Wide-ranging field of paddlers and rowers in 2018 Great Cross-Sound Race from/to Alki

August 25, 2018 9:25 pm

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| West Seattle news | WS & Sports

(Winners Taylor and Hirtle)

Story and photos by Randall Hauk
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

28 human-powered watercraft and their humans braved unseasonal weather and subpar air quality to participate in the 2018 edition of the annual Great Cross-Sound Race, which launched off Alki Beach at 9 am Saturday morning.

The race, presented by Sound Rowers Open-Water Rowing and Paddling club, is open to all human-powered watercraft Event organizer Jeff Knakal said he was pleased with the turnout for the race, in light of the lingering smoke in the area.

“It’s great to see the variety of boats,” said Knakal (photo above), who, with wife Theresa Knakal, has been directing the race since 2001. “We have everything from a prone paddler to a four-man rowing shell, and beginners to very experienced rowers.”

While the vast majority of entrants used kayaks or rowing shells, this year’s race also featured a pedal boat and a stand-up paddleboard.

James Taylor and Peter Hirtle completed the course in 53:15 in their two-person open-water boat to best the field of 28. The final finisher was Ralph Allen, who crossed the sound in a wooden fixed-seat boat, finishing in just under two hours and 21 minutes.

¨I am surprised that it went as well as it did, considering the weather and the smoke,” said Knakal, who has been directing the race since 2001. ¨The boats came in really fast for the conditions. I thought the chase boat might turn some of the less-experienced people back, but that didn’t happen, so that was great.¨

(Club photographer Michael Lampi in his pedalboat)

Knakal says the race originated from a bar bet over whether the Sound could be rowed across in an hour. The 1988 race was the last to finish at Bainbridge Island, with all subsequent races starting and ending off Alki Beach. The current course, adopted in 1994, runs more than seven miles in a triangle starting from Alki and going around Blakely Rock and a buoy near Decatur Reef before returning to West Seattle.

¨It got really windy toward the island and got super-tough going around Blakely Rock,” said stand-up paddleboarder Zak Abeles, a student recently transplanted here from the San Francisco bay area who completed his route in 1 hour, 42 minutes. ¨It was raining out there, but it was pretty fun.¨

Watch this page for full results. Meantime, Sound Rowers’ next race is the Bainbridge Island Marathon on September 15, which is their longest race of the year. Club membership is not required for participation.

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West Seattle Crime Watch: Stolen black BMW; car break-in

August 25, 2018 8:16 pm

| 7 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news

Two reader reports:

STOLEN CAR: Kirsten e-mailed us this report after posting in the WSB Forums.

My car was stolen Thursday night/early Friday morning from right in front of our home on SW Nevada St.—the 2800 block. I have the police report (18-315901) and just want to get more eyes out there, as we know the perp had been shopping in the neighborhood from West Seattle down into White Center and Beverly Park/ Evansville on my now-cancelled cards. Home Depot, 76, Autozone, another Home Depot, Shell, O’Reilly’s…

So if you could please put the word out on a 2013 Black BMW X6 — license plate AYK8377 — and ask that people call 911 to report it if seen, I’d be so grateful. It’s just a car, but it was taken from right in front of our home along with a few personal effects in the car, and it feels incredibly violating. PLEASE. (And thank you.)

CAR BREAK-IN: From Ariana:

Just wanted to let everyone know that our car was broken into around 5 am, although our alarm went off and scared off the car prowler. We did have items in back that most likely encouraged them to break in. We live on 21st Ave SW (in) 98106 and this is the second time this year that our cars have been broken into – both times we had ‘valuable’-looking items in the back.

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UPDATE: ‘Scenes of violence’ response in South Admiral turns out to be hoax call

August 25, 2018 7:05 pm

| 13 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | WS breaking news

(Added: WSB photo by Christopher Boffoli)

7:05 PM: Police and fire are arriving at a “scenes of violence” call in the 3200 block of 41st SW, near SW Hinds [map]. Nearby streets are being blocked off, More to come.

7:15 PM: Still not sure of the circumstances that led to this response – our crew is on the way – but radio communication indicates police are talking with people who were in the house to which they were called.

7:21 PM: Police tell our first person on the scene, Christopher Boffoli, they believe this was a hoax/false report, but they are still checking and re-checking to be sure. SFD is being cleared.

7:30 PM: Police are reopening the streets.

7:37 PM: Police have verified that this was a hoax.

P.S. Making a call like that is a crime.

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DAY 1: What you can see, hear, and do at the 2018 Arts In Nature Festival

August 25, 2018 5:11 pm

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| West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

Just back from Camp Long, where the first day of the Arts In Nature Festival continues until about 8:30 tonight. One of the unusual sights – Aaron Haba and more than 900 marigold plants. Tomorrow, they’ll be offered free to festivalgoers, and he hopes people will send him photos when they bloom – his plan is to turn the photos into a collage. We also noted West Seattle artist Natalie Fobes‘s work “Spring/Fall Convergence”:

While our photographer was at the festival, we received a note from Natalie, who explained:

This eight-piece exhibit celebrates the nature around us.

Each mobile is made of a single photograph that is printed on the front and back of one sheet of paper. Fall is represented on one side with Spring on the other.

As the wind catches the mobiles, two-dimensional photography becomes a kinetic three-dimensional experience for the viewer.

For the last couple years I’ve tried to figure out how to make photography more interactive and more than two-dimensional prints on a wall. For this exhibit I used over 800 fishing swivels and jewelry findings to put the mobiles together. (My apologies to the fishing community for buying all the size 10 swivels at Big 5 multiple times in the last few months!)

Thanks to the DNDA for choosing me as one of the artists for the Festival.

Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association, now parent organization to the festival-founding Nature Consortium, presents Arts In Nature, an experience for creating as well as viewing.

All ages are welcome to do that. And the arts are spoken and written as well as visual:

That’s Seth Zuckerman reading essays. The festival is indoor-outdoor … with artists and art throughout the park (which is at 5200 35th SW) including inside the historic lodge. Explore the website for full details, including the schedule and ticket info, before you go – highlights in the hours ahead are onstage in the field, with Naomi Wachira at 6 pm, Nikkita Oliver at 6:50, and music headliner Rev. Pat Wright and the Total Experience Gospel Choir at 7:15. If you don’t get there tonight, the festival runs noon-6 pm Sunday too.

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West Seattle summer bucket list: Alki Point Lighthouse tour season ending soon

August 25, 2018 2:42 pm

| 1 COMMENT

| Fun stuff to do | West Seattle history | West Seattle news

(Photo by Debra Alderman, USCG Auxiliary)

It’s one of those things you can only do around here in the summer – and you only have two more chances! So Debra Alderman of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary is reminding you it’s not too late to tour historic Alki Point Lighthouse before summer’s end:

US Coast Guard Auxiliary volunteers will be giving tours at the Alki Point Lighthouse just two more Sundays for this season: Sunday, August 26th, and Sunday, September 2nd. Tours begin at 1 p.m. and the last visitors enter the site at 3:45 p.m.

We’d love to have lots of West Seattleites come for a visit! Learn about local history and how people and technology have been teaming up to keep people safe on Puget Sound for over a century. Entrance to the site is at 3201 Alki Avenue SW.

Questions? alkilighthouse@cgauxseattle.org

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PHOTOS: 2018 West Seattle Car Show – see the winners!

August 25, 2018 11:48 am

| 7 COMMENTS

| Puget Ridge | West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news

11:48 AM: The rainshower’s over on Puget Ridge and spectators continue wandering the 11th annual West Seattle Car Show on the north side of the South Seattle College (6000 16th SW; WSB sponsor) campus! Show admission is free and you can get lunch for only $5:

The Kiwanis Club of West Seattle is grilling burgers and hot dogs this year – you can get one with chips and water for only $5. That’s also what you’ll pay for tasting (five tastes, we hear) inside the Northwest Wine Academy, adjacent to the show zone:

Free kids’ activities inside, too. Back to the cars – bright colors under the gray skies!

West Seattle Autoworks and Swedish Automotive (WSB sponsors) are co-presenting the show this year, and proceeds are supporting SSC’s Automotive Technology program (which you can tour while you’re here) – you can help by buying 50/50 Raffle tickets ($1 each or 25 for $20) at the show tent on the east side of the lot – T-shirts for sale too, plus that’s where you can cast a vote for the People’s Choice Award. (Trophies get handed out starting at 2, so get here by then!)

1:44 PM: The winners have been notified and are moving up to their front. If you were still planning to come to the show, hurry! Meantime, one of the nice folks who have stopped by our booth to say hi (thanks, everybody!) shared some photos from a West Seattle car show of the past:

The Alki car show called it quits some years back. The photo provider said the pics were from the late ’80s/early ’90s. Meantime, we’ll update this with today’s winners later!

9:40 PM: The winners’ list (as best we could transcribe – if any spelling corrections, please let us know! Meantime, we’re still adding photos):

Up to 1939 – ’39 Ford, Rich Edmondson

1940-1949 – Cadillac Coupe, Nick Mastradea

1950-1959 – ’56 Chevy Magoo

1960-1969 – ’69 Mustang, Vern Enns

1970-1979 – ’76 Buick Wagon, Chuck Houston

1980-1994 – ’94 Corvette, Robert B.

1995-present – 2018 Camaro, Mike Thomas

Best Truck – 1969 Chevy, Sean T. Wiggins

Best European – MG MAG, Mike McCullough

Best Muscle Car – ’68 Chevelle, Fred Collins

Best (car owned by someone) Under 21 – 1991 BMW, Blake Cotton

Best Survivor – 1979 Lincoln, Chuck Houston

Best Modified – 1960 Falcon, Randall Ricci

Wild Card – 2018 Polaris, Jon Catlow

Double winner, People’s Choice and Best Woman-Owned Car – ’55 Ford Fairlane, Carrie LeBlanc

Judges’ Trophy – Corey Parkhurst’s DeLorean

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New signs for Schmitz Preserve Park courtesy of three West Seattle Girl Scouts – and a trail map for you!

August 25, 2018 10:55 am

| 13 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Thanks to Carey Drewes-Moore for the photos and report – including a Sunday morning offer for you!

Muriel, Lauren, and Kassidy from Girl Scout Troop 45120 came up with a fantastic idea for their Silver Award Project of replacing the signs at both entrances to Schmitz Preserve Park in hopes that hikers will be able to have a better understanding of the trails system.

They also offered historic information and information on some of the plants to stay away from while in the park on their signs. Because the park is a preserve, signs on the trails are not allowed, to preserve the natural environment. They each spent close to fifty hours researching and revising their plan, communicating with the city, and bringing together all their information to create the new signs. (On Friday), the girls installed both signs.

They are hosting a map handout for those looking for an awesome West Seattle hike on Sunday morning from 8-10 am at the Admiral entrance of Schmitz Preserve Park. We will have coffee, donuts, and maps to hand out!

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West Seattle Car Show, Arts in Nature, Beer & Music Festival, Outdoor Movies finale, rowing, shopping, more for your Saturday!

August 25, 2018 6:03 am

| 1 COMMENT

| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Recent visitors photographed by Mark Wangerin, who says Seal Sitters were out keeping watch)

Busy day and night! Here are the highlights:

ARTS AND CRAFTS FAIR: Look for treasures at this one-day fair at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 8 am-2 pm: “Jewelry, toys, clothing, prints, paintings, furniture, and more.” (5612 California SW)

GREAT CROSS-SOUND RACE: The Sound Rowers and Paddlers club’s annual race from Alki is set to start at 9 am. You should be able to watch the start and finish from the boardwalk by Alki Bathhouse. (60th/Alki)

WEST SEATTLE CAR SHOW: Last-minute decision to enter? Load-in starts at 8 am. For WS Car Show spectators, visit the north end of the South Seattle College (WSB sponsor) campus between 10 am and 3 pm. Show admission is free – food (fresh-grilled burgers and hot dogs) and beverages (including coffee and wine) are available for purchase. Kids’ activities, Seattle Chinese Garden tours, lots of ways to have fun along with admiring the cars! Presented by West Seattle Autoworks and Swedish Automotive (WSB sponsors), with co-sponsors including WSB. (6000 16th SW)

SHOP AT THE DUWAMISH LONGHOUSE: The Native Art Market and Jumble Days continue today, 10 am-5 pm. (4705 W. Marginal Way SW)

‘FIRED UP’ FAMILY DAY: The Log House Museum invites you to the nearby Homestead parking lot for a fun celebration of fire safety, with Seattle Fire and the Last Resort Fire Department. 11 am-1 pm. (2717 61st SW)

WEST SEATTLE BEER AND MUSIC FESTIVAL: Second day – two sessions (plus VIP options) – for the first-ever West Seattle Beer and Music Festival! 11 am-10 pm; go here for tickets and info on the beer, food, and music you’ll enjoy at the festival! At the Alki Masonic Lodge in The Junction. (4736 40th SW)

ARTS IN NATURE FESTIVAL: First of two days at Camp Long, noon-10 pm. Art, music, performance, participation! See the schedule here; get your advance tickets here. Presented by the Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association. (5200 35th SW)

AEGIS LIVING OF WEST SEATTLE’S GRAND OPENING: You’re invited to the open-house celebration for the new Aegis Living of West Seattle (WSB sponsor), 1-4 pm. Tours, food, music, and a special appearance by actress Loni Anderson. (4700 SW Admiral Way)

WEST SEATTLE OUTDOOR MOVIES FINALE: The WS Outdoor Movies season ends with the hit “Black Panther“:

The movie’s at dusk – 8:30-ish pm – outside the West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor); you’re welcome to bring your chair/blanket and get your spot as early as 6:30. Along with concessions sold by the Y, Sweet Bumpas Ice Cream will be there, and the season’s last benefit raffle is raising money for the West Seattle Mural Project! (3622 SW Snoqualmie)

JANIE WURM AND FRIENDS: 7-9 pm at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), musicians Janie Worm and Caryn Kupferman with poet Annee Fisher, providing an evening of inspiration. (5612 California SW)

JAMES LEE STANLEY: Singer, composer, comedian – he’ll entertain you at historic Kenyon Hall, starting at 7:30 pm. Check to see if tickets are still available. (7904 35th SW)

WHAT ELSE? Our complete calendar page has the answer to that!

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