From the Inside
Greetings from BlueSkyNews.com, the premiere publisher of electronic news for the San Diego recreational boating community.

In this issue, we have an action packed set of interesting and informative articles - I hope you get a chance to look through them all, especially the one about the EPA and recreational boating permits.

The Red Bull Air Races in September
If you haven't already heard, San Diego Bay will be the site of the Red Bull Air Races in September. We are in dialog with the promoters, and we'll have lots of specifics for you in the September issue.

The races are an exciting acquisition for our city thanks to the cooperation of the Port District, the FAA and city officials, but boaters will be especially interested in the dos and don'ts of boating during the setup and the event. See more on the right, and we'll keep you posted in September.

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If you enjoy receiving this monthly e-mail newsletter, please tell a friend about us. In addition to this general marine edition, we now also have marina specific editions for the Chula Vista Marina, Kona & Kona Kai, Loews Crown Isle Marina, Marina Cortez, Marina Village, San Diego Marriott Marina, Shelter Cove Marina, the Sheraton Harbor Island Marina, and Sun Harbor. They're all free, and you or your friend can sign up for one or more by Clicking Here.

Kona Kai Gets a Bad Case of the Crabs
Kona Kai Dockmaster Pete Taliercio got the call at 2:00 a.m. Saturday morning.

"I crawled out of a sound sleep and made my way to Shelter Island.

The power was out at the marina. Not all of the marina; K-Dock still had power, and Kona Marina next door was all lit up just fine, but the rest of Kona Kai was dark.

After a little investigating and seeing nothing apparently wrong, I reset the breakers which restored the power, and went home and back to bed."

Around six o'clock the next morning, Sunday, Pete got another call. The power was out again. Since it was Sunday it took some time to get the electrician out to the marina, and then it took an elapsed time of nearly 24 hours to locate and fix the problem.

What had happened was a bazillion of those little tiny crabs that you see crawling around the docks had infested one of the electrical junction boxes and eaten away the insulation.

"I've been in the marina business a long time and I've seen a lot of electrical varmints", Taliercio said, "but this is the first time I've seen crabs do this."

Something Fun to Do in San Diego - Take a Mini-Cruise to Coronado
Even if you own your own boat, you'll get a kick out of taking a ride on the Coronado Ferry.

With the docks at Peohe's looking like they're going to be closed for a long long time, the ferry dock on the Coronado side is just a few steps away, and lands you on the Coronado Ferry Landing in the middle of great restaurants, boutique shops, and a festive laid back park atmosphere reminiscent of America in the fifties. On the weekends, there's also often live music.

The ferry passengers are a friendly mixture of locals and tourists who chat excitedly about the spectacular views of the island and the city, and there's always several somebodys on board who "remember when" they were here in the Navy, or what the car ferry was like "before the bridge".

The round-trip fee is a bargain $6.00 - the ferry departs the San Diego side (next to the Cruise Ship Terminal) on the hour, and from the Coronado side on the half-hour. Click Here for more information.

From The Poop Deck - Red Wine Woes
O.K. - Which one of you birdbrains brought the red wine aboard? Let's see - Boats - Water - Waves - Drinks - Helllllllllo! Do you think something might spill?

I don't know if this really works or not, but a doggy friend of mine swears that repeated dabbing the carpet with a mixture made of a tablespoon of Oxy-Dawn mixed with a cup of Hydrogen Peroxide will miraculously remove a red wine stain.

But hey! I'm a dog, so I don't want to hear about it if you try this out and it doesn't work. Here's a link to a web-site I found that has whole bunch of other sure-fire red wine removal secrets. Take your pick, birdbrain.

Editor's Note: Once again - We apologize for Madeline. We're trying to get her to be more polished, but we're not making much progress. If you have a pet question or photo to send to her, please e-mail it to Madeline@BigBayNews.com.

City Officials Lament Cancellation of Massive Chula Vista Bayfront Project
"We are extremely disappointed to hear about the decision by Gaylord Entertainment to withdraw its proposal to build a $1 billion convention center and hotel project on the Chula Vista bay front. It is regrettable and tragic. The Port of San Diego has worked for nearly four years with the City of Chula Vista and for nearly two years with Gaylord to build this project. Today's announcement is devastating to the Port, to the City of Chula Vista and to our region."

These were the strong words of Port District Chairwoman Sylvia Rios in her July 6th press release.

According to Rios, "The $1 billion Gaylord project would have provided a "jump-start" to the implementation of a balanced 550-acre land use plan providing open spaces, environmental preservation, visitor-serving businesses and economic benefits to the City of Chula Vista, the Port and the region."

Following talks with labor unions that were stalled since January, the company withdrew its proposal. The unions wanted a project labor agreement which would require the estimated 6,500 workers on the project to be union members, or to pay dues to be represented by the union. Gaylord offered to provide union wages and benefits, but said the company wouldn't sign an agreement with labor groups because a union agreement would limit competitive bidding and drive up costs.

Desktop Photo of the Month - Mission Bay Sunset
Richard Benscoter's keen eye caught this romantic Mission Bay sunset one perfect July evening.

For step-by-step instructions to download this photo or one of our many other fantastic free photos to your PC desktop, Click Here.

The Legend of the Scripps Canyon Sea Monster
In the early 1960s, the Marine Physical Laboratory, which is a division of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography began experimenting with RUM (The Remote Underwater Manipulator) off the coast of the Scripps Canyon in La Jolla.

Launched from the beach next to the Scripps pier, the strange vehicle was designed to crawl about on the sea floor at depths down to 6,000 meters to gather objects and samples, to take photographs, and to install deep-sea instruments

Starting with a Marine Corps self-propelled half-track rifle carrier; scientists added a boom and a steel claw that could be pivoted in any direction out to about five meters to pick up objects. The gasoline engine was replaced with a pair of heavy electric motors in an oil-filled compartment. Sonar was installed, and a powerful light and four television cameras for sea-floor surveillance from a portable shore station (actually a bus). Power for RUM and sensor signals were provided by way of a coaxial cable 8,000 meters long.

Only problem was that nobody told the local population about RUM, so nighttime trials resulted in a frightening bright light moving about on the ocean floor. Police and news media were flooded with calls from people imagined everything from sea creatures to foreign invasion.

Early tests of RUM were only moderately successful. On one of its earliest sea trials, in 1970, RUM placed two small sonar reflectors on the sea floor, crawled away from them, and returned to find and retrieve them. It also found a third sea-floor object:, a stewed tomato can that was found to be the dwelling of a small and very frightened octopus. Rum was then set aside to be used in later projects.

Well, I'll Be a Son of a Gun!
Well, maybe not. Today, we use the expression to indicate surprise, but in the early days of sailing, it meant something else entirely.

Back then, sailors were permitted to keep their "wives" on board ship. Since gun emplacements offered at least a modicum of privacy, many children were conceived between the gun emplacements.

So calling a boy born afloat a "Son of a Gun" was tantamount to questioning his legitimacy, and therefore an insult.

National Marina Day
On Saturday, August 11th from 11a.m. to 3 p.m. the Sun Harbor Marina is celebrating the 6th annual National Marina Day. National Marina Day is an annual celebration of the role marinas play in waterfront communities all across America.

Interested persons are invited come and enjoy the fun and informative events they have planned which include demonstrations and presentations by the Coast Guard, the Red Cross, boating experts, plus several vendor displays. For more information, call Sun Harbor Marina at 619-222-1167.

Free Electronic Recycling
Recycle San Diego has a new, permanent location. They will accept your old computer monitors, laptops, televisions, toner/ink cartridges, TV consoles, cell phones, computer towers, and LCD monitors. They are located at 7716 Clairemont Mesa Blvd and are open Monday-Friday from 9 a.m.-5:00 p.m., and on Saturday from 9 a.m. - Noon. Call 866-525-6655 or visit www.recycleSD.com for more information.

The 4th Annual San Diego Yacht and Boat Show will be held Thursday - Sunday; August 2-5, 2007 at the Sheraton Hotel & Marina on Harbor Island. The show is produced by the Southern California Marine Association (SCMA) and features hundreds of in-water and on-land boats to see,, as well as an exhibition of boating and marine accessories. Attendees will also be able to enjoy good food and beverages, entertainment, music, and meet celebrity captains from the Discovery Channel's "Deadliest Catch" series. Show hours are: Thursday -- 12 noon - 8pm Friday -- 12 noon - 8pm Saturday -- 10am - 8pm Sunday -- 10am - 6pm. Admission: Adults $10.00 -- children 12 & under free. For more information, visit www.scma.com.

Coming in September - Red Bull Air Race
It's no bull - Plans are well underway to have the Red Bull Air Race over San Diego Bay in September. The event will take place in a wide area of the bay from just North of the Coronado Bay Bridge to just North of the "G" Street moll (Where the Fish Market Restaurant is located).

It promises to be an exciting event, but you need to be aware of the planned impact to all boating in the area of the event. There will be periodic bay closures for periods of setup through the actual races. This extends from Wednesday, September 19th through possibly Sunday, September 23rd. We'll have more firm details for you in the September newsletter.

Between the Sheets - Entering and Leaving Harbors That Have a Jetty and a Channel
In boating there is a saying that the two most valueless things you have are the open seaway behind you, and the boat speed you don't have.

This is especially true when entering a harbor where the entrance is via a channel that has a jetty like Mission Bay or Oceanside, and you did not begin your approach from the harbor's channel buoy.

I witnessed a sail boat approaching the mission bay channel from the South along the beach line very close to the South channel jetty, when he lost all forward boat speed, and the ocean put him and his boat on the jetty.

The channel buoy is the point where you should start your approach to such a harbor, and likewise where you should end your departure from the harbor. This applies to sail boats and power boats, and provides you with the most open seaway and thus the most leeway if things go wrong.

Remember, all buoys are provided to ensure our safe departure and return on our journeys. Here's a link to a neat 4-page PDF on the California Department of Boating and Waterways that has some great buoy identification charts. See you on the water!

Editor's Note: Richard Benscoter is a long time avid sailor. He's a member of the Silver Gate Yacht Club and owner of The Mariners Woodshop. If you have a sailing question for Richard, send e-mail to richard@BlueSkyNews.com.

Around the Circuit - Electrolysis and Galvanic Corrosion
I'd like to re-visit a topic everyone's familiar with, and probably a bit confused about, Electrolysis.

Electrolysis is the condition when electrical current is leaking from the battery and flowing to ground using a boat's underwater hardware as the conductor. Ground being in this case the sea water surrounding the vessel.

The two photos in this article illustrate what electrolysis is, and the difference between it and galvanic corrosion. I get a lot of calls from guys like Alex at the San Diego Diving Services to inspect boats they think may have electrolysis problems. They observe boats that are having reactions around their through hulls, and want to know if the boat might have stray electrical current, i.e. electrolysis.

Props and shafts are most likely to be damaged by electrolysis because the engine blocks are usually the common ground point for the entire electrical system. Stray current on an un-bonded boat will find a path to ground, and the easiest route is usually through the shaft. This prop and shaft show deterioration from electrolysis. Notice how the prop appears a little pinkish. That's the sign of stray current eating up expensive parts.

The through hulls in this photo aren't pink, they are darker, and the paint around them has been damaged. This is an example of "paint halos" which are usually caused by a bonded boat having too much zinc attached. Paint halos seldom hurt fiberglass or metal boats, but if you have this condition on a wooden boat you need to take corrective action. Wood damage from too much Zinc can and does occur around through hulls with too much zinc installed.

Editor's Note: Brett Dingerson has over 25 years experience as a marine electrician, with a specialty in marine galvanic corrosion protection. He has worked with a wide range of sailing and power vessels and is the owner of San Diego-based Marine Electric. If you have a sailing question for Brett, send e-mail to brett@BlueSkyNews.com.

Humphrey's Concerts by "Dinghy"
A favorite summer pastime of many boaters is to catch one of the Humphrey's Concerts by the Bay from your tender, dinghy, or kayak. They run mid-May to early October. If you haven't done it before, here are a few things to know.

You'll get an incredible view at extreme high tide, but almost no view at an extreme low tide. It won't noticeably affect the quality of the sound. Check your tide tables. If it's your favorite artist, by all means leave the dinghy at the slip and buy some tickets; the sound and view are worth it.

If you bring your favorite beverages, keep in mind that there are no "heads" available. You may be in the middle of a large raft-up of dozens of boats, so getting out and heading back to the mother ship for a potty break is no small task and may be impossible. Some people bring take-out food. I've even seen a romantic candlelight dinner with a white tablecloth on the dinghy seat.

Depending upon the size and configuration of your dinghy, you may want extra cushions or pillow, so that you can lay back and relax. Center console tenders make less comfortable waterbeds than open inflatables. Small bean bags often work well.

Approach by going down the channel between the Bay Club Marina and Half-Moon Anchorage, which is about where the Bay Club Hotel ends. Remember that it is a no-wake zone. Turn left and you'll see the stage. You can't legally anchor, so everyone just ties up their boats to make one giant raft-up. Popular concerts may have 75 or more inflatables. You must stay clear of moored marina boats. Be quiet and courteous to other concert-goers when arriving or departing, using an oar or paddle if the music is playing. Please observe the same courtesy for marina tenants - keep wakes and voices down.

Sometimes the SD Harbor Police or the Coast Guard will station a boat nearby, ready to cite anyone without proper lights, safety gear, or a sober driver. Kayaks and row boats can carry a flashlight, but motorized vessels must display proper running lights. If you don't have any running lights on your dinghy, your marine store sells flashlight-types that "suction-cup" to your bow and outboard. Make sure you have a PFD (personal flotation device) for each person aboard, plus one throwable (type IV) device.

Otherwise - Enjoy the show!

Bob Sherman has over 19 years of Yacht-sales experience and is the owner of YachtSource. He is also qualified to instruct on all vessel types, and has held 100-ton Captain's license since 1982. He is an avid sailor, scuba diver, and enjoys many outdoor activities.

An Important Notice to All Recreational Boaters
For 34 years the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has exempted discharges from recreational boats from the Clean Water Act permit system. However, a recent court ruling cancelled this permit exemption. EPA is now required by that court decision to develop and implement by September 30, 2008 a national permit system for ALL vessels in the United States for a variety of normal operational discharges.

If this permit system becomes a reality, you will be required to pay for a state permit for each of your boats. EPA will be monitoring your deck runoff, grey water, bilge water, engine cooling water, and the use of copper bottom paints.

Fortunately, the Recreational Boating Act of 2007 (H.R. 2550) has been introduced by Representatives Gene Taylor (D-Miss) and Candice Miller (R-Mich) which would protect recreational boats from being swept into this unnecessary and expensive permitting system.

Recreational boaters are encouraged to contact their Congressman and Senators a.s.a.p. and ask that they co-sponsor or support H.R. 2550. Read more...