SL by balloon

This is so unboatly, yet sooo amazing I just gotta blog it. I arrived at Tradewinds, - still full of airships, when I noticed something new on the round table: So there is a roasted turkey, a cute little blimp and there's Fizz Cup 2012 results, but look at the book:

The round table at Tradewinds YC

It's a real book, - several books actually, about the most amazing journey around all continents of Second Life in a balloon. Tasha Kostolany of Tradewinds did an interview with the balloonist, Dahlia Jayaram. Read it at the Tradewinds blog, where you'll also find direct links to Dahlias fantastic books;

If you always wondered just what is the Blake Sea, then here's a direct link to Dahlias journey around the Blake Sea area. It's full of pretty pictures and descriptions of the sights. If you just wonder what all this balloonatics are about, then here's a bit of an explanation...

And then it is back to sailing...

Red October at Tradewinds

We saw some good racing at Tradewinds this weekend, and I'll get back to that in a bit. This post here is about a giant submarine that surfaced - right at the starting line - minutes before the sunday heats. It was only visible for seconds before it disappeared into the depths of the virtual oceans:

Red October (?) south of Tradewinds

Before it vanished, I managed to take this one picture. Not entirely sure what it is, but the sheer size of it made me think: Red October. I googled for that, and I think it could be right. Look at the size of that thing. It is huge. The little boat in the center is a Flying Fizz. There is a shadow behind the stern, which is one of those big coastguard boats with helipads.

More shots of subs here...

Race time

Guess what time it is: It is race time. Not just any race! This week marks the beginning of the most interesting race in 2012: The Flying Fizz Cup 2012.

Race me?

It is - in my humble opinion - the most competitive race in the most interesting of virtual boats available in Second Life. Yes, the boat in the back is pretty, and yes it sails pretty well. The Fizz however, sails like a real boat and more importantly: It gives you the controls and the hazards of a real boat.

Crossing the Blake with Titiro

Sailshape, telltales, windicator, compass, currents, waves, wind, crewed trimming, gusts, balancing, capsizes, nosedives, shifts and local variations... So get ur behind on the move to Tradewinds this weekend and experience virtual sailboat racing at its best.

PS: The shot above is from a lovely day at sea with Titiro. Here's a shot from one early morning last year, right before the Fizz Cup 2011 started. I kinda like how that shot captures the quietness before the storm.

Sailing the Zero

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to sail the SHA: Type Zero. While Tradewinds is in complete shadow from airships and balloons, I quickly launched the Type Zero, set sails and headed south to get some time alone with the sun, the sea and the boat.

Heading south

The first Type Zero I saw was black. Since it doesn't come in pink, I thought I'd try it in white. Regardless of the colour the good news are: It sails pretty well. The boat works great for cruising. It is easy to handle, reacts as expected, and everything seems to work. Speed seems ok, the healing is good, and the wake is very good. There is even a trimmable spinnaker with a pole.

Checking out the spin

The sailing sound is nice, though it is not very dynamic. This would be greatly improved by using an upgraded BWind sail engine. The older version works quite well, but it misses out on a few features.m Oh, and there is a fun thing about the hatch. It has a sound kinda like a door in a scifi movie, or one of those 1st person shooters...

There are a few glitches in the constructon too. I've already mentioned those, so no need to repeat. However, it seems the jib has already been resized to look like a more normal jib. There are other issues, if this is to become a top contender on the sail simulator market: Sails are flat and they don't luff. This is also fixed by using an updated BWind sail engine.

Close up

I also noted the boat has autogybe. This can be handy for a beginner, but in a race it can be a problem to have unwanted gybes. The spinnaker pole didn't switch side, when I gybed, but that's not too hard to fix. On this close up you can also see another detail: I need a tiller extension, or another steering pose. It looks like I am steering with my foot here...

Looking for an island

Looking up, I kinda miss a graphical feedback on wind direction and trim; Get rid of that ugly floating text with trim, heading and wind. Perhaps the most obvious miss in the sails is the non existing battens, but that's really really easy to fix. Really. Of course I'd also love to be able to balance the boat. It is wide enough, so it makes sense, and it is perfectly possible.

Safe sailing

In the department of nitty gritty there are other things such as sheets, downhauls, kickers and stuff, but lets forget those for the time being; Overall, the boat is a nice build, she sails nice and the feel is good. I had a great time sailing it. This boat will certainly take you and a friend safely to the virtual islands anywhere in the virtual seas, and that's really not too bad for a first build.

Smooth flying

Yesterday the sailing was bad. Still not sure what went wrong, but just a few hours later, the flying was very mooth, and somehow... it was related to the Fizz Cup too...

Smooth flying

So, how did I end up in a hot air balloon, you might ask... Easy enough: At Tradewinds most people  share an interest for building and sailing boats. Turns out Liv, the commodore, has a soft spot for (identified) flying objects. Aka planes and airships.

Balloon show at Tradewinds

This is probably how it came to be that after the live-aboard boat show, there is an airship show going on. The shot above is me heating up the balloon before "going to sea" in it. Never did this in RL, so I am on uncharted grounds here.

Ready for take off

So, - ready for takeoff? Let's see what this balloon can do. Push the pgup key, and the burner bursts into a roaring flame right above my head. I quickly shut it down and the balloon silently lifts and begins to drift eastward towards the light house. This is nice, but uhm... where's the controls?

Controls?

Phew; The winds kinda blew me right south off light house. Good. Now, - never mind the controls. What comes up must go down, and this thing is no exception. If I wanted to spend the night sitting on that yellow buoy I could probably have done that, but I decided to start the burner again... 

Reckognize this?

Perhaps I burned a little too much fuel here, cause the balloon went up pretty fast and the next thing I looked at was this ugly bugger parked over the clubhouse. Anyone reckognize it? Luckily the wind was blowing me away from the beast...

A much better view

Ahh... much better... I wonder if I can hit the island out there... if not, I can always use a parachute. If I can find it in my backpack. Parachuting is fun, but this post here is about the airships... Let's get back to the show... Err... arrow keys don't work. Oh how weird: Typing help seemed to actually help. There is a hud with buttons for controlling the balloon. 

Steering west

This is too easy... I can just click west, and the balloon flies westward... here we are approaching the clubhouse again. Note the other (dark) balloon in the back. Ok, so we have a hefty controllable seabreeze at Tradewinds, hehe.

More balloons in the back

There's loads of airships at Tradewinds. Big, small, cute, ugly... any shape and form. Some are realistic, and others are completely cartoonic. Don't miss the show. It runs throughout November. And don't miss the Fizz Cup 2012 starting this weekend. Didn't file this under unboatly, because an airship is a ship, so this is a boatshow... with a twist.

Many more details on Tradewinds website

Waiting for wind

There is always someone out there somewhere... waiting for wind... preparing for the FizzCup 2012.

Training for the FizzCup 2012

Sadly my computer refused to work properly today, so this shot is all I got from the training session. That's virtual life. Still, - was great to be out sailing the Fizz.

Here's a few shots from the FizzCup 2011.

Yet another new boat

It was a beautiful morning at Tradewinds YC. I went for a walk at the piers, when something caught my attention. It was... a sound. A beautiful mooring sound. You know... those splashy smacky sounds  when small waves hit a hull. Just wonderful. Strange how so few boats have a mooring sound.

A beautiful morning at Tradewinds YC

So where is it? Right behind me is my all time favourite, The Flying Fizz. It is probably still the reference for virtual sailing in SL. Further behind me to the left is the Oceanic, and that other one is the beautiful Ktaba 20. I hear there is an update lurking somewhere in the shadows of the virtual oceans...

The Sha: Type Zero

So here it is. It is called the Sha: Type Zero. It is a little different from most modern boats; It has low sides. (What's the english term?). Most modern boats have incredibly high sides to make room for accommodation. This one does away with that, and that makes it look like a lean sailing machine. My first thought was Kjaerulff's Dynamic 35. (Is there an english site somewhere?).

Modern shape

Seen from the top, the type Zero reveals a pretty modern shape. Kinda like a sized down VO65 or something. The mast is suitably tall, but strangely it only features one set of spreaders. A modern 33 footer with 12 meters of mast would probably have two sets. Not a big issue; Many popular RL ten meters have only one set anyways.

Features?

The features? I haven't sailed it yet, but it comes with a BWind sail engine; Very keelerish, and probably really good for this type of boat. Other features? I found this sign here on the pier next to the boat. Looks like a good daycruiser with room for a couple of friends.

Keel design of the 70ies

Here's another feature: The keel design looks a littlebit antique. Kinda like something from the 70-ies or sum-ding. How can that be a feature? From my adventure with the Nautilus I learned that the Blake Sea is really shallow. This design is able to sail almost anywhere in the virtual waters without running aground.

A peek inside

Despite the low cabin, there is actually something inside the boat. A couple of berths and two cupboards; Nicely designed too. Same style as the cockpit seats, and they are very comfy; Almost like a couch. Never seen this on a real boat, but it is a great idea, though perhaps not very suited for racing. Another cruising gadget is the instrument on the starboard side of the cockpit. It's not a compas, nor is it  a log or GPS. Instead, it is a Kenwood CD player. I suppose I could connect my iPod to the USB port, but it will be flooded first time a wave hits the bow.

There's a couple of other things... the boom looks a little long, the jib is designed as a storm-jib; Oh, and the ladder seems to be permanently in the water. Another thing is the extra set of winches mounted on the fore deck. However, this looks like a pretty decent build, and for a first - as the sign claims... Woots to the builder Shaaun Tamerlane. Shaaun, if you read this, I hope you'll let me sail her sometime. Peace out...