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Alaska
1000 Cruiser Navigation Contest
The
Ak1000 fleet departed Prince Rupert at 0430 Friday
morning, June 19, for Leg 8 of the AK 1000 race and
the first leg of the 2nd half of the contest.
After transiting Venn Passage, a narrow and winding
passage around shoals, in the dark, the contestants
started Leg 8 at Hogson Reef Light for a 12.8 nautical
mile course straight up Chatham Sound to Green Island
Light in sunny skies (after the sun came up) and light
winds that resulted in very calm and settled seas.
The top 5 finishers for Leg 8 are as follows:
1. Sirena,
skippered by Bob Gautschi with 9 seconds of error
2. MouseTrap,
skippered by Fred Cole with 52 seconds
3. Vagabond,
skippered by Dick Timmerman with 80 seconds
4. Peachy
Keen, skippered by Mike Henry with 92 seconds
5. The
Tillie, skippered by Bill Anderson with 105 seconds
Following
the race, the fleet continued across Dixon Entrance,
up Revillagigedo Channel and Nichols Passage in very
calm seas to Ketchikan. We arrived at
Ketchikan in early afternoon and received moorage
instructions from the Harbormaster, who controls all
moorage in Ketchikan. The weather in Ketchikan
is quite balmy with sunny skies, a brisk northwest
wind, and 4 cruise ships full of passengers visiting
the town.
The
Ketchikan Yacht Club, hearing of our arrival, invited
all to their Friday Night Hamburger BBQ. We had
a great time visiting with the local members and
telling them about our AK 1000 contest. The food
was great and the socializing even better.
That's log racing for you!
Today,
Saturday, June 19, is our lay day to visit Ketchikan,
purchase provisions and fuel if necessary, and shop
without the town full of cruise ship visitors.
One small cruise ship arrived this morning and was
scheduled to leave at 1500 hours. The shops all
closed at 1500 so the locals can take advantage of the
wonderful weather. Ketchikan usually gets 13
feet of rainfall per year, so sunny days are treasured
here.
Tomorrow,
Sunday, June 20, the fleet will compete in Leg 9 of
the AK 1000, a 14 nautical mile race from the north
end of Ketchikan to Niblack Point on the Cleveland
Peninsula, then continue up Clarence Strait and Ernest
Sound to Thom's Place on Wrangell Island, a 63
nautical mile course.
On
Monday, the fleet will race through Zimolvia Narrows
and up Zimolvia Strait, across Sumner Strait, then up
Wrangell Narrows to Petersburg. We will probably
not have internet service until we arrive in
Petersburg, where the results of Legs 9 and 10 will be
released.
Alaska
is all it was advertised to be. The mountains
are taller, the water is deeper, the fish are bigger,
and everything is pristine!
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