 Little Zephyr;
Leroy's brother-in-law, Bill Brake crewed; Norm
Mitchell from Fallbrook, CA and his P15 Popeye; Tom
Westerman and family, a P19 owner from Colorado
Springs, CO (just visiting in the area and rode on
Little Zephyr); and me, Bill Boyer, P15 Lil from Aliso
Viejo, CA.

With the logistics of a one way voyage behind us, we
got under way about 11am. As luck would have it, a
low-pressure front caused the wind to rotate from the
normal west winds to east and southeast. The leisurely
run became a wimpy beat with one to two foot waves on
our noses. Dave was experiencing problems with his
battery and his electric motor. After sailing out of
the harbor, he decided that safety required that he
not continue on to Newport Beach. With the shift in
the wind it was apparent that we would be relying
heavily on the "iron jenny." Dave reported that it
took him 2 more hours to get back to the launching
ramp. Norm was having fits with his Suzuki 3hp motor.
He also decided to return to the dock after tacking
around outside the harbor with Dave.

Little Zephyr, Pilgrim, and Lil pressed on. Most of
the trip was under power. Little Zephyr and Pilgrim
put the pedal to the metal and arrived in Newport a
little after 4. Lil arrived just after sunset around
5pm. The sunset was spectacular. The waning sunrays
reflected from the distant hillside house windows like
golden chards. I had planned to tie up at the American
Legion Post 291 Yacht Club in Newport Harbor for the
night. When I arrived at ALYC around 6pm I was
pleasantly surprised to see Bill Payne and Pilgrim
already tied up at the dock. Later at the bar the
Little Zephyr crew showed up. They opted to pull out
and head for Kingsburg early Sunday. Bill Payne and I
slept in our P15's Saturday night and after a hearty
breakfast, motored over to Newport Dunes to pull out
and head home. While the weather and mechanical
problems changed our plans, we had a good time and
everyone was safe.

Since our goal is to have a sailing event each month,
we have tentatively set December 18 and 19 as our next
dates. We plan to sail out of Ventura Harbor to
Anacapa Island for an overnight then back to Ventura.
If the weather looks questionable, we may change our
destination to something compatible with the elements.
Safety First! This will be our final event of the
Millennium. We are tentatively planning a trip to the
Coronado Islands (Mexico) 20 miles off San Diego in
January. If you would like to join Southwestern Potter
Club, just drop me an email at ANTARES6527@YAHOO.COM.
If you want to talk, my home number is 949-770-4132.

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