Which Way to Starboard?

Story of the Boat Incident

At one point after the boom vang broke loose, the boom and the sail shifted to a higher position. I didn't like the loss of control this caused. The boat was swinging from 0 to 20 degrees in jerky motions, lifting and heeling. The boom vang had been ripped out of its housing. I had an idea what to do and told Roxanne what I had in mind.

At a certain moment, with her help holding up the boom vang in a certain way, I would let go of the rudder and lunge forward to grab the creature from her hand and plunge its little head into the second available hole, a slot just under the boom. This she understood, but all the while I was under great stress, anxious for my daughter's life and mine.

The wind was quite strong and I didn't want the boat to flip over — not there, away from any available help. We were two miles from shore in any direction. I checked the waves and wind and then turned the boat into the wind.

On my signal to Roxanne, I lurched forward and grabbed the beastly creature and shakily shoved its head in the hole. I then turned the boat back to windward and pulled in on the sheet that pulled the boom back to its correct position. Everything was fine again.

In a plastic bag hanging from the boom near the mast were my cigarettes and a lighter. That's where Roxanne was also handy. She passed me a cigarette and my lighter and I lit it and took a big drag.

Ah, the rest of the day went beautifully. In the same bag we had a nice light lunch (gourmet style), a couple of baloney sandwiches, and two cans of pop.