I AM the Captain…

…of the dinghy more and more these days. Since we bought Exit Strategy back in 2007, I rarely operated the dinghy.  There was no need to, as Captain Dan was always going along to do his errands while I did mine.  I recall the last time my brother Joe and his wife sailed with us, Dan gave me the choice of jumping into the dinghy to grab hold of a mooring that was just vacated OR take command of ES’s helm, up anchor, and maneuver to pick up the mooring with Joe’s help.  I carefully got in the dinghy and headed toward the mooring, but I couldn’t quite coordinate slowing the dinghy and moving it in the direction of the mooring- not to mention actually grabbing the pennant attached to it.  I think I circled around it 4 or 5 times before I was able to accomplish the mission.  (Oh, I guess I could review the video that the Captain took of me that afternoon.)

But today I can tell you with confidence that I AM the CAPTAIN of the dinghy.  How did this finally happen?  Well, I’ve been up and out early most mornings in the dinghy to pick up some of the other cruiser wives so we can walk Water Island.  I also drive a group ashore for yoga at sunset a couple of evenings a week.  After this stint of being the “designated driver” I’m happy to report that I no longer stop the dinghy by ramming into a hull; I can gauge the drifting current to let my passengers off at the side ladder of their vessels; I have not had to flag down another dinghy to hitch a ride back to the boat and get Dan to unlock the security cable using the very same key that didn’t work for me and 2 other people. 

Yes, I AM the Captain of the dinghy and it feels good.