"Never get out of the boat. Absolutely goddamn right. Unless you were goin' all the way." - Willard, Apocalypse Now.
This year the WEASEL is either mighty brave or mighty stupid. The boat is registered, the crew is all signed on, and the keg has been ordered. It is fast becoming a tradition for our boat to participate in this annual event put on by Randy Vogel (of RVYC). This event has long been known as a fun race and excellent party. Oddly I have no problem finding crew...
The race starts in English Bay near the Point Grey Bell Buoy and ends in Silva Bay where it begins the next day returning to English Bay. At Silva Bay there is a large dock party. It is unique in VARC since it uses a pursuit start where the slow boats are given their handicap by allowing them to start first.
It has largely remained unchanged over the years except when due to noise complaints the dock party location, RVYC's Silva Bay outstation was moved to the Silva Bay Marina due to noise complaints from Gabriola Island (This is really ironic considering the party has now moved closer to the complainers house! LOL) While this has split the RVYC-ers (who choose to tie-up at their outstation) from the rest of the fleet there is still an excellent dock party.
This year's keg is supplied by Storm Brewing of Vancouver.
The SEA WEASEL's first year in the event was 2008. One of the crew, Miles, had a idea. "Why by beer from the store when we could get a keg, it will be cheaper." This decision would come to haunt the WEASEL and lead to the legend that won me the 2008 Log Boom Award.
We went with a local micro brewery in East Vancouver called Storm Brewing. For $130 we got a keg containing 100+ pints of craft brewed beer. The brewery even delivered it to the dock beside the boat! This year we decided to give it a go again and keep the tradition alive. We did learn a few lessons from the year before:
- Don't rig the keg in the boat (the bilge was full of spilled beer)
- Don't touch it until safely at the dock
Last year's rig.
The 2008 Silva Bay Crew (left to right): Curtis, Cam, Dave, Miles, and Darryl.
This years crew of six consists of:
- Myself
- Cherylito
- Fatty-Dave
- Curt-ass
- Thomas
- Antony
* Crew is asked to keep their gear to a minimum to reduce weight on the boat, especially since were carrying the "7th man".
If you were wishing to join the crew at Silva Bay you can fly over (see below) or take BC Ferries to Duke Point (Naniamo) and transfer to the Gabriola Ferry. It is not walking distance so I would recommend a bike, or car (there is a taxi). Tenting is allowed at the Marina.
Silva Bay Marina location.
Dock layout.
Air Tofino: Float Plane Service to Silva Bay
Vancouver to Silva Bay: 9:00, 13:45 & 17:45
Silva Bay to Vancouver: 8:00, 11:00 & 16:45
Vancouver - Float Plane Terminal, 4640 Inglis Drive (near south terminal)
Gabriola Island - Silva Bay Resort, 3383 south road
One-way airfare is $67 per adult
See: http://www.tofinoair.com/ or call 1-800-665-2359 for more details
Sailing Instructions:
VARC Listing:
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