By John Warren

The Baja Ha-Ha is a fun race/rally from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas supported by Latitude 38. This year two boats from the Corinthian YC decided to head south and join in the fun; Warren Peace, a Passport 47 owned by my wife, Sharon, and me, along with Dream Keeper, a Passport 42 owned by John and Laurel Baudendistal. Now, as you might expect, this isn't just a spin around The Bay. Both Warren Peace and Dream Keeper under went extensive upgrades over the past year to prepare for the cruise to Mexico. Haul- outs were needed for insurance, watermakers, gensets, major engine maintenance, sails, life rafts.the list goes on. Most cruisers use this rally as a kick off to more southerly destinations in Mexico. They then usually decide to head east through the Panama Canal or west to the Marquises and beyond. Being that both of us are still working (!@&^$) that wasn't an option. This cruise will be a round trip returning to San Francisco.approximately a 3,000-mile vacation. Both Warren Peace (including CYC's Andre Klein) and Dream Keeper left San Francisco Bay on Thursday evening September 28th hoping to arrive in San Diego by Saturday, September 30th. The trip down went well except for a few minor challenges. Better have the problems in the good ol' USA than in Mexico where they are much more challenging to fix. Only a few hours out of the Golden Gate, Warren Peace lost her autopilot.

I called Sharon on a cellular out at sea, describing the situation, and she called West Marine's 800 number. "WaaLaa".an autopilot shows up in Monterey. All it took was a VISA card, above-and-beyond service from West Marine's corporate staff and a quick 5-hour diversion to Monterey. Dream Keeper had a trouble-free run to San Diego with the exception of a fuel tank that ran dry and the difficulty of then getting it restarted once fuel was added. Despite these minor problems, it turned out to be a quick three-day run to San Diego with Andre catching a beautiful Yellowfin tuna. Anybody like Sushi? After a month berthed in San Diego at the beautiful downtown Marriott doing last minute boat projects, both boats left on October 31st for a 10 day run down the Baja Peninsula.

There were 138 boats signed up for the Baja Ha-Ha on race day and for various reasons, only 115 boats crossed the starting line at Point Loma. Neither Laurel and John Baudendistal or Sharon and me had made a passage this long. There was excitement, high anxiety and trepidation. However, after only a few days at sea, life was very, very good. After only 6 to 12 hours of sailing, the entire fleet was separated in the ocean. Some of the boats stayed close to shore, some went out to sea, and others stayed right on the rhumbline. The general consensus was that the best breezes would be found way off shore. Winds blew day and night between 10 to 15 knots. Everyone got settled in to the routine of shift work. Basically the day consisted of being on shift at the helm, eating, sleeping or fishing. After several days out, sleep became the most important part of the day. After three days of sailing around the clock (gennakers and spinnakers from sunrise to sunset and wing-on-wing at night) the fleet approached the first designated stop in the race, Turtle Bay. Both Warren Peace and Dream Keeper entered Turtle Bay in the middle of the night in pitch-black conditions. The moon had already set, so you couldn't see a thing. Thank God for modern electronics.GPS, Radar, Chart Plotters. The fleet spent two very nice days at Turtle Bay visiting the local community and partying at Restaurant Vera Cruz. Cerveza, por favor!!!

The day before the departure of the second leg of the rally, Latitude 38 sponsored a fabulous party on the beach. The second leg was from Turtle Bay to Bahia Santa Maria. The winds picked up to 13 to 20 knots for the next two days and the sailing was spectacular. We caught more fish, and based on the chatter on the VHF, everyone in the fleet was really, reeeeealy getting into cruising. Now, almost everyone wore shorts and activities included reading, listening to Jimmy Buffet or watching Dolphin shows. The ocean was an inky blue and in contrast the sunsets every evening were red, yellow and orange.

This trip was turning out to be more than anyone had ever expected. Once again, most boats arrived at the finish of this leg in the middle of the night. Getting into Bahia Santa Maria was much easier as the mouth of the bay is several miles across. The official itinerary called for only one day at anchor here, but we felt this stay should have been longer. Other than three fishing shacks, there's only the beach, which was extremely clean with very white sand. Because this rally is gaining so much popularity, the infamous Kojak (a Baja native) has started the tradition of creating the world's best beach party. A Mexican band was trucked in from who knows where, and Kojak's gang set up an open tent (sponsored by Tecate beer), cranked up the Honda generators for power, and performed a live concert with a five-piece band.guitars, electric piano, drums and great singers. Obviously, Santana's greatest were some of the best songs sung. Sailors danced to old-time rock and roll into the wee hours of the morning. Local fishermen caught lobsters and fish and sold them on the beach for $10 a plate. The Ha-Ha gang quaffed down two hundred cases of iced-down beer that had been trucked in. One reporter from a small-town newspaper in the desert heard that a fleet of 115 cruising sailboats were anchored and partying in the middle of nowhere, so he walked 10 hours to get the story. It was a fabulous day.

The third and final leg was the shortest - from Bahia Santa Maria to Cabo San Lucas.only a 24-hour run. The seas were confused and lumpy and the winds were moderate. Most of the fleet rounded the Cape on Thursday, November 9th. What a thrill it was seeing the Cape and crossing the final finish line. It was a wonderful feeling of accomplishment after so much preparation and anticipation.

Cabo San Lucas is a great resort town supported mainly by sport fishing. The restaurants cater to Americans, the marina is extremely modern and the weather warm. After one last beach party and the Awards Ceremony, the Ha-Ha fleet started breaking up. Some boats left for more southerly destinations Sunday, others stayed in Cabo and a few sailed around the peninsula to La Paz. Warren Peace and Dream Keeper moved on to La Paz several days later, where both boats are currently berthed. The two Passports will start their uphill, upwind, against-the-elements trip back to San Francisco Bay in January.

Latitude 38 and its crew on Profligate deserve high fives and all the credit. The 113 sailboats and 2 Trawlers that made up this year's fleet all made it safely to Cabo. The Grand Poubah's daily role-call included medical, mechanical and safety issues, but the overall spirit of the Ha-Ha was "no worries and have a great time." When there were problems with boats in the fleet, there was an overwhelming response to help, with advise, parts, etc. Every morning either on VHF or single sideband or both, an important part of the radio net included weather reports, election results, positions, observations and short fishing stories. The staff on Latitude 38' s Profligate facilitated finding an answer to any and all problems. This rally was not only a learning experience, but also a wonderful opportunity to meet other sailors and share experiences and dreams. A special thanks to Barbara and Andre Klein and Dan Carrico for helping get Warren Peace to La Paz and getting her back to San Francisco in January.