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Owner's Corner By Don Carnes<=
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To
make matters worse, this would actually be my first attempt ever to park a
boat of this size. I had convinced myself, more than once actually, that =
the
transition from a 40’ boat to a 46’ boat wouldn’t be
noticeable, but under these conditions those six extra feet were beginnin=
g to
look more than a little intimidating. The
trip from Florida to Texas had officially begun at 18:30 hours on May 20<=
sup>th,
just four short days ago, though the real journey had actually started
several months prior. My wife and I had agreed to sell
“Dor-I-Lee”, our 1990 Hunter Legend 40, as an initial step to=
ward
buying the boat of our dreams. She was a great boat and probably the only
Hunter to earn the distinction of winning 1st in Fleet in the =
Regatta
De Amigo. The Regatta De Amigo is a 600+ mile race from Galveston, Texas =
to
Vera Cruz, Mexico and with the help of some of those very seasoned sailor=
s I
mentioned earlier, we managed to take home a Class and Fleet trophy in 20=
06,
which happened to be the 40th anniversary of this prestigious
regatta. With
“Dor-I-Lee” sold, we were now officially boatless, a state of
existence that must be similar to being homeless, so we doubled our effor=
t to
find a 46’ Hunter. I diligently monitored the online sights and
magazine ads, until one day, Eureka! There in the current “SailR=
21;
magazine was an ad from Massey Yacht Brokers. I couldn’t believe my
eyes. Massey had the largest most competitively priced selection of 46=
217;
Hunters I had ever seen. Take your pick! There were five available, rangi=
ng
from a 2003, a 2004, a 2005, and (2) 2006’s. A call was made and so=
on
we were winging our way to Florida to meet with Al Pollak, one of
Massey’s more outstanding yacht brokers. With
the formalities of the purchase behind, thanks to the patience of Frank
Hamilton and Sheryl Boddy, (Sales Manager and Finance Manager for Massey
Yacht Sales), the time had finally arrived for us to make serious plans to
sail our boat to her new home in Galveston. This would entail a five-day,
650+ mile journey across the Gulf of Mexico, so safety was first and fore=
most
on my agenda and that of the crew. With that in mind, I purchased an eight
man offshore raft and a MOM 9 and arranged for them to be shipped direct =
to
Massey Yachts. A thank you is in order for Jim Beck for receiving and sto=
ring
these items until our arrival. Jim also deserves an extra pat on the back=
for
devoting the better part of a day to help my wife and I learn the boats m=
any
systems and for the wonderful sail to give us the feel of the boat before=
our
scheduled departure. A
bonus to the provisioning was the 35 lb Wahoo that Mickey, (our most seas=
oned
sailor and husband to Debbie), landed late one afternoon, just in time for
dinner. In fact, we feasted on Wahoo again a few days later. A delicacy t=
hat
makes my mouth water even now. Fresh onion, bell pepper, sautéed i=
n a
skillet with Teriyaki and served over the baked fillets that were prepare=
d in
the oven. Anyone that goes offshore without a fishing gear really needs to
reconsider. This fish provided two meals for eight people and another meal
for six, after we had reached our destination. In
addition to the offshore raft and MOM 9 that I mentioned earlier, a Rayma=
rine
E80 Display was installed, along with a Raystar 125 GPS Receiver, and a
Sirius Satellite Weather Receiver. This is an item that I will never again
leave home without, even if I am forced to leave my American Express card
behind. With this receiver we were able to monitor all inclement weather =
and
surprisingly found that for most of the trip we were surrounded by some
pretty nasty storms. Obviously we were blessed because our little window =
over
the Gulf continued to move in the same direction and at the same pace tha=
t we
were. Not one drop of rain until we approached the Galveston jetties and =
then
only a sprinkle. A poll later revealed that most of the crew had said a
prayer before our departure, so someone was definitely listening. You
decide! “Dor-I-Lee-Too”
is everything I have dreamed of and more. The Hunter Anyone
missing a parakeet? He now resides on a sailboat In Galveston, Texas! |