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From the Poop Deck |
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Ahoy mates. |
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It is that time of year again. Everyone is happy and hopeful for a mild and warm springtime. The marinas are beehives of activity. The air is filled with the odors of cleaners, waxes, and bottom paint. I applaud those who made the time by way of their energetic enthusiasm, and got their boats launched within the first few weeks of warmer weather. (And, took me out sailing!) |
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For those not unlike me and still in dry dock, a few reminders: check your fluid levels. That includes batteries, engine oil, engine coolant, and transmission. If you overfill the transmission prior to storage, remember to siphon the over fill away. Reinstall that engine water impeller that you removed last fall. Tighten that alternator belt. Visually inspect your though hull fittings and valves. You are looking for possible freeze damage. |
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I just very recently read that that the training continues for the 2007 America Cup off the coast of Valencia, Spain. The crews of USA-71 and 76 are hard at work. Those are the yachts of Oracle-BMW. The entry deadline is (this) April 29th. I read that there are around one hundred rule changes. Two of the biggest changes are the yachts will be one ton lighter and that the sail sizes will be larger. |
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On local news, the Port Huron to Mackinac Race Boat Night is Friday July 22. |
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Selfridge A.N.G. Base is having Air Shows May 21 & 22 and again on July 23 & 24. |
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That’s it for now. |
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Casting off all lines. Color me gone. |
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Paul Kurkowski “Space Hunter” |
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Continued on page 5 |
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By Lorenzo Caricchio |
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Cap'm Jim was a Lake St Clair sailor. You might say he was the epitome of a Lake St. Clair Sailor. You might say that, but I won't! Because I don't want to incur the wrath of other sailors, either past or present, who might take umbrage if they overheard me comparing this man, who occasionally used clothesline for halyards, to the vast major |
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ity of prudent seamen sailing our Little Great Lake in pursuit of pleasure or profit. They are the kind of sailors who use all of their skill, courage and intelligence to navigate this challenging body of water and return to dock in much the same condition as they left. Cap'm Jim, on the other hand, was proud of the fact that he regularly "blundered-about" the face of Lake St. Clair, be it smiling or frowning, totally unprepared, trusting his fate (and that of his crew - usually me) to what he considered to be the most powerful force in the universe - P.D.L. - Pure Dumb Luck. |
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And if Dumb Luck, Kapok and Duct Tape kept Cap'm Jim's old, nondescript 22 foot sailboat afloat, then only shore lights and sharp eyes kept it on course, because it had none of the modern conveniences of navigation; No Loran, no GPS, no Radar not even a VHF radio. The only concessions to the need for plotting a course were a compass, who's motion damping fluid had evaporated back when yachtsmen wore brass buttoned blue blazers, and a twenty-year-old chart so creased and faded, so stained with coffee and beer and bourbon, that an untrained eye might, at first glance, mistake it for an early Jackson Pollack painting. |
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Yeah, Jim was a casual sailor all right. So why did all of his friends call him Captain Jim? Well, they didn't! Actually they called him "Cap'm" Jim, a kind of slurred, verbal shortcut for the appellation of captain, as if spoken while munching a mouthful of beer sodden potato chips. But why bestow any title at all upon this lackadaisical lake sailor? Was it because when he stepped aboard his faded, and tattered old boat, which fit him like a well-worn pea coat, he seemed to magically morph from Joe Cubicle into Barnacle Bill? Or was it because his smiling craggy face, under the gray stubble of beard, under the sweat stained |
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cap with the large red button on it that said, "DAMN THE TORPEDOES", had the cocksure, amused look of a Caribbean Buccaneer? A look that seemed to say, "Har, don’t worry Matey 'tis only adventure and no harm can come of it!" Or perhaps they called him Cap'm Jim just because Jim sometimes introduced himself as Cap'm Jim, I don't know; I only know that crewing on Cap'm Jim's boat was always an adventure even when it shouldn't have been. For example, take the calm night when Jim decided to explore Buoy HP-1 off of Huron Point. |
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We were coaxing a quarter of a knot out of the old 22 because Jim would never start the outboard motor unless the wind died entirely for more than an hour or in the event of an emergency, like if we were in danger of running out of beer or gin. So, this evening we were sitting very still on the low side of the boat, moving only to raise a drink to our lips or to trim the ancient sails, worn spider web thin by years of |
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Editor’s note: The following story was supplied by our own Larry Caricchio. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. As always, we welcome member contributions. |
