Oriental, NC

0 nm
Wind: S 15-20 knots, building to 25-30, heavy rain

A new year. What a great place to celebrate. It’s rainy and dismal today, so we’re staying in the boat, but the “Better Than Football” race boats are all heading out of the harbor. If we were convinced to stay this long I really wanted to join them, even though we’ve never raced before, but the rain has convinced me otherwise.

Racing seems like such a yachtie thing—Ivy Leaguers in topsiders eating Chateaubriand (when they come into harbor, of course) and polishing their teak—or at least that’s how it seems. But here it’s just a bunch of people who love sailing, who go out with their buddies and see who can get around the buoys first. There isn’t even a winner—they pull the winner’s name out of a hat. That’s the handicap.

But even that couldn’t convince us to go. I was half afraid we’d end up hobbling into harbor last with broken spars and ripped sails, and everyone would say incredulously, “those guys are cruisers??” Because we really don’t know what we’re doing yet. But if it wasn’t for the rain, I think we would’ve gone anyway.

Then again, if it wasn’t for the rain, we’d be sailing today. I wish these people did enforce their 48-hour law. We’d probably be halfway to Florida by now.