[Rhodes22-list] New Member

[Dan Stromquist]

Hi everyone,
Rob Lowe sent me a nice welcome message and asked me where do (will) I sail? 
What is my experience?  And, most importantly, what's my favorite rum?
Initially I responded to him in the “List Admin” thread. That probably
wasn’t the most suitable forum so I thought I should do a general post. I
have been lurking for quite a while and this list is one of the reasons I
decided to get a Rhodes of my own. Thanks to everyone for sharing their
knowledge and experience.

I will be keeping my boat in San Carlos, Mexico and sailing on the
Sea of Cortès. I will sail on both the mainland side and the Baja side.

My first boat was a Ranger 23. I bought her to race when I lived in St.
Thomas, USVI. I sailed out of the St Thomas Yacht Club when I lived there.
Did pretty well collecting silver with that boat. When it came time to sell
the Ranger I decided to take her to Trinidad since I could get a better
price there. Since the boat had NO creature comforts or cruising upgrades it
was quite an adventure! A buddy and I took a couple of months to island hop
to Trinidad. We had three overnight sails along the way. The size of the
boat was not the problem; it was the lack of cruising gear. We didn't even
have a dinghy or autopilot. I didn't want to invest in any cruising features
since I would be selling the boat. I'm too old to do that kind of sailing
anymore hence my interest in the much more civilized Rhodes 22. Standing
headroom and a boarding ladder too!

After the USVI I moved to So. Calif. where I owned a Catalina 30. I mainly
raced that boat too. Did very well in PHRF. Midwinter Class B champs one
year. Occasional trips to Catalina. Don't like cruising in So. Cal. since
there really are not many places to go especially if you want to get away
from it all. Going to Catalina Island is like going to a WalMart parking lot
during a Christmas sale.

After Calif. I moved to Singapore where I initially raced dinghies. Later I
bought a J24 that I raced too. I'm still a member of the Changi Sailing Club
in Singapore. Last year I went to Spain to sail my cousins Hunter 31. First
experience with IMF and was that ever nice and easy. Another reason to
become a Rhodes owner!

I've lived in Phoenix, AZ since 1998 and have been boatless all that time.
We just sold the family business and now I have time to get back into
sailing. I can get to San Carlos in about 8 hours by car. I plan to use my
boat for a month at a time. It will be dry stored when I'm not there. They
have very good facilities in San Carlos. I will usually be singlehanding. My
wife may join me from time to time. Some buddies will come down for sure.
R22 looks like the perfect little boat for my needs. I read with great
interest the posting by Chris of his month long sailing trip in Baja. I also
enjoyed the post by the member who took his Rhodes 22 to the Bahamas. I
might try that trip one day. Sounds like a blast! I also enjoyed reading
about the R22 in "Sailing Small".

Since I first tried it at the source (Barbados) I go with Mt. Gay too! In
the islands we mixed it with Bitter Lemon (kind of a flavored tonic water
mix). Haven't been able to find that mix here in Phoenix but then I haven't
looked too hard. I've gone local and drink Margaritas here. I’ve also had a
few Heinekens over the years. In the USVI the local rum was so cheap it was
more cost effective to use it to wash windows than Windex. That was a few
years ago and things may have changed.

I have contacted Stan and he is sending me information about a 1984 Recycled
Rhodes he has available. I have also contacted several list members about
boats they have for sale. I understand that Stan gets a commission and I
have NO problem with that arrangement. I am pretty flexible on delivery
time. Summer is not the high season in the Sea of Cortez. It is pretty darn
hot then. Most sailing is done in fall, winter (but water is cold for
snorkeling) and spring.

That is probably more info about me than list members need but Rob did ask.
Now that I'm going forward the list will hear more from me. I've enjoyed my
lurking time and now I look forward to owning a Rhodes 22 and contributing.
Fair winds,
Dan Stromquist

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