I am playing catch up on some very important blog posts! I can't believe I let these slip but the last couple weeks have been an amazing whirlwind of exciting things!

After the sea trial and negotiations, the seller and I agreed on a price and the transaction was closed June 2nd, 2016. Her name is "Hav Vind" which in Finnish or Norwegian means either "offshore wind" or "sea breeze". We like how it transliterates into the English phrase of "have wind" with a scandinavian accent!

I am writing this 12 days later so I will try to recount what we went through.

During the whole process I was second guessing myself about the wisdom, or lack thereof, in buying a large boat that requires moorage and expensive maintenance. I would talk for hours with Lozanna about the pros and cons of this or that boat... never having one that jumped out at us as THE boat for us. The way Hav Vind came into our lives is another story of how God has been working in our lives.

I believe that God will sometimes give you the desires of your heart. You might have to wait many years, and the desires of your heart may change over the years which means probably your heart needs to change before you get such desires fulfilled, but that's another story...
With us, and our desires, our story is that of growing and walking with God so the word "desire" is one we approached cautiously. Had our hearts grown in the way He wanted us to? Did we deserve this? Was there something else more rewarding to our souls that this money could have been spent on? So many questions and so many doubts.

Through prayer I believe God said, sure go for it...but don't blame me when you realize your eyes were bigger than your stomach! But I also believe he gave me a dollar limit - and an attitude of a grateful recipient of a gift, even if that gift is old and ratty... like our house, that we love - problems and all. I knew from the beginning I was going to end up with a boat that was just like my house - old, tired and in need of fresh life. And with long list of things needing repair.

A couple things happened along the way that confirmed to Lozanna and I that God is in this with us. He may not be saying "do it", but he is letting us and guiding us.

Now you might think this is nuts, all this talk about God letting you do something or giving you something, but our lives have not been normal and I don't have room here to explain all the back story, perhaps it will come out bit by bit in this blog of our adventures!

Regardless, we are saying "some day is today", and we are pushing ahead with our dreams ever listening for the still small voice to say "stop!" And we are praying and praising God that he has blessed us this day! Tomorrow may change, but today we are blessed!

We are now in the home stretch on the long journey of trying to find our "perfect" boat. No boat is perfect, all are compromises, so we had to learn all about the different types of boats as well as learn about ourselves and what we wanted to experience in/on/with a boat before we could decide. This learning process has taken us through uncharted waters including learning about hull types and the debate of sail vs motor power, and where would we really take the boat, but now today... all of that is academic. Yesterday we were notified that the owner of the vessel we wish to purchase (s/v Hav Vind), has agreed to our post-survey/sea-trial counter-offer.

That means that the vessel is to be ours as soon as the paperwork people can finish their jobs, and I hand over the money, of course.

This boat is our compromise boat. It is not perfect. But it has many features we find attractive as well as a good sailing profile. It moves well in light wind and is easy to handle with a short-handed crew. But it does have many issues we will need to work through. It is seaworthy now as she sits, however only in perfect weather. She has some leaks and damage that need to be fixed before we go on any adventures. In addition there are perfectly fine working things but they are 30 years old and should just be replaced at this point.

So this morning I am now thinking about all of the new projects we just signed up for instead of the grand adventures we will be taking! The truth is we will be enjoying the heck out of this boat whether it is only sitting in the marina as my office, or if we use it every weekend. With it's brand new Volvo Penta Saildrive it will be perfect for motoring through the Mountlake Cut as we go sailgating to watch the UW Huskies play on Saturdays! And with it's ample space inside means it will be nice when those Saturdays (or any day for that matter) are typically rainy days! The complete coverage provided by the dodger and bimini cover means the entire crew will be dry and warm on the worst of fall days whether inside or out.

...I just have a few deck leaks to fix and hope we don't find any more delamination than we already think we have found... (oh dear Lord what have I bought!?) Then every trip will be pleasant until the next thing breaks! :-o

But for better or for worse, richer or poorer or way poorer, our stories are going to be the same for the next few chapters. The boat and it's family. This blog will hope to document our journey forward as we chase our dreams of adventure and learn how to become better sailors and seamen/sea-gals, and to fix and improvise things along the way!

Stay tuned! We hope to sail her home in about 2 weeks.

It was Friday the 13th! A bad omen to some people, but for me (Capt Rod), this day was an awesome day doing the sea trial and survey/haul-out prior to purchasing s/v Hav Vind! The sun was shining and it was almost hot, I was thankful for the dodger since I'm more comfortable in gray overcast! And despite there being only light wind, we were able to sail around in Commencement Bay with ease.
I have yet to receive the written report from the surveyor, but I believe the day went well. She sailed easy and well but could use an upgrade in standing rigging including mast. And she could use quite a bit of gel coat help. Other than a potential delamination issue in the deck that could cost thousands of dollars to fix.... there isn't much to worry about!

*faint*

I think that in the end, the summary will more than likely be: what little repairs and upgrades needed to be done to bring it up to bristol condition do not compare to what the current owner has already invested and it's listed price is in the range of "o.k."
Of course there is the possibility that the surveyor could be very critical. At this point it's rather like trying to read a jurors opinion based on their facial expressions. I will know shortly, within hours I hope, as she is my hired agent. I said "she". Yes, she is a she... my surveyor that is. I thought she was highly informative and thorough.
I also thought my Broker, and her husband who was the sea trial pilot, were also very informative at the same time being wonderful cruising companions. Everyone's attitude, humor, pace of life, was about the same and they all were understanding of my lack of boating skills!

There may be a follow up post to this one later today if I get the survey soon enough to make a decision today. If not, sometime during the day tomorrow we will probably know what our decision will be. I don't want to stop the sale unless there is a huge reason, and my candid conversations with the surveyor didn't reveal anything scary, so I'm kind of thinking I will be phoning the broker on Monday morning! Unless she is reading this! In that case they have to teach me to crew on their racing boat! hehehe
But seriously, I think the repairs would have to be pretty high for me to back out at this point. But we shall see....

Stay tuned!
Rod

I got a confirmation email earlier today that said our long awaited pre-purchase survey, sea trial, and haul-out full day extravaganza is scheduled for this coming friday! The surveyor, marina, broker, pilot... everyone is on board and ready to go!
I pretty much know what we are getting in this very well cared for boat, but there are a couple places I'm concerned about and I'm quite sure the surveyor will point out a few more. But despite that - we are excited that we are one step closer through this process and a date has been made to set off in her!!
We are only motoring (probably) across the scenic(?) Commencement Bay in Tacoma, but I will be on board her at last! And add to that fact that during the all day event I will have 2 experts in different things to pick their brains about our soon-to-be-new-boat!

Tonight is monday..that means...mon tue wed thurs... 4 nights.... I have to go to bed 4 nights in a freaking row before I can go visit her!!

Oh the humanity of it all!

Well, this is the first post, or first watch, of our new blog. Pretty exciting stuff huh?

Soon, really?... yes - soon we will be documenting (or mockumenting) our attempts at fulfilling our dreams. It will be fun, funny, weird and a lot of work. We invite you to visit so we can share our joy with you!

Rod