Position: N36 36.22 / W075 25.38 Course 141 M Speed 6.5KT Motor sailing

Happy New Year tonight from the crew of Changin' Tags offshore headed from Norfolk, VA to St Thomas.

The first day of any offshore trip is always filled with a certain degree of anxiety and excitement. No matter how many trips I do I always feel a little tightness in the gut as we throw off the docklines and head for the deep. Maybe it's just because I am a Wyoming boy born and bred and no matter how many offshore miles I rack up my brain says, "Hey Bubba you aint meant to live out there in that wild ocean!" Maybe it's just because my Wyoming family actually does say that to me fairly often, but this feeling only lasts for the first few hours and then I begin to get in the swing of the boat, working the sails feeling the heaving of the deck under my feet and the sound of water rushing by the hull.

This morning as we prepared to throw off the docklines in the freezing rain I had that same feeling in my gut but also a very real feeling that if I didn't get back on the boat under the bimini I might loose my fingers and toes to frostbite! I have been spoiled living on our boat in the Caribbean and am now fully convinced that if you own a sailboat you really should keep it in a warm place. Dick and Jill agree obviously so here we are offshore sailing this beautiful Island Packet back where she belongs... in the warm waters of the Virgin Islands.

The cast of characters on this offshore adventure story will once again be Dick, Jimmy and myself and we are personaly hoping for a trip with a little less excitement than we experienced last time we made did it. We also have another character aboard to play a part. Patrick Howser is an experienced sailor but this is his first real offshore trip so we should expect some adventure tales from him as he shares with you a little about himself and his experiences on Changin Tags". I mentioned playing a part in a drama because Patrick is a bonafide actor and movie star. If you grew up in the 80s like me you might remember him from a movie called "Hot Dog The Movie." When I heard he was coming along I must honestly say I couldn't remember what he looked like but I did remember what his costar Shannon Tweed looked like.... hmmm I wonder why that is?

Well we will keep you all up to date as we take this ocean sleigh ride. We are expecting some weather on Saturday so keep us in your thoughts and prayers. I will try to blog every day so if you would like to sit back in the morning over your coffee and live vicariously through us you are more than welcome to come along for the ride. Rebecca will tag on a note at the end of this blog telling you how you can easily send us free messages via our Sat phone too. It's always fun to hear from you all. It gives us something to look forward to.

In closing I would also like to wish a very heartfelt Happy Anniversary to my sweet wife Rebecca who agreed to marry me and actually went through with it 21 years ago today. Thanks for the adventure Babe! I love you!

Cold and Wet,
Kristofer writing for Dick, Jimmy, Patrick and "Changin Tags"