Greetings to all snowbound midwest and eastcoast M-boaters! I can certainly relate to the snow bound blues and the blizzard of 03. Minnesota will reach a high of 8 degrees tomorrow (according to the Miami Herald). I'm in the Keys at a rental home on Cudjoe, this is mile marker 22, thus 22 mikes from Key West. I've been here 2 days so far for a 9 day stay. Weather is delightful of course, partly cloudy and highs around 81 degrees. The wind has been from the SE at 10 to 20. It would be perfect conditions for my M17 if only I had her here. To John and Todd, I found a private marina just down the road from me which would be ideal for launching. It is in Cudjoe Gardens and has an area for set up, a nice steep, deep ramp, and connects to Cudjoe Bay and Hawk Channel. It is at mile marker 20. The Keys will be tricky sailing due to the tide and huge shallow areas. I have been pouring over the charts I have of the area and channels are very well marked and once you are a distance from shore, sailing along the reef would be splendid. I look forward to having my boat down here sometime, once I can start to snowbird during the winter for a month or more. I will be doing some fishing, which is also exciting and gets me on the water. I hope the spring weather in Minnesota arrives and stays. I'm always anxious to slide into the summer swing after arriving home. On another note, I replaced the old Johnson 6hp 2 stroke with a Yamaha 4 hp 4 stroke for my M17. The Yamaha has more vibration yet at a lower frequency. You get used to it quickly and is not a big issue. I will not return to using a 2 stroke for the pollution issues and the poor fuel efficiency. I have an older Honda BF100 10hp 4 stroke that will be going on the M23 to replace the Mariner 8hp 2 stroke. Time to do the "green" thing. Think spring. Bones ________________________________________________________________ Sign Up for Juno Platinum Internet Access Today Only $9.95 per month! Visit www.juno.com