San Francisco Day 3

Natalia Cohen By

San Francisco Day 3

Golden Gate Bridge

The morning began with a group skype session with Keith (our sports psych) and then the four of us split up to do slightly different tasks that needed to be done.

I have now taken on the responsibility of mindfulness and fun monitor for the team

Laura went to collect Tony (our shore support) from the airport and after a group lunch, she headed off to drop him at the hostel where he was due to stay. This seemed to be one of the worst parts of San Fran, filled with many homeless people, drug users and basically was the type of place you would want to drive through and keep your doors locked!! Clearly we couldn’t put our Tony there. We brought him back to stay with us for the night and will find him somewhere more suitable tomorrow!
Early evening we headed over the Golden Gate Bridge to Presidio Yacht Club where we will be launching from and where we had been asked to talk about our upcoming expedition to the club’s members. Their view out over the bay is priceless. Our warm welcome from Jason, Dutch, Rear Commodore Steve and his wife and Vice Commodore Jen was overwhelming! We gave our presentation, joined the 50 yacht club members for a gumbo dinner and then after hugs all round headed out for a drink in a recommended bar called the Tipsy Pig. This was obviously instigated by me, the fun monitor!! Vice Commodore Jen and couple of her friends James and Octavia offered to accompany us.
We headed back over the Golden Gate Bridge and into a new area of town we hadn’t been before. Everyone was in high spirits and we were looking forward to a couple of drinks (extra calories – so all good).

Dinner at Presidio Yacht Club

We were driving happily when blue lights flashed and we heard a loud speaker behind us saying ‘Pull over please’. Laura slowed and was about to do as instructed but then the loud speaker said, ‘No – not here. Head to the parking bay’. Ok….we did as instructed and were about to pull over when we were reprimanded again with a ‘Not to the left – over there on the right’.
Luckily after a light telling off for not coming to a complete standstill at a stop street, we were sent on our way.

We headed into the bar where everyone had to show ID (very American) and to my horror I realised that I didn’t have any!! I only had a copy of my passport (not accepted apparently) and so to the fun monitor’s dismay I stopped everyone entering. Luckily the security guy took pity on me and as well as offering to buy me a drink if I went home and got my ID (!?!), also very kindly directed us to a near by haunt that would allow me entry.
Fun resumed and we all had a drink, chatted to some random locals and then headed home just after midnight.

A great day for the team. A little bit of team psych, a little local PR for the expedition, being stopped by the Police and then a little social time… x

CC and Tony

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7 Comments

  1. Hiya team (ESPECIALLY Natalia!)
    Great to hear that it’s all beginning to happen, and that you are all fit and well.
    I was particularly interested to see that Nat is lead for Mindfulness, as I have adopted this range of practices over the last year for myself, and recently went on an 8 week evening course with a Buddhist center. I am sure that you will all benefit from the calming, centering and renewing that the practices bring.
    Hope you all managed to get over any initial resistance to adopting the unusual styles, and being able to Let Go.
    Wishing you All Four the very best as you prepare (not too many high calorie Drinks, I guess – you may miss then too much!) from David

    • Natalia Cohen Natalia Cohen says:

      Hey David,

      Thanks for the good wishes.
      Mindfulness and a little meditation is going to be key for us all whilst out on the ocean. We have already done preparation with our sports psych, dealing with coping and performance enhancing strategies.
      Luckily we’re all really good at letting go. We deal with issues that arise openly and honestly and then we move on.
      It’s all about being in the moment…and that is really the only place that we can be for the next 6 months!
      Natalia
      x

  2. Thinking of you as the nerves surely must be kicking in. Out into the big blue you are all about to embark… I wish you smooth waters and a gentle breeze and current at your back

    I hope you see a whale at some point – right as the exhaustion is kicking in and you are all uplifted all the way to Cairns.

    Safe rowing ladies; you are a true inspiration!

    Blessings. Go safely. Love you Nat – ladies, take care of each other :-)

    • Natalia Cohen Natalia Cohen says:

      Thanks so much Karen.
      I’ll be thinking of you out in the big blue while we’re out in the big blue and I look forward to sharing the stories of our friendship with the team.
      Be good and be happy
      Natalia
      x

  3. herb marsden says:

    Hello Natalia and crew.
    I am one of the random locals you met in the Marina District Saturday night while you were making your way to the Tipsy Pig. I loved hearing your story. The goal the four of you have to row to Australia seemed unbelievable and gutsy. The five of you were so calm and grounded. And the best smiles! Jennifer of Resilience Racing seemed to be a giant fan of your endeavor. I’ve been reading your blog for a couple of days. ID’s, cops, credit card failures, Costco, the decency of people who are helping your team. How could you not go for a run (or swim) along the San Francisco Bay shoreline. Good stuff…
    Best of luck to you all while at sea.
    Herb

    • Natalia Cohen Natalia Cohen says:

      Hi Herb,
      Thanks so much for your message and it was lovely to meet you the other evening.
      We really appreciate your support and are glad you’re following our journey.
      The plan is to do daily blogs also whilst out at sea so please keep on checking back in…
      Thanks again and maybe we’ll bump into you again before we leave…
      Natalia and the team x

  4. Rachael says:

    Hi Natalia. I am thinking of you from Cape Town. I hope you guys are safe and strong. What an awesome journey!!!

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