Yesterday was an epic day in the life of the Sea Clamp, and a momentus occassion in our personal development as boaters. First, Kristen and I learned to sail! A few weeks ago we were taking the Sea Clamp out for a spin and we met Werner, a cheery 68-yr old German man who volunteers his time teaching people how to sail at Lake Calhoun. He offered us a lesson and yesterday we finally had a free moment to take him up on it.
It was an unseasonably warm October day: 80 degrees with the sun shining and the wind blowing. Perfect for sailing. We met Werner down on the dock and climbed into the little trainer boat along with Shannon and Alberto, our boat friends for the day. After Werner steered us out into the middle of the lake and explained the basics of the rudder, sheet, and the sail, we both practiced steering and tacking. Mostly the goal was to avoid the wind surfers that were speeding around all over.
Sometime later in the afternoon we were out again, this time towing the Sea Clamp behind us. And good thing, since part way out into the lake the mast of Werner's boat crashed into the water! Part of the apparatus of ropes and pins that hold it up had come undone, leaving us stranded not too far from the dock.
After making an attempt to untangle the mast in the water, Werner and Alberto concluded that our only chance of not swimming to shore was a rescue by the Sea Clamp. And Alberto, who happily climbed into the dinghy, re-tied the ropes, and started rowing with all of his might. The plan was working fine for a bit, but then it seemed that Alberto was working up quite a sweat and we weren't really going anywhere. Turns out that the sailboat was caught on a buoy used to dock boats at the lake. We remedied the problem and coasted into the dock in a few minutes.
What a day!
