Google takes over OCSC (for a night…)

Last week, we had Google’s Sailing Team out for a beautiful and exciting evening of sailing at OCSC! The group made the journey from Mountain View on a Friday evening to enjoy a sunset cruise and a exciting 20 knot breeze.  The Google crew had a great time and so did we!

The Google sailing group!

The Google sailing group!

The group went sailing for 2 hours with OCSC Instructors and followed that with socializing and refreshments in the clubroom.  A great opportunity to bond, learn, and, most importantly, have fun with co-workers.

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The Brief History of OCSC and the Berkeley Marina

garbage-dump-1blogAs many of you know, the area now known as the Berkeley Marina originally served as the city municipal dump.  When Anthony and Rich started the club this is what they had to work with.  Since the late 1920’s, the site had been the destination for the city’s garbage waste and construction debris.  The accumulated waste  accounted for (and still accounts for) most of the dry land of the Berkeley Marina. It was a little rough around the edges, but the location had everything going for it: centralized location, good access and, most importantly, great wind.

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5 Cool iPhone Apps for Sailors!

We’re always keeping an eye on the latest and greatest in sailing technology.  One of the newest and most helpful pieces of technology we’ve found may already be in your pocket… the iPhone! The iPhone has quickly become a favorite tool for many SF Bay sailors. After searching through the app store, it’s easy to see why.  We found 5 apps that are particularly useful for sailors.  Leave a comment if you know of any we left out! A special thanks to Bruce Powell, OCSC Instructor, for the great advice!

1) Aye Tides
AyeTides displays tides and currents for locations around the world. AyeTides is tuned for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It is a stand-alone application and does not require internet access to function. Have tides and currents at your fingertips at all times! An easy way to plan ahead or be helpful as crew.  

Aye Tides

2) MotionX GPS
MotionX GPS was designed by sailor/inventor/entrepreneur Philippe Kahn and was used by Kahn during his record setting Transpacific Run. The app has a virtual compass for navigation and a stopwatch to record time, distance, speed and average pace. It lets you email your tracks and waypoints with your photos so they can be viewed on Google Earth and Google Maps. It’s also available in MotionX GPS Lite.

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OCSC’s Must See Movies

We’ve been getting quite a few recommendations for new movies.  We wanted to share a few that we’re really excited about.  If you have any movies you think we should know about, put a link in the comments or Email me.

180° SOUTH
180° SOUTH is the story of one of the most unique and prolific environmentalists of our time -Yvon Chouinard. Rather than re-living Yvon’s story through old photos and his life’s work with pie charts, 180° SOUTH weaves Chouinard’s tale through a modern day expedition. This expedition was inspired by the rumor of a legendary trip in 1968 and the proof that came with it when the lost cans of film that documented the trip were recently discovered. The old footage captures Chouinard and best friend Doug Tompkins in 1968 as they explore untouched mountain ranges and un-surfed coastline on a 5000 mile expedition from California to deep Patagonia. For the two men, the original ’68 adventure still stands as “the trip of our lives.”

The Cove

The Cove begins in Taiji, Japan, where former dolphin trainer Ric O’Barry has come to set things right after a long search for redemption. In the 1960s, it was O’Barry who captured and trained the 5 dolphins who played the title character in the international television sensation “Flipper.”

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Study Proves Boaters Are Better Lovers

We wanted to pass along this article we found in The Log Newspaper. This is scientific confirmation of what we had always thought.

AMSTERDAM — According to scientists at the Onzin Institute, the message on the old bumper sticker is absolutely true: Boaters DO make better lovers.

In its four-year study, “Environmental Effects on the Virility Index,” the Onzin Institute

measured human sexual drive, ability and potency on a standardized scale called the Virility Index. A total of 2,000 Dutch couples participated in research through a variety of sensors and heat-sensing video cameras, measuring reactions when they were presented with stimuli and during sex.

The result? Participants who listed “boating/sailing” among their top three leisure activities scored nearly double the average on the Virility Index. And those listing their occupation as “maritime” scored higher than participants who worked on shore.

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