Bob on FIONA before departure
6/10/02We started from Weeks right on schedule. 11:30 AM. My friends from work came down to see me off (Billy, Dmitri, Michael K Dwyer, Sridhar, and Daren). Sue was also there, of course. When I pulled away and I kissed her for the last time, I promised that whenever I saw the moon, I would think of her.
A group of people came on a power boat to follow us out into the bay, take pictures, and say one last goodbye. Bob Lyons (with Red Harting) also followed along in "Fireplace" (a wooden cabin cruiser) in case we ran aground, but fortunately his services were not required. All down the river, there were friends of David taking pictures and offering good wishes. We had an uneventful passage from Patchogue to the Fire Island Inlet, only once coming within a foot of going aground. Once out of the inlet, we ran close to the "FI" sea buoy and recorded its position for the return trip. We then motored southeast for a while to get some distance between us and the land. The wind was blowing from the south at 10-12 knots, so we decided to put the sails up.
There was a little bit of boat motion that was making me nervous as I went forward (I must confess that I was not using a harness during this passage). It was during this time that I learned some valuable lessons from Captain Eric.
The first lesson was "Don't touch the topping lift until Eric gives the order." This is very important, since Eric is depending on the boom resting in the gallows, and if the topping lift brings the boom up so that it can move freely, it could easily knock him or David overboard.
The second valuable lesson was "Never let go of either end of a halyard." The spare halyard was wrapped around the staysail topping lift, and I went forward to unwrap it. I uncleated the rope end of the halyard from the mast cleat to give it some slack so I could detach the shackle on the wire end. I was holding this end in my hand (not a good idea) while I was unfastening the shackle. The screw popped out of the shackle suddenly and fell on deck, almost going overboard. In my panic to retrieve the fallen screw, I let go of the other end of the halyard and it began flying free. Thankfully I was able to retrieve both the screw and the halyard, but not before getting a stern, and well deserved reprimand from the skipper.
The next lesson learned was "Don't lay things on deck where they can roll off into the ocean." This occurred when we were setting up Victor, the Aries Wind Vane Self-Steerer. One of the tasks for setting up Victor is to install the vane, a three foot long rounded piece of 1/4 inch plywood, into the top of the mechanism. To do this, it is necessary to remove the yacht ensign from the stern. When David removed the ensign and flagpole, rolled it up and gave it to me, I put it down on the deck aft of the cockpit. When Eric discovered this later, he explained that is a good way to lose the item. He said it should be placed on the side deck, underneath the toe-rail, or better yet tucked under the shock cords that hold the life raft to the deck at the stern.
The first lesson was "Don't touch the topping lift until Eric gives the order." This is very important, since Eric is depending on the boom resting in the gallows, and if the topping lift brings the boom up so that it can move freely, it could easily knock him or David overboard.
The second valuable lesson was "Never let go of either end of a halyard." The spare halyard was wrapped around the staysail topping lift, and I went forward to unwrap it. I uncleated the rope end of the halyard from the mast cleat to give it some slack so I could detach the shackle on the wire end. I was holding this end in my hand (not a good idea) while I was unfastening the shackle. The screw popped out of the shackle suddenly and fell on deck, almost going overboard. In my panic to retrieve the fallen screw, I let go of the other end of the halyard and it began flying free. Thankfully I was able to retrieve both the screw and the halyard, but not before getting a stern, and well deserved reprimand from the skipper.
The next lesson learned was "Don't lay things on deck where they can roll off into the ocean." This occurred when we were setting up Victor, the Aries Wind Vane Self-Steerer. One of the tasks for setting up Victor is to install the vane, a three foot long rounded piece of 1/4 inch plywood, into the top of the mechanism. To do this, it is necessary to remove the yacht ensign from the stern. When David removed the ensign and flagpole, rolled it up and gave it to me, I put it down on the deck aft of the cockpit. When Eric discovered this later, he explained that is a good way to lose the item. He said it should be placed on the side deck, underneath the toe-rail, or better yet tucked under the shock cords that hold the life raft to the deck at the stern.
All in all, these were very good lessons learned, since there were no disasters or mishaps which occurred as a result of these mistakes.
The remainder of this first leg went remarkably well. We had a nice south wind for much of the time, and were sailing between 5 and 6 knots. We had our first happy hour, at which Eric explained some of the rules regarding head usage (remain seated at all times), and the watch schedule, which would start at 8:00 PM, and go in two hour shifts.
After dinner (Hormel Chili with fresh onions over minute rice), we drew cards to determine what order the watches would be in. David drew an Ace, Eric a Jack, and me a Queen. Since it was predetermined that Aces are low, David took the 8-10 (2000-2200) watch. Eric took the 2200-2400 watch, and I took the 0000-0200 watch.
Things went pretty smoothly through the night. The watch person would check the radar every half hour to see how close we are to Fire Island, and adjust the Aries (Victor) if we needed to get closer or further. We wanted to stay a little less than three miles from land. After 0200, when David came on watch, the wind finally died and we had to drop the sails and run the engine. As before, I was a bit tense going forward and working with the sails on the moving boat, without a harness. This is something I will need to get used to, and will need to use my harness in the future for these tasks.
I don't know if it was because we were motoring, but the motion of the boat was much more uncomfortable when I was in my bunk from 2-6 AM than it was from 2000-2400. I was not really able to sleep during that time, and when it came time to go back on watch at 0600 I found myself drifting to sleep at the wheel. Luckily, I only had to stay conscious for an hour and a half, as we picked up CCA mooring number 226 in the Great Salt Pond at Block Island at 0720.
After dinner (Hormel Chili with fresh onions over minute rice), we drew cards to determine what order the watches would be in. David drew an Ace, Eric a Jack, and me a Queen. Since it was predetermined that Aces are low, David took the 8-10 (2000-2200) watch. Eric took the 2200-2400 watch, and I took the 0000-0200 watch.
Things went pretty smoothly through the night. The watch person would check the radar every half hour to see how close we are to Fire Island, and adjust the Aries (Victor) if we needed to get closer or further. We wanted to stay a little less than three miles from land. After 0200, when David came on watch, the wind finally died and we had to drop the sails and run the engine. As before, I was a bit tense going forward and working with the sails on the moving boat, without a harness. This is something I will need to get used to, and will need to use my harness in the future for these tasks.
I don't know if it was because we were motoring, but the motion of the boat was much more uncomfortable when I was in my bunk from 2-6 AM than it was from 2000-2400. I was not really able to sleep during that time, and when it came time to go back on watch at 0600 I found myself drifting to sleep at the wheel. Luckily, I only had to stay conscious for an hour and a half, as we picked up CCA mooring number 226 in the Great Salt Pond at Block Island at 0720.
So far, I have not been anywhere I haven't already been to yet, so the full impact of what I am doing hasn't caught up with me yet.
This will be my room for the next 11 months
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