I
arrived at Cass Lake first, this bright fall morning. I was all prepared, with a
cup full of steaming coffee and a box of doughnuts. You know, the classic
box…four of each: powdered, plain, and cinnamon. Life is good.
The
winds were predicted to be light, and with a high in the 50’s and sunshine, I
figured this was a good way to end the season.
Paul and Kim Krutty arrived with a jet ski. Well, not just a jet ski. It
was one of those water hogs…seating for three.
Kim had volunteered to take pictures from it with their new digital
camera.
John
arrived soon thereafter, followed by the Vander Jagt’s, and then by Hubert.
Assembly on the grass proceeded between sips of coffee and doughnut consumption.
We were not in a huge hurry, because the lake looked a bit smooth.
The
enthusiasm was high today, because our newest fleet member was scheduled to
attend. Sure enough, Henk, a gentleman who just recently relocated to Sarnia,
Canada, found out about the fleet through the internet. We were glad to meet him
and he was scheduled to be my crew for the day.
Once
we were all assembled, we pushed off the grassy shore and slowly sailed across
the surface of Cass Lake. The fall colors reflected across the water, creating a
canvas that our photographer used beautifully.
The
wind was enough to keep us moving, but for most of the morning, there was not
enough to raise a hull out of the water. In fact, Henk and I found ourselves on
opposite sides of the boat, trying to keep the 16 balanced.
The
Vander Jagt’s sail looked like it was camouflaged; the tones perfectly
blending with the colors of the leaves on the trees. They enjoyed sailing up and
down the lake, with Jim getting out on the wire whenever possible. I even
noticed Jim trying a bit of the Puerto Rico one-rudder-up technique! Jim has
learned a bunch this year, having attended and sailed in a few regattas.
John
and Paul, riding on the Tiger, always managed to look like they were going fast.
Upwind, downwind, no wind, they always left us behind. That Tiger can fly! Paul
took the tiller whenever possible…leaving John to hang out on the wire. John
demonstrated his orangutan technique, swinging his arms as if he were part
animal….well…come to think of it…
After
Kim had taken a bazillion shots, most of them of her armpit and gas tank (not
realizing there was a delay on the shutter), we decided to hit the beach for
lunch. John had brought a grill and we cooked up hamburgers and hot dogs. Add to
that chips and the “homemade potato salad” brought by the Rawyler’s, and
we ate like Kings!
As
we hit the water in the afternoon, the wind began to pick up. No, it wasn’t
blowing like snot…more like, an occasional booger. Occasionally, there was
some hull flying action as we all tacked up and down the lake. The smiles grew,
in direct proportion to the amount of time the windward hull spent out of the
water!
We
all had a great time, trying to get in the perfect poses for our photographers!
By now, Paul and Kim had teamed up on the jet ski. Paul drove and chased the
wind, while Kim readied herself with the camera. (She decided she had enough
shots of her armpit.)
They
got some spectacular shots of everyone. (See photos page) The fall colors were
beautiful and the whole day turned into one of those sailing days that will
remain forever etched in your mind. That’s nice, knowing that we have months
of winter ahead of us!
Henk
was now crewing for John on the tiger, and I was going solo on my 16. Paul and
Kim snuck up just in time to catch me catching my best puff of the day. Te hull
came up and I was trapped out just riding it as high as possible. Paul was
yelling at Kim to take the picture. She rattled off a couple of great shots.
While Paul had a great time driving the Tiger, dreaming of what it will be like in the spring when he jumps on his own new Tiger, he did a great job speeding toward all of us. When we got back to shore, we paged through the digital images and there was no doubt, this day of photography was a great idea!
It
was somewhat depressing packing the boats up, knowing that this might possibly
be the end of the season. Sure, we all had hope that maybe there would be one
more day…