I've deliberately not been writing here for some time due to work, sailing this past season, work on the boat and preparations for a vacation coming up.

Vacation

We're leaving in the later Spring time for a bareboat cruise around the British Virgin Islands (BVI).  After a lot of planning, consideration and sailing practice this year we made the decision to do a bare boat cruise around BVI.

BVI was chosen and most of you will probably already know to get us some simple, easy "ocean going" practice away from the inland waters of Colorado.  While this is obviously not going to be real "ocean travel" we do plan to do a route to Anegada over the course of a couple of days.  One day up, one day visit, one day back.

The Crew consists of myself, JoAnne, one of my sons and two close friends.  The crew has minimal sailing experience but will be joining us this Spring on our boat for some "Deck Hand" training.

We're working out our supplies and everything is ready to roll.  Perhaps we'll see some of you down there.

Our Boat

She's back home, and out of the water for now. It's winter here and chilly to bloody-hell-cold.  I've been cleaning her up, and doing something that hasn't apparently been done to the boat for several years.  Polishing.  I used a rubbing compound to bring out the shine and then waxed one side.

I left one side to be able to compare the stark differences in a clean, shiny boat and a boat that hasn't had any tender care in a long, long time.  The change is absolutely amazing, striking and to an extent makes me mad to see that she wasn't cared for well in her previous life.

I'll be finishing up the other side as soon as it is warm enough to spend a few hours rubbing the boat out.  It took me about six or seven hours of hard work, sore muscles and a lot sweat in chilly weather the other day to get as far as I got.

The cockpit is partially repainted now, doing a little at a time.

And I've reinstalled the stereo with new speakers that I removed last year.  It works very nicely.  The solar panel is semi-installed and is keeping the battery charged, using a charge controller.  I've not completed the electrical panel for the boat yet, but working on that as well.  I hope to have that done in a couple of months, installed and rewired for lighting, radio, depth finder, navigational and mast lighting as well as a couple of miscellaneous items.

The Plan

I believe I've noted here before that our primary purpose is to prepare to become full-time cruisers.  Originally we decided "two years" as a random number.  We've spent just over a year and and a half now learning to sail, practicing and learning all we can about "The Cruising life".

There's still a lot to learn. 

But, the plan is now written out, like a business plan.  It includes working out where we want to visit, how long, and how much money we will need.  This plan includes the creation of our "Cruising Kitty", and a way to sustain money in the funds.

The plan includes the eventual selling of our house and nearly all of our personal belongings to fund the liquid cash fund and purchase of the boat.  The rest of our savings, that which already exists as well as our long-term retirement funding is in place and we're pushing for a deep, hard cut in spending, paying off a f couple of bills we have left and the next two years will be used to fix up anything in our home that needs fixing, shoving every extra penny into the Kitty to give us a leg up, and to prepare ourselves for a more austere lifestyle.

Neither of us have any trepidation about our coming lifestyle.  We came from not-so-well-to-do families, we've been there ourselves, and we've spent many years of our lives living with much less than most people live on, or with anyway.

At this point, we have read and are reading a lot of information - weeding through, if you will, those who've "Gone Before".

I find it amazing and funny the number of "opinions" out there on the current sailing forums about what to do, and how to do it, the types of boats you should or shouldn't use, and the glaring, obviously opinionated groups of people who will side against ANYTHING someone says, simply because they have a different opinion.

One group will say, "That boat sucks, it sails like a dog" while another group speaking of the same boat will say exactly the opposite.

When it comes to "How To", no two people have the same information, or opinions.  It makes me wonder how, if there are so many WRONG ways to do things that they get done!

But, what I have learned over the last few months is important.  I will do things my way.  I'll listen to, but not take ANY advice from anyone else unless and until I check their advice out for myself.  I will not offer one bit of advice to another sailor on anything, unless they ask.  And then I will freely give MY opinion on what I consider right and wrong.

I believe that this is only fair, since the advice up until now I've received has mixed reviews.  I've gotten a lot of good advice, in very small doses from nearly anyone I've asked.  But those same people give bad advice in great quantities at the same time.

The other thing I've learned is that sailors, in person are the nicest people you ever want to meet.  Unless you're racing them.  If they can cut your rigging down to win, they will, and pat you on the back for losing your rig and buy you a beer after! :)

At the same time, talking to power boat drivers on the lake shore, they are nice people too. Helpful, though unable to either tie a knot or understand the simplicity of sailing along under wind power alone when they can "GO FAST"... but put those same people in their vessels and set sail out near them and they becomes the scariest creature in the water or on land.

They cut you off, run along side ripping three foot wakes over your cockpit and smiling and waving, with nary a care or understanding of the danger they put sailboats into when they do this.

They will cut in front of you 50 feet away, dragging screaming children on towed flotation, skipping across the waves while losing children along the way... in front of a sailboat moving toward them at 4-5 knots.

I haven't hit anyone, but have had to pull up into the wind to avoid the prospect of doing so.  And found myself on the receiving end of a bitter, spitting, curse-word-infested tirade for "Putting my children in danger".

Apologizing for being in front of them when they crossed my bow I would tack off and leave them to find their squealing youngsters.

I don't relish the idea of going back to the lake this season to sail around power boaters, but at the moment, I have little choice unless I give up until I buy my cruising boat or I sell my boat.  I'm not going to do either of those things.

So - we continue with "The Plan".  It's in the works and unless something drastic occurs this year, sometime a few months after the end of this year we will be living that dream, the one that many of you are dreaming now, some are going through and some will merely continue to dream about in the years to come.

We're making it happen, through careful planning, training and education.  Those of you who are not - I suggest you start writing down your goals, and then meet them.


Fair winds and Following Seas!