After a week of off and on rain I was itching to get out and do some sailing. I came down to the boat and had one small mend to do on my sail. There is a pocket for holding a line that can tighten up the luff of the jib. That line used to hang out and when I would tack, the line would sometimes get caught and eventually it ripped part of that pocket loose. I had purchased a palm, needles, thread and beeswax to do the mending by hand. This is a great skill that I did want to practice. It was incredibly difficult to get the needle through the pocket and the sail even though I had a palm. Finally I tried using the beeswax on the needle and "presto" it slid right through the the sail material. OK, now I know. I was just finishing the mending when Fred (Later Gator) came down and quickly readied his boat for a day sail. I told him I would come out and "play" as soon as I could get my boat ready. What a beautiful day!
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| Sail mender's palm to help push the needle through the sail. |
Once I got out of the marina and got sailing, I tried to call Later Gator several times. I heard Fred once, but then got no subsequent reply. I looked for him for a short while and then just decided that I would enjoy the sailing by myself. Later we found that Fred's radio wasn't working. Fred and I always laugh because we always exclaim, "This is the best sailing we have experienced." We say this each time we go out. Well, today was the best, once again.
To view a video of this day's sailing go to... http://youtu.be/22BRybEcxdI
Fair winds to you...
