The boat is pretty much my project, but we have been surprised at my wife’s reaction. She did not expect to enjoy it much but actually has had more fun sailing than I do. I still often seem to be nervous and edgy and lacking confidence. I expect that will pass with experience.

A couple of acquaintances showed us the basics of how to sail. I had read a couple of books and watched a couple of videos to try to understand the theory. There have been frustrating days. Days when I just couldn’t seem to get the boat to do what I wanted. I have grown to understand better what was going wrong those days. Still the old saying "A bad day sailing is better than a good day at work." holds.

We would like to come up with a different name for the boat, just to make it more "ours." However, with its red hull "Rubaiyat" is too perfect a name. When sailed right, she handles beautifully, is forgiving and responsive in and out of the slip. I have no experience with which to compare her, but she seems pretty nice.

We look forward to the day we can sail over to Kelley’s Island , Put-In-Bay, or Middle Bass for a day.