BUNCH, Raymond
BUNCH, Raymond L. (1923-1976) [SS#553-26-3215], owner of the 22-foot cabin cruiser Sure Bet, that was lost off Santa Cruz Island with six people onboard. In addition to Raymond Bunch the following were on board: Bunch's wife, Mary, 48; Mrs. Frances Wadell, 49, Ojai, and her son, Lee, 26; and Dennis Braeton, 27, and his wife, Debbie, 24, visitors from Michigan.
The Sure Bet was ashore with her passengers at Coches Prietos prior to the accident.
In the News~
April 1976 [Mike Grus, Log of Sea Linguist ]: “April 13, 1976: Destination Coches Prietos Anchorage. ETD 0800. Sailed/motored all the way there and put out bow and stern anchors.
April 14, 1976: Swam, soaked up the sun and ate our fill of abalone. SW winds clocking around to the NW by dusk with 20-25k during the night. The next day a cruising boat which had also been in the anchorage that night left for the west end of the island and Forney's anchorage but returned a couple of hours later with tales of "lots of wind."
April 15, 1976: Went hiking with the wind W-NW at 20-25K and as we descended to the beach in the later afternoon I saw my Avon dingy, which had been pulled up on the beach about 50 years from the water and turned over, start blowing out of the cove. I raced down but was too late to catch it. There was a 24-foot [22-foot] inboard/outboard pulled up on the beach with the passengers scattered around pulling black abalone off the rocks since it was low tide. I ran up to the person who looked like he might be the skipper and asked him if he wold take me out to retrieve my Avon. He grumbled a bit and said that he was going to gather all his friends and in the boat before he would shove off. Finally, all the folks were onboard and we put out to chase the Avon. The wind was blowing about 30k straight down from the spine of the island creating 6-foot wind waves. The Avon was doing cartwheels but we reached it about a mile off shore and wrestled it on board. As we came toward the anchorage it was quite evident that if the wind was this strong on the south side of the island it would be terrible on the other side. I suggested that they stay on the island because of what the wind would be like between the east end and Ventura, but the skipper was adamant about getting back to Ojai. I did have the peace of mind to bring my oars along and as I got in the dingy, thanking everyone and bidding them bon voyage, I saw the skipper raise a half gallon of Old Crow bourbon and take a big drink of it. And with that, the Sure Bet took off for San Pedro Point on the east end of Santa Cruz. After another great abalone dinner I stuck my head out of the hatch and noticed that the big bluff that was on the port side of the boat when I went below for dinner was now on the starboard side. Hoping that what I was seeing might have something to do with wine, I was quickly disabused of that notion when I saw that the direction of pointy end of the boat was toward the beach, not toward the ocean as it should be. The stern cleat holding the anchor rode had broken luckily my bow anchor had done an admirable about face and was holding firmly. The three of us did anchor watches that night and were awakened by the drone of Coast Guard planes overhead which seamed to be searching for something. Not having a vhf radio in those days, I was able to tune into KIST on my little AM portable radio and our suspicions were confirmed...the CG was searching for a boat named Sure Bet which had sent one Mayday call and then nothing more.
Addendum: A few days after the boat was found one female body was located off Pt. Vicente (Palos Verdes peninsula) and another female body washed up in Santa Monica Bay. The one thing that has always stuck with me about that experience is that I was the last person to see those seven [six] people on Sure Bet alive...May they rest in peace.”
April 17, 1976 [Redlands Daily Facts]: “Winds subside, fair weather for Easter. Overturned cruiser found. Strong winds and heavy seas battered the Southern California coast Friday...A coast guard helicopter today located the 22-foot cabin cruiser Sure Bet, missing since Thursday with six persons aboard, off the coast of San Pedro, about 80 miles south of where the vessel sent an SOS signal. There was no immediate word on the three men and three women who had been on board. A coast guard spokesman said the overturned was spotted about 20 miles due west of Pt. Fermin. A civilian boat in the area, the Dilly Dally IV, confirmed that the overturned boat was the Sure Bet. The coast guard cutter Point Carrew arrived at the scene at 10:20 a.m., the spokesman said, but was unable to report the status of the passengers. The Sure Bet, en route from Channel Islands Harbor to Santa Cruz Island, had radioed a distress message at 4:50 Thursday afternoon and a relative of two of the passengers reported the vessel overdue two hours later. Waves 25 feet high were breaking on shore at the time the Sure Bet disappeared off Ventura. The owner of Sure Bet, Raymond Bunch, 51, Ojai, said in his distress call that the vessel's engine had failed. Also aboard were Bunch's wife, Mary, 48; Mrs. Frances Wadell, 49, Ojai, and her son, Lee, 26; and Dennis Braeton, 27, and his wife, Debbie, 24, visitors from Michigan. The Coast Guard was kept busy Friday, answering calls for help and tracking debris...”
April 20, 1976 [Long Beach Independent]: “Woman's body in sea. The body of an unidentified woman, possibly one of six persons missing from the storm-tossed cabin cruiser Sure Bet, was found floating in the water off Point Vicente Monday, county lifeguards said. The woman, believed to be in her early 20s, was found floating in a life jacket four miles offshore about 3:30 p.m. by a U.S. government marine biology crew. County lifeguards took the body into King Harbor at Redondo Beach, and it was then moved to the coroner's office for identification. Lifeguard Lt. Steve Voorhees said the victim was wearing a bathing suit top, a coat and bluejeans...”
