to 52 knots of wind became my comfort zone, and a peak of 59 seemed like a story to tell. That’s when I saw it off in

the distance to starboard, a low lying fog coming my way very quickly. As it approached, it became obvious that the source of the fog turned out to be the wind blowing the breaking tops off the waves. At this point I knew what I’d been looking for had found me and that there was nothing more to do than hope it didn’t get too severe and didn’t last very long. It’s the usual thing, if you want to do something wild – do your best to prepare and set yourself up for it, then get yourself irreversibly committed so there’s no turning back when courage fails you. As we got into the blast, called a

“micro-cell” because of its localized nature, the wind went up over 60 steady and peaked at 64. The air was saturated with salt

spray to a height of 20 feet or so, and waves were heaving and breaking all around chaotically. It was, to say the least, intimidating. I’ve sailed in winds

Steve Purcell and fiancee Bai Ying aboard “Korrigan.”

like that perhaps twice before but never in such big seas and probably never up to 64 knots. Since there was nothing to be done

I just wrapped my arm around the winch, put my head down and waited, while timidly peeking out from under my hood at the exquisite horror show. In 60+ knots of wind, control under

autopilot is a fleeting thing. Big waves would come up from behind and

round the boat up, forcing the front end into the wind, but then the wind against the storm jib would push the bow back down and away we’d go again, surfing up to 11 knots. Waves came over the boat from all sides and it was as if the boat struggled to stay on top of the heaving, seething mass of water. And yet, all the while, it remained bone dry below with the heater running. Other than instant sea sickness and everything twisting and gyrating wildly, it was the picture of peace and security down below. These things pass quickly, as you

can see from the wind plot, and it wasn’t long before winds were back to a relaxing 48-52 knots. But I was now getting into Rosario Strait and the waves were getting big. Looking at the speed over the ground, I learned that I’ve beaten the tide, which was still going out against the wind and causing these large waves. I’d never seen waves that big in the Straits. The significant wave height was about 8 feet with peaks to 10 or 12 feet with big white breaking tops. It was impressive and

Sloop Tavern Yacht Club Blakely Rocks Benefit Regatta Raises More Than $8,000 for Ballard Food Bank

Thanks to the generosity of the Ballard businesses & professionals listed below who donated raffle & silent auction items to the Sloop Tavern Yacht Club, & to all the incredibly loyal volunteers, friends, & racers who participated in the Sloop Tavern Yacht Club’s 30th Annual Blakely Rock Benefit Race, which has already raised more than $8,000 for the Ballard Food Bank

Please visit www.styc.org for additional details, including race results.

DONOR LIST

48 North Magazine Admiralty Yacht Sales Anthony's Homeport Auxiliary Engines Ballard Inflatable Boats Ballard Marine Ballard Sails Bellingham Yacht Club Borrowed Light Images Breezy Canvas Builders Hardware Canal Boatyard

Captain's Nautical Supplies Center for Wooden Boats CSR Marine Dunatos Elliot Bay Marina Emerald City Diving Fisheries Supply Flagship Maritime Training

Fresh Fish Company Gabriel’s Fire Gallery Marine Hi-Life at Ballard Firehouse Jacobsen's Boats & Motors Jan’s Marine Photography KAMgear Kings Hardware Krusteaz

Le Gourmand Limback Lumber Lombardi's Cucina Majestic Bay Theater MAMO Jewelers Marine Sanitation Maritime Pacific Brewing Mark Brink

Market Street Shoes / Market Street Athlete

Miller & Miller Boatyard

Milltech Marine Noon Meme Designs North Sails

Northwest Rigging Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding NW Yachting Magazine Other Coast Café Patrick Cook, Summit Sales Peter Carr, Dynamic Chiropractic Port of Seattle Puget Sound Dive Puget Sound Sails Purple Cow Espresso Quantum Sails Race in JL

Rat City Roller Girls / Ballard Food Bank

Robert Hale and Company Sail NW / Quantum Seattle

Schattauer Sails Scott's Trophy Seattle Yacht Club Seaview Boatyard Secret Garden Bookshop Service First Auto Care Shilshole Bay Marina Short Stop Coffee Sloop Tavern

SmartPlug Systems LLC Starbucks Coffee Starpath Navigation Systems Three Resins The Chocolate Box The Scoop at Walters Tony Devita Tutmark Rigging West Marine Shilshole Wine Bar 106 Pine

48° NORTH, MAY 2010 PAGE 35

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