Desert Sea - New Mexico and Southwestern Sailing

More Bristol Cup Boats at the Butte, October 24

Boats explore the starting area before the beginning of the first race of the Bristol Cup regatta at Elephant Butte Lake.

J/24 passing in front of two Etchells

J/24 Hot Flash between two Etchells.

Labels: Bristol Cup, Elephant Butte Lake, sailboats, sailing, yacht Caliente, yacht Constellation, yacht Hot Flash

Sunday, October 25 at the Butte

Constellation eases by the fleet. Sunday's winds were light, averaging about 2 knots. On the Beaufort wind scale, which grades wind forces from 0 for nothing to 10 for a hurricane, that would be a Force 1. Sometimes the breeze faded away to the barely discernible, and sometimes it freshened a bit to 3 or 4 knots, but mostly it made for a mellow day on the water.

Constellation in front of committee boat, the J/24 Hot Flash.

Committee boat; J/24 reflections

Labels: Bristol Cup, Elephant Butte Lake, sailing, yacht Constellation, yacht Hot Flash

Sailboats at Elephant Butte Lake, New Mexico, before the Race to the Elephant

Fleet panorama at Elephant Butte Lake in southern New Mexico as boats wait to sail in the Race to the Elephant

Kachina in front of Elephant Race fleet

Two boats framed between Nessie (C&C29) and Free and Clear IV (Freedom 21, at right).

Nessie and Free and Clear IV

The J/24 sloop Hot Flash, and the race committee signal boat, Susie Q, before the start of the Race to the Elephant at Elephant Butte Lake in southern New Mexico. Conditions during Saturday morning were a bit frustrating with light, variable, switchy wafts of breeze for beleaguered sailors. I had a hard time reaching the starting area on Carol Anne's motorless Etchells sloop; fortunately the start was postponed until the wind started filling in about an hour after the published start time. (The A fleet started at 1:43 p.m., an hour and 38 minutes after the planned 12:05 start [12:00 noon warning signal].

Labels: New Mexico Sailing, Race to the Elephant, sailing in New Mexico, yacht Free and Clear IV, yacht Hot Flash, yacht Nessie, yacht Susie Q

Hot Flash and Pyrat at Elephant Butte Lake

The J/24 sloop "Hot Flash" fills her colorful spinnaker during the downwind run during the Jack and Jill his-and-hers race sponsored by the Rio Grande Sailing Club, May 9, 2009. Photos courtesy of Gerald R. Byrnes 2009 (c).

"Pyrat" sails his MC Scow during the Joshua Slocum single-handed race on May 9, 2009.

Labels: J/24, Jack and Jill race, Joshua Slocum race, MC Scow, yacht Hot Flash

Before the Jack and Jill Race, May 10, 2009

Newport 28 "Sunkissed" ghosts along on a glazed lake. Conditions would look much better in an hour.

View to the north, showing the J/24 "Oso" at left and Freedom 21 "Free and Clear IV" at right. Winds were very light and fickle during the morning, but by 12:40 a nice breeze had filled in from the south.

S 2 "Cultural Infidel"

J/24 "Hot Flash" in front of Kettletop Mesa

Freedom 21 "Free and Clear IV"

Labels: Elephant Butte Lake, Yacht Cultural Infidel, yacht Free and Clear IV, yacht Hot Flash, yacht Sunkissed

Jack and Jill race pictures, Rio Grande Sailing Club

Free and Clear IV and Cultural Infidel approach the startling line.

Hot Flash and other boats at the start, with Kettletop Mesa in the distant background.

The J/24 "Hot Flash", on starboard, passes in front of the S2 "Cultural Infidel", partially hidden behind, and is followed by the Freedom 21, "Free and Clear IV", to the left of the pin buoy at the start of the his-and-hers Jack and Jill race.

Labels: Elephant Butte Lake, Yacht Cultural Infidel, yacht Free and Clear IV, yacht Hot Flash