Have you ever taken one look at a boat and fallen madly in love? I recently had my first “boat-love-at-first-sight” experience while wandering around city dock and noticing a stunningly beautiful schooner at dock. My friend was familiar with the boat and started telling me some stories about her and her skipper, Mark.
As we stood alongside gawking at her, a couple walked up and it turned out to be Mark and his wife Lynn. They invited us for a tour down below and I couldn’t believe my luck! The boat was filled with cozy warmth, and the walls were covered with awards from a variety of schooner races. It was lovely! A 1926 Alden Schooner called Adventurer, meticulously cared for by her skipper for over 20 years. She looked like she belonged in a museum… I was amazed that she was a competitive racer!
As we were leaving, my friend mentioned that the skipper sometimes needs crew for The Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race. I thought about how amazing it would be to crew on that boat, and let the thought simmer for a few weeks. As the thought continued to simmer, I decided on a whim to contact Mark. It took a week or two to get things settled, but the whim paid off. I was in for the GCBSR!
I had my first chance to sail on Adventurer for a pursuit race the Sunday before the big race. It was fantastic. I learned a boatload (literally) about schooners, the different sails, and how they are hoisted and trimmed. Very different from the J-Boats and Beneteaus that I am used to racing!
The real race festivities started on Wednesday, with the annual Parade of Sail in Baltimore. It was a true honor to sail with the likes of Lady Maryland, Pride of Baltimore II, Mystic Whaler and over 30 other majestic schooners. My family came out to watch from Fells Point where I got to show off with the cannon. I yelled “fire in the hole!!” while my nieces and nephews held their ears. I felt like a rock star auntie!
The only disappointment was how few people showed up to watch this parade of nautical beauty. I was expecting hoards of people all along the harbor vying for a view, but it was almost as though nobody knew about it. I hope the event will drum up more spectators in the future… it’s truly an epic sight.
Thursday morning marked the real parade, from Baltimore to the start at the Bay Bridge. The wind was pretty light in the afternoon, and it seemed to take forever to tack our way down the Bay. The best part was watching Pride as she sailed in all of her glory nearby.
By evening the wind was picking up and we were moving much faster. We had some excitement with a crewmember climbing out on the bowsprit to take down the genoa and connect a smaller jib. The sail change made a huge difference as Adventurer found her sweet spot. By the 4 a.m. watch we were heading almost directly south with a gorgeous full moon and full sails. It was AWESOME!
By this point the crew was starting to gel, and I realized how lucky I was to be with these incredibly personable and accomplished sailors. Along with the wind and the moon, life really couldn’t get any better. And then came the moon set! The crew sat in awe as the full moon disappeared slowly over the horizon. I have done a fair amount of night sailing, but never witnessed a moon setting so beautifully. The same watch crew was on duty as we made it to the finish at Windmill Point, around 7 a.m. We still had a long sail ahead to make it to Portsmouth but we were feeling pretty good about our performance – just not sure if it was good enough to beat our biggest competition, Sally B.
Friday afternoon was spent visiting with crew from other boats, and relaxing onboard with a quiet dinner. A few of us hit the Biergarten in town for a drink, but most were tired and resting up for the next day. The big event on Saturday was the awards party, with beer trucks, oysters a-plenty and sea shanties for entertainment. And cornhole!
By 3p.m. we were getting anxious for the awards to start. No matter how much discussion went back and forth, nobody really knew the results until they were announced. After much ado, Adventurer ’65 was announced as the winner for Class B! We also won line honors and best corrected time. I was bursting with pride and on the verge of tears, watching Captain Mark receive his awards.
The tent party was followed by lots of back-slapping congratulations, and drinks at the Woodwind rum party. I was still reeling from the win, and feeling overwhelmed at being a part of it all. It was the icing on the cake for an experience that I will cherish forever, and an event that I hope to attend for years to come. ~Shannon Hibberd
