NewSailingDiary

Sailing this Saturday and Sunday on Walker Pond made for a
double entry in the
sailing diary. Saturday was a great sunny day to be on the
pond even though the
winds were a little off. Sunday provided for some early
morning sailing in a
snowstorm followed by some healthy NE wind for the
remainder of the gray and
cold penetrating day. Mike, Bonnie and I (Kevin) sailed
Saturday and were joined
Sunday by Fred Kircheis and Bruce Brown. Always eager to
pick up a new trick
we watched the well oiled DN duo assemble the intricate parts
and pieces that
make man travel over ice at warp speed. As I watched on I
remembered back to
the first time Fred and Bruce sailed with us four years ago. It
was my first
exposure to the DN and Fred offered me the chance to try his
boat. It was an
experience I'll never forget.
After a brief hazards of the pond chat Fred and Bruce became
mere blips on the
far end of the pond. After an hour of sailing and a yack
session in the pits I
noticed Bruce and Fred comparing aches and pains incurred
from the less than
smooth ride. Feeling a bit humbled by the warp speeds of
thier DN's I thought
this a good time to point out the climate controlled, 2" foam
lined cockpit of
Yellow fever which I designed after carefull measurements
were taken from my
Lazy Boy recliner. Bruce did hop in and oohhh and aahhh a few
times but I doubt
if he'll remember it four years later as I do my first ride in a
DN.
By mid day I had on my storm sail, Mike followed with his
storm sail and Bonnie
was happy to finally get some good wind. He kept on his big
sail and put Trick or
Treat through her paces. Fred and Bruce packed up for the
long haul back to
Bangor and the rest of us took pictures of each other skidding
around the cones
in a small course that we had set up in a wind pocket. It
seems we are fearless
when in the face of a camera. LOL. We gathered up what was
left of our cones
after being the victoms of hit and run Ice boats and called it a
day. We unrigged,
packed our trailer, had coffee and told each other a few more
lies before
heading back to reality.

Like poker players we all look for in each other signs of hooking up.
Bonnie has developed the hand on the side and body leaning into the
turn.When Mike is hooking up his sail stretches about 6" in all
directions as he puts more power on the sheet than a hydraulic cargo
hoist. I am told that I get tell tale wrinkles around my eyes when
laughing under my helmet so I make a habit of looking up at my sail
when I get the good fortune to catch a gust and slingshot by somone.