As I said in another post, we were all beginners once and there's no shame in it or in ignorance on a subject, just in an unwillingness to learn. Always remember that while the sea, like the mountain, is not out to get you, but it is coldly unforgiving of any mistakes on your part.

As others have, I would strongly advise you to get some offshore experience by volunteering as unpaid crew. Since you're on the west coast, a great place to start is the Latitude 38 crew list: www.latitude38.com/crewlist/Crew.html#.Uxk3XY7TnbU
Prior to buying my first cruising boat, I assisted on several deliveries, most of which were secured through the crew list. It gave me a chance to sail on a variety of different boat types and learn a little about them. Be honest and don't exagerate your experience. Most skippers just want someone that they can trust to wake them up when anything is happening that the crew isn't comfortable dealing with.

In case you're not already aware of it, Latitude 38 is an excellant San Francisco area sailing magazine. It is available online and you can pick up free copies at any bay area chandlery.

If you've got more specific questions about boats, equipping and preparing them for a major passage, routing, or just about anything else, I am like most sailors, full of opinions and happy to share them with you (whether you want them or not). Feel free to email me off line at dan at dbsail dot org.