Sailing Past a Navy Freighter
Monday’s sail was canceled due to high winds, a first. Tuesday’s sail presented stiff winds but more easily managed by reefing the main and keeping the Genoa furled. Longtime civic activist Margaret Fowler brought two friends from Southern California who were visiting Williamsburg so they could experience the excitement of the York River. They had […]
Returning Sailors Conquer the York
Two couples returned from last year for exciting spring sailing on the York River. Carol Logue and John Campbell were looking for big winds and they got it. Winds blowing to 20+ required reefing the main and the jib. Carol reminded me that John is a retired music teacher who plays the timpani for the […]
Opening Day 2018 Sailing Season
Two couples from metro Richmond enjoyed opening day of the 2018 sailing season with a three-hour cruise in brisk winds and sunny skies. They alternated sitting up on the bow, where excitement meets romantic contemplation. Amy Lane took her beau Steve Litton sailing on his 42nd birthday. He said, “The last time we went sailing […]
Sailing Past Thanksgiving
The cruising season winds up by mid-November, but I held off until after Thanksgiving to take Adam Six of Charlotte NC and his girlfriend on a surprise sail for her. Lennie Gorman was recovering from shoulder surgery, and Adam was on leave from Afghanistan. He said, “I work in maintenance with MRVs,” which I took […]
Last, Great Sail
The last sail of the regular season came to a stunning end with a couple from suburban Philadelphia enjoying a great sail on the York River. “This time last week we were sailing in Massachusetts Bay with my brother on his 44-foot boat,” said Sam November. “Now here we are in Virginia.” Sam and […]
Viva La France!
One afternoon on a blustery fall day, a young couple took their three children sailing for the first time. Xavier Larbarriere serves as a colonel in the French Army, assigned to NATA at Norfolk Naval Base. He enjoyed seeing the US Navy sub through the binoculars. “You know,” he told me in an aside, “Norfolk […]
Team-Building Sail
A small company in Roanoke chose Let’s Go Sail to work on team-building. They got a full day of activities in half a day on the waters of the York River. Bright blue skies enhanced blustery winds of 10 mph and seas rising and falling two feet. Their assignment was to rescue someone in the […]
Navy Sails Past Coleman Bridge
Seen alone or in profile, all Navy ships look big. When seen while transiting the Coleman Bridge at Yorktown, the differences become acute. Here is the passage this week of the USS Mesa Verde, a San Antonio-class landing ship dock. It’s used to land a battalion of 800 Marines and assorted tanks and helicopters […]
Old Salt
People ask, “Do you ever get old salts?” After the rain cleared out unexpectedly, two friends from years ago went sailing on the York River to recreate the scene from down east Maine. Kay McLeod came up from North Carolina to take her mentor and pal Carol Haussermann out on the water. Kay said, […]
Sailing Lesson & Fun
Two unrelated activities took place on a gloriously warm October day. First, Michael Taylor of suburban Connecticut returned for a second day of instruction. Next, Matt Harding of Virginia Beach brought his wife and friends sailing for the first time, just to have fun. They celebrated both men’s birthdays. They left their young children behind […]
