My mother started taking me down to the docks in Woodmere, Long Island, NY
when I was 5 years old. That was 60 years ago. We graduated from sitting on
the bulkhead to fishing in a rented row boat, buying an engine, and then
owning a lapstrake Lyman 15. Meanwhile, I sailed and crewed on other
people's boats until I bought a Tartan 27 when I got back from Vietnam. On
the South Shore of Long Island adventure was to be found by "breaking"
inlets and going out in the ocean and riding the waves in the Lyman 15. All
races were held in the ocean around Ambrose Light, then, a Texas tower.
Going to New Jersey was considered a big voyage.

Sailed the Tartan 27 in a storm to Cape May, NJ and then using the ICW, went
to Wrightsville Beach, NC. Jack Sutphen of Ratsey told me that if I ran into
an offshore storm, I should, "Drive the boat into the beaches until sand is
blowing on your deck." I did so and arrived in Atlantic City without damage
while large vessels running further offshore suffered real damage to their
rigging. Not many pleasure trawlers then. Of course, one does the opposite
for an on-shore storm. We also assisted some folks shipping water in a small
cabin cruiser without anchor, life preservers,  and with a dead engine. This
was during the precursor to the storm and guaranteed that we would not
outrun it.

Upon returning to Annapolis, I finally sold the Tartan 27 after 18 years and
bought a Crealock 37 which took us to Cape Cod and back. Naturally, we had
to bear-off during the run North owing to a Nor'easter that looked like the
wall of a hurricane and had to delay our departure from Cuttyhunk owing to
another storm. I was the first on my "block" to get a GPS (Micrologic) and
integrate it with our autopilot.

After years of sailing Chesapeake Bay, in which the Crealock was barely
challenged, we finally sold her and bought a Dyer 29 which spent most of her
life in a refurbishment yard. Divorce resulted in selling her.

After looking over many liveaboard "trawlers" and bidding too late on a
Symbol 41 (missed by an hour) and rejecting a Vista 43 (ignorant owner who
had been the victim of poor "professional" maintenance and unsupported
Cummins 555's) I looked at more "trawlers." Then one day we climbed aboard a
Willard 40 and all I did was sit in the aft cockpit and a peace settled over
me. This boat fit my image of the type of boat I had dreamed of as a child.
Later, I was to learn that in gaining its seaworthy characteristics, I lost
some of the room that could be found on a KK42 or a Vista 43. The Vista was
a condo on the water and that's what her owner had used it for.

Finally, I found a Willard 40 in Oriental, NC that had Naiad stabilizers.
Having observed a KK42 being rolled on its side about 45 degrees by the wake
of a passing sportfisherman on the Severn River, I knew that my true trawler
would have to have active stabilization. We are OD'd on electronics which I
enjoy. I've been kidded about being able to stay in my slip and experience a
voyage on my chartplotters. We have severe redundancy in VHF communications
owing to my background and having been the safety chair of a large sailing
club. My selection of the Willard was borne out in a bad storm on Albemarle
Sound when the USCG was telling everyone to seek safe harbor immediately
(two tornadoes embedded in a heavy storm front.) It was then, heading into 5
and 6 foot seas that I learned that active stabilizers should be centered on
my boat when heading into those wave conditions. Otherwise, they acted like
submarine diving planes and accentuated the down motion going into the
trough. The Willard was magnificent with very small amounts of green water
coming over the bow driven by a 33 knot wind.

Well that summarizes 55 years of messing about in boats with very few open
ocean voyages, unless you count overnights East and West along the coast of
Long Island and the Tartan's delivery from Noank, CT without a hitch. I am
considering the Portsmouth to Bermuda run and am enamored of taking Airborne
across the Great Lakes and getting her trucked to the PNW and the Inland
Passage to Alaska. Meanwhile it's the ICW to NC and then this Summer will be
either up to Nova Scotia or up the Hudson to Canada and down the Champlain
and South again.

Good to be aboard,
Ron Rogers
Willard 40 AIRBORNE
Lying Annapolis

The flyer that I got at TrawlerFest, Solomons just spoke about trawlers.
However, in a magazine blurb it became clear that it was identical to West's
Caribbean 1500 for sailboats. I don't know if their will be a sailboat
contingent. It would make sense from West's point of view. The flyer is not
at hand, but the entry fee was around $700USD and that was appealing. Allot
of services were promised for that fee. I want to find out if it's like the
various Bermuda sailboat races where the whole emphasis is on getting there
and then you are on your own to return. I would prefer a loose buddy boat
arrangement with more than two boats.

On reflection, my new to me boat may not be ready in time for this year's
event. I have a hypercritical friend who has just completed his second sail
in the Caribbean 1500 Rally and he has been very pleased with its
organization and pre-voyage checks and seminars. Hopefully West will study
the NAR to ascertain what special checks should be added for a power vessel
rally.

I'll do a little research and get back to the group.

Ron Rogers
Willard 40 AIRBORNE
Lying Annapolis

----- Original Message -----
From: "Georgs Kolesnikovs" georgs@trawlering.com

| >considering the Portsmouth to Bermuda run
|
| >Ron Rogers
| >Willard 40 AIRBORNE
|
| Ron, what can you tell us about the rally or whatever to Bermuda? Is
| it a sailboat event with a trawler class or what?