OSTAR? Nah! The "Jester" Challenge - Yeah!!!

[Frank]

Captain Charles Borden and his wife set out from San Francisco in the early 40's in a 17ft full keel sloop that looked much like a mini folkboat.While in mid pacific..they had plane after plane fly east overhead...not knowing until much later it was the Pearl Harbour attack. They made Hawia and continued on to put over 7000knm during their exploring. Ya gotta 'get along' well in a cabin that small for that long. After coming across the info,I forwarded it to small craft advisor magazine...they will be doing a story with pics etc. Great mag for lil boat lovers!!   Sapranino sure went against normal 'ocean going' design thinking...it's design effected many boats after. Hinterhauler's '24' Shark'..a planing keelboat designed in 1959 is an obvious inspiration of Sopranino's hull form. Ya gotta love the small boat stuff !!!!!

[Norm]

good on yah
we are looking at feb 2011 as a date when serious work commitments are wound up.  we'll be... old enough to go out by ourselves.
norman

[BobW]

The Singlehanded Sailing Society sponsors/hosts/runs short-handed (single and doubles) races in SF Bay (round the buoys), the Gulf of the Faralones (close inshore), and the Pacific (Singlehand Transpac: San Franciso to Hawaii, in even numbered years).  Most of the boats tend to be larger than 30' but many smaller boats participate in the races on the Bay.  IIRC a singlehanded Moore 24 made the Transpac recently.

http://www.sfbaysss.org/index.html

One event that intrigues me is their Great Pacific Longitude Race, or, as it is more familiarly known, LongPac. 



I guess it is best described as a race to nowhere, but it presents navigation and personal challenges.  I'd like to sail in the LongPac, but most likely in the doublehanded division.

Until I have a proper vessel for heading out the Golden Gate, I'll participate in races like this month's Three Bridge Fiasco. 

[Captain Smollett]

Until I have a proper vessel for heading out the Golden Gate, I'll participate in races like this month's Three Bridge Fiasco. 

Bob, what particular shortcomings of the C-24 do you find that prevents you from 'heading out' (at least a little bit)?  Columbias are well-though-of here, and we used to have several members active with Columbias (didn't we, or am I remembering wrong).  Most notable in my mind was Amorous (anyone have any info on him?).

[BobW]

Columbia built excellent boats, and I wouldn't mind having a 30. 

I like the Challenger 24, but the large cockpit - which is great for daysailing with friends or napping- and the low bridge deck make me a bit nervous about taking this particular design out there for any sort of distance.  Prelude is what I call a tired old boat, with some "features" inflicted upon her by previous owners.  I am doing remedial work, but  I'm no Charlie J when it comes to any kind of repair work, so I'll sail Prelude in the Delta and on the Bay until I am able to obtain a boat better suited to coastal sailing.

Sure, on a mild day I'd poke her nose outside the Golden Gate, but I wouldn't feel comfortable taking this boat 200 miles offshore...

Maybe that's more a reflection on me than on the boat or the design, but if I'm not comfortable with it, I'm not going to do it.

Know of any Columbia 30's for sale?

[BobW]

Forgot to mention, the cavern-like 36" wide companionway is another design feature of this boat I don't like for offshore or coastal sailing. 

I also do not like the rather large ports held in place with an automotive glass type gasket. 

None of these issues are insurmountable (although I do not know what could be done with the cockpit), but I'm not sure I want to put the time, effort, and money into this boat to make it fit for offshore work.

[Dougcan]

Look up there at Frank's post!

I uploaded and added a photo at Frank's request and want to make sure y'all don't miss it!

Cheers.

[David_Old_Jersey]

I think around 50 entrants, most under 30 foot and some VERY under!





Some more initial pics on here:-

http://www.ybw.com/forums/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/1878090/Main/1877713/#Post1878090

Some "Interesting" looking vessels!

The Jester Website is here, some of the entrants have websites / blogs.

http://www.jesterinfo.org/thejesterazoreschallenge08.html

The transatlantic "Jester" is in 2010.

[CharlieJ]

Interesting boats in there.

I find it ironic that boats like Jester, PARTICULARLY Jester, can not sail in the OSTAR, since the original Jester ( and this new replica) sailed in ALL of them until banned by a lower length limit.

Jester and her replica which the one pictured, has sailed trans Atlantic some 13 or 14 times now, single hand.

But she isn't safe for the OSTAR- BAH!!!

[Frank]

Great links...great pics.Seems the original 'spirit' of ostar is alive in this race.

[Tim]

In case anyone wants a good example of what it would be like here is a pic off Trevor Leek's page



;) :)

[Godot]

They're beginning to trickle in...

http://www.jesterinfo.org/jac2008entrylist.html

6 arrived so far.

[AdriftAtSea]

A few 31' boats in the list though.

[ronc98]

I like this one the best.    Kind of sounds like me when I started a few years back. 

http://www.jesterinfo.org/paulfeasey.html

[Godot]

He was the second to arrive.  Not bad for a guy with no experience.

I like this one the best.    Kind of sounds like me when I started a few years back. 

http://www.jesterinfo.org/paulfeasey.html

[nick]

He was the second to arrive.  Not bad for a guy with no experience.

I like this one the best.    Kind of sounds like me when I started a few years back. 

http://www.jesterinfo.org/paulfeasey.html

As far as I'm concerned, if you can plug waypoints into a GPS, make a sail go up the mast, and make it come down, understand where the wind should be coming in relation to the boat in order to give it movement, and don't mind being wet, cold, sad, happy, angry, alone and in faraway places, you're good to go! ;)

If I still have a boat in 2009 in the Atlantic, and nowhere to go, I'm going back to England for the 2010 Jester!