Well, here I am
I’m off the beach called Kalos Gialos behind the Porto Rafti port and am protected from the north. Of course the waves bend around the little peninsula and hit me from the east. Pointing into the northern winds and rocked by the eastern waves…. well lets just say I had a reality check. It wasn’t just some wake from some passing yacht, it was a constant left to right rocking. After 10 min I realized what I signed up for!
And it’s been windy. Force 6, gusts over 20knts. Rockin’ and rolling. Fine. I slept like a baby! Rowing to my little dingy mooring is a bit of a challenge… deflatables are not good rowers, but I manage. Last week I spent 3 nights. I also stayed last weekend. Monday morning was blowing force 8!!! I had to go to work and I didn’t even try rowing. I put my stuff in a nylon bag, threw it in the dingy and swam ashore (with flippers) draging the dingy along! NOW I’m considering an outboard (maybe a 12kgr air cooled Honda 2,3hp… nice but $$).
Pending stuff… get the boom and sails on!?! I met up with Kostas and some other club dudes (I’m a member of the Aegean Sailing Club so to have free moorings, not a bad deal) and they said we got a race this Friday and they want me to get an O.R.C. certificate (120euro). I said “Are you guys insane?! 120 euro?! I haven’t even got the boom and sails up, haven’t even sailed Zoot Allures yet!! Am I not interested in racing!!!” Kostas said it’ll all fine and sorta let me know that I should consider if I wanted some more help. So tomorrow we’ll set up the boom and sails, go for a spin and on Friday I’m off for a 3 day race. Baptism by fire. I’ll probably win due to handicap! But I kinda got the feeling they got me by the balls… gotta get my shit together… gotta find independence (happy July 4th bytheway).
Stay tuned
Capt Pete
ps… gotta feeling the next post will be surreal.
pss… and I promise(?) some pics. Rockin’ and rollin’ and rowing for your life is not inspiring to pull out a camera!
Sailing Zoot Allures 
Captain Pete,
I know this isn’t going to make much sense from a guy who sailed out of New York toward Portugal with a handheld GPS and without having checked the weather forecast in weeks…but I don’t think a 3-day race is a good substitute for a shakedown sail, specially if it’s windy.
A sailboat is a tempermental beast where Murphy’s law reigns supreme. Even an experienced skipper is lost on an unfamiliar boat.
I’m of the opinion that you indulge in lots of foreplay before doing it for real!!!
As for the rocking and rolling on the mooring, that’s almost as bad as water dripping on you forehead.
Went for a sail yesterday afternoon and shouldn’t have come back.
Horacio
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Ha Horacio, the shakedown is gonna be for ME, not ol’Zoot. I’ve spent the afternoon checking out knots and “the right of way”. ‘Can’t remember shit! As for Murphy… I think we’re related(?!)
Hey, I didn’t know you sailed from NY, or I don’t remember reading it. I’d love to take off to see what’ll happen. For now… foreplay, foreplay, foreplay.
And next time you don’t want to go back, buzz this way and we’ll rock the roll
Ciao M8
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“The right of way,” now which way is that? I’ve got my ocean skipper’s licence and can only remember the very basic stuff.
Actually I sailed out of Toronto, through the canal system (11 days and 44 locks), down the Hudson River, stayed in downtown NY and then headed straight for the Azores and into a 3-day storm which is good to read about in books and sort of fun for the first 12 hours.
My two most important tips: 1. don’t get caught with too much sail up before you master the art of reefing (or even after you master it) and 2. even more important, always have a preventer set up on both boards and use it…a whipping boom can spell doom!
Alright, I’m beginning to sound like your grandmother.
Horacio
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Notes taken, grandma (lol)
Thanks
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sail well, good luck and… enjoy, capt. pete!!!
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Thanks,Sis
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