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I have to admit other than one 15 minute motoring from the ramp to my new slip in Tavares I have not been on the boat all year. I rented a slip in November in anticipation of moving from East Tennessee to Ocala Florida. I didn't get the boat into the slip until April. I could only come down about once a month until I finally did move. I spent most of the time bailing out the boat although I had the same cover on it that kept out the rain in Tennessee. I was told by the dock master at the marina it had rained over two feet of rain in the last several months. When I finally finished the move on the first of July not only was it raining monsoon levels of rain but when it wasn't it was 98 -98. 98 degrees, 98 percent humidity. It is starting to cool a bit and its now down to raining only 5 days a week. Since I can get to the slip every week I can keep the water accumulation down and I might actually get to go sailing before Labor Day. Of course then, the winds will go from 8 to 10 kts on the lake to 20 or more!!! I might need a bigger boat!.

It hasn't been a good year for me too! Almost lost my boat! The police woke me up early one morning because they had caught my boat adrift in heavy winds on the Saint-Lawrence! I don't know if some funny guy cut my anchor rode or what. My anchors and chain are at the bottom!... I decided to put her for sale. I hope to buy myself a sailing dinghy like a Wayfarer or CL 16 that I will be able to launch and bring back home every time instead of letting her on a mooring or renting a slip.

That will be a new era! I have been sailing this Sandpiper since 2005.

Michel wrote:It hasn't been a good year for me too! Almost lost my boat! The police woke me up early one morning because they had caught my boat adrift in heavy winds on the Saint-Lawrence! I don't know if some funny guy cut my anchor rode or what. My anchors and chain are at the bottom!... I decided to put her for sale. I hope to buy myself a sailing dinghy like a Wayfarer or CL 16 that I will be able to launch and bring back home every time instead of letting her on a mooring or renting a slip.

That will be a new era! I have been sailing this Sandpiper since 2005.

Oh Michel, that's 13 years with the same boat. That will be a shock to you to part with the old girl! I have had the Lusty Slogger since 2010 and even when I was sailing the HenriLina I still held on to the little boat. I have spent about 4 times her original purchase price keeping her afloat. I would hate to part with her so I know you would be in mourning if she had to go. But as it has wisely been said "Boats come and boats go but the sea never changes" (with my sincerest apologies to Ecclesiastes)

Yes! That was not an easy decision to make but I have all these great memories to look at.
The thing is that I really don't feel like trailering and rigging that boat prior to every sail. Some say that it is a big little boat but it is more a little big boat in reality. Too much for that task!

" All things must pass" as once said a certain George.

Looking forward to be a dinghy sailor!

Wishing you some good sailing.

I can certainly feel your pain. My boat, a 1993 Stuart Mariner. I generally try to fix a couple things a year. Last year was a new axle for the trailer and new tires. It had some major gelcoat scratches from its previous owner. Most of the bottom paint was missing, the boot-stripe was two different shades of red and missing in some sections. The rub-rail was split in one spot and generally just nasty. The motor mount was shot. This was essentially how the boat was when I got it 10 years ago. These were all someday projects.

Early this spring I decided to have gelcoat repairs and new bottom paint. Which turned into new paint from the rub-rail down, new boot-stripe, new rub-rail, new motor-mount, new gudgeon spacer blocks, new bow eye, all new lettering. While we had the boat off the trailer I found that two of the brackets that hold the bunk boards was nearly rusted away so I took the opportunity to install new bunk brackets. Luckily the shop owner allowed me to put in some sweat equity to keep the costs down. All said and done I had eat into and burned nearly 2k of the scamp building budget.

We pick the boat up a couple weeks before vacation, took it to the lake and set it up for the season. The day before vacation, my wife and sailing partner broke her foot, which we did not discover until two days into the vacation. She thought it was just a sprain. Fast forward to the end of July, she is finally out of the cast and walking boot, then I sprain my back trying to carry a piece of 3/4 plywood to the basement shop. If we are lucky we will get to go sailing once this year before we have to put the boat in storage.

There is always next year. I will not have to put any money into the Mariner next year.

Cheers.

don't look at me.. I am being held captive by my welder. Until my trailer is fixed and back, I can't move my GP anywhere

Michel wrote:Yes! That was not an easy decision to make but I have all these great memories to look at.
The thing is that I really don't feel like trailering and rigging that boat prior to every sail. Some say that it is a big little boat but it is more a little big boat in reality. Too much for that task!

" All things must pass" as once said a certain George.

Looking forward to be a dinghy sailor!

Wishing you some good sailing.

Having been both a trailer sailor and keeping a boat in a slip I can tell you you sail a boat in a slip a lot more than one on a trailer. If its in a slip or on a mooring you drive out to the boat, board her, take off the rain cover if you have one, raise the sails and away you go. On a trailer it takes sometimes 30 minutes or more to rig the boat, launch the boat, park the trailer, and finally get underway. Sometimes you are going to say, should I go sailing or fly fishing and fly fishing will win out because of how long it takes to just get started.

Just a thought.

OK, its obvious that we somehow have mightily pissed off the sailing gods. There has to be a ritual that we can all perform that will appease them before first snowfall (no issue for me now that I am in Central Florida, just hurricanes on the horizon). Perhaps we need to consume the juice of a quart of Gosling's Rum and chant long forgotten accolades to the keepers of the wind and waves..

Who's up for the ritual cleansing of our misbegotten souls?

This one looks interesting but I don't see copious amounts of rum or half naked women running about. Maybe we could take this one and jazz it up

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5OqygSJnfE

Bummer to read folks not sailing! I'm on day 106 aboard. Maybe I'm using everyone's sailing allotment?!

wdscobie wrote:Bummer to read folks not sailing! I'm on day 106 aboard. Maybe I'm using everyone's sailing allotment?!

Those sharp pains you are feeling are not from being cramped up. Think hot sail mending needles in a voodoo doll!!!!!

I will have to say Dave, its a beautiful boat. Be of good cheer.