Banderas Bay to Mazatlan

Finisterra finally sailed from La Cruz around 0900 on Sunday, March 30th bound for Mantanchen Bay and then Mazatlan. It was a beautiful morning with a light offshore wind early and the promise of a nice beam reach to Mantanchen in the afternoon. We motored out around Punta de Mita and turned northward in almost no wind, but by noon we had enough wind to sail. We hoisted the main and set the jib and settled down on the reach to Mantanchen in about 10 knots of wind. It was looking like a beautiful day-sail all the way.

Mantanchen Bay sunset

Shortly after we got the sails set and trimmed, I heard a strange creaking noise coming from somewhere down below. This was a new noise, not the typical creaks that I was accustomed to. I searched around the boat in all the likely places that creaks might come from, but couldnt find the source of the noise until I opened the starboard lazarette hatch. When I looked down into the compartment I noticed that the bracket for the autopilot ram was moving back and forth in an unusual manner. Then I realized that the bulkhead was flexing and the joint where I assumed Beneteau had spliced or scarfed together two pieces of plywood to make the aft bulkhead was not a joint at all. It was not lapped or scarffed, or even glued together. Nope, Beneteau apparently saw fit to just butt the two pieces of plywood together without the benefit of any adhesive or mechanical fasteners. Then whoever installed the autopilot ram drilled the mounting holes less than a quarter inch of the edge of this imaginary joint. The bracket was mounted with massive 7/16" bolts and a stainless steel backing plate so it looked like a proper job, but looks can be deceiving.

By mid-afternoon we were gliding into Mantanchen Bay and got the anchor down in about eighteen feet of water three quarters of a mile from the beach, which I hoped was well beyond the range of the no-nos that live around here. Then we had a decision to make: We could go back roughly 50 miles to La Cruz or continue on to Mazatlan, another 130 miles north from here. After looking at the weather forecast we decided to press on to Mazatlan. The wind would be on the nose the entire distance but it would be light most of the way. We would be motoring into it and that would put the least stress on the wobbly bulkhead.

Mountains behind Mazatlan at dawn.

To put this little problem into perspective, we were in no danger and the worst that might have happened to us was that we might have to hand steer if the bulkhead failed completely, which was very unlikely. But it certainly annoyed me as a boatbuilder that the boat was built in this manner. And of course the problem needed to be fixed before we ran into any real weather, which is always a possibility in the Sea of Cortez.

View from the aft side of the bulkhead.  When I replaced the autopilot ram back in 2012 I assumed this joint was lapped but its not.

View from the forward side of the bulkhead.

The repair was easy enough. I went over to Marine Services Mazatlan, which is located in the shipyard next to Marina Mazatlan and had them cut out some plywood reinforcements that I bonded to both sides of the bulkhead with WEST epoxy. Once the epoxy cured it was a simple matter to reinstall the bracket and ram.

Both sides of the bulkhead were sanded and prepped.  

Plywood reinforcements bonded in place. The screws were used to clamp everything together while the epoxy cured.

Bracket and ram reinstalled and ready to go.

With the repair completed, we were able to spend some time around the pool at the marina and wander around the beautiful city of Mazatlan. In a few days well head northwest across the Sea of Cortez to La Paz.

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Banderas Bay Regatta

We joined the crew of Tivoli for the XIX Regata Internacional (Banderas Bay Regatta). Tivoli is a Beneteau 42s7 that embarked from San Francisco Bay late last year on an extended cruise that will take it south to the Panama Canal, across the Caribbean and eventually to Denmark. Loaded down with cruising gear, the boat was quite a bit heavier than its sistership, Cirque, which won class A for the third time running in this event.
The course for race 1, sailed on Thursday, March 10th, started a mile or so off Nuevo Vallarta, and included a 2.5 mile beat to a weather mark, then a long port tack leg out to Punta de Mita followed by a long run back to the finish. There were few opportunities to pass on this race and it was basically all about boatspeed and waterline length. The wind was light and Tivoli was heavy so we never had a chance to make any moves, and Cirque walked away the win. At the end of the day we were 7th out of 9 in class A. It was a good learning experience though and we used the lessons learned to revise our sail trim, move more weight out of the stern and prepare for a better result in race 2.

Unfortunately race 2 was canceled due to the earthquake in Japan and resulting tsunami, which reached Bahia Banderas about 1330 on Friday. Veterans of the tsunami that hit us last year in Long Beach, we decided to ride this one out in deep water. When the first surge arrived we were safely five miles out where the bay is over 250 feet deep. The water level in the bay rose and fell as much as four feet a dozen times or so during the afternoon, knocking out a couple of docks in La Cruz and causing the local authorities to close all the ports in the bay. Throughout this time the Honcho, along with at least 200 other boats rode these surges in perfect safety, never really feeling anything out of the ordinary.

Around 1800 the local port captain in La Cruz declared that the channel entrance was being reopened and boats were free to enter the harbor. By this time the Honcho was anchored outside, prepared to spend the night there, but when the channel was reopened we decided to head into our old slip on gangway 11. Eager to see what was going on in the harbor, we got the anchor up and headed for the entrance only to have another surge roll through, causing the port captain to close the channel once again. So back we went to the anchorage where we spent the night at anchor in the company of at least a hundred other boats. Throughout the night we were turned around now and then by stronger than normal currents as the tides continued to surge.

The next morning the current in the harbor entrance was still running strong, but we were able to get the Honcho secured back in her slip and head back to Nuevo Vallarta and the regatta. Our gangway was without water or power, and as I mentioned, a couple of the docks at the end of the gangway had broken loose and were floating upside down, lashed to the gangway to prevent them from drifting away. But other than that, the harbor survived the tsunami in good shape.

Race two consisted of three laps around windward-leeward buoys, with a wing mark thrown in after the first weather mark. With the wind up to about 15 knots we had reasonably good boatspeed and were able to hang with the bigger boats in our class. Though we were rated the second slowest boat in our class, we sailed a very good race. Expecting the wind to shift right as the day wore on, we got a good start at the committee boat end of the line and were looking to protect our position on the right side of the course. But it didnt take long for the faster boats to start passing us and we had to take a couple of tacks to stay in clear air and found ourselves bounced to the left more than I wanted to be. Fortunately the right shift never appeared and we rounded the weather mark in 5th place and set a spinnaker for the reach to the wing mark. At the wing mark we executed a flawless jibe and passed another boat that didnt. Throughout the race our crew work and boat handling were excellent, and we made up time at every mark.

The wind remained a steady 14-16 knots. We had done well on the left side on the first beat so I took a chance on the left side again and we continued to make up time on the  boats ahead of us. The third leg was a repeat of the second and when the results were tallied, Tivoli came in second, beating all but Cirque. With the regatta shortened to just two races, Cirque won the event and we ended up fourth in class. I was especially pleased because our crew had never sailed together before, and none except the owners had ever raced a 42s7 before. It was a great example of a crew coming together, learning the new boat quickly and recovering well from a tough first day. Im confident that if we had been able to do a third race, we would have had a spot at the trophy table. Anyway, we had a great time and are looking forward to getting together again for Antigua Race Week next year.
For complete results go to: http://www.vallartayachtclub.org/race/bbr2011.html
For photos of all the action: http://www.flickr.com/photos/strangebird/sets/72157626243821784/

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A Month in Banderas Bay

Banderas Bay Sunrise

Finisterra has been in Banderas Bay for about a month, and it looks like well be here a few more weeks. Weve decided to spend the season cruising in Mexico instead of hurrying south to Panama this spring. Reasons for this are multiple, but the primary cause is that we had planned to leave California in November but were delayed a couple of months due to health issues. We considered various schedules for getting to Panama before the wet season starts, but they all would leave us without enough time to explore southern Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Costa Rica. So instead, well hang out here a bit longer, then head north into the beautiful Sea of Cortez. When hurricane season begins in late spring, Finisterra will be safely tucked into a slip in La Cruz and well go back to the States for a couple of months.

In the meantime, life here could scarcely be more relaxing and tranquil. We loved having guests aboard Finisterra and enjoy the friendly hustle and bustle of life ashore, but out here on the hook we have time to relax. You might think cruising in Mexico is one big vacation, but believe it or not, there is always work to be done, people to see, and places to go. But here in the anchorage on a peaceful morning all of that seems faraway, at least for a while. Here is typical morning aboard Finisterra:

I woke up around 6:00am. Sunrise isnt until well after 7:00. I fix a cup of coffee and go on deck and look around. The first streaks of dawn appear over the mountains to the east and I settle down in the cockpit to watch the show. The boat is gently rocking and the only sound is a few gulls in the distance. A few minutes pass and the sky is brightening, sending streaks of light through the morning clouds that are reflected in the water. I hear what sounds like a sigh and look over to see a couple of dolphins lazily passing by less than 40 feet away. Off in the distance I hear the sound of an outboard motor and see a panga with a couple of fishermen heading out for a day of fishing. By now the sun is about to burst over the mountains and the dinghy traffic begins as people aboard the sixty or so boats in the anchorage head for shore. A few minutes later, Lisa emerges on deck with a plate full of sliced fruit, and the day is in full swing.

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XXIII Banderas Bay Regatta

Not long after we arrived in La Cruz the J/109, Joyride appeared on our gangway and the owners, Jim & Jenn invited us to sail with them in the upcoming Banderas Bay regatta. Joyride came down from San Francisco Bay in the Baja Haha last November and has been cruising along the mainland coast with their two schnauzers, Harvey and Phoebe, for the last few months. The boat is fully outfitted for cruising, including a dodger, bimini, solar panels and a full load of cruising gear, supplies and provisions aboard. To further complicate matters for us, we were given a rating of 73 for this PHRF event and were limited to using the class jib instead of a genoa. Needless to say, the combination of extra weight and small sails made Joyride a sticky boat in the light conditions and chop of Banderas Bay, so we harbored no delusions about where we might place in the regatta. Instead we focused more on enjoying three days of casual racing.

 Our competition consisted of:
Olas Lindas (Varianta 44) PHRF 56
Gypsy (Columbia 52) PHRF 107
Bright Star (Jeanneau Sunfast 40) PHRF 80
Wings (Serendipity 43) PHRF 78
Alarife (Ron Holland 40) PHRF 99

Sistership to Olas Lindas. The Varianta is a Judel/Vrolijk design built by Hanse Yachts.

On the first day of the regatta there is always a parade of the competing boats as we head out to the starting line. This year the theme was Pirates, so our crew, including Harvey and Phoebe, were dressed in pirate scarves and brandished bottles of rum as we made our way past the reviewing stand.

Harvey 

The forecast was for 12-18 knots of wind so we felt okay about the small jib. Jenn was our designated driver and Doug worked the sharp end of the boat while Jim, Lisa and Josette ran the cockpit. Harvey and Phoebe took up stations in the quarterberth as we lined up for the start. Being the smallest boat in our class I positioned us at the committee boat end of the line when the flag dropped. Unfortunately the wind stayed light and we got rolled by the bigger boats. The course was a triangle-sausage and we were the third boat around the weather mark. On the reach out to the wing mark we passed the Jeanneau, with the Varianta well in the lead. We got passed by Wings just before reaching the leeward mark. Then the deck got shuffled. The wind went light and shifty. Wings went right, along with Gypsy and Bright Star. We tacked to starboard and headed out to the left side of the course and managed to find a bit more breeze. We could see Wings in the distance going slow as we ghosted along. Before long we were near the port tack layline and had a quarter mile lead on them as we worked our way out to the last weather mark. But as luck would have it, Wings found a breeze and came barreling at us, making up nearly all the distance we had gained on them. We rounded the weather mark and set the kite a hundred yards ahead of them. As soon as the kite was up and drawing the wind shifted to NE, turning the run into a beat. We quickly doused the chute and unrolled our jib and managed to cross the finish line in second place, about three minutes ahead of Wings and ten minutes behind Olas Lindas. Though we corrected out to 5th, we felt good about our performance.

On day two, we started again in light air a little down the line from the committee boat, seeking a clear air lane. Again, we got rolled by the big boats off the starting line but managed to round the weather mark in third. The next leg of the race took us on a close reach to the sea buoy off Puerto Vallarta. It was all about waterline length and, being the small boat in our class, we got passed by all of our competition and corrected out to 6th.

On the last day of the event we sailed three times around a windward-leeward course. Though the committee boat end of the line was favored, we opted for a clear air start closer to the pin end of the line and crossed it going fast in about 12 knots of wind. We played the left side of the course on the first beat and rounded in second place behind Olas Lindas. With a steady breeze all day, we worked the shifts and were the second boat to finish, about eight minutes behind Olas and 24 seconds ahead of Wings.

Overall, it was really fun sailing the J/109 in spite of our unfavorable rating. The weather was perfect and we were entertained by breaching humpback whales throughout the regatta. Vallarta YC was, as always, a splendid host and brought in Luna Rumba, a Latin/fusion band for the party after the trophy presentation.

With the regatta behind us, we had time for a quick trip to California where we took care of some business and reconnected with friends. Were back in La Cruz now and preparing to head north to Mazatlan and the Sea of Cortez.

While in California I had time to go for a long bike ride and got a nice picture of Newports Back Bay in the late afternoon.

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