Sailing with the Lauren Beth

[Gil Weiss]

Ahoy out there . . . we were hailed by Captain Jim (Mercrewser) from the sailing vessel Lauren Beth yesterday while out on Lake Nockamixon. It was great to see the fruit of all Jim's efforts.

Lauren Beth looked really nice. The first mate looked like they were enjoying a very pleasant day out on the lake too. Ah, the "dog" days of summer . . .

Lots of ComPacs reside at the marina and sail on Lake Nockamixon.

[Mercrewser]

Good to see you too Gil!  Beautiful day for a sail and "Lauren Beth" is coming along nicely.  The real Lauren Beth was at the shore so Bradley, the Standard Poodle, took her place.  We've had the boat out about 5 or 6 times and Bradley has been along on every trip, including the maiden voyage.  Bill Pfanstiel was also out on the lake with his very beautiful and very fast CP23.  If you think his boat looks great on the outside, you should see the inside!  Many thanks go out to his son Bob for his help making Lauren Beth seaworthy.

[Gil Weiss]

Yep, we see Bill and his wife sailing most every weekend. His boat is very nice, though I have not seen it inside. To be honest, I am a bit envious, but we have "Steppin' Up" in really great shape and we enjoy our boat very much. It takes a few years to get things were I want them to be and I then like to stick with a boat for a while.  Our 1990 CP16 is all teak inside and I have several coats of Cetol on it so it looks very nice. I also have a solar powered electrical system that works great. My boat was wired from the factory so it was easy to work with. The roller furling jib was added this season and Carole and I really like it. At this point it is in mint condition which I makes me feel good. Last year we got the call for a larger slip, but we decided not to make a boat change. We were on the list for five years and I told the marina office to keep us on it.

I plan on some "camp outs" with my grandson when he gets a bit older. At 3 1/2 he likes sailing. This is the only reason a 19 or 23 appeals to me.

My son has a golden retriever that loves water but he is too "antsy" to take out on a 16. Bradley seemed very well behaved. I am amazed how dogs love boats. We have a parrot that would take to sailing too, but we would need a larger boat for his cage.

We are friendly with Ralph Erickson who has a very nice CP16 on H dock. There are six CP16's within easy reach of ours. Lots of ComPacs at Nock.

[Mercrewser]

I cant say the word "boat" around the house without Bradley going beserk.  As a matter of fact, he was in the back yard when I started getting the boat ready.  When he realized what I was doing, he broke through the fence and dove head first into the car!