No Lack of Character

One of the things I appreciate about the harbour where I keep my sailboat are the other owners.  As you can imagine there is lots of discussion about sailing, boat maintenance and the attributes of different boats.

My friend John, bought a C & C 27 Mark III in 1975.  It was one of 10 out of 100 manufactured that year to remain in Canada. He sailed it for 40 years on Lac Deschenes, on the Ottawa River and never spent a night on it.

But here's the fun part.  The question I always like to ask these characters, is how did you learn to sail.

John grew up in Boston and as a boy, spent summers in Booth Harbour Maine. At the age of 13 he dragged an abandoned wooden dinghy out of the water and spent two summers repairing it all by himself.  He even made a sail from a bed sheet, with which he taught himself to sail.  Later on, in high school,  he owned a Dragon which he sailed on the Charles River.  All a precursor to his varied and colourful life as a graduate physician, who then became a fighter pilot and later and adviser to several Presidents.

Sadly John passed away late last year and as he did not want a funeral, I haven't used his full name.