Meanwhile, Back On the Committee Boat...

Towards the end of the dinghy races, things started getting 'interesting' on board Solitaire 1. We had a super low tide that day and when the captain realized that we were touching the bottom, he decided the best thing to do would be to transfer the whole race committee into the mark set boat to complete the final race, while he motored out to find deeper water. We gathered all our personal belongings and important scoring sheets, and got in the mark boat just as the first boats went over the finish line.

Alas, it was too late for Solitaire 1 to move on its own, and a neighboring cruising boat with a twin outboard skiff came over to help try and tow them. Now the boat was hard aground! Ann and I, the two main score keepers, caught a ride in another skiff back to the sailing club to tally the results, while everyone else helped the committee boat out. None of the racers were even aware of what was happening out in the Sea of Abaco. The rest of the race committee arrived at the end of the awards stand-up and said that Soli was still out there, but now floating again. I didn't realize how bad it had gotten until I saw the photos later.

They finally got her moving and floating again by heeling the boat over with a halyard from the top of the mast.

No harm done, but I hope Catherine and David didn't have a mess to deal with after being at such an angle.

 

I sure am glad I didn't stay on board while all this was going on!

Photos by Sue Holloway