Strictly Sail Chicago Trip

Our hotel near Navy Pier

So, what is wrong with sailors?  We travel long distances, pay admission fees, stay in over-priced hotels, pay waaaaaay too much for food and drink just to look at sailboats that we will never (and I mean never) be able to afford.  Well, it may be that sailors love to interact with other sailors, argue over the best brands, look for ideas to improve our own boats, or simply spend time dreaming about sailing.

It's 5 o'clock somewhere.  (Mike and Jim got their Drambuie later)

Brenda and I, along with our sailing buddies Jim and Joni, traveled down to Chicago for the Strictly Sail Show where we checked out all the beautiful sailboats and equipment.  Catalina, Hunter, Island Packet, Seaward, Jeanneau, Beneteau, Com-Pac, and others all had their latest and greatest offerings.  We spent all of Saturday looking them over as well as checking out all the supplier's booths.
 

Checking out the "purdy" boats

It is fun to look at all the whiz bang gadgets and fortunately we didn't find anything that we couldn't live without. Lots of stuff we wanted and maybe even lusted after, but nothing followed us home.  One highlight of the show was meeting Bob Bitchin of Lats and Atts fame.  We have always enjoyed his magazine and the DVD's of his TV show episodes.  He is a big man in frame and personality, so getting our picture taken with him was pretty cool.

Bob Bitchin

Another highlight was meeting the builder of our Com-Pac 19, Rich Hutchins.  It was fun to talk shop with him and look over the three CP's he brought to the show.

CP-23 Pilothouse

Com-Pac display

So, now that we know we can't afford a shiny new whiz bang special sailboat, we can happily go about our search for a used sailboat knowing that what we end up with will be much more suitable for blue water adventuring.

The view from our hotel was worth it!

Dinner for Two

One of the challenges of boating is finding something interesting to eat that is easy to fix, requires little to no refrigeration and is filling, healthy and tasty.  OK, PB & J meets most of these qualification, but sometimes with our glass of wine, parked out in front of the Edgewater, listening to a reggae band, we want something with a little more class.  I don't consider myself to be much of a cook. Neither do many others.  In fact, this Christmas I received a set of pot holders, hand sewn by my mother-in-law, whom I dearly love.  The potholders were embroidered with "Believe you can!".   But I feel like a chef when this plate is presented and appreciated.

All you need:   2 beefsteak tomatoes, fresh basil, sliced mozzarella cheese and balsamic vinegar.  Slice the tomatoes and layer with the basil and cheese. 

 

 

 Place in a ziplock bag or other container and add a few tablespoons of balsamic vinegar as a marinade.  

 

 

 

 

You can put this together before you leave for a weekend and just throw the bag in the cooler or refrigerator until you are ready to eat.  When you take the "sandwich" out of the bag, all you need to do is arrange it on a plate.  The marinade can be drizzled over the top for more flavor.  The cheese takes on a meaty texture when marinated.  So, if you can slice a tomato, you can prepare this meal.

 

This is one of our favorite meals, especially when paired with a glass of wine.  I feel so accomplished when I can present a fancy looking feast while floating on the lake with no electricity or refrigeration.

 

 Brenda

Ladies - You're On The Boat, Why Not Sail It?

 
OK ladies and gents, listen up!  If the pretty half of your sailing crew isn't reading this - she should be!  We can't emphasize enough how important it is for this to be a shared adventure.  Ok, there can be blue jobs and pink jobs, but for everyone's enjoyment of sailing, it is important that you both participate and become comfortable with all aspects of handling the ship.  Yes ladies, you do need to know how to empty the port-a-potty - but you don't have to do it every time. (OK, we ladies all know some tricks to get out of jobs like this.)  Likewise, gents, you need to share the fun!  Our comfort and pleasure has been enhanced because Mike has encouraged me to take the tiller, hank the jib, raise the sails, drop the anchor, and pull the cord for the motor (again ladies, you don't have to do this every time, but it sure is reassuring to know that you can do it if you have to.  Powerful stuff!).  I now feel more comfortable being in control which makes me feel safer on the boat.  It amazes us how many couples that do sail together have one crew and one passenger.  This just doesn't work for us.  I need to know that I can do what is necessary if Mike should go overboard or become ill.  And, it makes sailing fun when I can take the tiller, make the decisions on course and sail trim, and actually get where we planned to go.  When Mike pulls the anchor, which is usually my duty, he can understand what I am talking about when I say,  "It is hard to put the retaining pin through when we anchor."  He can then come up with a solution.

Sarah and Brenda in control on Lake Carlyle, IL.

On a recent sail with another couple on our Com-Pac 19, the ladies took the tiller and the guys acted as bow candy.  Ladies you have to share the bow with the guys - it's only fair.  And you can even enjoy the view and stroke their egos by saying, "Nice bow candy!" (which it was!!!)  From the beginning, this is how we have approached learning to sail.  I know that I wouldn't enjoy sailing nearly as much as I do now, and I don't think Mike would either.  Knowing that Mike trusts me and respects me enough to let me try, assures me that he values my feelings and my self-worth - two very important ingredients in a lasting relationship.

Brenda

You may enjoy reading Suzanne Giesemann's It's Your Boat Too: A Woman's Guide to Greater Enjoyment On The Water.

Sailing in Door County 2010

Looking out our window, all we see is snow.  Good time to cuddle up and add some warm memories to our blog.  Here is a journal entry from a trip we took to Door County two summers ago.  We had so much fun we went again last summer and plan to go again this summer.  Enjoy - and think warm!

Pack your bags and fill the coolers - we are heading to Door County.  Lucky for us, our friends for forever, Jim and Joni (Mike and Jim have been best friends since 7th grade), have also picked up the sailing bug.  They have a Hunter 22 and together we began planning this trip to test our sailing skills and to add to our treasured vacation memories.  As we were leaving from home, our 18 year old son called out, "You guys be good.  I don't want to get any calls from the marina, complaining about the neighbors."  We chuckled, never thinking we would need such a warning.

View of Egg Harbor from Main Street

Egg Harbor's New Marina

After an easy 3.5 hour tow, we set up camp in the Marina's parking lot.  Since we knew we would be arriving after hours, we had arranged with the harbor master to overnight on the blacktop.  As the sun set, we took a quick look at this newly remodeled facility.   Floating docks, lots of slips, nice ramp well lit, very protected, beautiful setting tucked down the hill behind the main street.  Nice showers.  Big parking lot.  Best of all, it is within walking distance of Shipwrecked, a  fun restaurant and bar.

Shipwrecked  Brew Pub

 
We decided we needed to be sure this was an OK establishment, so we sampled the food, wine and beer before turning in for the night.
The temperature had dropped as the sun set (40's) which made for a nippy night in the boats since we did not yet have access to electricity for our little space heaters. 

In the morning, we managed to set off the truck alarm at 6:30 a.m. by leaning on the key fob left in a jacket pocket. The joys of  trailer sailing, no room to move around in the cabin.  After emerging topsides, we expected our friends to ridicule us for winning the "bad marina neighbor" contest, but he said that at about the same time our truck alarm was going off, he was busy putting out a fire in his boat and considering calling in the fire department.  It seems he spilled a little alcohol when he filled his one-burner campstove and it ignited around the tank and on his cushions.  He woke up his wife Joni by telling her, "You might want to get up now, the boat is on fire."  Fortunately he was able to smother the flames with a pillow, so no fire trucks for us.  (Don't anyone tell our son!).

CP 19 and Hunter 22 "Campers"

Friday morning we walked about three blocks to the Bistro restaurant for breakfast and a captain's briefing.  We decided to sail north since there was an unusual east wind predicted.  After our bellies were full, we returned to the marina, rigged and dunked the boats to a beautiful morning sun which foretold a truly awesome day.  We were nervous about motoring out of the marina past all the 40-50 foot yachts worth more than our entire life's earnings. We had just picked up our 8 hp Mariner from the shop the day before for carb repairs and we hadn't had it out for a test run yet.  Mike normally takes care of our mechanical issues, but work and other commitments didn't leave enough time to get the repair done.  Fortunately, the motor ran well all weekend and we found motoring out of the marina to be quite easy.

We had a great sail in 7-12 mph winds with just a few 15 mph gusts.  The views of the shoreline, BIG sailboats, and the small islands dotting the area made for a pleasant, relaxing morning.  We found we moved along nicely near hull speed with very little heeling, but the Hunter 22 still pulled away from us without even rolling out all of it's 155 genoa.  All weekend we were impressed with how little sail he had to put out to move along so quickly.

Hunter 22 pulling away

Our plan was to sail up to Fish Creek Harbor, about 6 miles, for lunch and wandering around the neat old town.  As we were approaching the entrance to the bay a huge odd barge was overtaking us in a big hurry.  We couldn't figure out what it was.  It looked like an enormous upside down catamaran with the two hulls reaching high up into the air.  We continued to the far side of the bay entrance to allow the ship room to pass on our starboard side.  As he came cruising by we realized the barge was transporting two huge cement trucks (one on each side), two skidsteers and a mound of sand.  They pulled into the marina and started pouring out cement to repair a section of the dock.  You sure don't see that every day.

Cement truck barge

As we approached the harbor entrance, we knew we needed to hail the harbormaster for directions on where to tie up.  Brenda had the VHF radio in hand and was teasingly practicing her call, "Breaker, breaker..."  Mike, wanting very much to follow protocol, was a little leery that she would actually follow through with the very unorthodox old trucker call.  Not to worry, she did just fine and received instructions from the harbormaster to go to the metal wharf for temporary dockage .  He met us there to catch our lines.  They are definitely set up for much larger ships than ours.  We had to stand on our cabin tops and get a hand from the harbormaster to jump up to the pier.  We secured the boats, signed in and wandered around Fish Creek, shopping and enjoying the great company and perfect weather.

Little boats tied up

After a nice lunch at the Bayside Tavern and a little more shopping, it was time to check out and get sailing back to our slip.  The wind had picked up, which was a lot of fun for the two of us, but the Hunter 22 had some roller furler issues and struggled to make headway out of the bay on the tack to the south.  Once underway, the sail was fun and the slowly setting sun made for some beautiful views.  Some lovely older  sloops and schooners followed us out and we enjoyed watching them overtake us.

Once docked up back in Egg Harbor, the boys decided that they really needed to have a glass of Drambuie for our first official sundowners (not on our home waters) that night.  We enjoyed the view of the sunset from the dock and then moved into the Hunter 22 cabin for a while to catch up with our friends and continue to do damage to the bottle of Drambuie.  The party was going pretty well for the boys until Brenda decided to take away our bottle.  It was a good move on her part - the boys certainly didn't need any more.

Mike and Jim pre-Drambuie checking out the big toys.

Since Saturday was supposed to be rainy all day, we went out for a great breakfast at the Village Cafe ($8 for oatmeal - seriously?) and back to the boats to read/nap.  The Wisconsin Badgers football team played at 11:30 a.m. so we HAD to go back to the Shipwrecked bar to watch the game with an occasional toddy.  The girls lasted all of 10 minutes before leaving for a 2 1/2 hour shopping excursion.  The girls did lots of walking, shopping and laughing, but only spent about $20 while the boys might have managed to generate a bar tab slightly higher than that. A trip to Door County is not complete without visiting at least one lighthouse.  So, after the Badger win, we toured the 1884 lighthouse in Bailey's Harbor - Cana Island where they still have an original Fresnel lens in operation.  It is amazing that it is lit by one little 250 watt bulb.  This lighthouse is surrounded by some really nasty shoal waters.

Back at Egg Harbor Marina

Sunday morning arrived with fresh winds forecast at 10-15 mph which quickly turned into 15-26 mph actual winds with very strong gusts and small craft warnings.  We reefed down our mainsails and went out into Egg Harbor to play in the somewhat protected area.  We practiced putting in and taking out our reefs and experimented with different sail setups while the Hunter flew around with just his reefed mainsail.  We found our boat handled best with the standard jib up and the mainsail reefed.  We were thrilled with the improvement in tiller feel with the NACA 0014 rudder.  Even with 20+ mph winds, the tiller was easily managed with a very light grip.  Sweet!  After playing for a while, we led the other boat over to the protected shore of the bay in about five feet of water and rafted up.  We enjoyed a great afternoon of conversation, sun, cheese and crackers, and music while we bobbed in the water.  A wonderful relaxing way to end our sailing adventure.

We motored back to the marina and loaded up the boats.  Another easy tow home and our Door County sailing adventure was done.  We'll certainly be back for more next year.

Keeping Things Organized

 So, how many of you have a storage area that looks like this?

This is what we started with.

Well, we certainly were guilty of having a (we are only going to admit to one) tangled mess in one of our lazarettes.  Every time we needed a line, fender or the lunch anchor we fought our way bravely through the mess, and sometimes even found what we needed.
I had removed the majority of the teak pieces off our Com-Pac 19 to sand and pretty them up.  While I was working in the shop the fumes got to me and I had an idea.  An idea fueled by teak oil and spar varnish fumes has to be a good one, right?

Some of the removable wood on our CP19

 I decided to tackle that lazarette mess by building a mount for the lunch anchor and also build a copy of another sailor's line organizer.  I had seen this organizer in one of those glossy sailing magazines. A couple good sniffs of the shop fumes and it was time to fire up the power tools.  Being a lifelong woodworker, I can usually sketch something up in my head and create it on the fly.  Well, the simple lunch anchor mount was quickly knocked out and I also made up the super simple line organizer. "Geez, why stop now?" said my fume happy little mind.  "Let's make that cup / binocular / VHF holder too!"  Bring out the hole saws and away we go.   Eventually I ran out of wood, so I figured I'd better stop. A little more sanding, oiling/varnishing and we have our new items ready for installation.  I clamped the line organizer to the underside of the lid so the glue could set.  Unfortunately, I later bumped the lid closed and the organizer slid out of place smearing the glue.  I cleaned it up after it dried, but the pictures show the whoops.  The anchor mount installation went much better and soon I was coiling lines and prettying things up.

Mike's glue mess.

New lunch anchor mount - neat way to hang it in a handy spot.

Line organizer and anchor mount in lazarette.

 So now we have a really organized lazarette.  When we reach in to grab the lunch anchor it is immediately available.  The Admiral loves the line organizer and she makes sure I keep it looking like this.  A happy Admiral makes for a happy boat.

Now, about that mess on the starboard berth........

Mike

First Night Sail

Our last post included two videos of night sailing which is our favorite time on the boat.  The videos reminded us of our first night sailing and sleeping at anchor.  Here is the log entry from that sail.

May 30, 2010

We had a wonderful weekend of sailing.  We dropped the 19 in on Lake Mendota (Madison, WI) and sailed in good winds of 12 - 13 mph with really choppy, confused waves.  Lake Mendota is known for creating bigger waves than the wind can account for and these waves were mixed in with the wakes from lots of big power boats.  It made for some fun and interesting sailing.  We sailed for 5 hours in 87 degree temps with bright hot sunshine beating down.  Brenda wanted to take a break (Actually she said, "Stop now!").  So even though we were out in the sloppy waves, we dropped the anchor in 20 feet of water and rested.  Brenda climbed down into the cozy v-berth and snuggled up for a cooling snooze.  I still can't  believe she could sleep in the cabin with all the odd bucking and rocking the boat was doing.  At least it was a really good test of the ground tackle for tonight's anchoring.

Our friend Phil gets a lot of grief for this picture as it looks like we are towing his power boat.  Phil considers any boat that does less than 30 mph to be useless.

We had some power boater friends call and ask if they could motor out to meet us and check out our sailboat.  They tied their boat behind ours and brought over all kinds of snacks for us to munch on.  The wind cooperated and calmed way down which soothe the lake out nicely for our raft-up.   They stayed and chatted until 9pm when we were treated to a fireworks display over Madison.

We have never sailed at night, so this was going to be another first for us.  The wind cooperated beautifully with a steady 9 mph wind for a beam reach.  We sailed along silently to the area we planned on anchoring for the night.  There was enough light to see easily as we sailed along so quietly that we found ourselves whispering at times.  We couldn't have had a more perfect first night's sail.  

A perfect night sail

We sailed to up within 200 yards of the shoreline and dropped the bow mounted anchor with plenty of scope.  I warned Brenda that we would be facing the other way in the morning because the winds were expected to pick up and turn from southerly to northerly.  I didn't want her to wake up, look out the porthole, and not see the shoreline that was there last night.  We were both expecting to get some reading done after we anchored, but it was already 11:30 pm which is late for us.  We closed the cabin up and enjoyed the fresh breeze coming in through the portholes.  I only got up a couple of times to check the anchor.  We slept pretty well for our first time anchoring out, but it still takes time to identify all the little boat noises first.  

Our first breakfast aboard our new-to-us CP-19 II

We got up around 8:30 and had some cold cereal and juice for breakfast before deciding that with the rain clouds closing in it would be a good time to load her up for the day.  
A day of firsts that we hope will be the first of many.
 Since that night we rarely go out for just a daysail.  We have spent many nights at anchor and now we don't have to settle for cold cereal for breakfast.

Explaining Our Dream

On one of the sailing forums - cruisersforum.com - that I read for info and advice, another sailing couple mentioned that they too would start a blog. They said this might help their family understand the reasoning or need to go sailing for an extended period of time. Well, that is one of the reasons that this blog was conceived. We hope that our family and friends will come to see the freedom, joy and sense of accomplishment that sailing can give us. We hope that they realize that we aren't just looking for a sunny beach and a fruity drink kind of vacation. We want to couple our newly found love of sailing with our desire to experience new places and cultures.

Here are a couple of short videos to give our non-sailing friends a feeling for sailing and it's allure.  We took these videos one beautiful evening under a full moon.  We didn't add music as the gentle sounds of wind and water give you an idea of the peacefulness of this kind of sailing. 

 

First Sail on our Com-Pac 19/II

May 22, 2010 - Still getting caught up on old posts

It was a beautiful day in Madison with mild winds to get a feel for our new boat.  After packing the 19 for a day sail we trailered it into Lake Mendota.  We found the 19 to be easily pulled with a 6 cylinder vehicle.  We used Marshall Park ramp on the west side of Lake Mendota as it is the most sailboat friendly ramp on this lake.  We backed the boat in and found we needed to go far enough down the ramp that the exhaust pipe was blowing bubbles in order to float it off the trailer.  I guess a hitch extender will have to go on the "to-do list".  The outboard started right up and we excitedly backed out feeling pretty proud of ourselves until we saw one of our keel guides float out from underneath the hull.  Ooops.  After some fancy steering in a tight area, we were able to snag the keel guide and strap it onto the lifeline stanchions.  So much for a picture perfect launch. 

Brenda claiming her bow spot (couldn't do this on the 16).  Note the rogue keel guide strapped to the stanchion.

The 8 HP Mariner is definitely more motor than the 19 needs, although we could give the kids a pretty good ride on a tube if we decided to pull it behind us. 

We set the sails, turned the motor off, and sailed in winds of 6-12 MPH.  We were very surprised how well the 19 moved along on so little wind.  Having a boat with crisp sails was a pleasure.   Instead of heeling with a gust of wind the boat just accelerated.  We pulled out the genoa (135 I believe) and found it was brand new.  The previous owner never used it and it was clean, crisp and new.  We wish it was a 150 or 155, but we shouldn't complain.  The other pleasant surprise on the sail was the performance of the NACA 0014 foiled rudder that Mike had just finished.  It gave the tiller a very light feel with just enough weather helm for comfort. 

It was really nice to walk around on the foredeck and feel safe and stable.  The lifelines and the 19's stiff sailing characteristics accounted for this feeling. One of the reasons we bought the Com-Pac 19 was that it prefers to be sailed flat - which with our limited sailing experience makes for more relaxed sailing.  After all, that is what we are all about - relaxation!  We enjoyed a fine afternoon of getting a feel for her and enjoyed the views on beautiful Lake Mendota practicing our tacks and jibes.  As the day wound down, we headed back to the ramp wondering what entertainment we would provide for those at the docks.  Surprisingly the docking went without a hitch and the boat floated smoothly onto trailer even missing a keel guide. 

Overall our decision to move from the 16 to the 19 proved to be a great one.  The 19 rigged quickly, the mast was easily raised by one or two people, it sailed flat, and the extra cockpit width was really nice.  Extra points were awarded by the female crew for the onboard potty facilities. 

Things we need to do:  redo all the bunks and keel guides on the trailer, find an easier way to connect the front stay (for our non-sailing friends, this is one of the wires that holds the mast up) when stepping the mast.  We also missed the halyard cam cleats mounted on the mast on the 16.  Have to think on that one.

Overall it was a great day of sailing and the boat is a keeper. 

Wrinkles in Our Sails

So why would someone name their sailing blog Wrinkles in Our Sails?

If you have ever had the misfortune of meeting Mike, you would have come away thinking, " That is one very low key, low stress kind of guy." Well that kind of non-Type A personality doesn't translate into a very competitive attitude when it comes to sailing. In other words, a few wrinkles in his sails are not something he will worry about. Sailing is about freedom, enjoying the outdoors, the sound of the boat slipping through the water, sunshine on your face and spending time with the one you love. Wrinkles in Our Sails - no worries.

We have enjoyed numerous sports and hobbies during our marriage such as bicycling, motorcycling (Yes, little teacher Brenda was a Harley mama.), tennis, basketball, bowling, stained glass, snorkeling and building our own home. Regretably sailing wasn't added until recently. Yes, we always said we would like to try sailing, but it didn't happen until we were approaching 50. All it took was thirty minutes playing with a plastic dinghy and the hook was set. We were going to be sailors. So we may not be the youngest ones, or the oldest, setting our sails in the wind, but a few wrinkles never kept anyone from persuing their dreams.

Mike and B

The Highs and Lows of Boat Buying

The search for the perfect boat can be fun, exasperating, or anywhere in between.  When we decided to buy our first boat, it was just a matter of checking on Craigslist.org and finding a small Seawitch.  Not much of an investment, so not much time or energy was spent on that search.

Sister ship to our Lockley Seawitch

When we decided to upgrade to a "real" sailboat, Mike researched all the different aspects to be sure we found a boat that would meet our needs.  We wanted a boat that would be stable, sail flat, be well made, and most importantly, be novice friendly.  The Com-Pac 16 was what we wanted, but there weren't many around.  Would we be able to find one?  Late in the fall a posting came up on Craigslist for a Com-Pac 16 right here in Madison.  Brenda fell in love with the name, Puppy Luff.  Mike said we could name a dinghy Crush.  Mike was impressed with the condition and sharp look of the boat.  The 16 was in a University of WI parking lot and while we checked out the boat, the owner was getting chewed out, rather loudly, by a University employee for having the boat parked there illegally.  "Move it or we'll tow it out today!"  Price negotiations went quickly from there and Puppy Luff came home.

Puppy Luff

After a season of boat improvements, sailing and lots of learning, we were ready to move up to a bigger boat - one that we could stay on overnight, but still trailer.  Yes, having room for a potty played a big part in the decision to move up in size.

As mentioned earlier, Mike likes to research his purchases.  So after tons of time spent searching the internet for the perfect Com-Pac 19, we decided to head to Cincinnati to have a look at what the owner said was "the best Com-Pac 19 for the price in nine states" and the pictures backed him up.  Off we went with high expectations.

If our only purpose for heading to Cincinnati was to look at the boat, we would say we wasted 15 hours of driving.  We guess what one person considers "really nice" can vary by a wide margin.  Loose and broken mast step, worn rudder pins, running rigging rotted, trailer winch shot, bottom paint gone, old tired sails, and worst of all the hull was so weathered it would need to be repainted.  We found out the pictures used in the ad were "borrowed" from another sale ad for a boat in TX.  He even went so far as to say he had removed the VHF that showed up in one of the pictures.  We of course found no evidence that anything had ever been mounted near that spot on the boat we were looking at.  This boat looked nothing like the one the owner represented in his ad.  Needless to say, no deal was made and we continued our search.

On the good side we enjoyed the drive, spending time together, and side trips along the way.  We also got an education in looking over a 19.  Buyer alert - never buy without seeing the boat in person.

Next up was a Com-Pac 19 in Detroit.  Brenda couldn't take time off from school, so Mike headed out for a speed trip.  This time he went with tempered enthusiasm.  It just so happened that our son had recently moved to a place 30 minutes from the boat, so Mike would have a place to stay.  Mike left right after work and drove straight up.  He arrived at our son's at 1:00 a.m. and quickly crashed after a quick look at the apartment.  Then he was up to take John to breakfast and off to meet our future boat.  Everything was as represented in the ad and then some.  No disappointments this time around.  Mike hooked her up and pulled her home that same day.  At that time we referred to her as Puppy Luff  II, but she was later named Miss B's Haven.  She continues to teach us and treat us well on our inland lake sailing excursions.

Miss B's Haven

CP 16 and 19

Now that we have become empty-nesters, we can pursue our dream of big water sailing.  All we have to do now is find that perfect blue-water boat.  We wonder what stories we will have to tell about that search?

Final Sail on Puppy Luff

Here is another post from the past
May 18, 2010

Well, today was a bittersweet day of sailing.  Brenda and I took our beloved little CP-16, Puppy Luff, out for one last sail before looking for a new home for her.  The day was sunny and beautiful with enough wind to sail, but just barely.  Seven to nine MPH winds moved us along well enough to maneuver about Lake Monona and enjoy the feel of her lovely tiller in our hands one last time.  She has been a great boat, teaching us what she could along the way and forgiving us for our novice abilities.

As we were coming into the docks, a gentleman on a very nice wooden canoe paddled up to ask who the manufacturer of our boat was.  We explained that it was a very well made shoal draft cruiser made by Com-Pac.  He said he had been admiring the beautiful blue-hulled sailboat all afternoon and just had to paddle over to see her up close.  We thanked him and explained that it was our final sail on her as we had purchased her big sister.  His eyes lit up and he asked how much we would be asking for her.  He paddled around the entire time we pulled her out of the water and prepped her for the short trip home.  Actually saying out loud to someone that it was our final sail on her definitely hit a tender spot.  I had to put on my sunglasses as soon as we got in the van to conceal the watering of my eyes.

Thank you Puppy Luff for treating us so well. 

Playing With My Dinghy

No, not that!....  My friends must have gotten tired of me talking about my dinghy.  When we went out to dinner with them they gave me a subtle hint with a birthday present. A nice new white t-shirt -

Ok guys, I get it.  It was just such a fun project to build a little dinghy for our Com-Pac 19 that talking about it seemed so entertaining to me.  I take great pleasure in creating things, so why not build a dinghy?  Check out our Projects page to see more.

The Short List

Happy New Year everyone.

I'll bet that if you are a sailor you will spend at least some portion of this new year working on your Short List. I define the Short List as a wish list for the next sailboat whether I need it or not. It can be written down or simply kept in our heads, but we all have them. A little more room, speed, comfort, style, a windlass, a different sail plan, bigger berths, a real head..... The list goes on and each of us has something different that drives our desire for the next boat. We love spending time researching for the next boat and have started our Short List. Visit our SHORT LIST page to see what we are dreaming about.

Maybe a beauty like this one in Door County is on your short list.

Always looking for the next boat.  My friend Jim and I walking the marina in Egg Harbor, Door County.