Log Entry

Well, Bandit finally had a successful sea-trial, at least in my presence. Of course we were plagued with bad weather and I had a support-call to try to deal with, but it was overall, uneventful, other than the lightning strikes on the horizon.

Here are some pictures:

Log Entry

I'm going to participate in another sea-trial this weekend. It will be interesting to see what the results are. Meanwhile, I'm planning to get the Cat's Pajamas out this weekend too. The weather from the previous weekend was not conducive to sailing, hopefully this weekend will be alright.

Rumors Dispelled and Bad News

Well, I spoke to my brother this weekend and I asked him about the rumor regarding my dad's old boat Poppy. Well, turns out John doesn't want it, which is probably a good decision for John, but I think it will mean that the Poppy will eventually be scrapped. Ultimately it doesn't matter to me, not one iota. It will mean however for my brother, I believe, that he failed in carrying on some sort of legacy left to him by my father. It is a legacy, that Peter chose to accept, to uphold, to carry forth. I for one felt that it was a mistake from inception. I think at the time even he knew that, but could not face what he deemed as "failure". The reality is, that is was not a failure and that had Pete been more honest with himself, he would have chucked that boat (traded it in) long before it's real value had been completely depreciated, which is now the case. I believe he would be fortunate to find someone who would give him $1,000.00 for the boat, as it sits. I could be wrong however and in this case, I would be happy to be wrong, but unless there is something special about that boat that is not apparent to the casual observer, it is merely a sad testament to my brother's love of my father. A love that manifested itself in a strange expression of loyalty to retain one of those objects that my father dearly loved while he was living. I understand it, I simply wished it hadn't worked out this way, but as I said, I don't really care all that much, except to say it pains me to see my brother struggle so much with an object. And really, that's all it is, an object. The boat itself was not magical, I know my brother didn't even like it that much when my dad was living. It was a nice boat and all, but it never really "fit" my dad and I don't believe (and I don't think he believes) it fits my brother.

The bad news part of this entry is that in the same phone call my brother told me his eldest daughter, a beautiful girl of only 24 has breast cancer. It was devastating news as she was the first child of her generation in my family, my first niece, his first born. An intelligent, beautiful, but apparently troubled girl, a product of a bitter divorce and only recently reconcilled with her father from whom she was estranged for many years. It appears that she was struggling to make it in Chicago, working and schooling, after her mother more or less abandoned her to her own devices and returned to a southern clime (she was from Alabama and as far as I know always hated the north) and my niece continued on, in her own life, in Chicago. Being a student, she put off early detection because medical care in this country is rationed out to those who can afford it, not to those who need it most and now it sounds like she has a more advanced case and is going into chemotherapy. I choked down my tears a bit on the call and I know my brother is putting on a brave face, but I know inside, he's crushed, devastated and very worried.

Life just isn't fair.

I only know what my brother tells me, and I would never dare to ask nosey questions of my niece about her lifestyle or habits, but it's fair to say she has had a rough start in life and now this. It makes me angry. I don't know who to rage to or against (as if it would do any good) and I am so strangely disconnected, it's hard to cry. I am sad and I felt the sadness well up when I was told the news, but what do I do now? How do I interact with Pete? What do I do or say for/to my niece? I should drop her a line, an email, a call I suppose, but she will know it's because I've been given the bad news.

I'm at a loss.

Log Entry

I spoke with my brother Paul today around lunch. He is skipper of a Cacci Craft, an open bow tri-hull runabout currently named Bandit. He purchased Bandit with my advice/assistance and we allowed the seller to pull a fast one on us. He took a depth sounder/fish finder off of the boat (it was off when we saw it, we presumed it would be put back on once it was clear we were buying it) and gave my brother an older, un-pretty model of depth sounder/fish finder, an older Hummingbird model. Needless to say, the holes on the transducer mounts did not match up and well, holes in a boat present a little problem. The good news however, is that Paul has found what sounds like a reputable shop that has quoted him a reasonable price and given him what appears to be sound advice regarding it's repair. In a nut shell it can be summed up as:

This boat will not be repaired properly this season, the fiberglass is too wet. Fix it next year when the glass is dry.

I for one appreciated this kind of assessment. It seems to be an honest approach and the quote my brother told me seemed reasonable for the amount and kind of work involved. This person also gave my brother a temporary work-around to get the boat out this season, so hopefully, he'll have it out maybe even this weekend.

I feel badly about all of this however, because I found the boat and I urged my brother to buy it, pumping him up about it. Overall, I don't think the boat is a disaster, but a little more care in our negotiations or just more caution in general when a boat has a damned hole in it, might have spared my brother some aggravation, but I still think, over all, that this boat will serve him well.

Rumors

Rumor has it that my father's old boat, the Poppy, an 18 ft. Webbcraft runabout may soon end up in the hands of my brother-in-law John. This after sitting for fifteen years as my brother Pete struggled to make it workable for him. Pete has since opted for a smaller, more trailable craft of Canadian manufacture (I can't remember who makes the boat) and I think that will turn out to be a good thing for Pete. Captain John on the other hand has a daunting task ahead, but I cannot think of a more qualified, capable person in my family to salvage the derelict craft that was my father's pride and joy.

It's been difficult to watch that boat, which really was my father's pride and joy sit for so long and slowly fall into disrepair. It was equally difficult to watch my brother become more and more frustrated and angry as his efforts to make use of the boat were thwarted at almost every turn. I would be gratified to hear that John has rehabilitated the boat and is making good use of her. My feelings about this mostly stem from the fact that I was "involved" to a small degree in the selection and purchase of the boat, some twenty-five years ago. I also felt like I had some "sweat equity" having worked on that boat many times, cleaning, polishing, organizing, assisting my father with the mechanical maintenance and outfitting, so it has been mildly painful to watch my brother struggle with a boat, that he has admitted on more than one occasion that he never really liked all that much.

The Cat's Pajamas

The Cat's Pajamas underway on Stony Creek Lake.











Moored on the seawall at Stony Creek Lake.

Log Entry

Spoke with the skipper of Bandit, he wants to attempt another sea-trial this coming Saturday afternoon/evening. I should be available, except I'm supposed to attend a talk by Eric Raymond of OpenSource fame at 12:30 p.m. that day.

Damage Report

After the wash, I decided that I would ennumerate any issues on the Cats Pajamas or her trailer.

The winch and webbing on the trailer will need replacing.

The hause pipe vent/cover needs to be replaced.

All the wood needs to be cleaned and them evaluated afterwards to determine if anything needs to be replaced.

The tiller is looking a little ragged.

The wooden part of the motormount needs to be replaced or at least refinished.

The mast crutch needs to be refinished.

I'll update this list as I find more things.

Boat Shoppers

Captain and crew, just before and during the Metro Beach boat show, 2003.

Skipper at the helm

The skipper at the helm on Stony Creek Lake

Log Entry

The weekend has passed and the Cats Pajamas was washed. Unfortunately for me, I was unable to rub out and polish and wax the hull and deck. I will try to do this through the week at night.

Friday morning I went out on my brother's new boat Bandit and we took it out for it's first sea-trial. We experienced mixed results, but the upshot is that the holes in the transom are through and must be repaired or filled somehow. Fortunately we learned that the engine and bilge pump worked perfectly. The crew (Jonathan and Phillip) were extremely cool under fire and both are going to be awarded the "Cool Cucumber Cross" for coolness.