When Greg first approached us regarding his desire to help us sail across the Atlantic, Mary Margaret and I were initially skeptical. While we obviously could see the advantages of having an extra person helping with the watches during a long passage, the concept of having someone who we really did not know was a concern. We have cruiser friends who have had the passage from hell because the personalities ended up not meshing well. With a confined space, such is on a sailboat, crossing the ocean, you end up being in each other's way all of the time. Thus, it is paramount that you respect and like each other to make it work.

We have had mostly great experiences in our eight years with others coming on board Leu Cat. We really have had only a few bad experiences so we are careful in whom we invite with us for extended periods, such as a long passage.

Thus, we were very forthright with Greg regarding all of the bad things that we could think of which might happen during our long Atlantic passage. This was important to us since once Greg comes on board, there really is not anyplace where we could have him get off should things not work out. St. Helena does not yet have an airport, Ascension Island is really just a military base and the next stop is Tobago, our first landfall in the Caribbean, at the very end of our passage.

Despite our best efforts, Greg was still gunho to crew so we next insisted on getting together so we all could assess our personalities and see if we could stand each other. At that time we also met Mary, Greg's wife. We had a very frank discussion on many issues and walked away thinking that this could actually workout. Greg and Mary are both such delightful people.

Since then, Mary's situation has expanded and she too asked if she could crew along with Greg. Even though we had already met Mary and she and we got along wonderfully, we once again put out to her all of the negative aspects of doing this crossing. Nevertheless, she too was gunho and has opted to come with Greg to help crew.

Both of them share the dream of becoming full time cruisers so they are looking at this passage as a sample of what they will be living. However, as we have told them, long passages are really a rarity when it comes to cruising. Some of your time is spent with making much shorter passages (typically just a week or less) and then spending lots of time exploring the new lands you sail to, swimming, lots of snorkeling or diving, and meeting people if the place you have anchored next to is inhabited. That, to us, is the best of the cruising life. Long, long passages, such as what we are facing, is more work then play and really is not what the cruising life is all about.

Greg and Mary will be getting a small taste of the cruising life when they get to explore Luderitz before we make way towards St. Helena. They will expand on that taste at St. Helena and at Ascension Island also because we hope to spend a few days at each place. However, we will not have time to leisurely explore each location and the waters will still be too cold and not inviting to go swimming or diving. Thus, they will have to wait until we reach Tobago to really get a taste of the cruising life. There, we hope to find some remote anchorages, fall off the boat, swim and snorkel and enjoy life. Ahhh, the thought of it brings smiles to our faces.

Unfortunately, we did forget to mention to Greg and Mary one negative aspect of cruising. We simply did not recognize it at the time of our discussions as, up until now, it was not a significant issue. However, sitting here in Luderitz, in the cold, cold Benguela current, with night time temperatures getting down to the low 40's, it has smacked us right in the face (and, actually, all over the rest of our bodies). We are calling it: "Leu Cat's dirty little secret". It is the fact that we only have hot water when we run the starboard engine. Normally, when we are in the tropics, this is not an issue because when you shower, you are looking forward to the cool water since it is so warm outside. However, taking a shower in water that is just 47 degrees is a shock, to say the least. Up until now, the last time I could hit a high C note while singing was before my voice changed, 52 years ago. Now, all I have to do is step into the shower!

Needless to say, we hope Greg and Mary take a long, hot shower in their hotel when they arrive in Windhoek before they fly their last leg to Luderitz. It may be their last one for a long, long time.