We're about seven weeks into our catamaran build, and things are looking good for a Spring launch. If you liked sailing with us on S/V INTEMPERANCE in 2011, you're going to love sailing with us on S/V MON TIKI in 2012. See you soon!
"So what do you do in the Winter?"
The Summer of 2011 was one of the best Summers I've had in a long time. I already knew I loved sailing, but I wasn't sure how taking people out professionally might change that. Sometimes things are better left as hobbies...
What I found out is that I love it. I really do. There were nights when I'd get back home after a perfect sunset cruise and I'd be so high I couldn't eat. Even now as I write this my hair stands on end remembering the unalloyed joy of sharing what I love. I really was "living the dream".
But there was a question that hung over the Summer, a question I asked myself, and a question a lot of you asked me too: But what do you do in the Winter? And at first the answer to that question wasn't clear.
2011 was our inaugural year of doing charter sailing, and we didn't know how it was going to turn out. I had a couple of film projects and writing projects sitting on the back burner and thought I might return to them once things quieted down in the Fall.
But life has a way of pointing you in the right direction, doesn't it?
By late July it was clear that our business was a success. And not just a success, a roaring success. The phone rang pretty much non-stop and we were turning down as many people as we were able to say "yes" to. Like all the other sailing operations on Long Island, our sloop S/V INTEMPERANCE worked under the Coast Guard's OUPV designation, also known as "Six-pack", and she had a legal limit of six paying passengers.
This meant saying "No, I'm sorry, we're not allowed to take that many" when the two brothers called us up and wanted to go sailing with their families. This meant saying "no" when the grandparents wanted to take all their grandkids sailing. This meant sailing "no" to the bachorlette party that had seven and the corporate outing that had 12.
Now "no" must be about my least favorite word. To hear, of course; but to say too! I love taking people sailing and having to say, "I'm sorry, I'd love to but I can't" was bumming me out in the extreme.
So by early August we started seriously exploring the idea of building a larger boat, and more importantly, a boat that would carry a USCG Certificate of Inspection (COI).
That last part, the COI, is important.
Without a COI, a boat had to operate under the Six-pack rules. It doesn't matter how big it is, it doesn't matter how seaworthy it is; without a COI, the legal limit for any boat is six. Period. Paragraph. Page.
So what does it take go get one of these magical COIs? Well it's all there in the word "Inspection".
To carry a COI, a boat has to have an engineer do a stability calculation. Then the boat has to undergo an empirical stability test; you put her on the water, load up one rail with a couple of tons of weight and see how she handles it. That, along with her deck layout, determines her legal carrying capacity.
But that's not all.
Every system, every nook and cranny of the boat undergoes rigorous Coast Guard inspection. And this has to be done every year.
And then every five years the boat has to be hauled and sounded to make sure the hull is fit.
Is it a lot of effort and expense? Yes, and you can see why most charter operations stick to the OUPV (Six-pack) rules. But that effort and expense means not having to say "no". And for me that makes it worth it!
Then the unthinkable happened.
On Sunday night, August 21, after doing three full trips, Maggie and I put the boat to bed for the night. The forecast was for a strong front to move through, so we made sure to button her up tight: all the hatches closed, the tiller made off, thru-hulls closed, and an extra anchor down.
Usually bad weather wakes me up, months of living aboard INTEMPERANCE have made me like a mother with a baby; one gust of wind and my eyes pop open. But that night I slept like a stone. We didn't have a morning trip so I slept in.
I was awakened by the phone; a last-minute booking for a morning trip. The sky was bright blue. There was a fresh breeze blowing out of the Northwest. Hell yes, let's go!
Down to Southlake we went and their was a queer smell in air. Burning plastic. When we got about 100 yards away, I could see the companionway boards were blacked, and I realized that burning plastic smell was INTEMPERANCE.
---
I had slept like a baby, but in fact a powerful storm came through that night. 10 miles off the Shinnecock Inlet the storm had capsized the record-setting French maxi-trimaran IDEC, and bolt of lightning from that same storm got into INTEMPERANCE's electrical system, lighting the breaker panel on fire, and the resulting conflagration destroyed the interior. When the surveyor came to see her he took one look and said, "I'm sorry David, she's a total loss."
---
With plans being made to build a larger boat with a COI we were already wondering what we'd do with our beloved sloop INTEMPERANCE. Our plan had been that we'd run her as a flat-rate private charter. But that's not to be. After giving our family so many amazing adventures, and taking nearly 500 guests sailing with us this Summer, INTEMPERANCE's final act is to answer that question "So what do you do in the Winter" by giving me a clear direction for what's next.
What's next is we're building a boat, and the boat we're going to build is James Wharram Tiki 38, a polynesian-inspired open bridge-deck catamaran.
This is an idea I've been kicking around for a few years, weighing the pros and cons. But after this last Summer, and all the fun I had sailing, this is the way to go.
When finished Mon Tiki will by the only USCG certified sailing vessel in Montauk. In fact, she'll be the only certified sailing vessel operating anywhere on Long Island. This means I get to say "yes"! Yes, your sister's family can come! Yes, there's room for all your friends! Yes, we can do your corporate outing and we're going to have a great time!
So that's what I'll be doing this Winter, I'll be building a boat to replace the one we lost.
We're chronicling the project at www.montikimontauk.com, and I hope you'll follow along. But mostly, I hope you'll come sailing with us next Summer!
We are so grateful to everyone who sailed with us in 2011. Thanks to you the loss of INTEMPERANCE is a minor set-back instead of a devastating blow. We're sad to say goodbye to a boat that gave us so much, but excited about the adventures that lay ahead.
Below is "Land's End" by the band The String Cheese Incident". When we bought INTEMPERANCE this CD was stuck in the player, and I came to think of it as her theme song. When I hear it I think about all the wonderful times we had. If you sailed with us, I'd like to invite you to click "play" and then close your eyes and remember your time aboard.
Fair winds and following seas. We'll see you in the Spring!
"What's that?!?" Carol called out, and at first I thought it was an overturned dinghy.
Then the turtle's massive head came out of the water, and although I've never seen one before, I instantly knew it was a leatherback sea turtle. Nothing else is that big, or has those distinctive back ridges.
We jibbed and circle back, and got the above photo which doesn't do justice to the beast, or the view we got. In the clear waters of Block Island Sound we could plainly see its massive body, huge flippers and giant head.
Then it dove and was gone. We turned and headed back for Montauk Harbor on a broad reach. Under full sail, S/V INTEMERPANCE held steady at 7kts the whole way.
Captain and First Mate
Captain and First Mate, dad and daughter; sailing is a great way to spend time together.
My father sent us some embroidered hats, and today one of our guests was nice enough to snap picture of Maggie and me on the dinghy ride back to the beach.
Below is a picture of them from earlier in the trip. Kyle had never been on a sailboat before, but he got the hang of it in no time!
Kyle had the helm for most of the trip, and he did a great job!
A First-Timer with the Soul of an Old Salt
Uriel at the helm on Block Island Sound with his wife, sister, and cousin.
Not everyone in Uriel's group was sure about the whole sailing idea. Some of them were non-swimmers and there was concern about being scared, or getting sea-sick. Not to worry, I told them. S/V INTEMPERANCE is a dry ride, no swimming needed. There's plenty of room to relax with a drink and a snack and enjoy the ride.
On the other hand, Uriel was really excited to sail the boat, and we had a fine wind to do it; a solid Summer shore-breeze filling the sails and driving the boat at a good clip.
Uriel's brother Lionel and his girlfriend enjoying the ride on the foredeck
By time time we got back into Lake Montauk the wind was really starting to pipe up. We were under genoa alone, water washing the lee rail and doing hull-speed with our stern wave climbing all the way up the port quarter. Uriel was at the tiller and really getting the hang of it; fighting off the weather helm on the big puffs and driving the boat for all she was worth. I should have gotten a picture, but was having too much fun enjoying Uriel enjoying my boat!
We had two trips yesterday; a four-hour day trip (12PM-4PM) with a group of four friends, and a two-hour sunset sail (6PM-8PM) with a family four and a couple. This is what the day looked like:
S/V INTEMPERANCE on an easy reach in about 10kts of wind
Anchor down in Tobaccolot Bay two guests enjoy a siesta
Slack-tide and about 72 degree water make for a perfect swim!
Rocky Point passes to our starboard as we head back to Montauk Harbor
Outbound on our sunset cruise, dad takes the helm
Sailing wing-and-wing past the Montauk Yacht Club.
Evening light washes over lovers nestled on the coach roof.
By the time we got back on anchor in Lake Montauk the light was fading fast. This time of year the water is filled with phosphorescent plankton, and the wake from the dinghy streamed out in glowing green plumes. No way to photograph that, though. You'll just have to come see it for yourself!
When Jessica called to ask about taking her family sailing with us she was worried we might have a problem with the idea of so many children who were so young. Little did Jessica know that when we took our very first cruise in S/V INTERMERPANCE our daughters were 8 and 2, and we brought along one of our dogs (a newfie) and cat for good measure.
Last night's cruise was lovely. Jessica's family was lovely.
The baby slept while mom and dad sipped wine from plastic cups.
Brothers and sister climbed around the boat like old salts. The sun went down and the sky lit up purple and pink.
And just like I expected to, we all had a wonderful time!
A Picnic Basket and a Sun Dress
"Is it okay if we bring a picnic basket?"
"Of course," I answered.
"Can I wear a sundress?"
"That would be lovely."
And it was!
The Trendiest Place in Montauk
The foredeck is a great place to stretch out, relax and enjoy watching the world go by
The word is out! Clearly the place to see and be seen in Montauk is S/V INTEMPERANCE. Montauk is hot, Hot HOT, and nowhere is hotter than lounging on the foredeck on a pair of bean bags...
Or maybe not.
Maybe the truth is that Montauk is still (mostly) a relaxed, relaxing beach town, and for all the new Go Go, there's still plenty of slow slow. For a 20 minute walk you can still find a beach that's mostly empty, even at the height of the Summer.
And of course out on the water, we're in a world of our own!
Our Saturday bachorlette party poses for a post-sail portrait!
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