Leaving the marina on Lake Ontario.

Andrew steering the boat.

I forgot to mention Andrew and I went sailing on our recent trip to Canada. Andrew’s second big brother and girlfriend are serious competitive sailors and they own a 35 ft race boat for weekly club races and weekend regattas. The day of our scheduled visit was the same day of their club race and being the gracious hosts they invited us along for the ride.

As I kid I used to poke around with my dad in his two-man boat at our family cottage. I remember this being an uncomplicated affair and the two of us managed to navigate the little boat around the bay with no trouble. I didn’t assume I knew much about sailing because of my idyllic childhood memory, but I was still floored at my complete lack of knowledge of the nautical world. Even the gear that we hauled to the marina was a mystery to me. Oh no, not true, I did understand the beer part. Although, I didn’t comprehend why we had so much beer, until eight thirsty crewmembers showed up. My job was to pass the beer out when the race was over and avoid being clonked by the boom. Oh yes, I was the all important flunky. Andrew was ordered to pull a bunch of ropes and after we won the race he was given a chance to steer the boat. All in all, it was really good fun and the most invigorating thing I did my entire holiday.