Banderas Bay Blast

What could be worse than sailing your half-million-plus-dollar J/160 yacht into a reef?! Probably having Latitude38 tell all their readers in great sordid detail that you did it...

Blast Wrap-Up
December 5, 2011 – Banderas Bay

One thing everyone learned from this Blast is that you can't mess with the offshore reefs as much as three miles to the east of Punta Mita. The reefs are great for creating waves to surf, but bad for bouncing off of with boats. Sailmaker Mike Danielson guided the J/160 Blue at the very edge of one of the reefs in search of a smidgen more wind. They gybed just short of the reef, but fouled a spinnaker line in the bowsprit, fell off, and slammed into the reef. They struck so abruptly that the bowman flew right off the front of the boat, looking just like Superman in the old television show. We saw it with our own eyes. It took about 15 minutes of banging before Blue was able to get free of what will surely become known at Mike's Recife Azul, and while she was eventually able to continue racing, she'll be hauled today for inspection and repairs to the keel.

Blue, with her bowman swimming off the starboard bow, just after hitting the reef.
Photo Latitude / Richard
© 2011 Latitude 38 Publishing, LLC

The Regatta was a fun event, a little disorganized though. Hard to tell if anyone was in charge.