This weekend my friend Tom wanted to see the Volvo Ocean Race – Boston In-port Race Series.  At first I thought that it would be just ‘okay’ fun.  I have to say I was blown away.  First, there were over 200 boat that headed out to Graves Light just outside of Boston Harbor to watch the race.  On the way out, we saw one of the most interesting boats made.  It is called the Forge and was at the Boston Boat Show for the past two years but this

was the first time I had seen one in the water.  Very interesting boat.  The race was supposed to start around 12:00.  I think due to the lack of wind the race officials were trying to see if they waited for a bit, if the wind would pick up.  I mean what good is a sailboat race without wind.  It was amazing to watch these boats set up for the start of the race.  It was also interesting to watch as the race started, it looked like one set of boats went one way and the other boats went the other way.  It was all in their strategy to get the best tack to get ahead of the other boats.  Very cool to see.

While we in floating around and watching and trying to figure out what was going on, I was flipping through the VHF Radio channels and came across a British guy giving a play by play of the race.  He was the funnest part of the day.  He had a ton of funny analogies for what was going on in the water including the title of this piece.  You have to laugh, a 5 knot wind, boats going anywhere from 5 to 7 knots is not really a drag race, but that is exactly what he called it.

I am not going to try to show off all the cool photos.  Instead I am going to point you to a web site, where all the photos taken are courtesy of Tom who took some outstanding photos (http://bostonvolvooceanrace.shutterfly.com/).  I will show off only one photo.  It is the American boat Puma – pronounced Peu-ma by our now famous British announcer.  Nice pics Tom!

The race ended and we headed back into the harbor.  The boats take off to Galway Ireland on the 16th of May so I encourage you to check them out at Fan Pier before they leave.  I also understand that Ireland will be hosting the festivities on Thursday and Friday nights (the 14th, and 15th) so you know there will be lots of Guinness.  When they do leave on Saturday, it promises to be real exciting.  They will leave Fan Pier and head down the channel toward the Constitution.  They will go around a marker and head back up the channel and out past Deer Island and off to Ireland.  GO PUMA!

Lastly, my other hobby, watching the Bruins, they play the Hurricanes this week and need to win in order to advance to the next round of the Stanley Cup.  Go B’s!

Another great day on the water.  See you around the harbor.

Posted by Captain SteveK

It’s like saying “if you can’t beat them, join them.”  For any of you who don’t know the clash between power boaters and sailboaters, well, lets just say, we all have to agree to disagree.  Last weekend we didn’t do much boating, between getting some rest and not really sure what the weather was going to do we did some work around the house and took Donna’s mom to a dance show on Sunday, Alvin Ailey, it was very good.  So on Saturday, I took a ride down to the Volvo Ocean Race Pavilion in Boston at Fan Pier.  I have to say I was amazed.

First, they had a number of venues there from each racing sponsor.  Puma, the American boat has a building built out of shipping containers and it was a party bar.  Ericsson has a building you can walk through and a section of the building they have a mock ‘inside of the hull’ of these sailing vessels so you can see how these guys live while at sea for a month.  The Chinese and Irish have a place to purchase racing gear and I hear on Wed May 13, the Irish are hosting a pretty big evening on Fan Peir with Irish step dancing and the works (I hope to catch that one).  There are rides for kids, there is food, the folks from Sam Adams are there (for the adults), Volvo has a large building there sharing the events of the race (and they have a lego Volvo, actual size) and a host of other events.  I was very impressed with all of the activities they have for folks, I HIGHLY encourage you to take a look, this is the last week they are in town before they take off to Galway Ireland on Saturday the 16th.

Additionally, they had all the boats out of the water and you could walk around these boats and see their shape (and some dings these boats get while sailing.)  They also had all of their masts laid out and were inspecting them as well.  These boats are made out of carbon fiber.  Nice and light but brittle, when they hit something, they tend to break.

These boats are truly works of art and the guys that sail them and their teams are are pretty special group of folks.  I don’t have much more to say about them other than thanks for making Boston a stop on your way around the world.  I gained a whole new respect for sailing (at least the way you guys sail) and hope you come back to our town again.  GO PUMA!

Posted by Captain SteveK