For once, I’m a bit of a loss for words. But I’ll try.

This morning, I looked out the back of Uproar and 2K was anchored right behind me. Kjell and his crew Barbara, had just crossed their track this morning, completing his dream of a circumnavigation!

I hadn’t seen Kjell since January 2021 when he and Kaia helped load Uproar on Yacht Transport in Tahiti. We said goodbye and took a cab to the airport. Uproar was taking the scenic route and arrived in Fort Lauderdale in March.

I hate to bring up the dreaded Covid thing but Lisa and I decided since countries west (New Zealand, Australia, etc) were still locked down, we would ship Uproar back to the US where we knew we could cruise in the Bahamas and had more certainty of the future.

Kjell and Kaia sailed to Fiji and mothballed 2K for several years. They flew back to Norway where it was discovered that Kaia had a blood cancer. After extensive treatment, Kaia passed. We still mourn her loss.

Kjell returned to 2K determined to continue his voyage. With several crew, he continued sailing to New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, Africa, French Guyana and just today, Bequia where he crossed his path from about six years ago.

9:00 this morning, I dinghied a bottle of champagne over, “You don’t have to drink it now.”

Barbara replied, “We have already had beer and tequila, let’s open that sucker.” We did!

We had a special relationship with 2K. We were both in “Hotel California” the Tahiti airport anchorage for two months of lockdown. After, we sailed an extra year in French Polynesia, waiting for the world to acknowledge it had over-reacted to Covid and let us continue to sail. We spent that entire year with 2K and had many adventures. One that Kjell and I talked about briefly this morning was our month in Mopelia, a remote Polynesian atoll where only 20 people lived. It was like a set from a movie, we were treated like visiting royalty. OK, Kjell and I did set about fixing outboard motors, the clutch in their community truck and patched three leaking boats. We went for night hunts for coconut crabs in the jungle and drank their “local beer” made from rainwater, yeast and sugar!

Congratulations Kjell for bringing 2K around the world. I’m honored to join you in the celebration and even better to see you after more than three years. The cruising community is a small one indeed!

Last year I anchored in Jolly Harbor, Antigua. A few hours later a British boat anchored nearby. He yelled over, "Am I too close?"

I replied, "We could fit three French boats between us." He doubled over with laughter.

I resist stereotyping but (yes, we smell a butt coming) French sailors do not have a considerable reputation. I have met some delightful ones but the stereotype does not occur in a vacuum.

One British sailor told me, "The British outfit their boats to go cruising. The French go cruising to outfit their boats." Yes, he was saying the French steal from other boats. I have had this happen to me! A French sailor stole my dinghy oars.

Back to the present. I was anchored in St. Anne, a huge anchorage often with several hundred boats. A French boat anchored right next to me. Now I'm pretty tolerant of this. As long as we don't hit.... This guy was not going to hit Uproar as we swung at the hook but it was damn close. I gestured and in my pigeon French said, "Pourquoi? Un grand lak labat." I pointed to the huge, open space behind me. I received a Gaelic shrug.

After four days, I became tired of almost hitting his boat as the wind dwindled in the evenings.

I'm a huge Janis Joplin fan. I admit some of her songs are a bit harsh but I love her passion and message.

Sidebar: Ladies, Janis sings a lot about what men want and need. She is clear that men just want a little sugar and sweet, loving momma. Advice I have given my daughters. Forget about that Chinese basket thing you saw on Myspace. That's all we need. Just hold their head against your chest, give it a soft rub and tell them what a sweet boy they are. Guys, do the EXACT same thing. But for those engineers out there, please change the "sweet boy" to "sweet girl."

But that probably didn't translate well in French when I blasted my JVC Bluetooth speaker on the side of the boat toward my French neighbor. He moved! Proof positive that he WAS too close.

Dirt dwellers (non-cruisers) often ask the same three questions. Aren’t you afraid of storms, sharks and pirates. Storms, yes we have been in more than a few but know how to handle them. Sharks are rare in the Caribbean but we have encountered a few in the Bahamas. All docile. In French Polynesia, about 90% of the time you are in the water, there are sharks around. They are everywhere, Blacktip, Whitetip and Grey sharks are the most common. Nurse sharks are in some areas. You get used to them and they are a treat to see.

But pirates I always say are an urban myth. Sure there are some incidents but not where we sail and we are not afraid. Now we have a disturbing pirate encounter in the very waters I sailed yesterday.

I have had messages from quite a few friends expressing concern for me, sailing in the area where two American sailors were hijacked by three escapees from a Grenada prison. Details are not clear but somehow, these three boarded the boat of this unsuspecting American couple, sailed their boat to St. Vincent and killed the two and threw them overboard. Again, details are not clear but the three confessed to killing the Americans.

The internet and specific FB groups for this area are abuzz. Many are calling for increased diligence and precautions. Just what could these sailors have done to prevent this attack? It was a bizarre, tragic and spectacularly frightening situation.

I have a long-standing attitude that I consider that anyone who approaches me has nothing but friendly intentions. I admit to being naïve at times but this policy has served me well. I have met and made the most wonderful friends in places Uproar has taken me.

The few times someone has been a bit aggressive, I have an app for that. I sing Bob Marley, “Redemption Song” at the top of my lungs. They either think I’m crazier than they are or sing along with me. Fun and works every time. You should try it. “Ole pirates yes they rob I, stole I from the merchant ship…..”

As tragic as this incident was, it in no way colors my view of these gently and beautiful people. Sure, there are bad ones but I can’t spend any energy worrying about them.

Worry is like paying interest on a debt you may never owe.

It didn’t hurt that the SVG coast guard vessel patrolled the anchorage last night. I thanked them for watching over us.

I’m back in Anse Cochon and again being invaded by Pink People! They are still here after eight years.

I’ve told a lot of my cruising friends about the Pink People and they (mostly) get a good laugh out of it. This afternoon I anchored here again, yellow flagging it, then heading to Bequia tomorrow. The Pink People are here in even greater numbers and enjoying the water, snorkeling and I hope not too much sun!

December 2016

We are being invaded by pink people. Our anchorage at Anse Cochon was idyllic. There were only four cruising boats swinging at anchor, a beautiful palm tree lined beach and the only building is a boutique hotel on the south bluff. That's what we woke up to. But at 9:00am the pink people invaded. Up to three mega-catamarans at a time brought around 50 people each to "our idyllic beach."

Castries is the major cruise ship port on St. Lucia. The cats load up with cruise ship passengers and take them to the beautiful beaches south. Every time one approaches, they play a recorded message. I know much of it by heart: "No jumping off the boat, wait until the ladder has been put down. You may use the toilets but don't flush until we leave the bay. We will sound the horn in 40 minutes at which time you must return to the boat. You may have either a cheese or tuna sandwich."

The pink people love the clear, warm water and beautiful beach. Some of them snorkel the amazing reefs right near the beach. It is a beautiful spot and a lot of pictures are taken. When they leave, they cruise by us and stare like we are alien creatures. I always wave.

The boat boys, Titus, Tiger, Mike and John would paddle their kayaks up to the big cats and try to sell coconuts and crafts to the passengers. In between cats, they paddle over to us. They know cruisers don't buy trinkets but they have to try. Sometimes they just sit and chat. I received great fishing advice from one of them. I was cleaning the grill grate on the beach and another brought me an herbed, rum drink. I told him I didn't have any money and he said, "No problem!" I did end up taking his kids for a screaming dinghy ride around the bay.

The local people know we are not pink people. We were in the Castries market and an energetic Rasta wanted to show us his wood carvings. Lisa said, "We live on a boat, we don't have room for any art but they are very nice." He said, "You didn't have to tell me that." I asked why. He said, "I can see by your appearance you live on a boat. Well at least him, not so much she." I have been getting this reaction a lot lately. Maybe it's time for a haircut? Well, not just yet.

Pink people are also found on the major beaches, straw markets and local festivals. We sometimes meet them, especially when they are wearing Wisconsin or Packers gear. They invariably ask the same questions about our cruising life. The one that shocks them is our answer to, "When are you going back?" Our answer is, "We don't plan to. When it's time, we will know."

I hope no one is offended by my term, "pink people." Some of our cruising friends now use it too. Pink people don't annoy me in the slightest bit. I smile when I see them enjoying our paradise. I'm glad they can get a taste of what we enjoy every day. It makes me even more grateful that we live this life.

They are moving so fast, I can’t count them.

A small, French cruiser anchored near me. Kids poured out of the cockpit and jumped in the water, splashing around. It’s near sunset but they will have to be forced out of the water, they are having so much fun.

It appears there are two dads on the boat. I can only speculate. As a dad who was tragically isolated from his kids during a divorce, I can only hope this is a dad/kid adventure of lifetime memories.

The sun sets. My conch horn cries its mournful wail.

It is not often I run into another sailor who owned a Laser 28. But Jerry and I had a few beers and swapped sailing stories. In fact, Jerry had two of them! We did meet Bill and Wendy in Grenada in 2016 who also had a Laser 28. They loved it as much as we did.

This was not a chance meeting. John from “Kindred Spirit” mentioned his cousin Jerry was visiting. I have known John for about 40 years and also Jerry. But it had been a long time since Jerry and I got together. Sure enjoyed the visit.

What’s a Laser 28? The Laser company built over 100,000 14-foot sailboats. They were designed to be a higher performance beach and cottage boat like a Sunfish. The boat was such a success, it is now an Olympic racing class. In the early 80’s, Ian Bruce, president, decided to embark on a high-performance racing/cruising boat. He reasoned that the generation who grew up sailing Lasers were starting to have young families. They would want a family boat but one that felt almost like their little Lasers.

Bruce Farr was hired as the naval architect, a renowned race boat designer whose boats were winning America’s Cup races. Farr designed only the hull, keel, rudder and rig. Ian Bruce, a skilled industrial designer penned the deck shapes and interior. The deck design was especially ergonomic for crew hanging out on the rail and the skipper and main trimmer in the cockpit. Sailboats heel over up to 20 degrees. These surfaces were angled just right for sailing at a heel angle.

The interior was designed to be light weight, inexpensive and with lots of storage. Ian Bruce came up with the idea of “soft lockers,” durable fabric covering the inside of the hull with large pockets for storage. The pockets had a wooden handle that fastened to a clip overhead to retain heavy items. There was even a pocket with Velcro to hold a rum bottle (sadly just one).

The rest of the inter contained a “v” berth in the bow for two people, dinette table that sat four and also folded down to make a double bunk. Aft on the port side was a spacious single berth. It had a nice, cave feel the kids loved. Aft on the starboard side was a head with a porcelain toilet and closing, wood door. The galley contained a sink, alcohol stove, ice box and removable cooler.

The area aft of the head was wide open for storage. We stored sails there and could even stuff a crew member back there to sleep. One trip we were able to store three, full-size bikes back in that storage space. It wasn’t easy.

Hull and deck were molded from Kevlar composite, similar to bullet-proof vests. The boat was light, strong and fast. We clocked 17.9 knots surfing down a wave. In flat water (and lots of wind) the boat would plane like a speedboat at 16 knots. But the feel of the boat was its real charm. It truly handled like a dinghy on steroids.

We had Veloce for 25 years and raced her in about 1,200 races! We won 10 season championships with Veloce and some talented and dedicated crew. We usually raced with five or six.

But Veloce was our family cruising boat as well. We often took family and friends out to watch fireworks, anchored in Milwaukee’s harbor. Best of all we cruised northern Lake Michigan on the Wisconsin and Michigan sides. We once cruised for 2 ½ weeks with three teenagers and a dog. The best family vacations imaginable and really low cost.

The only downside to the Laser 28 was the cost. They were pretty expensive at $35,000 in the mid-80s. Laser spent millions developing and tooling the boat. They built only 150 hulls, never recovering the initial cost. Sadly, the Laser 28 took down the entire Laser company. But those of us who sailed them were fortunate indeed!

Jerry said, “Those were such great boats in every way.”

I would go as far to say, “Laser 28’s are the best designed and constructed boats I have ever sailed.” Uproar is a real gem but Veloce retains a special place in my heart.

If I could find a good deal on one, I would readily buy it for summer use in Milwaukee.