Picking a new captain

MIKE WHITEHEAD

Ahoy.

I’m off again on two yacht deliveries this week, and the seas are

not cooperating, with a weather system pushing through the southland.

As you read this column, I will be heading uphill from Mexico in a

55-foot yacht with our first stop in San Diego for U.S. Customs and

fuel. The swell conditions are still not ideal, but with this size of

boat, we can safely make it to her home port in Huntington Harbour.

A change of command is looming at the Orange County Sheriff’s

Harbor Patrol: Capt. Stan Jacquot is leaving as harbormaster. A few

years ago, retired Harbormaster Marty Kasules transformed the

department back into an excellent community service for Newport

Harbor and the boating public, something that’s apparent in every

deputy who patrols the waterways.

The knowledge and expertise that Kasules had in boating, as well

as in law enforcement, were beneficial to our harbor. As an active

boater, I welcomed him and his staff to continue the development and

connection among the Sheriff’s Department, the city of Newport Beach,

the boaters and other entities in Newport.

Now, I recommend Lt. Greg Russell for the new harbormaster.

Russell is 100% qualified and now the second in command at the Harbor

Patrol, plus he has served as the acting harbormaster during recent

position changes. Russell has the knowledge and expertise to oversee

the department, and he has years of actual service in Newport Harbor

interacting with the community.

I have had the pleasure of serving with him on many of the

harbor’s related committees with the Newport Beach Chamber of

Commerce and the city of Newport Beach, and he is dedicated to

serving in the best interests of the boaters, harbor, city, county

and the community.

I think Newport deserves a harbormaster who has firsthand

knowledge of our harbor and can actually operate a fireboat. Sheriff

Mike Carona, that person is Lt. Russell. If you have any questions,

please give me a call.

TIP OF THE WEEK

Check your vessel’s sea strainers regularly during the rainy

season. Sea strainers are the collection baskets connected inline

after the through-hull saltwater pickups, commonly referred to as raw

water strainers.

The sea strainer collects debris sucked up into the hose from the

water, protecting systems like engines, generators, heating and air

conditioning, heads, bait tanks and water makers. The rainwater,

especially after the first rains, will flush a lot of debris

downstream that collects in the storm drain channels. This debris

will clog up the strainers, thus preventing the normal water flow

past the strainers.

* MIKE WHITEHEAD is the Pilot’s boating and harbor columnist. Send

him your harbor and marine-related thoughts and story suggestions by

e-mail to mike@boathousetv.com or visit https://www.boathousetv.com.