Category Archives: General

Poseidon Was Listening

Sunday Bruce, Johannes and I (Colin) took Pacific High out. As we were preparing to go I said to the crew, let’s try to get to the Golden Gate but if we cannot make it in time with the early … Continue reading

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Crew Overboard!

About 30 years ago, the event all of us hope we’ll never face happened to me: my crew was hit by the boom in an accidental jibe and I had a real-life man overboard with an injured victim. Terry Shrode … Continue reading

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On Your Feet!

                You don’t want to be slipping on the deck of a boat. At best, you look the fool. At worst, you’re in the drink. And in between, there’s a bunch of stuff to knock your head or bruise your … Continue reading

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Opening Day

Baseball and fishing such as bass fishing have opening days for the season, but what opens? A gate? A bottle? In the case of sailing on San Francisco Bay there was once something that actually did open on opening day. … Continue reading

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More on Why San Francisco Bay Is A Special Place to Sail

I’d like to add some more personal, subjective points to Don’s excellent recent article about our local sailing conditions, that make San Francisco Bay the world’s most desirable place to sail. 1) Let’s compare it to some other great sailing … Continue reading

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The Rule of Twelfths

If you have been certified through Basic Coastal Cruising, you will have learned how to properly connect mooring lines to the buoys at Ayala Cove, named after Juan Manuel de Ayala y Aranza, the first captain ever to sail into … Continue reading

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A-Words

We sailors like our “A-” words. They sound salty. The prefix comes from Greek and means “on,” “at,” “or in the state of.” I’m going to assume you know ahoy and ahead and astern and a-lee and aboard and abeam … Continue reading

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Man Overboard!!! (PFDs, Crotch Straps, and Spray Hoods)

From Tradewinds Member Al Z. Hope all is well with you all at Tradewinds. I just had a detailed and extremely informative chat with Nick by phone who very kindly suggested I write you, Matt, in case you wish to post … Continue reading

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Why Is San Francisco Bay A Special Place to Sail?

An Introduction to Marine Weather San Francisco Bay is one of the premier sailing areas in the world. What is it that makes the area special? Easy! The weather. Year round mild conditions allow sailing nearly every day throughout the … Continue reading

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What I Learned in My First Year of Sailing – By Tradewinds Member Joyce Y.

I took my first sailing course at Tradewinds just over a year ago, after wanting to do so for years, thanks  to varied seeds of inspiration — my dad’s old boat detailing shop when I was a kid, going out … Continue reading

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