The Quest Begins
This story began over two years ago when I first moved from the mountains of SW Virginia to Hampton Roads Virginia. I was born here in Portsmouth but spent nearly 15 years in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. When my job situation suddenly changed and I ended up back in my hometown I felt torn. I had come to love and respect the majesty of the mountains, the peace of a gently flowing stream and the awe of cascading waterfalls. However, every cloud has a silver lining, as they say. Being on the lower Chesapeake Bay certainly posed a new opportunity. I love the water and spent a childhood fishing and motor boating. But the idea of harnessing the power of nature and using it to go from here to there intrigued me.
My first sailing experience was on Tangier Sound, off of Deal Island on the Eastern Shore. I met an old salt named Capt. Jeff who had relocated down from Maine. He took me out on a sturdy little 22 footer and I was hooked. Capt. Jack had hours of sailing stories to tell as I fumbled with the rigging and tried to keep from Jibing accidentally. But that first day on the sound was great. We had a nice wind and that little boat seemed to fly across the water. That evening after a great meal with Capt. Jack and his wife, we paid tribute to a local band playing at the combination local store and evening pub. Cold beer and good music after a long day sailing, what could be better?
That night I stayed on Capt. Jacks 40' Pearson. It was such an odd experience sleeping in the quarter berth, gently rocking to the motion of the tide. The next morning was cloudy and not as breezy but we went out again anyway. There was so much peace, just gently gliding through the water.
After this perfect weekend, I knew my destiny was aboard ship sailing the seas. I spent the rest of that summer sailing as often as possible in the local yacht club beer can races. Over the winter I studied as much as I could and read everything I could get my hands on that had to do with sailing. Finally, with Spring in the air I took a couple of ASA classes. Norton Yachts in Deltaville, Va ran a very nice class that filled in a lot of the gaps I had. The larger 33' Jeanneau that we sailed in the class was a dream. The simple set-up kept us focused on the basics and reinforced my confidence. Now I'm on a quest to find just the right boat for my first ownership experience, I'll call her "China Girl".
My first sailing experience was on Tangier Sound, off of Deal Island on the Eastern Shore. I met an old salt named Capt. Jeff who had relocated down from Maine. He took me out on a sturdy little 22 footer and I was hooked. Capt. Jack had hours of sailing stories to tell as I fumbled with the rigging and tried to keep from Jibing accidentally. But that first day on the sound was great. We had a nice wind and that little boat seemed to fly across the water. That evening after a great meal with Capt. Jack and his wife, we paid tribute to a local band playing at the combination local store and evening pub. Cold beer and good music after a long day sailing, what could be better?
That night I stayed on Capt. Jacks 40' Pearson. It was such an odd experience sleeping in the quarter berth, gently rocking to the motion of the tide. The next morning was cloudy and not as breezy but we went out again anyway. There was so much peace, just gently gliding through the water.
After this perfect weekend, I knew my destiny was aboard ship sailing the seas. I spent the rest of that summer sailing as often as possible in the local yacht club beer can races. Over the winter I studied as much as I could and read everything I could get my hands on that had to do with sailing. Finally, with Spring in the air I took a couple of ASA classes. Norton Yachts in Deltaville, Va ran a very nice class that filled in a lot of the gaps I had. The larger 33' Jeanneau that we sailed in the class was a dream. The simple set-up kept us focused on the basics and reinforced my confidence. Now I'm on a quest to find just the right boat for my first ownership experience, I'll call her "China Girl".