Friday, December 09, 2005
Have A Frozenass Weekend...
How To Lose Your Job...
Approaching harbor is a bad time for a helmsman to fall asleep, or an officer of the watch to be in the head, or drunk, or whatever. In fact, here's what can happen:
A vessel was due to arrive at a port in Spain at 0800 local time (LT). It would appear that at about 0600 LT the vessel contacted the Pilot Station confirming the ETA and was instructed to contact again some 20 minutes before arrival.
At 07.59 hours LT, and despite the calls from the Traffic Control, the vessel grounded at full speed on the breakwater at the entrance to the port.
A video, taken by surveillance cameras, shows "live" the sequence of the grounding, and needs no comments.
Watch it--and cringe--here. And click here to read what the denizens at Sailing Anarchy had to say about it all (and to read the other crazy accident reports they dug up). Now you know why, when you are sea yourself, you can never assume that a commercial crew sees you or is even on the bridge...
"Heh-heh. That anti-tanker torpedo system I installed really works well..."
A vessel was due to arrive at a port in Spain at 0800 local time (LT). It would appear that at about 0600 LT the vessel contacted the Pilot Station confirming the ETA and was instructed to contact again some 20 minutes before arrival.
At 07.59 hours LT, and despite the calls from the Traffic Control, the vessel grounded at full speed on the breakwater at the entrance to the port.
A video, taken by surveillance cameras, shows "live" the sequence of the grounding, and needs no comments.
Watch it--and cringe--here. And click here to read what the denizens at Sailing Anarchy had to say about it all (and to read the other crazy accident reports they dug up). Now you know why, when you are sea yourself, you can never assume that a commercial crew sees you or is even on the bridge...
"Heh-heh. That anti-tanker torpedo system I installed really works well..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 8:35 AM 
5 Oceans Finale...
Last installment of Sir Robin's attempt to get you out there. Click here...
Kip Stone And Artforms: "I'll be there, as long as I don't get run down in the next 10 minutes..."
Kip Stone And Artforms: "I'll be there, as long as I don't get run down in the next 10 minutes..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 8:28 AM
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Hey, We Haven't Gone Surfing In A While...!
So let's go. Click here. Ahhh, that's better...
"Uh-oh. I think I'm gonna need a snorkel..."
(Photo: Via Surfer Magazine)
"Uh-oh. I think I'm gonna need a snorkel..."
(Photo: Via Surfer Magazine)
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:53 AM
Ride The Winner...
What's it like to be the first boat into port on a Volvo Ocean Race leg? This video from ABN Amro 1 gives you just an inkling. Note the green beverages that get passed onboard even before the dock lines are secured--with the tops already removed! What a shore crew...
"Wow, these things really do ride low in the water..."
(Photo: Jon Nash/Team ABN Amro)
"Wow, these things really do ride low in the water..."
(Photo: Jon Nash/Team ABN Amro)
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:43 AM
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
Wetass Video Of The Week, Month, Century (Whatever)...
All I can really say is that it's another sweet one, featuring the crazies who race beach cats in a little thing called the RAID 500 Xtreme. Check it out here...
"What the hell is Tim talking about? This doesn't seem crazy at all..."
"What the hell is Tim talking about? This doesn't seem crazy at all..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:53 AM
The Wetass Life I....
If you don't have enough tie-dyed or "Save The Whales" t-shirts for Greenpeace (see below), or if you like to wear your hair really short, then maybe you have imagined yourself as a Coast Guard Surf Boat driver. This is a pretty tempting Wetass career, particularly after you check out the action in this video (found on the always entertaining Mr. Boat Blog). Cowabunga...
"I'd like to see those Greenpeace mopes and their little boats in the middle of this wave action..."
"I'd like to see those Greenpeace mopes and their little boats in the middle of this wave action..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:44 AM
The Wetass Life II...
I'm just guessing, but if any of you are like me, at some point in your life you fantasized about becoming a Greenpeace warrior, heading out onto the high seas in a RIB to zip around and confound the whale hunters (and Seinfeld lovers will remember when Russell, the head of NBC programming and Elaine stalker, became a Greenpeacer because Elaine said she admired them). Well, in recent years Greenpeace has been mostly out of the news. But I'm glad to report that the Greenpeace navy, such as it is, is back on the prowl. And one of their ship's is out to confront the Japanese whale hunt. Even better, they're blogging from onboard (go here). And of course it all has a certain Greenpeacean, granola-crunchy, saving-the-earth, feel to it. Here's one excerpt:
This morning while Jetske and I were sorting and stomping cans for recycling (she's our on-board "garbologist" - I'll explain that some other time) we sliced hard into a wave. I was heading into the 'wetroom' (the room just off the poop deck that serves as a workshop and portal between the dry areas and the deck) when I heard her yelp in surprise and looked back to see a wall of water and the can bucket in mid-flight. At first I was deeply concerned she might have got swept over board (under captain's orders no one is allowed to work out on any deck alone due to sea conditions), but the water cleared and there she stood, one hand on a tight line, fully doused from head to toe in near-freezing seawater, among a constellation of smashed aluminum. We ran around and chased up the loose cans like a hockey team down by a point in the final minute, saving them from being swept overboard, just managing to wrangle them into the bin before she went in for a change of clothes.
Phew. It's dangerous out there on the front lines. And here are some pics of the RIBsters fighting ocean dumping. Go Greenepace...!
"Hmm. I'm not sure this tactic is going to work out very well.."
"Yup, that's about what I thought..."
This morning while Jetske and I were sorting and stomping cans for recycling (she's our on-board "garbologist" - I'll explain that some other time) we sliced hard into a wave. I was heading into the 'wetroom' (the room just off the poop deck that serves as a workshop and portal between the dry areas and the deck) when I heard her yelp in surprise and looked back to see a wall of water and the can bucket in mid-flight. At first I was deeply concerned she might have got swept over board (under captain's orders no one is allowed to work out on any deck alone due to sea conditions), but the water cleared and there she stood, one hand on a tight line, fully doused from head to toe in near-freezing seawater, among a constellation of smashed aluminum. We ran around and chased up the loose cans like a hockey team down by a point in the final minute, saving them from being swept overboard, just managing to wrangle them into the bin before she went in for a change of clothes.
Phew. It's dangerous out there on the front lines. And here are some pics of the RIBsters fighting ocean dumping. Go Greenepace...!
"Hmm. I'm not sure this tactic is going to work out very well.."
"Yup, that's about what I thought..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:25 AM
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Killer Regatta Alert...
Every once in a while a class and a regatta come together and produce a major happening. That's the case this year with the Corum Melges 24 World Championship, sailing out of the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo December 11-16. One hundred boats, and you won't be able hoist a beer without elbowing a world champion, a sailmaker, or an America's Cup sailor. Philippe Kahn and his 2003 world champion son Shark will be there, with Papa Kahn getting tactical input form none other than Russell Coutts. This will be a classic. Stay tuned...
Shark Attack: "Where's Dad? Time to lee bow him again for laughs..."
Shark Attack: "Where's Dad? Time to lee bow him again for laughs..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:55 AM
Big, Big, Air...
This snowboarder really launches. Funny thing is, it was totally unintentional. Watch here...
"Uh-oh..."
"Uh-oh..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:48 AM
5 Oceans Preview...
Still haven't signed up (see below)? Well, maybe you need to watch Part 2 of Sir Robin's excellent visual enticement...
Joltin' Joe Harris: "I'll be there, especially if I can keep the damn bow out of the water..."
Joltin' Joe Harris: "I'll be there, especially if I can keep the damn bow out of the water..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 9:36 AM
Monday, December 05, 2005
Calling All Maniacs...
It doesn't start until next October. But the 5 Oceans Race, formerly the Around Alone, is the next big solo race on the calender. Around the world, alone, in just four legs. Why am I writing about it now? Because all you dreamers out there have just enough time to register and charter a boat, and I'm here to help you do it. Need a notice of race? Go here. Need a boat? Go here. Need inspiration? Watch Part 1of the slick vid Sir Robin has put together (Parts 2 and 3 will air later in the week). Go on. Go racing. You know you want to...
Frigid, Soaking, Lonely Fun: "I can't believe Tim talked me into this..."
Frigid, Soaking, Lonely Fun: "I can't believe Tim talked me into this..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:43 AM
TWC Christmas Assistance...
Hate shopping? Don't know what to get the Wetasses in your life? Then I urge you to peruse this list of the 100 greatest adventure books, compiled by National Geographic adventure. Number 1? The Worst Journey in the World, by Apsley Cherry-Garrard, about Scott's failed mission to the South Pole. Here's the write-up:
As War and Peace is to novels, so is The Worst Journey in the World to the literature of polar travel: the one to beat. The author volunteered as a young man to go to the Antarctic with Robert Falcon Scott in 1910; that, and writing this book, are the only things of substance he ever did in life. They were enough. The expedition set up camp on the edge of the continent while Scott waited to go for the Pole in the spring. But first, Cherry-Garrard and two other men set out on a midwinter trek to collect emperor penguin eggs. It was a heartbreaker: three men hauling 700 pounds (318 kilograms) of gear through unrelieved darkness, with temperatures reaching 50, 60, and 70 degrees below zero (-46, -51, and -57 degrees Celsius); clothes frozen so hard it took two men to bend them. But Cherry-Garrard's greater achievement was to imbue everything he endured with humanity and even humor. And—as when he describes his later search for Scott and the doomed South Pole team—with tragedy as well. His book earns its preeminent place on this list by captivating us on every level: It is vivid; it is moving; it is unforgettable.
It doesn't get much more laudatory than that. But, you know what? The reviewer is right. And if you've read it already, don't worry. There's tons of good stuff on this list...
Chilled Cherry-Garrard: "Sure everyone is dying. But it's going to make an amazing book..."
As War and Peace is to novels, so is The Worst Journey in the World to the literature of polar travel: the one to beat. The author volunteered as a young man to go to the Antarctic with Robert Falcon Scott in 1910; that, and writing this book, are the only things of substance he ever did in life. They were enough. The expedition set up camp on the edge of the continent while Scott waited to go for the Pole in the spring. But first, Cherry-Garrard and two other men set out on a midwinter trek to collect emperor penguin eggs. It was a heartbreaker: three men hauling 700 pounds (318 kilograms) of gear through unrelieved darkness, with temperatures reaching 50, 60, and 70 degrees below zero (-46, -51, and -57 degrees Celsius); clothes frozen so hard it took two men to bend them. But Cherry-Garrard's greater achievement was to imbue everything he endured with humanity and even humor. And—as when he describes his later search for Scott and the doomed South Pole team—with tragedy as well. His book earns its preeminent place on this list by captivating us on every level: It is vivid; it is moving; it is unforgettable.
It doesn't get much more laudatory than that. But, you know what? The reviewer is right. And if you've read it already, don't worry. There's tons of good stuff on this list...
Chilled Cherry-Garrard: "Sure everyone is dying. But it's going to make an amazing book..."
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:28 AM
Hydroptere Rises...
When we last checked in on Alain Thebault's flying, foil-elevated tri, it had broken into bits during a transatlantic record attempt. It was towed into the Canaries, and despite near total destruction the old girl is being rebuilt. After assembly Hydroptere will continue on to Miami and New York, presumably for more record attempts. Who knows when that will happen. But in the meantime go to the hompepage and check out the very cool video of Hydroptere sailing fast. And then go here to watch a four minute video of how Hydroptere came to be, with great footage of scale models and test tank action. This is still one of the coolest projects afloat. And you have to admire Thebault's resilience and determination...
"Is this thing really a sailboat...?"
"Is this thing really a sailboat...?"
Posted by Tim Zimmermann @ 10:17 AM
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