Great story (so far) Ted, thanks for sharing it with the group. Your comment about sitting in your boat and anticipating launching and sailing struck a chord with me! I had looked at a Monty 23 in Tuscon AZ some time ago and the owner at the time told me he had never launched the boat, but had slept on board some with the boat in his side yard on a trailer. At the time I thought "how odd". That it was kind of a waste not to ever sail the boat. But on further reflection over lots of time, I realized that a lot of my boat time is spent reading magazines, books, list emails and is really also about just thinking of sailing rather than actually sailing. So for what it is worth, don't feel bad about dreaming of sailing. I think we all do so. I got into Monty's after my wife showed me an M-15 and said she really liked the looks. I had a Compac 16 that did not sail well enough for the Chesapeake Bay and the rest is history. After owning an M-15 and M-17 we have an M-23 that she likes the best so far (so much so that she is going to be taking sailing lessons with Womanship later this month!!). Hope your summer has lots more outings! Robbin M-23 The other Woman M-10 Tonka, Breezy Point MD On 6/30/2012 11:47 PM, Ted Weidenbach wrote:
Hello everyone.
First, thanks for all the great help. I love these e-mails and reading all about this awesome boat. I lurk everyday...mostly because I had never sailed my boat till today.
So I thought I'd tell you a little bit more about me since you'll probably be hearing (reading) a lot more from me. I am 28 and have been sailing since I was 6 years old. My parents didn't have a lot of money to do vacations so my Dad chased his dream of owning a sailboat and the family turned it into vacations every weekend (Far better than any vacation you can take in my opinion)! We had a chrysler 22, Catalina 25 and currently they have a Niagra 31 on Lake Pepin in Minnesota. Since about the age of 10 I have been the primary helmsman in the family. As I have gotten older it has been harder and harder to get down to my parents boat to sail with my Dad so I have wanted my own sailboat for years. December 2010 I purchased a Monty 15 #115 and eagerly awaited the chance to sail MY boat. That winter I broke my arm so bad it required major surgery and essentially a year of very slow recovery. The injury put me out for the summer of 11' so I had to sit and look at it in my garage. Don't tell anyone but I'd just go an sit in the boat some days...dreaming of sailing it. My recovery has enabled me to sail...FINALLY!
Yesterday, when I asked the main sail questions, was the first time I ever raised the mast. Today I believe I identified my problem...first, lubricant helped. Second, I ran the sail up on the stern side of the mast and had the line come down the bow side of the mast. It worked like a dream, hopefully it was rigged correctly.
Today...was one of the best days of my life. I launched my own boat and kinda sailed (wind was 2-maybe 4 MPH during "gusts") I had my wife by my side and my Dad, the one who taught me how to sail, sitting right across from me. We did a little more motoring than sailing (had a few gusts) but the highlight of the day was a dream coming true. I love the water, I love boats and most importantly I love SAILING! I worked out a few kinks in the boat which made me grateful for such light wind.
I have feverishly been refinishing the wood, added new cushions and I am still working on getting her all shined up and looking pretty.
Hopefully Jerry is proud of me...3 years before I was born, my boat was crafted by Jerry and hopefully gave pleasure to many. 31 years later it is being reborn...fulfilling a life long sailer's dream and getting the much needed attention it lacked from previous owners.
My wife and I officially named the boat, "Little Guy". It is a nickname for our miniature pincher and fits this boat perfectly.
I am so thankful for sailing and the joy it has brought to my life. If it weren't for my Dad teaching me how amazing sailing was I'd be missing out on so much fun, relaxation and inspiration.
Thanks for reading to the bottom. Hopefully it was worth it.
-Ted