Foreign Affair Sailing

Day of Rest at Herrington Harbour South

Janet's parents, John and Carol came down and we just spent the day relaxing on the boat and around the marina.  The breeze off the Bay made it seem cooler than the temperature would suggest. Overall, a comfortable and pleasant day of rest.

Improved Reefing System

Improved the reefing system by installing blocks at the reef point to reduce friction on the reefing lines.  This was a relatively easy task and only took a couple of hours to get the parts and complete installation.  You shorten sail when the wind starts to overpower the boat and the reefing lines are used to pull the mainsail down to the boom so less sail is exposed to the wind.

Chesapeake Beach Framers' Market

Chesapeake Beach's Friday Night Farmers' Market draws a big crowd for food and fun.  Buskers entertain on the boardwalk.  Classic cars are on display.  Farmers, vintners and other vendors sell their goods on the bay-side street.  Dinner at Traders capped off the evening.

Ma B Tours Annapolis

Carla and I took Ma B for a short road trip to Annapolis since she hadn't been there.  We had lunch at Chick and Ruth's (great Rubin sandwiches).  Then, walked the inner harbor where we meet some Loopers (members of the America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association) and saw the Topsail Schooner, Lynx which is a replica of the privateer of the same name which fought in the War of 1812.  Finally, we took a guided tour of the US Naval Academy.

Memorable Memorial Day Weekend

We spent the greater part of the weekend at Herrington Harbour enjoying the wonderful weather, beautiful surroundings and great grilled meals.  We all enjoyed many hours of fun and relaxation: fishing (without luck), BBQ (plenty); beach time, pool time and time to lounge.

Baptism Ellicott City

Went to Emory Methodist Church in Ellicott City for a grandniece's baptism.  This is one of the oldest churches in this formerly grand mill city and terminal station for the first steam locomotive line in the US.  The downtown district is filled with quaint anti-bellum homes and shops.

Wednesday Races - Shotgun Again, But

It was a beautiful night on for racing on the Bay. Winds were 8 knots to mid-teens and the sun was shining. Like last week, the Race Committee fired the shotgun as Jubilee was the first to cross the finish line.  But, like last week, we came in second to Lady Gray, a J110, based on corrected time. That is two weeks in a row we missed first place by 9 seconds.

U.S. Military Academy - West Point

We stopped at the U. S. Military Academy at West Point on the way back from Newport.  Significant changes have been made since Dwayne was on faculty there.  A new academic building, sports fields and parking lots have occupied part of The Plain.  Yet, some things have not changed much like the quarters Dwayne lived in while stationed there.

Narragansett and Ocean Drive

After the races, we followed US 1A to Narragansett where we stopped for grilled salmon and beer on the deck above The Coast Guard House.  We had a great view of the beaches.  We continued down Ocean Drive until we got to Aunt Carrie's for some ice cream before proceeding to the Point Judith Lighthouse where we watch surfers attempting to catch some good waves. From Point Judith, it was back to Gail's "Beyond New Dawn B&B" to settle in for the evening.

VOR Newport, Rhode Island to Lisbon, Spain

It was a bright sunny day for seeing the Volvo Ocean Race fleet off to their next destination, Lisbon, Spain. The race began with two round-the-bouys legs before the boats headed out into the open ocean bound for Lisbon, Spain.  Hundreds of spectator boats chased after the racers as they exited the bay. It was a grand sight which we watched from Fort Wetherill which proved to be a great vantage point.

Sally Barkow Sailing with Team SCA

Volvo Ocean Race In-shore Race

The Volvo Ocean Race is the world's premier offshore sailing race.  It is an around the world race sailed by teams on 65 foot long, high performance, ocean racing sailboats.  The racers will travel almost 39,000 nautical miles over a 9 month period and stop at 11 ports along the way.

Gilbert Stewart House and Mill

We toured the Gilbert Stewart Birthplace and Museum in Saunderstown before the Volvo Ocean In-shore races.  Gilbert Stewart was one of the greatest 18th century portrait artists.  The unfinished portrait of George Washington is one of his most recognized works.  His home has been authentically restored and furnished as it was in 1750.

Beyond New Dawn B&B

We arrived Gail's "New Dawn B&B" in Saunderstown, Rhode Island just before 2100 after a long drive from Herrington Harbour. Gail's beautiful B&B is only a short drive from Newport which is the only stop in the US for the Volvo Ocean Race. We came to see the In-shore and Departure races.

More Work, Some Play

Dwayne fabricated a support for the seat behind the wheel.  The original was damaged when the seat tie downs gave way and the seat slid across the support.

Carla's big task was waterproofing the mainsail cover and more cleaning.  She loves Mary Kate's On-Off and FSR for cleaning the fiberglass.

Numerous Groundings

It was a very interesting day due to the high winds and low water.  Tides were lower than average and the high winds pushed water out of the Bay for almost 3 days.

Defrosting the Refrigerator Coils

We discovered the copper tubing feeding our refrigerator coils had frosted over creating a block of ice attached to the bottom of the compressor in the starboard rear lazarette.  So, Carla had to climb into our "basement" to inspect.  We shut down the refrigerator for a day to let the ice melt and allow us to determine what size pipe insulation to buy in hopes of solving the icing problem.  The good new is that the refrigerator really works well.

Rigging Survey

56 feet above sea-level and hanging by a thread.


No, it is not Dwayne.  It is a pro who has literally been climbing masts for decades.

Gone Fishing

Mike and Tony wanted to catch some trophy striped bass. Not trophy size, but a lot of early action.



Hooked 6 and landed 3 in the first two hours.  Lost 2 due to broken lines.  My advice for Mike and Tony:  If you are going after the monster fish, you need monster gear.  Fly rods don't make it.

Tony caught one only 2 inches short of being a keeper.

Oil Change and Pizza

Dwayne changed the engine and transfer gear oil.  A tedious task but not too messy since we have a good oil extraction pump.

Carla cleaned the deck with her favorite cleansers:  Mary Kay's On and Off and FSR (Fiberglass Stain Remover).  See the difference:


Headed back to Chesapeake Beach to stock up the galley at Roland's Market.

Dinner was a pleasant surprise.  Really great pizza and cold beer at Lido Pizza.  The Pop Pie Pizza was the best no meat pizza either of us ever had before.  Fresh ingredients and crisp, thin crust.

More Plumbing and Chesapeake Beach

Installed the remaining faucets today.  Carla's happy.  Things are looking good.

Drove to Chesapeake Beach to relax, have dinner and stock up on food at Roland's Market.

Checked out the day's catch with the charter skippers.  The striped bass are finishing their spawning late this year due to the unusually cold weather.

Wednesday Night Race 1 or Skippers to Skipper's