MASTER MARINERS —
SCOTT WALL
SCOTT WALL
L
ike the rum, 151 packed a punch. Not in a weather-related way — the conditions were pleasant — but, as always, competition can create tension in the most mild-mannered souls. The 151st anniversary of the Master Mariners Regatta started under gray skies and ended in brilliant sunshine, but (as always), what makes this regatta different from thousands of other sailboat races on the Bay is the unique makeup of the fleet. While carbon fiber is all the rage in the get-up-and-go classes, carbon is also a building block of life, and therefore, a key element in all the wooden vessels that showed up. The event starts in the good-natured manner of a parade, as dozens of vessels hoist their best flags and finery to strut their stuff for the northbound reaching start between the St. Francis and Golden Gate Yacht Clubs. But after the start, the jolly demeanor of the first leg gets decidely more serious as the finishing order becomes more firmly established before the final gun. We had the honor of sailing aboard one of the grande dames of the Bay Area fleet of classics, the scow schooner Alma, which calls the San Francisco National Maritime Museum home. She was under the watchful eye of captain Carter Cassel and a crew of park staff and volunteers who team up to manhandle the heavy sails, halyards and sheets. No electric winches, furling headsails or other nods to modern 'convenience sailing' here. Aside from refits, updated sailcloth and an iPad, not much has changed aboard the Alma since she was built in Hunters Point in 1891 to haul hay, mail and other cargo. Much like Alma, the rest of the Master Mariners fleet has a similar adherence to tradition. Most of the boats are constantly being scraped, painted and caulked, but rarely "updated," since that would spoil the point of owning a classic. Not everyone has the spirit and stamina to maintain one of these heartthrobs, but nearly all sailors appreciate the beauty that comes with seeing the design and craftsmanship preserved and sailing with rails down on the Bay. This year, the fleet started in the proverbial morning San Francisco gray that lingered well past noon. The light
air and ebb made the first reaching leg to Little Harding turn into a run for the buoy — the ebb's sleight of hand fooled several boats as they ended up to the west of the mark, forcing them to ease sheets and run downwind in light air to finally make the turn to weather. That same pesky ebb then helped everyone for the only upwind leg of the day (how civilized) from Little Harding up to Yellow Bluff (some fleets went straight to Blackaller), with the good ship Alma being aided by a full-throttle, upwind,15-minute engine allowance. To add to the oft-repeated quote, "Gentlemen don't sail to weather," the
Beyond bragging rights, the regatta has some high stakes: A highly-coveted magnum of Cabernet.
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Latitude 38
• July, 2018
same holds true for bluff-bowed cargo schooners. The long, downwind YellowBluff-to-Blossom-Rock leg against the building ebb was balanced by building sun and breeze. Our skipper Carter took Alma to the north of Alcatraz, betting on a good reaching angle to Blossom Rock. The wind held well as we crossed under Alcatraz and took up our nice off-thewind position aimed to the east, while we watched the rest of the schooners in the fleet heading down before the wind to the north. Matched Farr 40s would have given us a better read on the value of the course choice but, either way, the first schooner to nip us was the Freda B, which rounded just ahead at Blossom. Helming the almost 130-year-old Alma, Carter wisely prefers the 'chicken jibe', with a 360-degree tack around to preserve her stout but tender (and mature)
