Getting ready

I've been getting ready for 12 years! I have read at least four books about this Great Loop cruise, and probably 15 boating magazine articles. I'm a member of the Great Loop Cruisers Association (yes, there's a club for EVERYTHING).

I bought the boat from a Maryland marina in the Chesapeake Bay. This 40-ft trawler was only a year old, and had only 30 hours on the engine. I saw it for the first time with Bruce Perry, my high school buddy, on my birthday last summer. It is beautiful! Even has air conditioning! If you want to see all the specs, go to http://www.mainship.com/models/40trawler/40T.html Bruce will be the first mate from May to August, and from January to June, 2011. My brother Rick will be with me from August to December, and maybe will continue on to the end with Bruce and me.

I've been to the boat on three occasions last summer and fall, to begin provisioning it and learning to operate it. One of the first things was to have its name, Breaking Away, added to the transom (the back). I've had a 25-ft boat before, but this one handles entirely differently. Backing it into its slip in the marina was dicey, especially since I can't turn my neck around (I have to turn and face backwards and grab the controls behind me). I've added a dinghy, two inflatable kayaks, a coffee maker, and an auto pilot. It already had GPS chart plotters (so you know where you're going), a marine radio, radar, TV, DVD, stereo, microwave, you name it. There will be much more to buy when I get back there in early April, like the first few weeks' worth of beer!!

I plan to drive back in late March, and spend April taking practice cruises around the Chesapeake. George and Jan Tonner (Nestle/Simi Valley friends) will be with me from April 7 to 21, and then Bruce Perry and Lee Smith (Hawthorne High School) will join for April 21 to May 2. Weather permitting (and my abilities ready), we'll leave Monday morning, May 3. I hope to have a big Bon Voyage party on the May 1 and 2 weekend, so if ANYONE out there wants to join in the fun, please try to come. It'll be just across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge in Eastern Maryland. Closest airport is Baltimore. Many family and friends are planning to join along the way. It will be THEIR adventures to get to us from the nearest airport, and to return to an airport when they depart.

The marina took Breaking Away out of the water in early December. They shrink-wrapped it JUST in time before the huge snowfall around Christmas. I'm glad I did have it shrink-wrapped, because they had the second record snow storm in February. When I arrive in early April, I'll wax the exterior -- above the water line -- and then they'll put it in the water (at which time I'll need to wax the rest of it!).

I've taken three classroom boating courses starting in October and running through March 23. These have helped give me confidence, even though I know that actually operating the boat will be the most important education I'll get. During April, I hope to gain more skills on my practice cruises, if I don't crash it first!

Well, with this as an introduction, I hope you'll find my entries and photos interesting as the 14-month trip progresses. If you want to read more about the Great Loop cruise, here is a site with information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Loop