July eBook pages 1-91 (16.1 MB) - Latitude 38

fake maydays sailstice — cont’d
to two and a half years in the pen and ordered
to pay $29,000 in restitution for the
same offense back in ‘04. According to the
Chron article, one of the earlier incidents
delayed the rescue of two fi shermen from
their sinking boat when a Coast Guard
helo was forced to refuel after searching
for the non-existent Thorsted.
Thorsted’s public defender reportedly
asserts that her client had suffered a
traumatic brain injury in ‘99 that left him
permanently disabled. That’s unfortunate,
but someone has to fi gure out how
to keep a radio out of this guy’s hands.
— rob
SIGHTINGS
Island Sailing Center’s community sailing programs. While ashore,
sailors were entertained by Pacifi c Island dancers, some sea chanteys,
and rock ‘n roll by Bowjones featuring drummer Mike Tosse.
Check out the event's website at www.summersailstice.com to start
planning next year's Summer Sailstice.
— john a.
gaga for gold
A friend who works on commercial freighters once told this reporter
that when she buys her cruising boat, she’s going to paint it DayGlo
orange. She was only half joking. “From the height of a commercial
vessel,” said Miri Skoriak, who works as First Mate on ships all over
the world, “sailboats are typically seen on a background of water.
They have so little return on the radar, and blend so well with the
surroundings, that the slightest chop makes them disappear.”
Visibility also becomes an issue when you get into trouble and
continued on outside column of next sightings page
July, 2010 • Latitude 38 • Page 81
PHOTOS LATITUDE / ROB