S/V Gambit: Ship's Log 2007

..........Captain Mike says.........

apparently not MUCH!
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Date: 12/19/07 (by 1st Mate Renée the sole blogger for S/V Gambit in 2007!)

S/V Gambit is out of the water for the winter. We motored her up for haul-out on a chilly, rainy Sunday, and managed to make it home in time for the 1st Mate to suffer through the second half of an all-too-familiar Eagles loss.  Season's almost over... whew!

Captain Mike has been extremely busy this holiday season, as you can no doubt imagine! He has absolutely NO time to chat these days! Here's a rundown of his recent activities:

 

He started off quite ambitiously by cloning himself and performing a delightful costumed routine that amused friends and family nationwide.
	Decorating his tree brought him immense pleasure, as well (although not the hefty price tag for the hand-painted nautical ornaments he selected...). The blue and silver vision brings joy to Capitol Hill and to 2 imprisoned elderly felines. Who needs the National Christmas Tree anyway???
The Captain has also toiled numerous hours selecting and preparing a Christmas Carol to play on his new violin. We shipmates have yet to have any evidence of progress (or even practice!), but anyone who knows the good Captain knows that surprises are always in store!
	To counter what people might perceive as efforts to nurture his gentler side, what with all this dancing, decorating and musicality, Captain Mike has taken up Krav Maga fighting classes in his ever-diminishing free time. 1st Mate Renée wholeheartedly endorses this venture into violence, as she hopes it will channel his hostile energies into a physically enhancing result!
To cap off the holiday festivities, the Captain will attend an island-themed New Year's Eve party that will feature him using his machete to create coconut cups from which the guests will enjoy their tropical drinks!  We cant wait for 2008!!!	.................. We'll cya there!....

Might the onset of Autumn find Captain Mike on the verge of an utterance?...

......................................Stay tuned!

Date: 8/10/07 (by... guess who?)

The summer has been treating Captain Mike and 1st Mate Renée very well. We've had the opportunity to entertain many guests on the water, and the weather has, by and large, been cooperative!

S/V Gambit's teak is getting a gorgeous refinishing treatment. After nigh unto 7 coats of Le Tonkinois, she is looking mighty fine!

We had our second raft-up of the season. We met 5 other sailboats from O-Dock a ways up the Rhode River for an evening of swimming, BBQ-ing, and fun!

S/V Gambit also served as the Committee Boat for the Herrington Harbour Sailing Association's 2nd race in Series 3. 
        Well, what they wanted to be the 2nd race. 
            There was no wind. 
                So there was no race. 
But we sure had a blast being Committee Boat, and were contemplating selling BBQ ribs & beers to the thwarted and hungry race participants... AND... (drumroll...)

Captain Mike even SPOKE!!!

(but he was forced to...)

Captain Mike is speechless with joy over his recently concluded nuptials to his wonderful, stupendous, and overwhelmingly articulate 1st Mate! The ceremony was short and sweet, which rendered both participants and observers grateful and happy.

The following day, the dynamic duo participated in the Herrington Harbour Sailing Association's first regatta of the year, on the trusty J/30 Leap Frog. Needless to say, the good karma generated by our wedding translated into our racing performance, and our 8-man crew won all 3 of the day's races, leaving us the undisputed winner of the entire competition! 

Captain Mike is again mute. This time it is not due to inattention, but rather a pain-induced silence, resulting from impaling his big toe with a one-inch long shard of pressure-treated wood from the new dock. Fortunately, the offending foreign object was professionally extracted and the good Captain will live to sail another day.

We managed the move to HHS easily, using the dinghy and our new outboard to transfer bodies between marinas. That was super fun... until time came to haul them both onto Gambit's deck. One inexperienced first mate, and one toeless captain who kept muttering something about blood on the new paint were a tad challenged at hoisting the whole shebang up there. But we eventually managed the deed. I am NOT looking forward to the reverse operation, but at least one of us will be a bit more capable than the 1st go-round. 

S/V Gambit takes to the water again today at Herrington Harbour North. Still partially shrink-wrapped, the boat awaits a little additional attention we have been unable to bestow as yet. Things have been crazy-busy! We need to finish painting the deck and sand and secure the gorgeous new hatches. We also need to varnish all of the exterior teak... Soon!

We move to Herrington Harbour South this weekend, to our brand new slip, where we plan to spend many a weekend puttering, finishing our improvements, and, of course, sailing!