Yesterday I went sailing in the Pacific. Yes, that Pacific. As in, ocean. It was a beautiful day and Ed decided that after we delivered our load that morning, we would spend the rest of the day sailing.
I was excited as I had never been on a sailboat before; a powerboat, yes, but not a sailboat. Prior to our arrival at the marina, Ed was plying me with "It'll be a lot of fun." and "You'll love it." and "I'll do all the work, don't worry about a thing."
Well, he'd been sailing before, so I wasn't worried about a thing. I was just thinking, Great. I can read my magazines, get a suntan and drink a Diet Coke while floating in the ocean on a sailboat. What a fabulous way to spend the day.
I was excited as I had never been on a sailboat before; a powerboat, yes, but not a sailboat. Prior to our arrival at the marina, Ed was plying me with "It'll be a lot of fun." and "You'll love it." and "I'll do all the work, don't worry about a thing."
Well, he'd been sailing before, so I wasn't worried about a thing. I was just thinking, Great. I can read my magazines, get a suntan and drink a Diet Coke while floating in the ocean on a sailboat. What a fabulous way to spend the day.
Little did I know I was going to be working the sailboat with him. My first clue came when the guy renting us the boat said, "You know this is a two person operation, right?" I glared at Ed through narrowed eyes as he answered, "Absolutely." After being given malocchio, I think he was fully aware that I was not too thrilled to be giving up my magazine reading time.
After a few adjustments, a brief explanation of what all the ropes were for and how to operate them (which I promptly forgot) we made our way down the channel and into the ocean. The OCEAN. On my first sailing trip. I don't know what the hell I was thinking.
As it turns out, I was quickly made aware that once the sails catch the wind, you have to actually maneuver the boat to go where you want it to go. Holy freakin' crap. You know how you see people sailing on TV and they jump from one side of the boat to the other, and the boat is tipped with one side high in the air and the other side skimming the white capped waters? That was us.
Ed wanted to sail to Catalina Island but I wasn't too keen on that idea since it was so far away. As it was, I saw dolphins, oil rigs and yachts that were a little to close for comfort. It turns out that not going to Catalina Island was a great idea, considering the island was on fire as of this morning. We just tooled around the ocean for a little bit, fighting the high winds (good for sailing, of course, but not so good for a beginner like me) and trying to take pictures of the experience (see above) which was hard to do since I had to have the ropes for the sails in one hand and the rutter thingy in the other.
All in all, it was an interesting experience; after all, I did get to see a dolphin, but little did I know I was going to be a crew member. Next time I "sail" I'll make sure I do not have to do any of the work, that there is plenty of room for me to sit on the bow without worrying about falling into the water and that I don't have to read my magazine with one hand while navigating with the other.
As it turns out, I was quickly made aware that once the sails catch the wind, you have to actually maneuver the boat to go where you want it to go. Holy freakin' crap. You know how you see people sailing on TV and they jump from one side of the boat to the other, and the boat is tipped with one side high in the air and the other side skimming the white capped waters? That was us.
Ed wanted to sail to Catalina Island but I wasn't too keen on that idea since it was so far away. As it was, I saw dolphins, oil rigs and yachts that were a little to close for comfort. It turns out that not going to Catalina Island was a great idea, considering the island was on fire as of this morning. We just tooled around the ocean for a little bit, fighting the high winds (good for sailing, of course, but not so good for a beginner like me) and trying to take pictures of the experience (see above) which was hard to do since I had to have the ropes for the sails in one hand and the rutter thingy in the other.
All in all, it was an interesting experience; after all, I did get to see a dolphin, but little did I know I was going to be a crew member. Next time I "sail" I'll make sure I do not have to do any of the work, that there is plenty of room for me to sit on the bow without worrying about falling into the water and that I don't have to read my magazine with one hand while navigating with the other.
1 comment:
This vision of you and knowing how pissed off you might have been made me tear from laughing! I'm proud of you for doing it!!! Jules
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