The reason I missed the reunion in Orlando...

[MarkU]

Was on a cruise to the eastern Caribbean on the Carnival Glory out of Port Canaveral (I waved as I drove by...).
The best memory was doing the 12 Meter Regatta in St. Martin, where you get to race actual former America's Cup yachts. I crewed in Canada II against Stars & Stripes (the boat that won the '87 Cup). Worked as one of two main sheet grinders, controlling the angle of the main sail. We beat Stars & Stripes by about 10'. Much celebration (and rum punch) when we got back to the dock...

I'm in the center of the boat, just to the left of the guy in the white floppy hat:

[/IMG]

Mark

 

[Karlynn]

That looks awesome Mark. What a great vacation.

 

[Ross]

Who says Artificial Valvers can't have an exciting lifestyle?

 

[hensylee]

we know you had a wonderful time. We waved back. You see us?

 

[Mary]

What day did you leave Cape Canaveral, Mark?

I ask, because we spent the 20th and 21st on Cocoa Beach and watched the cruise ships depart.
Maybe I did see your ship!
I'm glad to hear what a good time you had.

 

[Freddie]

Hey Mark, glad to hear you had a great excuse for not attending the reunion.

It looks and sounds like you had a wonderful time........and who wouldn't, you won on the CANADA ll, I need not say any more

 

[Dennis S]

Very impressive.

Very impressive.

I am always impressed by those who go on the water and sail in high winds. I will always remember being out in the water, my arm sliced open from a violent capsize, trying to get back to the boat and out of the water. I remember being in the water and thinking that the last words my wife might ever had heard from me was shouting to my partner to hurry into the boat before the wind went down. I was sailing with my Dr., who had been the captain of his college swim team. Without his extraordinary abilities I don't think we would have made it. (And I appreciated getting stitched up from the kit he kept in his care).

That same summer some friends and I chartered a nice 40 foot boat on Lake Superior. A sudden storm came up, and our "self furling" jib wouldn't furl. We were in the terrible situation of having taken in all the other sails, but the jib. Being under engine power with an uncontrolled sail is a recipe for total disaster. If you get washed overboard in Lake Superior in rough water, you are essentially dead, based on the temperature of the water. There were two guys who didn't have kids yet, and they mentally "flipped a coin" to see who would climb to the front of the boat and manually furl our jib. I will never forget how my friend Mike Fanning took the responsibility for crawling through ice cold spray and high winds, and did the job required to get us off the water.

After two legitimate near death experiences in 45 days, I now leave the sailing to others! But I am impressed when I see it.

 

[MarkU]

What day did you leave Cape Canaveral, Mark?

I ask, because we spent the 20th and 21st on Cocoa Beach and watched the cruise ships depart.
Maybe I did see your ship!
I'm glad to hear what a good time you had.

We sailed on the 16th and got back on the 23rd. We were in St. Maarten on the 20th, which is when the photo was taken.
Mark