New Year, New Beginings

The Bolger Gypsy

 It's been very quiet here at the Inland Packet Company but only because were are ready to get very very busy. The big news is a new boat! There was a Bolger Gypsy hull on Craigslist my partner in crime and I had posted back on forth to each other for a few years. Never wanting to pay the price suggested but a very nice 'what if'. Well it's fallen into my hands. Seems someone else paid the price, kept it for several years and ended up giving it away. To me. So now I have 16' of sailboat out in our front lawn and the need to finish it up before it becomes an eyesore. Looks like my father and I have another project!
 Speaking of projects, the Lazy Shamrocks first and so far only sail was an adventure. There was some sailing. Then some crashing. Then some capsizing. Then some swimming. Then the fire department was called. Then heading home following an official report with the state park caretaker. Needless to say great fun was had by all.

SV Lazy Shamrock underway

There is a lot to do around the boat yard. The Gypsy alone needs quite a bit of attention before it hits the water. The plan is to use the same rig as the Piccup for time saving and the fact it's a good rig. The Piccup needs some work on said rig and some paint but for all intents and purposes it's ready to go. For the time being I'm not planning on sailing with the mizzen but hopefully by the end of the summer the boat will be sorted out enough to allow it. The first Heron gathering of the year is set for the May 5th. We have some interest and both the Lido and the Piccup should be attending.
 I hope to try and maintain the Sieges as a bi-monthly thing. My summer schedule is so busy that anything more is a tough sell. But as long as we have water to sail over I see no reason why we should not go sailing. I'll hopefully be doing a lot of personal sailing, after work, on my days off and the like as well. The goal of getting some distance under my keel has not left. Nor as the goal of doing over night sailing. So far every year I've wanted to do more. Might as well make this the year to do so.
 I've also started getting interested in taking better pictures. Not sure how that will shake out on the boating front as I have a waterproof point and shoot for use on the boat. But here is to hoping to feature some better sailboat photography here on this blog in the near future.