[Rhodes22-list] Door County: Blue Loon had a great time!

[anima13]

Julie,
Well stated!
AND I loved your Door County tale!
Anne

-----Original Message-----
From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
[mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org]On Behalf Of Julie
Thorndycraft
Sent: Wednesday, July 07, 2004 8:08 PM
To: stan; The Rhodes 22 mail list
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Door County: Blue Loon had a great time!



Stan,
First, I'm biased - I didn't buy a Precision and everytime I get on that
boat I'm glad that I didn't. So here goes:

Pros for the Precision:
1) It can point higher than the Rhodes so it will reach the destination
faster if you are sailing close hauled. This has been confirmed on numerous
sails, not just this past week as we both are part of the same sailing club.
2) It has more space inside but it is also a foot longer.
3) They don't heel to port at night because they are sleeping in the middle
of the boat rather than off to one side - they always give us grief about
how they can tell we are on the boat because it leans to port. Ok, I'm
nit-picking and we both need to go on diets.
4) They have a boom vang.
5) They have more comfortable space inside for four people at the same time.

Cons for the Precision:
1) We kick their butt on beam reaches and downwind runs as long as the winds
let us fly all the laundry.
2) They have an awful motor lift system and have to steer the motor and
tiller at the same time. The Rhodes linkage system is far superior and I
know they are envious as to how well we can manuever under power.
3) They will sink - this is also why they have more room in the cabin area.
4) They do not have a pop top or enclosure.
5) They have no real galley or work area.
6) They have open side storage areas that allow for flying debris if they
heel suddenly.
7) The cockpit is ok but the stern pulpit seats are awful compared to our
comfy 'bass-fishing chairs'.
8) They have a lot of slop in the tiller - don't know if that is just their
Precision or if that's typical.
9) They have a porta potty that seems to require emptying way too often.
10) It does not 'feel' as solid as the Rhodes either when sailing or just
being on the boat. Can I repeat this multiple times?
11) They do not have a traveler.
12) They have the mast hoist on the trailer.
13) The trailer - awful. They have to hit the mark exactly when loading or
do it over multiple times. They have no keel guides like the Triad which are
extremely forgiving if you get hit with a cross wind right as you approach
the trailer.
14) Precision has informed them that if they don't have the centerboard up
when getting on to the trailer, they may break it.
15) It has no character and it certainly doesn't have a Stan, Rose, or
Elton!

Ok, is that enough?
Did I mention that I really like my little boat?
Julie

----- Original Message -----
From: "stan" <stan at rhodes22.com>
To: "The Rhodes 22 mail list" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
Sent: Wednesday, July 07, 2004 8:24 AM
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Door County: Blue Loon had a great time!


> Julie,
>
> You know what the parents want to hear.  You have now sailed both boats.
> What are your impressions, pro and con. As Practical Sailor said to us
when
> we refused to have the Rhodes reviewed, "We have a responsibility to our
> readers".
>
> stan/gbi
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Mark Kaynor" <mark at kaynor.org>
> To: "The Rhodes 22 mail list" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, July 07, 2004 8:15 AM
> Subject: RE: [Rhodes22-list] Door County: Blue Loon had a great time!
>
>
> > Julie,
> >
> > Great story. Thanks.
> >
> > Mark Kaynor
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
> > [mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org]On Behalf Of Julie
> > Thorndycraft
> > Sent: Wednesday, July 07, 2004 12:20 AM
> > To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
> > Subject: [Rhodes22-list] Door County: Blue Loon had a great time!
> >
> >
> > Dan and I just got back from sailing Door County on Blue Loon. If you're
> not
> > familiar with Door County, it is a finger peninsula that juts north into
> > Lake Michigan. It has lots of great sailing areas along with even more
> > tourist towns - all filled with gift shops/artist and craft stores, etc.
> The
> > towns/villages are small and quaint and are definitely after the tourist
> > dollar. Our target was the west or Green Bay side of the peninsula.
> >
> > We drove from Minneapolis to Egg Harbor, WI on Tuesday (about a six hour
> > drive) and launched at the Egg Harbor marina which has an excellent
ramp.
> > The harbor master was very nice, if you gave him a chance to get to know
> you
> > a bit - helpful with the inside information regarding the other marinas
> and
> > such. He's a sailor and likes to take care of the 'little boats'.
> >
> > On Wednesday morning we headed north to Fish Creek with South winds
around
> > 7-10 knots and following seas about 2-3 feet - I swear they were more
like
> 4
> > or 5 feet at times. We did some rolling but I thought it was great
> amusement
> > park ride - nice sun, nice wind. Our friends were sailing their
Precision
> 23
> > and I got the distinct impression that it did not handle the waves as
well
> > as the Rhodes based on their comments afterwards. We stayed at a private
> > marina that charged 1.75/foot (ouch!) and we were surrounded by big buck
> > power boats and even bigger sailboats. We did the touristy thing at Fish
> > Creek exploring the shops and walking all over the place and drooled
over
> > the fabulous sailboats in the harbor.
> >
> > Thursday morning we planned to head to Sister Bay further north but  the
> > Precision had motor problems. After much discussion we decided to set
sail
> > anyways hoping the next marina might be able to look at the engine -
it's
> a
> > two year old Nissan 6hp. Having more sailing experience than Bob's wife,
> > they put me on the Precision to help him if there were problems. In the
> most
> > inelegant fashion, we got towed out of the winding harbor by a jetski -
> > fortunately no one took a picture! Once out of the harbor entrance we
> > launched the sails and headed north. Again we had good southern breezes
to
> > push us north until about 2:00pm and then the winds died completely.
With
> no
> > motor and another 3 miles to go we hailed Blue Loon, who had taken a
> longer
> > route, and politely asked for a tow.
> >
> > We took Blue Loon's dinghy and tied it to the Precision and had a little
> > pre-fourth parade. When we got closer we tied the Precision to the side
of
> > Blue Loon rather than behind for better control. I can now say that I'm
> very
> > happy that we got the 9.9 Yamaha - we chugged along at 4 knots with both
> > boats and the dinghy and I'm sure it could've gone faster! We ended the
> day
> > by getting margaritas-to-go at the marina bar which were heavy on
tequila
> > and light on the mix.
> >
> > Unfortunately for our friends, their motor was sucking water into the
oil
> > reservoir and an easy fix was not to be found. We ended up staying two
> > nights at Sister Bay while they sorted out their options. Dan and I
headed
> > out sailing and when we returned we learned that their choice was to
pull
> > the boat out of the water or sail without a motor - the latter not being
> > realistic since none of us knew the marinas/harbors that we would be
> heading
> > into and the weather predictions were for thunderstorms. They opted to
> pull
> > their boat out.
> > Dan and I once again took off on our own and headed South for Ephraim.
The
> > winds were light but we were not in any rush. In the Ephraim harbor we
> > spotted another Rhodes in the mooring field - it had a navy hull and was
> > named Lil' Darlin' - does anyone know who owns this one? After circling
> the
> > Rhodes we headed into the marina which was through a long winding
channel
> of
> > buoys and four feet of water. Our friends caught back up with us in
their
> > mini-RV - they left the boat at Egg Harbor on the trailer.
> >
> > We had originally planned on anchoring out but the weather forecast was
> very
> > questionable - we ended up staying in marinas the entire time. The night
> at
> > Ephraim brought heavy rains and threatened thunderstorms but we stayed
> nice
> > and dry in the Pop Top.
> >
> > The next morning was our last sailing day and we had to head back to Egg
> > Harbor. It was chilly, drizzling, and foggy. Our friends decided to join
> us
> > for the final sail which was about a thirteen mile trek. The winds were
> very
> > light to start and we ended up motoring out of the Ephraim bay area. We
> were
> > able to get a good look at Peninsula State Park and Horseshoe Island as
we
> > passed and there are some very protected anchorages at both. Once we
> passed
> > the island, the winds picked up and we sailed with full Genoa and no
> Main -
> > I call it BVI sailing. We did a run down the coast with the winds and
> waves
> > behind us. Although a little chilly, it was a great day of sailing.
> >
> > We pulled back into Egg Harbor and got tucked into a tiny, tiny slip
which
> > was the only one available. We were lucky to get settled because the
winds
> > picked up to 28 knots and the waves were pounding over the docks. It
> > continued howling all night and I gained a great appreciation for the
> > singing of the mast as the wind howled through. The harbor master
managed
> to
> > squeeze in one other small sailboat after we landed - a Compaq 23 that
was
> > being single-handed and wasn't able to make his target destination due
to
> > the weather. We invited him to join us for dinner and had a great
evening
> > sharing sailing adventures.
> >
> > If any of you are thinking about sailing Door County, avoid the two
weeks
> > around the Fourth. The marinas are very full and it is difficult to get
> > slips if the weather gets bad. Most of the harbors are exposed to the
> > north/northwest and shelter is needed when it comes in from either
> > direction. We did learn that some of the public marinas (Fish Creek,
> Sister
> > Bay) have a certain number of slips available for transient usage but
you
> > have to call at 7:00am to put your name on the list. You have a pretty
> could
> > shot at these on any day of the week as long as it is not around the
> Fourth.
> >
> > Blue Loons' next adventure is wilderness sailing on the Ontario side of
> Lake
> > Superior by Nipigon and Red Rock - unfortunately I don't have enough
> > vacation to go so Dan and a friend are going and leaving me behind to
pay
> > the bills.
> >
> > Fair winds,
> > Julie and Dan
> > s/v Blue Loon
> >
> >
> >
> > __________________________________________________
> > Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
> >
> > __________________________________________________
> > Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
> >
>
> __________________________________________________
> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list


__________________________________________________
Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list