Columbia, MD to Get a Rental Car (May 25) Drive to Hampton, VA (May 26)

May 25 - Brian and Janet drove down to Herrington Harbour to pick us up so we could get a rental car in Columbia. Carla will rent the car and we will drive to Hampton, VA to spend a night with Frank and Carol of Hakuna Matata at their home in Hampton.  The following day, Carla will drive to North Carolina to spend a week with her children and grandchildren.  Dwayne will return to Herrington Harbour to work on the boat and spend time with his brother and family.  Paul on Enough is also preparing his boat for the trip to Long Island Sound.  So, Dwayne and Paul can work together while Carla enjoys her vacation.  Just kidding - we are all having a good time.

Wednesday Night Races on Willoughby Bay - Norfolk, VA

May 26 - It was a beautiful sunny day for our drive to Hampton, VA.  We decided to avoid the Interstate highways and opted to travel south on Maryland 2 and 231.  We crossed the Patuxent River at Benedict. We continued on until Maryland 5 which took us further south to US 301 which took us across the Potomac River and into Virginia.  We stayed on US 301 until it intersected US 17 which took us down the southern shore of the Rappahannock River, then across the York River and on into Norfolk where we met Frank and Carol at the Willoughby Harbor Marina.

Frank and Carol crew on Melantho 2, a Cal 33 owned by Jack and Rita.  They race on Wednesday evenings in addition to regattas.  It was an unusual sight for us to see sailboats racing with US Navy aircraft carriers in the background. The winds were light and the fleet was spread out so it wasn't a very exciting race for either those aboard or ashore. Jack is preparing Melantho 2 for the Newport, RI to Bermuda race in mid-June.  Frank and Carol will not be crewing for that one. Neither will Rita.

Rita crewed on Hakuna Matata for part of the journey down the ICW with the SAIL Rally.  So, it was good to see her again and meet her husband and other sailing companions.  Jack and Rita feed their crew well after the races.  We had chipped pork sandwiches and sides along with Rita's special sangria. After our race festivities, we headed to Frank and Carol's for the rest of the evening.  They have a beautiful home and we were very comfortable sleeping in a bed that didn't seem to be moving under the influence of wind and waves.