Category Archives: Stories From Dawson

Ripped Main

 

Never sail to a schedule. Tides, weather and most of all safety dictate when you get there.

 

Our goal was to sail over to Mattituck, Long Island, spend the night and in the morning head for National Long Island Golf Course where we had a one o’clock tee time. The plan was good except my friend Sharon was unable to get off work before one o’clock in the afternoon on Friday. This meant we needed all the elements to work in our favor to make Strong’s Water Club and Marina at the head of Mattituck inlet; 18.9nm. The inlet is a narrow, shallow channel I feared navigating at night, especially given it was to be my first visit there. Continue reading →

Oh, Shoot…Oh, Shoot

 

(Learning to sail through near death experiences)

A couple of weeks ago, my companion Sharon and I set out for Strong’s Water Club in Mattituck inlet Long Island only to have the trip cut short by a torn main.  I’ve since done a lot of review on reefing the main and I can see my original steps were flawed.  Strong’s dock fee was nonrefundable but I had until the end of the season to use it.  On Saturday, August 17, 2013, Sharon and I set off across the sound at 9am. With a strong breeze, we made good time hitting speeds as high as 6.2 knots.  The seas ran three to four feet Continue reading →