------------------------------ Content-Type: text/plain MIME-Version: 1.0 wwpotter-d Digest Volume 98 : Issue 60 Today's Topics: Re: Unzipping P-19- Wanted, New or Used? Cold Weather Pottering Cold Water Immersion Re: Cold Weather Pottering FW: Cold Weather Pottering Re: Cold Water Immersion Kansas City area P-19s? Yah mon! (NC Sail) Centerboard leaking/flush on trailer St. Peters' Potters Re: P-19- Wanted, New or Used? CDI furling/Mast raising Chinook and Island Rose Charter, Day Four. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 09 Mar 1998 23:35:24 +0000 From: William Longyard To: Jerry & Pat Menzies CC: West Wight Potter mail Subject: Re: Unzipping Message-ID: <35047CBB.B46F1952@ix.netcom.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Big, big thanks to everyone for their help on un-zipping files. I've done so successfully now, and am enjoying the archives. Happy Pottering! Bill Longyard ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 09 Mar 1998 23:38:29 +0000 From: William Longyard To: wwpotter@tscnet.com CC: West Wight Potter mail Subject: P-19- Wanted, New or Used? Message-ID: <35047D74.65FE35DF@ix.netcom.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - I'm looking for a P-19. I'd prefer a used one, but am considering new. What are the advantages of spending probably two, or three times more on a new one? Are the '98s special? I live in North Carolina and can pickup within about 500 miles. Bill Longyard ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 00:19:14 -0500 From: "Douglas O'Heir" To: "Haley, John" CC: Allen Parks Subject: Cold Weather Pottering Message-ID: <3504CD51.5E4FF843@mint.net> Content-Type: text/plain MIME-Version: 1.0 X-MIME-Autoconverted: from 8bit to quoted-printable by tscnet.com id UAA17804 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - John: I have the same case of winter cabin fever, but before you invest in a drysuit, see if you can try one on for awhile. The latex gaskets at the neck, wrists, and ankles are a pain, and some never get used to them. I never cared for them myself, and I have gone about 2 years without using my drysuit. Since you have much less chance in coming in contact with the water in a Potter, you might consider trying some of the fleece wetsuits (made by Henderson). The fabric is a lycra fleece which is much more comfortable and breathable than neoprene. It probably might not be as warm for prolonged immersion, but I doubt whether that would be your situation. I find cold water boating in the winter to be a lonely activity where physical discomfort from the cold often outweighed the enjoyment of being on the water. You also have the feeling that help is a long way off if anything goes wrong, even though we have lobster and fishing boats that go out year round around here. My dividing line is not going out when it is cold enough that spray turns to ice on the deck (<40°) since I don't want to risk a quick fall into the drink when stepping onto a slippery surface. I also exercise more caution in boat handling, reefing, and use of a lifeline. I suspect those college dinghy sailors get by in the cold weather with an abundance of strenous physical activity and youthful exuberance (somewhat distant memories for me!). Since Hobart & Smith in your neck of the woods are ranked #1 NCAA in college sailing, they must be doing something right. Good luck. Doug O'Heir Waterville, Maine ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 00:31:48 -0500 From: "Douglas O'Heir" To: Bill Zeitler CC: Allen Parks Subject: Cold Water Immersion Message-ID: <3504D044.F2D79AD6@mint.net> Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="------------425FEB75E929433736EEC2A0" MIME-Version: 1.0 Bill: Seems that we're exchanging all kinds of messages about cold weather boating.  I saw your message about cold water immersion and thought that I might add a bit (having studied the physiology, both academically and personally).  When you hit cold water (generally <40°), there is a ordered series of physiologic reactions:   € When the cold water hits your chest, you take a deep, involuntary breath.  If your head is underwater, you stand a chance of aspirating a considerable amount of water and possibly drowning right away. Try hard to keep your mouth clear.€ € For the next minute, you will hyperventilate as your body gets used to the cold shock.  Again, having your head underwater at this time is a bad idea because of water aspiration.  You may also end up lightheaded and dizzy due to the hyperventilation, so be on guard for that also.€ € Once you're past the initial shock and the hyperventilation, things settle down, and your survival chances are much better.  Survival time is related to water temperature, clothing, physical activity, etc.  Even very cold water can be survived for 20 minutes or longer depending upon the circumstances.  As always, keep a cool head (no pun intended).€ Good luck, and let's hope for an early spring.                                                                                     Doug O'Heir                                                                                     Waterville, Maine ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 00:50:56 EST From: LesTension To: doheir@mint.net, John_Haley@urmc.rochester.edu Cc: wwpotter@tscnet.com Subject: Re: Cold Weather Pottering Message-ID: Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Hi, My wife and I will be in St. Petersberg Fla. the week of 4/14 to 4/21 and would like to see some Potters in action, or even look at themat the dock! We also would like to rent a sailboat around the size of a Potter 19 for some day sailing. Can anyone H_E_L_P! us? Thank You. LesTension@aol.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 11:31:10 -0500 From: "Morris, Giles" To: "'wwpotter@tscnet.com'" Subject: FW: Cold Weather Pottering Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain MIME-Version: 1.0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - >I suspect those college dinghy sailors get by in the cold weather with an abundance of strenous >physical activity and youthful exuberance Well, I guess it's long enough ago now... I learned to sail in the early 1970s while I was in college in England. Our club had an arrangement with the sailing school run by Staffordshire county for the schools: We got to use it on the winter weekends when it was too cold for the schools to use. We never broke the ice, but there were quite a few weekends when our sailing area was limited to an inlet by ice on the main lake. I've learned some about hypothermia since then, and I guess we were just lucky not to have any "incidents". On the plus side, the initial trainers were Tideways - extremely stable gunter-rigged boats and there was always a safety launch out with us. On the negative side, none of us had wet suits, and it was the second season before we found out about neoprene socks. Oh, man! My feet got so cold! (Beach launch=wet feet). It was while floating beside an inverted Mirror Dinghy one January that I decided to buy a kit to make a wet suit. Ah, memories: A gray December day, no wind, flat calm and very cold. Apart from the pouring rain hitting the water, the only sound is Lizzie, Maureen and Eileen chanting from their Tideway - "Sailing is fun!...Sailing is fun!". And you know what? It was. Giles Morris Arlington VA M-15 #264 "Umiaq" ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 12:23:12 -0700 From: Allen Parks To: WWPotter Mailing List Subject: Re: Cold Water Immersion Message-Id: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" MIME-Version: 1.0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Doug O'Heir wrote: > >When the cold water hits your chest, you take a deep, involuntary breath. >If your head is underwater, you stand a chance of aspirating a >considerable amount of water and possibly drowning right away. Try hard to >keep your mouth clear. > >For the next minute, you will hyperventilate as your body gets used to the >cold shock. Again, having your head underwater at this time is a bad idea >because of water aspiration. You may also end up lightheaded and dizzy >due to the hyperventilation, so be on guard for that also. > >Once you're past the initial shock and the hyperventilation, things settle >down, and your survival chances are much better. Survival time is related >to water temperature, clothing, physical activity, etc. Even very cold >water can be survived for 20 minutes or longer depending upon the >circumstances. As always, keep a cool head (no pun intended). > I can confirm this sequence of events. As a teenage "mountain goat" growing up in the Cascade Mountains of Washington state, I was fond of running with other young adventurers. We frequently took week-long treks into the high mountains. One memorable, hot July day, after struggling under our packs up six miles of steep canyon trail, we topped out in a "cirque" under a granite peak .. a glacial bowl containing a small meadow and the most beautiful crystal blue pond you ever saw...! Within seconds six sweaty, dust-streaked young boys were stripped to the buff and streaking barefooted across the grass, ending in a running dive into water so clear we could see old sunken logs and rocks far down on the bottom. Reaction 1: when the cold water closed around us, our chests cinched tight with a painful, sudden gasp! Reaction 2: we were far underwater, thanks to the running dive. Hyperventilation was not possible but I do think that our eyeballs and lips were sucked three inches into our heads! Reaction 3: as a reflexive response to the initial shock of cold water immersion, we "levitated" to the surface and enhanced our survival chances with simultaneous levitation and water-running, like so many frantic, screaming "water bugs" ... we landed back on the meadow grass where we floundered and gasped like so many blue-backed trout. In July the snowpack had just melted out of the mountains, except for the semi-permanent snowfields that lay just above a cirque such as we found. The trickling stream running out from the foot of the snowfield drained directly into that lovely blue pond ... which was so cold you could dip a drinking cup into it and scoop up ice cubes Allen WWP-15 "Poteet" @ Boise Signet 20 "Rigel" @ Whidbey Island Personal: http://www.lesbois.com/members/graybyrd/ Webmaster: http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 17:46:01 -0600 From: Joe Dietrick To: West Wight Potter mail Subject: Kansas City area P-19s? Message-ID: <3505D0B9.4F1545FC@cctr.umkc.edu> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - I would like to talk an owner who lives around Kansas City. I dinghy sail on Lake Jacomo, and would like to get a P-19. Thanks. Joe Dietrick Lee' Summit, MO ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 19:51:20 -0500 From: gatorjj@mindspring.com (J.J. Falkanger) To: wwpotter@tscnet.com Subject: Yah mon! (NC Sail) Message-Id: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" MIME-Version: 1.0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Got the boat out yesterday (it was 69 with 25 knot winds + gusts, while today it's 45 with 20 knot winds). I have never had any boat (laser, sunfish, whatever) in that kind of stuff, and have never seen a small lake have 2' rolling chop before. I decided to only put the main up, and play it by ear. After the first 20 minutes of wondering why the heck I went out in this crazy stuff, I realized the P-19 was staying very stable and having fun, no matter what the wind did (shift, gust, die, the P-19 didn't seem to care much). Yeah, a couple of times we heeled 15-20 degrees, but I never felt like it was hitting a point of giving way past its initial stability (although I didn't have the guts to leave the sheet in the cleat!). It turned out to be fun and relaxing, despite having to yell at each other for conversation! I know I should get a deep reef, and probably sail that way with a jib, but I sure feel that if I get stuck out there things will work out at that level of weather and a bit beyond. Heck, I even ran out of gas and had to sail back in (first time I tried that, too!), without incident. Hay NC Potterers, who's up for a Swan Quarter to Ockracoke, or at least Mackeys to Edenton or Hertford this spring? I feel good about it... J.J. Falkanger P-19 #792 "Fozzguppy" Cary, NC ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 20:00:33 -0500 From: gatorjj@mindspring.com (J.J. Falkanger) To: wwpotter@tscnet.com Subject: Centerboard leaking/flush on trailer Message-Id: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" MIME-Version: 1.0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - I know these 2 topics have come up in the past, and wanted to add 2 cents to the discussion, albeit belatedly. When I took my "sale" sail with the previous owner of my P-19, I asked him about the talk I had heard here about water coming in the centerboard trunk. He told me it happened a little bit, and sure enough as we went through a little powerboat wake, a some water slurped inside. I haven't had that happen since, including yesterday's excursion into reasonably choppy water and nasty winds. What I do that he didn't is put the bolts in the top holes of the daggerboard when sailing. They don't hold anything down, but I guess where they sit in the trunk keeps the board stable enough that water doesn't enter. Someone asked about whether the P-19 should sit flush on the rollers, or just above. I don't know what it's supposed to do, but mine sits about 1 " above. J.J. Falkanger P-19 #792 "Fozzguppy" Cary, NC ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 20:40:09 EST From: LesTension To: jdietrick@cctr.umkc.edu, wwpotter@tscnet.com Subject: St. Peters' Potters Message-ID: <9ae8dc3c.3505eb7c@aol.com> Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My wife and I will be in St. Petersberg Florida the week of April 14-21 and would like tolook at some Potters. Also we would like to rent a boat around the size of a Potter 19 for some day sailing. Any info. will be appreciated. Thank you. Les Tension sailing the "JOINT VENTURE" a home built mini Skipjack in the mountain lakes near Aspen Colorado. LesTension@aol.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 22:31:39 -0800 From: Ted Duke To: wwpotter@tscnet.com Subject: Re: P-19- Wanted, New or Used? Message-ID: <35062F40.2992@cfw.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - William Longyard wrote: > > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > West Wight Potter Website at URL > http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > I'm looking for a P-19. I'd prefer a used one, but am considering new. What > are the advantages of spending probably two, or three times more on a new one? > Are the '98s special? I live in North Carolina and can pickup within about 500 > miles. > > Bill Longyard Bill, I don't know anything about the 98's. I bought a 90 in 96. It was in pretty good condition, nothing that had to be fixed urgently. I am making changes and updates slowly due to lack of time and money. I wouldn't buy a nw one (FOR ME that is). Experienced boats are like experienced cars, they have a personality. If you can't find a good used Potter a new one is worth the money IMHO, if you can afford it. I was guided to a Potter by 3 different boat salesreps at the DC Boatshow in 96, who after talking to me decided they didn't have what I needed, I needed a Potter! They each told me to contact Cliff Stoneburner in Annapolis. I did (and also looked at another Potter, overpriced!) but I bought one from Cliff. Strange to meet three sales reps who would direct me to someone else, but MAYBE sales reps aren't as bad as people think. (BTW I am one, but I don't sell boats). Or maybe they could tell with my lack of experience and limited budget a Potter was the perfect answer. I am looking forward to spring like everyone else. Learning as I go, by reading what everyone else says and juts sailing whenever I can. What part of NC? I am one hour north of Roanoke, VA. Ted tduke@cfw.com WWP19 #626 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 23:08:06 -0800 From: Ted Duke To: wwpotter@tscnet.com Subject: CDI furling/Mast raising Message-ID: <35063854.34C4@cfw.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Hi gang, Thanks for all of the comments, suggetions on furling, reefing, mast raising etc. This is a great group. Ted tduke@cfw.com WWP19 #626 ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 22:23:03 From: "Dean Knudson" To: wwpotter@tscnet.com Subject: Chinook and Island Rose Charter, Day Four. Message-Id: <350613681034002@mhub3.tc.umn.edu> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" MIME-Version: 1.0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - West Wight Potter Website at URL http://www.lesbois.com/wwpotter/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Throughout the night the funny currents behind the Island caused the cat to circle her anchor five or six times. The monohull was much better behaved at anchor. Breakfast, coffee, eggs, bacon and toast, was mustered, and the crew of the Island Rose was harrased on channel six, until they agreed to fall out of the rack and join the world at 7:30 am. After some discussion, we decided to make the run to Hoffman's Cay, to try to see the famous sinkhole. The day was really nice, a slight breeze carrying scents off of the nearby cays, sun grinning through light cloud cover, and only a very slight current that changed directions erratically. The entire crew of Island Rose was ferried over to Chinook via their inflatable, which was secured to the stern. The Chinook crew alertly noted that two of the Island Rose crew were missing, and, sure enough, Rick and Jim, the little bastards, attempted to board the Chinook with an armload of water balloons, James Bond style, from the stern. I took a direct hit with a salt water special, but no one else was tagged. I promised, nay, vowed revenge, and quickly grabbed three shots from our special below decks stash of balloons. For good measure, we deployed the launcher at the bow and fired three rounds. One hit the Island Rose as the skipper was loading the second group to ferry over to our boat. We screamed that they had better bring their flag, beer, Dorito's and any pornography over if they wanted to make a dry boarding of our vessel. This demand was ignored. A truce was called when all hands were aboard Chinook. We pulled up the Anchor, a tangled mess, straightened it out, and stowed it. Coffee was brewed, and we motored up the west side of the cays, in some REALLY thin water. Gerard and Fred watched the chart, the tide, and the shorelines. The depth alarm was triggered several times, and we passed along the west edge of Devil's Cay, Saddle Back Cay and the lower end of Hoffman's Cay. The trip was a delightful hour and a half, the water clear enough to see the rays and schools of fish dart under the Chinook. We anchored near the middle of Hoffman's Cay, on the west side. We then used the inflatable to ferry all 13 of us to shore. A narrow trail, marked by an old net buoy, led to the interior of the island. The air had a light salty jungle odor, and roots snaked over the trail. After a five minute hike we arrived at the blue hole, a 200 yard diameter sinkhole, filled with salt water, and somehow connected to the ocean via a deep tunnel. Gerard claimed that some diver had been able to start a dive in the sinkhole, and somehow pass via a cavern into the open ocean, where he surfaced. This tale was greeted with hoots of disbelief, and Gerard was advised to quit drinking transmission fluid on his off days, between charters. There were two pathways into the water, a jump from a 25 foot cliff, and a long path through the vegetation to the shoreline. Gerard challenged the entire crew's courage, screamed, and jumped up in a high arc, in all his clothing, landing in the water a good 15 feet from shore. Jim jumped next, then the entire crew, with the exception of Dick (Bob and Rick's Dad), jumped off of the cliff. I was the last to go, and more than a little reluctant. The recent rains had stirred up the water. Visibility was much poorer than is typical, but it was still a blast. Shouts echoed up and down the vertical walls, and a barnacle encrusted cave on the far side was explored. The water had an interesting thermocline at about 6 feet, which was disturbed by repeated dives off of the cliff. After 45 minutes of swimming and picture taking, we headed back on the jungle trail to the beach and took turns in the inflatable making the trip back to Chinook. It's easy to see why these Island's were favored by drug runners in the late seventies and early eighties, before the era of high altitude observation and frequent coast guard helicopter, blimp and jet observation. There is NOBODY out there, and thousands of tiny little harbors, many in shallow draft areas that are difficult to patrol in larger vessels. There is a wonderful sense of islolation, which is very condusive to sophomoric hijinks and irresponsible behavior in general. We navigated some tricky channels south of Devil's Cay, than sailed onto the ocean side though a channel that was shallow enough to make both skippers nervous. We proceeded to south of Little Harbor Cay, than cut back to the west edge of High Cay. Gerard had contacted a local woman by radio and had arranged to pick up fresh Bahamian bread. The woman apparently lived on one of the cays with a handful of family members and supplemented her income with a bake to order bread service. The bread was, as advertised, fresh and quite good. Gerard took the dinghy to her hut, bought the bread, then the crew of Island Rose was ferried back to their own boat. The day was still brilliant, partially sunny, warm, and enough of a breeze to allow sailing at times. The supply of Corona beer was offered to all hands and someone even managed to find a couple of limes. The fishing lines went out at once. The ocean side of these islands are known for big fish. A 4 pound baracuda was caught by Greg. Tim entertained the crew with the story of how college football wrecked his knee, Greg described in vivid detail the corruption in the garage door business, Roger made fun of marketing executives everywhere, Randy swore up and down that he was not building bombs at his engineering firm, but that he was open to any offers from third world despots, and I admitted just how very close I came to failing my training rotation in internal medicine. The bullshit was building to a lively peak, when suddenly BOTH fishing reels started to scream violently as line peeled away from them. By this time we were practiced in the "General Quarters Fish Alert." I grabbed the helm, Fred coached both Tim and Greg, who manned the reels, and grabbed a deadly looking gaff hook. Roger stocked the cooler with beer, and Abe got the camera. We were in luck this time, big, big luck. Greg had a 15 to 20 pound dorado hooked and Tim was fighting the biggest fish he had ever hooked, or perhaps seen, a 45 to 50 pound "Big Goddamn Bull Dorado" as Fred very excitedly described it. It was really hard to keep both lines off the stern. Fred decided to have Greg play his fish close to the boat first, off of the port stern ama, and have Tim play his fish for awhile to tire it. Tim had fished a lot, and had actually trained to be a game warden, before becomming a U.S. Marshall. He was excited enough to have a fine tremor in both arms, and was talking to himself. He had fished just about everywhere, including Alaska, but said at once that he had never felt anything this big. Greg did a good job playing the fish, and was well coached by Fred. The fish was brought to within a foot of the boat and Fred tried to gaff it. The gaffing attempt failed, and the fish spit the lure out somehow, and disappeared into the depths. The crew collectively muttered the same profanity and all attention then turned to Tim. The battle lasted about 20 minutes. Tim also did a masterful job of playing the fish and we thought we had the sucker nailed. We then made a huge mistake that so angered King Neptune as to seal our fate. We emptied one of the coolers, anticipating a need for room for such a huge fish. In retrospect, it was a foolish move that provoked the Gods and wrecked our luck. Such a blatent act of overconfidence was surely a punishable offense, and, predictably, the fish spat out the hook, not 30 feet from the boat, when he saw the empty cooler. Damn it, Damn it, Damn it!!!! Tim said very little other than a faint "No......No....No". Before escaping the fish had jumped three or four times. It was a beautiful, otherworldly irridescent green, and it shimmered beautifully in the afternoon sun. It's dance across the water was strong and quick, and a wonder for the crew to watch. There was almost, but not quite, enough hope alone, on the part of the crew, to lift the fish out of the water and into the empty cooler. Tim does not drink, but nearly accepted an offer of a beer to calm his nerves. The rest of the crew immediately began drinking and cursing the luck of the boat in a display that only increased King Neptune's amusement. Later, much later, we told Tim that he was the problem. He did not smoke, drink, cuss, visit strip bars or lie. No self respecting fish would ever allow himself to be caught by such and individual, since there would be little chance that anyone would ever HEAR about it. Island Rose circled the spot where we hooked the fish, hoping to run across the school of dorado we had uncovered, but had no luck. We resumed our run back to Chub Cay, but stopped off of Whale Cay, to try our luck at lobstering. Someone had been through the area, the lobster were scarce. We had taken 27 lobster one year, and 17 the year after, at this same site. The Bahamians at times will rip through an area with Hookah rigs, surface supplied compressed air via hoses, and take just about all of the lobster. That had obviously happened. I got off five shots with the pole spear, but didn't get any bugs in the bag. The Island Rose crew did get just one lobster. We hit the channel at Chub Cay around sunset. Both boats docked and dinner was prepared. The evening drifted into the wee hours with a blend of well limed Coronas, a few cigars, and the dishonest boasts of a well fed and idle crew. Very mellow music hung around both boats until 11 pm when the last skunked fisherman hit the rack. Dean & Rita Knudson knuds004@maroon.tc.umn.edu --------------------------------