Sailing off the coast of San Francisco on August 3rd, the captain and crew of four aboard the vessel, Windchaser, found that their boat had become dead in the water, adrift after its propeller got entangled with a rope. Without cell service available, the captain. Dennis Dickerson, KI6KQJ, reached out to the Maritime Mobile Service Network on 20m, contacting net control John McGowan, K2JBX. After hearing that all aboard were safe, John said he would check in with Dennis the next day because the crew hoped to paddle ashore for repairs then. That scheduled check-in proved significant: Park rangers at the hoped-for landing site, Point Reyes Marine Reserve, were initially hesitant to grant access to the boat because the reserve is so environmentally sensitive. According to net manager Jeff Savasta, KB4JKL, John was able to help secure special permission for the boat to land for repairs - but by the time that critical permission was granted, propagation had changed.

The boat could not be reached immediately, however, when conditions changed, Jeff, on the next shift, was able to deliver the good news -- and the boat was on its way.