I have a confession of sorts: In the world of things that plow through the water,stopping infrequently to sacrifice a defenseless anchovy in the hopes of hooking something bigger, I'm called a "stink potter." That is to say that I use fossil fuel (gasp!) to push my boat about the better known fishing spots here on the southwest corner of 'Merika. But wait, there's more: I love the symmetry, efficiency and bliss of sailing. Running on a long reach in a following sea, listening to a sail boat hiss through the water and the canvas snap in response to zephyrs as wind cools my sun savaged face, is my idea of bliss.
A long time ago, i pictured myself in my retirement years, ghosting quietly up to a mooring buoy in Avalon harbor on Catalina Island, looking skyward at gulls wheeling, diving and pooping freely on the shiny teak decks of my imaginary sloop. Hell, I even dreamed I'd do a TransPac transit or two and make my way unburdened by cares to Southeast Asia, or the South Pacific in this dream boat. But things turned out differently.
My boat is an fisherman from it's raised bow, past its stout center console and two-scoop bait tank, ending to my oh-so reliable 40 horsepower Suzuki four stroke outboard. It fulfills my need to imagine myself as an over-50 pirate ranging the California Coast and it satisfies this burning desire to fish where no one else has a line in the water. On the sea, I find that elusive "one clear" moment, that keeps me on an even keel.
But, I still haven't lost my love of sail. That's why I follow off shore regattas and the ultimate race for upscale American rag baggers with more money than sense-- the America Cup.
America Cup boats are to sailing what a Porsche 917 was to Le Mans road racing. Designed to slip through the water with a minimum of drag and rigged with sails that are actually airfoils, America Cup racers are the absolute pinnacle of marine architecture.
One of the entries in the forthcoming heats that lead to a coveted berth in the America Cup race in Barcelona, Spain, next year, was unveiled today this week in San Francisco. The boat is sponsored jointly by BMW and Oracle. Here's the big surprise, Oracle's Larry Ellison intends to skipper this boat in part of America Cup race, if the boat wins the preliminary heats leading up to the '07 race.
BMW has gone all out with the new boat, equipping it with enough bells and whistles to make your inner geek go all tingly. High on the list of technologies supported on the boat is full wireless connectivity. But the wireless link doesn't just end with a custom tactics and navigation program running on a waterproof notebook mounted near the coxswain in his crowded cockpit. The link also runs to self-darkening sunglasses worn by crew. The oh-so cool shades not only protect the crew's vision, they also provide heads-up displays of wind velocity, direction and other critical data points. How cool is this?
God, I want one for my boat, so I can visualize the species of fish, water conditions and distance to the target connected to my little fishing boat's 802.11 network. I'm sure i could afford it, if I sold my children for medical research.
And speaking of money, wouldn't it be more economical and a better use of Ellison's time, if he had just bought the America Cup, halyards, rigging, tiller and all, rather than say Siebel?--Jim Forbes, tongue firmly lodged against the side of my cheek wirelessly from rural northern San Diego County.
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