an infrequent repository of mostly new stuff
Sailing out into the Rappahannock River
Doug and his family have only been back in Virginia from California a week – or rather, he’s been a back a whole week – so it was high time to go sailing.
Continue reading “Third Sail ~ Irvington, Virginia & Rappahannock River”
T takes in the view on Parrotts Creek
The first time in the new old boat was just a taste. The original sails were too far gone to do much good. With Pete’s help, just finding that out, and that the boat would float (and still take on water), was progress.
The next time, on the Chickahominy with the newer good sails, told me more. Once away from the dock I found jib halyard was tangled. Since I was sailing alone I didn’t feel comfortable going forward to free it, so sailed again with the main only. This, too, was progress. I learned that within reasonable bounds I could easily handle the boat alone, and the newer sails make an amazing difference.
It’s already growing dark when Doug gets my attention, says the crabs and oysters are ready and I’m missing them. Indeed, people are seated around long tables under the trees. Sounds of laughter and conversation, and crickets. Shadows seep from the woods and collect in pools beneath the sycamores and cypress. Fireflies lift off from the lawn, scribing arcs above the grass.
Some video from the first morning. Land critters raising a ruckuss, and some seafaring riffraff return. It’s pretty rough; wanted to get it posted before leaving town for a couple of days.
Kevin B thought it was hilarious when I told him about the rooster. In the video you’ll hear why I wasn’t laughing.
Most of you who follow this blog probably already know about these guys. They’ve been making and posting boat flavored videos for almost four years now. Really great stuff. They cover everything from detailed how-to’s to ride-alongs on some really wonderful boats, whether a beautiful classic sailing yacht or a little homebuilt dinghy.
And the five guys who founded OffCenterHarbor.com have the chops to do it right. Steve Stone worked in the film industry for years. Benjamin Mendlowitz is the classic wooden boat photographer almost everyone knows, as his Wooden Boat calendar hangs in offices and boat sheds all over the world. Maynard Bray was head of watercraft preservation at Mystic Seaport and has been a regular contributor to WoodenBoat magazine. Bill Mayher has had a career as a maritime writer. And Eric Blake has been building boats all his life, along both coasts, and is project manager at the Brooklin Boat Yard.
This site is subscription based, so there are no ads. (Yay!). This means that not only do you NOT get bombarded with sales pitches when all you want to do is relax and learn something, but it means they have the freedom to give their honest opinions about things without concern for which paying advertiser it might piss off. That’s both crucial and really rare when doing research, and you need to find out what really works.
In celebration of their success, they’ve provided the video above for free. You can share it with friends, post it on Facebook, whatever. And if you want to spend $40 a year to get access to more, take my word for it, it’s well worth it.
Sunrise at Freeport Landing
Dawn is very noisy. There’s a rooster. A rooster very near, like next to my head. The sun is barely up, and he is hard at work. Also, something else making a racket I can’t quite place. A sheep? No sleeping through it, rise and shine.
Lightning #2833 with the boom tent
Lightning Fleet #50 prepares for the Doc Gilbert races
With the Chesapeake Float coming less than a week off, it’s a bit disconcerting not to have had a chance for a single test sail in the Lightning. We set a record last week for most consecutive days of rain, weeks of rain, and that really set back progress on the boat. It may still be ready, barely, but I had hoped to have taken a couple of shakedown cruises by now. Lots of unknowns, and I keep finding ways to break things. Sunday morning it was the valve stem on one of the tires, which promptly went flat. I expect a handful of things to break the first time I try to sail in any wind.
I decided to try and see what I am in for, so took a drive to the near side of Washington, DC, to see some other Lightnings. Fleet 50 has an annual weekend regatta on the Potomac out of Leesylvania State Park, known as the Doc Gilbert. Was a couple of hours of driving, but well worth it. Many years ago I had some projects there with the CBYCC. The park has come a long way since then. Continue reading “Lightning Potomac Regatta ~ Doc Gilbert 2016”
