Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Holiday Cheer


I love the top picture, which was created by Cheryl and Jim for our Bradley family newsletter.  What a creative pair they are, and I was taken aback by each well-crafted headline and eye-catching article.  They also have considerable photoshop skills!

The lower picture is of our family gathering in Cameron Park.  It was great to see my grandparents again, and they are both doing well considering that they are 87 and 88 this year!

Tomorrow I leave for Japan for a 12 day stay, and I'll return by Jan. 10th to SFO.  I haven't visited since the earthquake in March.

Thursday, December 15, 2011

End of Term MBA Celebrations


The winter holidays are always special and full of indulgence and in many cases, overindulgence, but this year is distinct in that as school-mates, the 2012 MBA class has just completed a series of team-building exercises and course exams.  Now that they are finished, its time to celebrate! 



Sunday, December 4, 2011

Snow and Sailing in Edinburgh

 



I awoke to a beautiful sight: the crags outside my window were adorned with the first Winter snow. I went out to Port Edgar for one of the few remaining winter races, and raced on Hardslog and Hence Forth, both very competitive boats although rigged somewhat differently.  Hence Forth was very well laid out, but some controls such as the outhaul and spinnaker pole track were in new locations for me. On both boats I worked on the foredeck and got plenty of spinnaker packing practice. Although the morning race started out very cold, the temperature seemed to rise into the low forties (F) and my fingers soon thawed.

I found that last week's race footage aboard Hussy had been uploaded to Youtube by Rachel.
Here's the link.

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Firbush Point on Loch Tay

Familiar Vista?  Its not West Marin, but Loch Tay in the center of Scotland



Before exam week began about 2 weeks ago, a group of students assembled by the Plesance Center for Sport and Exercise. It was a Friday, and as the sun set we were ushered into a utility van and driven North towards the dead-center of Scotland. After the 2 hour journey we emerged into another world of mist and mountains, sheep and rocky crags. This place starkly contrasted the dank and smokey streets of Edinburgh. Here there were more bicycles than cars, and many other things that I hadn't seen since California: catamarans! I brought my bike along and got a ride in during the following morning. During the ride, I saw modest brick and stone houses, walls and make shift fences were the only human contribution to the rugged landscape. Later that day I was given the opportunity to helm the Dart 16 on Loch Tay, and winds developed from the West to keep us moving.
Dart 16: single trapeze, Poly Propylene (Bullet Proof) hulls
The second day featured a few of us mountain biking and the remainder kayaking, canoeing and wind-surfing.  I was part of the wind-surfing crew, and we were mostly successful in getting up despite the meager wind.

Monday, October 24, 2011

Heightened Security, New Bike

New Bike with 4 new locks attached (for a total of 5)  Can you spot them all?

All of this focus on locks took my attention to what I was locking the bike to...

Upon closer inspection, the entire bar could be removed by using a simple "monkey wrench" or socket set!!



So the saga of measures and countermeasures continue. I think that with enough locks, I can deter theft, but the weakest link is really my complacency as I've now learned time and again. What is the balance that will allow me to keep my possessions from being taken?

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Singing with the 2012 MBA Class

We had a blast on Thursday night, as we sang our cares away.  Thanks to Lucca for setting this event up, and managing the logistics of booking to singing-rooms.  I was impressed by the vocal talents of my classmates, especially when the canned-music cut off and Linda and Anna sang acapella songs from their native countries.  (China and Ukraine)  

Good times now that Semester 1a exams are finished

Best Buds


Friday, October 21, 2011

Theft in Edinburgh

An unfortunate part of being a tourist destination is that many people (like myself apparently) come unprepared for theft.  My bicycle was stolen from the foyer area of the apartment where I am currently staying, and I had carelessly left it unlocked to the bannister of the stairs in front of the apartment itself. (Bonnington Mills near Leith)  The outer door to the foyer was left unlocked... I came home last night at about 1am to find a helmet in the parking lot.  I didn't recognize it as my helmet immediately, but upon entering foyer, I noticed my bike was gone like being hit by a ton of medieval stone.  My bike shoes and pump were there, and they looked quite bare and useless without their complement, my Rocky Mountain Solo 30 road bike.  (See picture below)  Please contact me via the phone number below if you see this bike whizzing around the area.  I fear that chances for recovery are low, but it is a rare bicycle for this area, and should stand out.  (Rocky Mountain typically makes mountain bikes, and road bikes are not common for them to begin with...)

Call with any information regarding this theft:  0131 531 0459


Solo 30, a great road bike lost to theft in Edinburgh

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Sudanese Lunch (Coffee Etc.)



I'm glad that I tried this place--it is good and not prohibitively expensive.  The owner was pretty friendly, and I enjoyed my falafel wrap.  What I ordered ran about £3.75, or about $6.00

It kept me going for a few hours, and had a spicy sauce that I enjoyed.  Cappicino here is £1.50, or about $2.40.

The location can't be beat--right across the street from the Informatics building here on the central campus.

Yacht Clubs around Edinburgh

There are two yacht clubs that I can recommend so far:  Royal Forth and Port Edgar.  Both have racing, although PEYC seems busier over the winter racing season.  A rough map showing each club's location is below.  Port Edgar can be reached by bike trail from central Edinburgh but beware:  the bike trails are mixed in quality and sign-age is spotty at best.  I budget about 1 hour of travel time to travel the 10 or so miles, much less than I would budget on the farm roads around Davis!  (easily twice as long to travel here due to road sharing with cars, stop lights and so on...)

Bike Storage at Potterrow

The campus is guarding against bike theft by providing several "secure cycle storage" facilities, which allow entry based on swiping University cards.  The facilities have roofs, although the walls are fenced to allow wind to blow right through.  Some kind folks even left their extra floor pumps in there so that you can pump up your presta or schraeder valve tires!  This has helped me out more than once...   

Potterrow is one of the more popular ones, and a map of the facility is above (X marks the spot).

The University also maintains a list of shower facilities on its biking website.  Each green cyclist below represents a different secure store location.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

US Federal Loans, Unsubsidised much better

I'm taking out a loan for some of my educational costs this year.  Here are some points made on the US Department of Education website:

Summary PDF:
https://studentloans.gov/myDirectLoan/images/DL_PLUS_BRR.pdf

Taken From:
https://studentloans.gov/myDirectLoan/entranceCounseling.action?execution=e1s4

Current Graduate Student Rate:  
Direct Subsidized Loans made to graduate or professional students have a fixed interest rate of 6.8%.

The Direct Loan Program offers the following types of loans:

Direct Subsidized Loans:
Current rate of 6.8%

  • For students with financial need.
  • You must be enrolled at least half time.
  • No interest is charged while you are in school at least half time, during your grace period, and during deferment periods.
  • You do not have to make payments while you are attending school at least half time and during your grace period.
  • You will receive a six month grace period after you drop below half time.
Direct Unsubsidized Loans:
  • Not based on financial need.
  • You must be enrolled at least half time.
  • Interest is charged during all periods.
  • You do not have to make payments while you are attending school at least half time and during your grace period, but interest will continue to be charged.
  • You will receive a six month grace period after you drop below half time.
Direct PLUS Loans:
Current Rate of 7.9%
  • Unsubsidized loans for graduate or professional students (and for parents of dependent undergraduate students).
  • You must be enrolled at least half time.
  • You can borrow up to the school's cost of attendance, less all other financial assistance you receive.
  • Interest is charged during all periods.
  • Direct PLUS Loans do not have a grace period. The repayment begins as soon as the loan is fully disbursed, but you may defer repayment while you are enrolled at least half time and for an additional six months after you drop below half time.
  • To qualify for a Direct PLUS Loan, you must not have an adverse credit history. A credit check will be conducted.
  • If you have an adverse credit history, you may still qualify for a Direct PLUS Loan if you obtain an endorser who does not have an adverse credit history, or if you document to our satisfaction that there are extenuating circumstances related to your adverse credit history. (An endorser is someone who agrees to repay a Direct PLUS Loan if you do not repay the loan.)
Direct Consolidation Loans:
  • Eligible federal student loans can be combined into one Direct Consolidation Loan.

Your school will tell you how much you may borrow and the types of loans you are eligible to receive.

Monday, October 17, 2011

2011 MBA Exam Location and times

Exams to be held at 1 Adam House at 930AM Tuesday and Thursday

Adam House is #4 in the map above.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Blustery Day at Port Edgar, The Queen's Spice

I didn't get a sail in today, but I did cycle out to Port Edgar to watch the 2PM race. The winds were strong with 25 knot gusts, and I didn't see any brave souls flying spinnaker. I did get a chance to check out the catamaran fleet at Port Edgar and was impressed by some of the boats. They have a builder called Hurricane out here.


Port Edgar is the second club that I have sailed at so far. The first, called The Royal Forth Yacht Club gave me a chance to crew on a Scottish 707, a wide day sailer which is raced one design. I was lucky to get a great skipper on that day, and really enjoyed the close calls and control that they had over the boat.

Port Edgar is a larger club and is located close to Queensferry on the SW side of the Forth Bridges. It was apparently a destroyer base during WWII, and has very substantial and overbuilt facilities for the purpose that it is now serving. (IE, hosting sailboats!) It seems that the large tidal fluctuations (on the order of 20 ft) lead to some bottom scraping situations for some keel boat slips.


Because Port Edgar is about 10 miles away from where I stay, I've been struggling to find a streamlined route using the arcane bike paths. Here in Scotland, the paths are more frequented by dog walkers with kids than cyclists. That is fine, but most don't expect bikers to be coming at any speed. Signage is spotty, and in some places incorrect. Also, due to all of the construction, a good portion of the paths lead to a dead end, leaving one stranded in a construction site with only one way to go: back.

Hungry from my ride to Port Edgar, I decided to splurge at an Indian place called "The Queen's Spice".


There I ordered the Murgh Kabob with daal and rice. It was quite pricy (about 17 Pounds for lunch!) but the quantity of food prepared me for the ride back. Indian food here in the UK is more of a high-class affair than in the States, and I was woefully underdressed in my bike gear. Fortunately (or perhaps not so) for them, I was their only customer at the time, and had the place to myself.

On my ride back, I snapped some photos of the weather along a route where I once got lost at night. In the daylight I was able to better navigate and made it home much faster.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Week 1 in Edinburgh

The subtle differences between the US and Scotland are fun to take note of.  The fact that Starbucks here doesn't require a key to use the restroom, the distinct Scottish way of speaking, the ancient faucets and fixtures, the clothes washer in the kitchen, the different grocery store layout.  Dairy products are plentiful and of great quality.  Fresh produce is not.  That said, today I went to a farmer's market with a friend and found some good vegetables (such as a zucchini, potatoes and onions), fresh grown and not too expensive.

The real decency and sincerity of everyone I meet has impressed me.  The reality of the work ahead has not fully set in though.  The first day of orientation week was marked by rainbows which followed me to school.  The weekend before, I had seen a similar rainbow from Arthur's Seat.  The weather here is spectacular, and I don't mind it not being constantly sunny.  The wind early in the week was intense, and kept some of the UEBS orientation tours from taking place.  The wind also cleaned the city of the smoky filled streets and the rain periodically washed the cobblestones clean.

Pilrig St. at Leith Walk (close to a potential living option)
Student Union:  Teviot Hall at Bristo Square
Business School at St. George Square, near the business school on Nicholson street
George and Dika in Library Bar (Teviot)


Donald MacRae's talk on Scottish Economy

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Link to Online Resources, UEBS

Here is a link to a page where I list all of the online resources for the 2011-2012 MBA class.

http://uebs-links.blogspot.com/2011/09/links-collection-uebs.html

Here is a link to the first lecture day:

http://uebs-cases.blogspot.com/2011/09/summary-of-bartlett-mcleans-ges-jeff.html

And some pictures from today's walking tour of Edinburgh, and before on my flight over on an Airbus A380:

Business School, St George Entrance

Airflow over the A380 wing

San Francisco from the air

Cowgate Street, Edinburgh

Overlooking Edinburgh

Monday, September 5, 2011

Analyzing the BOR 90 Trimaran used in America's Cup 33

Center hull rarely touches the water, but adds an additional counterbalance to the enormous rigid rig.
Sloop rigged with a fabric jib, the high aspect ratio Main Sail is similar to my Hobie 20, except for the fact that it is 6.7 times larger and solid instead of fabric.  The proportions however, are similar.  One difference is that their Jib is fuller closer to the water and is a true Genoa in the sense that it's sail area looks to approach that of the main.
Note the wrinkles on the leading edge of the Genoa.  Could the jib halyard tension be insufficient?
Roughly 15 degree desired angle of heel with the mid hull 8 feet off the water.
Some manner of main sail trimming louvers controlled by the mid-hull crew.
Curved Dagger boards to accommodate effective angle of attack due to heel.  I don't quite understand why they are curved towards the heeling direction instead of away.  Do they act as a hydrofoil?

The blog below has a bunch of amazing photos of the construction of this beast.  Apparently the mainsail construction took place in San Diego.  With the large solid wing mainsail approaching 200 feet off the water, everything about this boat seems to have been all-out, spare no expense engineering.

http://www.adriaan.com/tag/bmw-oracle-trimaran/