10/25/2008 18:31:29

We decided, as I mentioned on a previous post on a Venture 25 built my Roger MacGregor in 1979.  The boat is 29 years old, one year younger than my eldest son who turned thirty years old last August.

Phil Ward, the owner and myself had been emailing all week and conversing in the evenings to decide the best way to transfer the boat.  He of course was making sure he got his money and me making sure I got a decent boat.

I was less interested in making a "deal" than I was getting a boat that floats, and can use used for learning.  According to some of the friends I've made on a couple of sailing forums, this boat is considerably better - by some standards than the later MacGregor boats -- especially the water ballast boats.

This one has a 625 drop down keel - which is good with me.  I can trailer it to the reservoir.  I am not on the coast, as most of you have figured out, and am land locked in Colorado Springs, Colorado.  We're right on the base of the Rocky Mountains.... about 8 miles perhaps as the crow flies from the top of Pikes Peak.

Phil lives in the small college town of Gunnison, Colorado.  That's 185 miles as the Jeep drives over several highways to get there, or to me.

To get to Gunnison, you travel from Colorado Springs, down the main drag, Academy Blvd - the same one that makes its way to the Air Force Academy, about 19 miles north of me - and where my wife works.

Once you get to highway 115, you take that southwest, and then hit highway 50.  50 takes you though Canon City (pronounced Canyon) where several large Prisons live - including "Big Max".

Eventually, you pass through Salida, and Poncha Springs - then begin the long, somewhat scary climb up to the top of the Great Divide.

Once on top, it's about another 60 miles or so to Gunnison.  So, Phil and I worked out a deal where he would bring the boat with his vehicle up to the top of the pass.  I'd meet him there - with my son's Dodge Ram since I don't think my Jeep Cherokee can pull the boat. 

At approximate 11:30 AM myself, my wife JoAnne and my son Patrick made it to the top of the pass and there was the boat and Phil sitting there waiting on us.  It was cold, so he'd managed to find the coffee shop at the top of the pass.

We went over a few more things, rechecked the boat with clear heads and asked a bunch of questions.  Phil walked me through the rigging, sheets, the sails, and a few other things.  I asked him a few questions and we retired to the warmth of the coffee shop, had some coffee, discussed the registrations of the boat, the trailer and Colorado laws.  Phil is a native of Louisiana so I explained the trailer plates are his and I have to ship them back to him.  Technically, I'm supposed to get a temporary tag, but without the title, the DMV in Colorado will no longer issue you a temp tag.  /sigh

So, we used Phil's plates to get us home.

The registration for the boat in this state is December 31 - through December 31.  No prorating, no nuttin' - meaning I get to register it in December and not as soon as I have the boat.  Why? Because I pay the registration fee now, in October and the thing expires ANYWAY in December.

Phil wants the original copy of his registration back, for his personal records - for which I do not blame him, obviously.  He's a boat guy.  He's had boats before, and he keeps his paperwork going back a long way it appears.  That's good with me. I want to know about the boat, her history and what she's done in the past.  We can only go back to 1991 at the moment, and I suspect she came from California on her trailer - but, that's suspicion only at this point. Someday, I'll trace her genealogy just as I have traced my own.

The picture above is the boat on the back of the vehicle which will likely pull her to the first place we put her in the water - Pueblo Reservoir around March time frame in 2009.

So - we completed the paperwork, signed the trailer title, the Admiral signed the check, we passed papers back and forth for hours (ok minutes) and then we waved good bye to Phil... who lingered and looked back at the boat a couple of times.  He actually stopped twice before he hit the highway to roll out.  I think he will miss the boat. I hope he misses her - she looks and appears to want to go back to the water soon - and soon she will.



My wife walked over to me - and in the most amazing thing of the day, put her arms around my neck and said, "Here's your first Kiss as Captain."  She kissed me in front of the boat, mountains and my son - whom I think perhaps, blushed a little.  (What can I say, he's Army....)

The next four hours was spent in sheer terror.  I haven't pulled a load that heavy in nearly 20 years.  When I was in the military, the active duty, I've pulled many towed loads of many thousands of pounds, in big trucks.  I've pulled trailers on cars. I've pulled forty foot trailers on tractor rigs.

Oh MY GOD... I've never pulled a 2500 lb load DOWN an 11515 foot mountain pass before.  My son, who was uncomfortable enough riding in his own truck was holding on for dear life, telling me to "let up on the clutch" more than once, and "gear down Dad, for God's sake!" at least a few times.  My wife giggled all the way down the mountain... I think she found my son's rum stash in the back seat, but I was never sure about that.

I was white-knuckle gripping that wheel and over driving the engine and the tachometer more than once.

After about 50 miles... I chilled out and it came back to me, though we were starting to level out and get towards the bottom.  Either way, I stopped sweating, started drinking my now-cold-coffee and making chitter chat with everyone.... of course, my son never let of the "Oh Shit handles" on the passenger side of the truck.

At last, we made it home and I managed to push the vehicle up into the side of the house.

Wow.

We have a "Yacht"!

I'm amazed.

My wife completed the day by looking at me and calling me "Captain D".

For the record, I hate Captain D's (the fish food place)... /sigh but I think it was a compliment because my students used to called me "Mr. D"... so I shall take it as a complement.