Last Sail of the Year

Our 1981 Newport 30 - "Addiction". Click the pic for a much larger view.

We are heading up to the snow in few days and alas my last sail of the year took place today. And what a fine day it was in the Bay Area. Blue skies, light winds and in the low 50's. A perfect, crisp, clear winter day. My father in law loves boats and so I took him up to the boat along with my old college friend Dave ( he sailed with me over 15 times this year). The wind was 12-14 when we started heading out towards Treasure Island. Dave was at the helm and I was talking story. The breeze was down a bit so after our tack, I suggested we lock the wheel and let the boat do the driving. We have such a well balanced boat that she can be set and she will do the rest if the sails are set correctly. Sure enough, we made only one or two adjustments on the helm for the next 30 minutes. We sailed a bit more and the wind really died just as it was time to head in. I contemplate throwing up the kite but thought better of it. After further review and the wind was down to about 6-8 knots, I decided what the hell lets put her up. We rigged her up and she is a beautiful sail. Once we hoisted her, we were off on a broad reach and the boat quickly shot up to 6 knots on the meter. It was an hour of terrific sailing down the bay and we were cooking! Once around the pier we headed toward the channel and had a perfect take down and the end of our sailing year was near. We have had the Addiction for eight years now and this 27 year old boat continues to amaze me with her speed, balance and forgiveness. And I need alot of forgiving! We look forward to another great season in 2009!!!