Hola CUBARistas,
It’s time for another update as we have a lot going on right now and it’s time to start locking down a few items. For this reason, this, and all future Countdowns to CUBAR, are only going to those who have applied; therefore, to keep your crew/friends informed, please forward this and future Countdown to CUBAR announcements to them. This is a long countdown announcement so let’s get right to it.
CUBAR TRAINING WEEKEND- OCTOBER 7 & 8
Time to start making plans to attend the CUBAR training weekend being held at SDYC on Oct. 7 & 8. It is two full days of training covering everything from first aid at sea to engine maintenance. The training is limited to those who have registered for CUBAR and, now, limited to no more than 2 attendees/boat. Those interested in attending the 2-day training seminars need to register now and can view the agenda here. Later, open seats will be granted to those desiring more than 2 attendees. One copy of the Cruise Operations Manual and Mexico Boating Guide by Pat Rains will be issued to each boat allowing those attending to start the cruise planning process. For those not attending, the Operation Manual and Guide will be provided during check-in in early November.
BOAT INSPECTION
CUBAR is offering a boat inspection service that is free of charge for each participant. This is not a safety inspection, but rather a mechanical review by a well-respected professional in the industry.
Bob Senter, long-time employee and Training Manager of Northern Lights, has been instrumental in alerting owners of important issues on their boats. Bob has performed these inspections for each CUBAR to date. You can accept his recommendations or ignore them, but it is worth your time to have Bob aboard. Many skippers from past events have said Bob’s comments were invaluable.
We can’t encourage you strongly enough to schedule a meeting with Bob.
Please contact Bob directly to arrange his visit. He is in the Pacific Northwest now and will be in San Diego soon. We have also arranged for inspections in the Los Angeles area. Also, Bob will be at the October training days mentioned above.
You can reach Bob at:
1-360-537-1444 (cell)
bsenter@northern-lights.com
FUEL MANAGEMENT
We will be asking for your fuel needs in September so if you haven’t reviewed the “Float Plan Worksheet”, you may want to start soon. The excel spreadsheet can be found on the CUBAR website under the “Document” tab. This fuel management document is to assist you in determining the amount of fuel you will require at each stop along the Baja Peninsula. I think you will find this a handy tool for your predicted fuel needs. It was developed by Bob Vincent, a member of SDYC, for the very first FUBAR in 2007 and has been used/ improved each year since.
You will see that once you enter the basic information, you can change running speeds and see immediately the change in fuel demands. Whatever tool you use, it is imperative that you provide us with your fuel needs. Note that fuel in larger quantities may or may not be available in Magdalena Bay. Turtle Bay is the usual mid-point stop for fuel replenishment.
Please forward your fuel requirements for Ensenada, Turtle Bay, Magdalena Bay, and Puerto Los Cabos by September 15 to our Cruise Captain Tom Nielsen at tom@nielsenbeaumont.com. You can make as many different Float Plan Worksheets as you like. When you save, do a “save as” with an identifying Specific Range suffix. (i.e. “Tussler SR 1.34”, Tussler SR 1.32, etc.…). It is possible that you can build a complete “Performance Manual” for all speeds and Specific Range values for your vessel’s reference documents that can be referred to en route.
CUBAR 2017 PROGRAM
We are in the final stages of pulling together everything we need to produce the CUBAR 2017 program which will be given to everyone going on the cruise and copies to all our sponsors. If you haven’t submitted your information, please do so ASAP to Submit your boat and crew photos and crew bio. If you originally provided minimal information or none, we encourage you to expand it. See what others have posted on the website. Based on what has been posted, there are some great people going on this cruise. In addition, for CUBAR 2017, we would like everyone to include a high res, horizontal photo of the captain and first mate which will be included in the program being distributed to all captains. This is the beginning of building our community and the more we know about each other, the more we will enjoy the cruise.
MEXICO MARINAS
Hopefully by now you have made your reservations and received confirmation from everyone. If you haven’t made your reservation, please do so now or you may not have a spot as they are receiving many requests now. If you did not get a confirmation from them, best to follow-up to ensure you have spot.
CREW
If you are looking for crew, we have a spot on our website where people who are interested in crewing have posted their name and a brief back ground. Several are SDYC members with Mexico experience and/or boat mechanical experience.
GOING THROUGH THE CANAL?!
If you are planning to go through the Panama Canal later this year, there is an independent group that will be heading south in November/December 2017 and arriving in June 2018. Their plan is to go 2000 nm in 180 days while visiting over 100 anchorages. I qualified this as an independent group as it is a group of boaters heading south and trying to do it with a large group. They are calling themselves the “Panama Posse” rally and welcome all boaters-both sail and power. For information, see their website: www.panamaposse.com.
That is enough for everyone to start working on for now. In mid-September, we will begin issuing information on getting all your Mexico paperwork started including your Temporary Import Permit or TIP as it is more commonly known.
Thanks,
Chuck Dahill
CUBAR 2017 Chair
M/V Corky Row
chuckdahill@gmail.com