l1ghtm4n

Day one of the Vallejo Race hosted by the Vallejo Yacht Club. ...

Sat, 05 May 2012 20:35:19 -0700

Day one of the Vallejo Race hosted by the Vallejo Yacht Club. I’m trimming on the Express 27 Strega

Resin Regatta, crewing on the Express 27 Strega

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 18:45:13 -0700

Saturday I have Kelly drive me up to Richmond Yacht Club. It’s east bay, north of Berkeley out on Point Richmond. I arrived at 9AM, rest of the guys show up around 9:30. I met Dave, Ben, and Nick and we get to discussing gear. Weather on shore was sunny and 70, forecast calling for 5-10 knots and high of 80. We pack light, some with only bib (pants), I and the others in shorts with weatherproof jackets and life vests. I help Dave rig the lines and sails while the others are tuning the shrouds. On this boat there are 4 shrouds per side. The turnbuckles that head to the junction of the mast and the first spreader shear off as they’re trying to get the right tension on them (measured with a Loos guage). So we’re stalled while the guys make a few runs to West Marine for parts. Meanwhile we set up the engine which sits on a removable perch off the back. Engine runs good. New parts on a tuned, we head out of the marina under motor.

As we go out we discuss positions. I’m the greenhorn so I’m willing to be flexible. Some spinnaker experience would be nice and is discussed, but we’re in a bit of a rush as it’s 10:30 and race is at 11:30. I’m assigned port-side grinder. I help tighten or ease the sheets during tacks upwind, I manage the boom while the trimmer flies the spinnaker during downwind jibes.

By 11:15 we have the motor in, sailing on a close reach towards the start. Wind has picked up a bit and waves as well. It’s hard to tell where the start is because 3 races were happening at the same time. We make a few radio calls to the SFYC race committee and eventually spot them. We arrive near the starting line with only minutes to spare.

The starting line is a marker (inflatable buoy) and the committee boat. The committee boat simultaneously shows a flag indicating which fleet is starting, and a number indicating the length of the course. The sailing instructions published a few days earlier outline a few courses, so it can be chosen based on weather on the day of the race. We’re in fleet 2, course number 3. That’s two “sausages”, or up and back leeward to windward, twice.

Horn gives us 6 minute warning, and a gun starts the race. Tactician and trimmer discuss course side preference with the skipper and we decide which tack to head out on based on wind, tides, and traffic. We tack a few times before reaching the windward mark. I’ve already added seconds to our time by staying on the leeward side of the boat way too long after a tack. Skipper tells me that I’m causing so much weather helm he can barely hang on to the tiller. I think back to my dinghy sailing… Heel to leeward causes boat to round up just based on the waterline profile. ”Weather helm” is caused when too much heel needs to be counteracted by the rudder. Throughout the day I try to get better at finishing my tacking tasks and getting to the other side, but usually I screw up in any of a number of ways: hang on to the lazy sheet too long, too slow to crank the jib in, trip on the jib sheet and yank it out of the cleat.

Racing is very different from cruising. By the end of the day the wind is at a steady 15-20 knots. Upwind legs are consistently at 20 degrees of heel or more. Downwind legs are a chance to ‘relax’ while we let the trimmer fly the kite and the rest of us just make subtle shifts to keep the boat level. Wind and waves which usually cause me to turn back home when cruising don’t even phase me here. We’re focused on trim and where we are in relation to the other boats. There are plenty of close calls as we have to remember who has the right of way (starboard tack). Distances are measured in mere feet from the mark or other boats. Sometimes we duck out of the way, other times we hold our course and force another boat off theirs. Everyone is soaked from waves regularly smashing into the hull. Sometime during the day it hits me that my knees and shins are destroyed from “climbing” the boat all day after tacks. Between races are a chance to grab a sandwich from the cooler, inevitably soggy from ice melting or water washing into the cabin on a aggressive tack.

We run 3 races on the first day. We place 9th and 10th out of 11 boats. Our standing is a little underwhelming, but at least we’re not last. I’m certain that I’m a big reason why we aren’t further up in the rankings. I do my best to acknowledge this to the rest of the crew and ask for tips for improvement. The guys are really constructive and helpful, and thankfully don’t throw me overboard. Once back at RYC, we moor up with another Express, put the sails and lines away and call it a day. Oh, and I drop my sunglasses overboard at the end of the day after we moor up.

On the way home I realize just how busted up I am. My knees are sunburnt to hell (still red and sore 3 days later), I can barely move my legs. My face is stiff and windblown. I’m SO glad I had brought my mechanics gloves I use for motorcycling otherwise I wouldn’t have any skin left on my hands. The only thing I did right was to work my back out like crazy in the weeks leading up to the race, so it feels ok. My ankles shins, and knees are covered in bruises all the way up and down.

Day two I’m well rested but my body still hurts. I decide to wear my foul weather overalls which makes things much more comfortable. It’s sunny and 70 on shore, the middle of the bay feels like 50 and foggy. We can’t even find the race. We literally do a circle around it and arrive at the starting line exactly when the gun goes off. We jibe around the committee boat and we’re off.

Only two races on day two, but it’s blowing like hell. 25-30 knots of wind keep us moving and make things real exciting. At one point I remember hanging on to the railing while the boat feels like it’s heeled 70 degrees over. I can’t see the leeward rail and the starboard winch is in the water. We make great speed upwind and are gaining on a number of boats. But we lose our advantage on the downwinds because we decided it’s too dangerous to fly the kite in this wind. Too dangerous while I’m on board, that is. It was sure fun to watch the other boats flying their spinnakers, though. I saw one broach, two kites entirely blown apart, and a countless number of twists and tangles trying to hoist. We stay on a broad reach jibing back and forth and still almost manage to keep up just because it was blowing so hard. The race commitee shortens the second to one sausage and an upwind finish. Day two we finish 9th and 8th out of 10 boats (one boat bailed half-way through the first race).

As we roll back in to RYC after the second day’s races, the wind calms down considerably in the shadow of Angel Island, so we hoist the kite for me to get some experience in. A few jibes and we’re back in port to clean up the boat and hoist it out of the water.

On the way home I made my wife stop at a Foster’s Freeze to get the biggest greasiest burger they sell. I probably could have eaten two.

Clipper race boats at Strictly Sailing in Alameda. Leaving today...

Sat, 14 Apr 2012 11:03:37 -0700

Clipper race boats at Strictly Sailing in Alameda. Leaving today for NYC.

Getting ready for the sailing season. After 10 years of...

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 14:48:26 -0700

Getting ready for the sailing season. After 10 years of cruising, I’m trying to find a regular crewing position with some serious racers. If anybody is in need, preferably on a boat out of South Beach Marina, please drop me a line.

Eggs Benedict with pork belly at CB. We moved Sunday brunch to...

Sat, 24 Mar 2012 14:53:04 -0700

Eggs Benedict with pork belly at CB. We moved Sunday brunch to Saturday because of crummy weather. No walks or sailboats today.

SusieCakes in Menlo Park. Couldn’t help stopping in for a...

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 18:29:30 -0700

SusieCakes in Menlo Park. Couldn’t help stopping in for a few cupcakes. Still trying to find a replacement for Buttercup Bake Shop’s lemon frosting.

Rooftop grilling in Mission Bay. Celebrating three wonderful...

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 19:37:10 -0700

Rooftop grilling in Mission Bay. Celebrating three wonderful years with my wife.

Listening to Helmet at Cruz Skate Shop. Takes me back to middle...

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 17:09:08 -0800

Listening to Helmet at Cruz Skate Shop. Takes me back to middle school.

Tip for New Parents: Get an iPad

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 12:50:00 -0800

After all the horror stories fed to me from folks who have kids, I feel like I’ve cheated.

A month before my wife went into labor, the baby got a present: an iPad. My wife thought I was crazy at first, but it was genius. Here’s why.

Books. Dr. Karp was required reading. My wife devours crime novels. With a new baby, who wants to load up the car and haul down to the bookstore (which there are fewer of now that they’re all bankrupt)? Kindle app, Nook app, iBooks. Books are purchased and in hand in 5 minutes.
Music. We spend a LOT of time in the baby room. Mom and Dad both like to hear music. Pandora solves the problem, with a new music stream just a touch away. To make it even better, I bought a logitech Bluetooth speaker and placed it under the crib. Much better than the internal speaker.
White noise. Dr. Karp and others’ suggest this. We got a free white noise app with varying intensities. Uses the Bluetooth speaker. Baby passes out.
FaceTime/Skype. Family doesn’t live nearby, so this is the best way to keep in touch. The big screen of the iPad means the baby can see faces. FaceTime works for apple users, Skype for my mom who still lives in PC land.
Calendar. We keep all pediatrician appointments here.
Touch browsing. Mom looks things up on the internet as questions arise: pooping, breastfeeding, swaddling techniques, growth spurts, etc. Of course these questions come up at 3am while holding the baby. The touch screen means it can all be done one-handed. A simple case which props the iPad up like a picture frame also means she doesn’t have to hold it.
Baby monitor. We live in an apartment, so we haven’t needed to take this step yet. It’s nice to know there are a number of solutions for the iPad, though. Video cameras which beam to the iPad. Apps which use the built-in camera to beam to other devices. A number of great possibilities here.

Note that we’ve never connected this iPad to our MacBook, so you don’t have to buy in to the whole Apple ecosystem. This whole worlds works on its own. Although we have started to collect pictures on it which we’d like backed up. iCloud or other services could solve this just as well as backing up to the MacBook.

Again, the checklist:

Spring came early for mission bay

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 09:19:24 -0800

Spring came early for mission bay

On Management

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 10:40:00 -0800

It’s been about a month since I was given the opportunity of managing an engineering team.

It’s hard.

I’ve been in similar positions before, but always as a tech lead. In those cases I knew the code and I built the processes to support it. It was my baby and I had a community to help me raise it.

Now I’m the educator. No longer my baby but others’ babies, and I’m telling them how to raise them. Imagine how well that works.

It’s hard.

But it’s also a great learning opportunity. I’m in the thick of a product push with some seasoned folks from whom I’ve already learned a great deal. A few of the lessons I’ve already internalized.

Communication is key. Engineers build things, so talking is a distraction from getting things done. So What do the non-engineers do with 8 hours a day? They communicate. They talk. They debate, then they agree, then they announce, then they repeat. These are there deliverables.
Mentors are a requirement. At 34 years old, I can’t insist on learning on my own. There’s too much collective knowledge in the world to ignore. Internet searches are a good start; someone working alongside you is even better.
Schedules matter. Plenty has been written about giving engineers lots of time to think; freedom to mentally explore solutions to problems. That freedom is bought by a manager who is fending off the business types’ expectations of detailed schedules and regular deliverables.

“The productivity of work is not the responsibility of the worker but of the manager.”

- Peter Drucker

Bikes at Alice’s on Skyline Blvd

Sun, 26 Feb 2012 20:01:00 -0800

Bikes at Alice’s on Skyline Blvd

"All that matters in business is that you get it right once."

Sun, 26 Feb 2012 09:49:21 -0800

“All that matters in business is that you get it right once.”

- Enjoying Mark Cuban’s How To Win at the Sport of Business

Excellent menu from Fatted Calf. My wife is a sucker for duck,...

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 19:35:47 -0800

Excellent menu from Fatted Calf. My wife is a sucker for duck, so I’m happy to find a source for cooking at home.

"What is the key thing that is wrong with code? The fact that you don’t express what you want. You..."

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:42:11 -0800

“What is the key thing that is wrong with code? The fact that you don’t express what you want. You express what steps have to be taken. Imagine telling your pal to grab you a beer from the fridge, step by step, with each step being robotically-rigid and with very little regard for context. It would be excruciating. And prone to catastrophic failure. Exactly like code is.”

- I want to fix programming - jonbho

just tristan.: My Favorite Companies to Watch in 2012

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 14:19:34 -0800

just tristan.: My Favorite Companies to Watch in 2012:

tristanwalker:

Last year on Dec 31, I wrote a post: Favorite Companies to Watch in 2011

I had fun doing it so decided I’d give it a go again this year. But first, a quick recap of last year’s selections before the 2012 predictions.

foursquare - I’m biased, but I think we have had a fantastic year. 15+MM…

Agree with the opportunity in sensor applications. Preferably some pattern recognition so these devices can begin to help me with repetitive tasks.

Dreary morning over the bay

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 09:56:34 -0800

Dreary morning over the bay

On discipline

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:06:59 -0800

“The first and best victory is to conquer self; to be conquered by self is of all things most shameful and vile.” -Plato

Circumstances have me thinking a lot lately about discipline. At 33, career well under way, family about to grow by +1, I have new influences on how to spend my time and ways to focus my energy.

Here’s the problem. I don’t have any discipline. My interest alone was enough to see projects through. This works fine for a single guy with zero dependents and zero reports. No timeline is required, so none is followed. Now I’m constantly interrupted. As a result, I accomplish far less than I used to.

The only way I see to fix this is to “conquer self”. There is some allowance for “this is how my brain works”, but so long as I’m not achieving things I’d like to, there’s a problem.

How I’m going to change things isn’t completely clear yet, but I’ve started my first step. Time. Becoming more aware of time passing. Floating along has made me terribly unaware of the passage of time, even if it was beneficial (12 hour coding marathons). To change this, I’ve started timing small tasks. Errands, chores, walks for coffee. It’s been about a week since I’ve started this and already I feel more clear minded while taking something on.

No substitute for friends and family. Happy Thanksgiving from...

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 17:50:00 -0800

No substitute for friends and family. Happy Thanksgiving from the Thompson family.

"Pictures Under Glass is an interaction paradigm of permanent numbness. It’s a Novocaine drip..."

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 03:57:26 -0800

“

Pictures Under Glass is an interaction paradigm of permanent numbness. It’s a Novocaine drip to the wrist. It denies our hands what they do best. And yet, it’s the star player in every Vision Of The Future.

To me, claiming that Pictures Under Glass is the future of interaction is like claiming that black-and-white is the future of photography. It’s obviously a transitional technology. And the sooner we transition, the better.

”

- Bret Victor, A Brief Rant On The Future Of Interactive Design