Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Ships and Salsa

“They were throwing up on the boat, and no one was there to clean it up,” said one employee of the Clear Channel radio group about a “Ships and Salsa” radio promotion April 21. Clear Channel’s 91X heavily promoted the one-day cruise to Rosarito Beach, which featured gambling and alcohol.

When it was over, Ships and Salsa was rechristened as the Vomit Cruise by some who took the voyage.

“It was ten hours of way too much booze and choppy seas,” said the insider.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“People got seasick. People were hurling all over.… Half the people who were throwing up were chain-reaction vomiting. The cruise line just wasn’t prepared to clean it all up.”

“I did hear that some people were getting sick,” said Ken David who promotes Casino Fun Cruises through the Matthews Mark advertising agency. He admitted the cruise line did not have a state-issued license to sell liquor at the time of the Ships and Salsa event. “They are securing the liquor license right now. I understand that requirements changed after they applied, and they had to provide a new set of fingerprints.”

“Was the alcohol given away?” I asked regarding a Ships and Salsa rumor.

“I’ll have to check that for you.”

The state recognizes a three-mile offshore rule that would allow the serving of alcohol if the ship was far enough offshore even without the liquor license. But the issue of overserving could be a much more serious problem.

“If anyone had have left that cruise and got in an accident because they were overserved, they could have sued the radio station and the cruise line and won big time,” said the insider.

Casino Fun Cruises is owned jointly by Florida-based Commodore Cruise lines, the Rosarito Beach Hotel, and Viejas, which operates the gambling operation.

“Too drunk? That can be subjective,” said Jim Fannan, general manager of the Commodore day cruises. “Some people overindulge. I wouldn’t be surprised. Young people will do what young people will do.” He said he suspects some of the guests showed up for the cruise already “in their cups.” Fannan said you needed to be 21 to be served and that no alcohol was given away. He said part of the problem may have been that alcohol was being served at the terminal before the ship departed. “We have no control of that.”

“Most of the guests arrived late,” said Fannan. “The ship was supposed to leave at 6 [p.m.]. It left at 8 [p.m.] and returned at 3 [a.m.]. Most of the guests showed up late. We graciously waited because of the radio promotion.… We learned a lesson. For future promotions, we will manage it a little better.”

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Mang Tomas, banana ketchup barred in San Diego

What will happen to Filipino Christmas here?

“They were throwing up on the boat, and no one was there to clean it up,” said one employee of the Clear Channel radio group about a “Ships and Salsa” radio promotion April 21. Clear Channel’s 91X heavily promoted the one-day cruise to Rosarito Beach, which featured gambling and alcohol.

When it was over, Ships and Salsa was rechristened as the Vomit Cruise by some who took the voyage.

“It was ten hours of way too much booze and choppy seas,” said the insider.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“People got seasick. People were hurling all over.… Half the people who were throwing up were chain-reaction vomiting. The cruise line just wasn’t prepared to clean it all up.”

“I did hear that some people were getting sick,” said Ken David who promotes Casino Fun Cruises through the Matthews Mark advertising agency. He admitted the cruise line did not have a state-issued license to sell liquor at the time of the Ships and Salsa event. “They are securing the liquor license right now. I understand that requirements changed after they applied, and they had to provide a new set of fingerprints.”

“Was the alcohol given away?” I asked regarding a Ships and Salsa rumor.

“I’ll have to check that for you.”

The state recognizes a three-mile offshore rule that would allow the serving of alcohol if the ship was far enough offshore even without the liquor license. But the issue of overserving could be a much more serious problem.

“If anyone had have left that cruise and got in an accident because they were overserved, they could have sued the radio station and the cruise line and won big time,” said the insider.

Casino Fun Cruises is owned jointly by Florida-based Commodore Cruise lines, the Rosarito Beach Hotel, and Viejas, which operates the gambling operation.

“Too drunk? That can be subjective,” said Jim Fannan, general manager of the Commodore day cruises. “Some people overindulge. I wouldn’t be surprised. Young people will do what young people will do.” He said he suspects some of the guests showed up for the cruise already “in their cups.” Fannan said you needed to be 21 to be served and that no alcohol was given away. He said part of the problem may have been that alcohol was being served at the terminal before the ship departed. “We have no control of that.”

“Most of the guests arrived late,” said Fannan. “The ship was supposed to leave at 6 [p.m.]. It left at 8 [p.m.] and returned at 3 [a.m.]. Most of the guests showed up late. We graciously waited because of the radio promotion.… We learned a lesson. For future promotions, we will manage it a little better.”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

La Clochette brings croissants—and cassoulet—to Mission Valley

Whatever's going on with this bakery business, Civita Park residents get a decent meal
Next Article

Chunky yellowtail from Alijos Rocks

Imperial Beach Pier thresher shark
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader