I thought it could never happen to me.
By Ken Read
Let's just say that after 35 years of cruising and 13 years of marriage-I officially declare myself a slow learner. And it took a 5 day stint on the True North 38 to finally prove it to myself.
Let me back track a bit. I grew up in a family of sailors. We sailed (cruised or raced) a Pearson Wanderer (30') all through my youth, starting when I was 5 years old. We towed around a dinghy and a Sunfish and my brother and I had sailing or rowing races in every harbor west of The Cape and east of Block Island. I would call myself an expert in the area, and love cruising as much as any racing that I have done.
Now comes the tricky part. I married a girl who doesn't necessarily love (or maybe even like) the water…who can convince herself that she is seasick if the ripples from the ice in her lemonade glass get a bit too large…
For exactly six months I trained for the America's Cup as the helmsman on Stars and Stripes. We broke camp in the end of July and needed a break. Amazingly, Kathy suggested that we go for a cruise to unwind. But her idea came with a twist. No sailing. Only power! And you know what-for the first time I agreed with her thinking when it came to the water. I had been sailing for 6 months straight and to go on vacation to raise and lower sails didn't exactly sound like a vacation. We came to the conclusion that the new Pearson's new True North 38 would fit the bill. We contacted TPI and chartered their demo boat for 5 days.
Our daughter Tory didn't know what to expect. At 5 ½ years old, she is a curious little girl. Fishing and exploring new surroundings were at the top of her list. In fact, she is most happy when wading through a tide pool looking for crabs and minnows.
Our family had a plan. But a power boat? Only time would tell.
Tory and I picked up the boat Monday afternoon, and we left Newport harbor on a Tuesday morning in a 25 knot northwester heading for Cuttyhunk. Little did I know that my wife had worked herself into a panic and essentially put herself in a coma for the day with the motion sickness drug Bonine. Not only did she not get sea sick, but she pretty much didn't participate in one single second of our trip that day. A lesson learned for Kathy. At least give something a try before deciding that it wasn't going to work. Tory and I on the other hand had a blast. The cruising speed for the boat is 21 knots in flat water and we slowed her down to 16 for the choppy trip out. No foul weather gear. Hit the auto pilot and the windshield wipers and off we went. The boat tracked through the Buzzards Bay chop amazingly. And I couldn't believe that in less than an hour we were on the lee side of Cuttyhunk heading for Quicks Hole beach. Wow, was that fast and painless. But I wasn't ready to admit that I liked the powerboat concept yet.
We slid past Canapitsit chanel on the way to Quicks Hole. The breeze had turned to Northeast and the chop was pretty steep by the beach. No worries. Why not just head for Tarpaulin Cove? 15 minutes later we were in the lee of an amazing little beach in Tarpaulin Cove (which we had all to ourselves) launching a 9' Avon out of the transom doors and powering into our first tidal pool to pillage unsuspecting crabs. "Mom doesn't look too good" stated my perceptive daughter as we powered away from the boat.
By the end of the day we had decided that Menemsha Pond was the final destination for the night-- The inner pond of course, as we would probably be the largest boat that could make it through the tricky, shallow inner channel with 3.5 knots of current. Raising the anchor, no problem! Push the button next to the wheel. A little blast from the bow thruster to keep the boat head to wind. Up she comes-- without the classic glaring looks and incredibly sarcastic comments that a husband and wife can only share while anchoring and un-anchoring a boat. I can't say that I missed that ruthless interaction, as I immediately realized that our marriage would clearly be stronger due to the anchor windlass and push button operation from the steering station. Plus, I think Kathy was still drooling from the Bonine last time I looked.
Once settled down in Menemsha Pond we discovered that we were the only anchored boat there for the night. The breeze had died down and we blazed across Vineyard Sound in about 25 minutes. I couldn't believe how stress free the day had gone. We had covered an amazing amount of distance and actually had fun! Kathy was coming out of her coma. We had a great hamburger barbeque. We were officially a very happy family.
Without boring you with every detail of the trip I will blaze through to the highlights.
- If your wife likes amenities like blow driers, freezers and boats that don't role around even on rough days-then don't fight it. For the rest of the trip there was no Bonine and not a hint of seasickness. With a flick of the switch we had power for the appliances that she deemed "critical". A happy family makes for a very happy Dad!
- The galley out in glass enclosed Pilothouse was a huge hit. Easy to get to, with the ability to see the world. At night Kathy and I chose to sleep on the dinette table that hydraulically lowered into a great double bed. Snap on shades and we had privacy and tons of room.
- The fold open stern doors are a fantastic idea. It took approximately 39 seconds to store or launch the dinghy, complete with its 6 horsepower engine. Nothing to tow, no davits, no marital moments of tension (at times I couldn't believe that we were actually cruising). The dinghy provided endless trips for Tory and I into small and shallow nooks and crannies of Martha's Vineyard harbors, catching any and all unsuspecting marine life which would then spend at least a few hours being poked and prodded in a bright green beach bucket.
- A hot shower a day is an amazing thing when cruising.
For the rest of the trip, our official log had us visiting Edgartown (via Lake Tashmoo), Hadley's Harbor, Quicks Hole, Cuttyhunk and finally easing back in to Newport. Always at speed, we never had a stretch long enough to get bored of powering. We went to the best beaches that the Vineyard and Elizabethan Islands had to offer and officially had a blast. But I do have to admit, that on the last day we powered home in a 14 knot northeasterly and for the first time
I looked at the sailboats making the same track and felt a touch of jealousy. Can't completely loose a sailors love in 5 days. But it was really close.
Ken Read is the helmsman for the New York Yacht Club's Stars and Stripes America's Cup Challenge 2003. He is the Vice President of North Sails for North America. He has won 36 National, North American and World Championships including 6 J-24 World Championships. He resides in Newport RI with his wife Kathy and daughter Tory. |
