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After purchasing 19th Green on Friday, November 5th,
our plan was to begin moving the boat across the Gulf of Mexico
to Corpus Christi by early the next week. Our crew arrived
on Saturday. Matt Meadows, a Coast Guard certified captain,
owner of Magellan Sailing Center in Dallas, and longtime friend,
agreed to help us make the 800-mile, 6-day passage. Hatcher
Chalkley, an experienced offshore sailor and friend of Matt's,
was also kind enough to offer his services for our big adventure.
The boat had just spent two weeks in the boat yard for repairs
identified by the survey. The weather was great and everything
seemed to be falling into place to make our Gulf passage a
success.
After several days of throwing money at every marine store
in town and a marathon shopping spree at the Super Wal-Mart,
the boat was provisioned and we were on schedule to start
our voyage late Monday or early Tuesday. But a phone call
on Monday morning changed everything. The man who sold us
the boat called and hinted that we might need to check the
alternator. Apparently, he had awoken in the middle of the
night with an attack of conscience. The guys gave it a closer
look and, sure enough, the alternator wasn't in any shape
for an ocean voyage. If the alternator failed in the middle
of our passage, our batteries would run down leaving us without
navigation lights, radar, and other essential systems. Furthermore,
it was a potential fire hazard. The alternator had to be ordered,
and by the time it was installed and operational, we had lost
two days and our weather window had closed.
A massive cold front, appearing on the Weather Channel radar
much like a hurricane churning over Colorado, was moving south
toward Texas. If we left now, the front would cross the Gulf
before we could reach Corpus. High winds and tall waves would
put our boat and crew at risk. We couldn't take the chance.
Unfortunately, everyone had to be back in Texas by the beginning
of the week, so waiting for the front to pass was not an option.
Accepting that our great adventure would not happen was a
pretty hard pill to swallow. On Thursday, Matt and Hatch flew
home to Texas, having never raised a sail.
Nick and I remained with the boat for a few more days so
Nick could follow up on some other mechanical issues. Some
of the work was performed by the same mechanic who had worked
on the engine during the two weeks prior to our purchase.
He informed us that he had taken the alternator off the boat
and told the previous owner to have it rebuilt. The man had
not done so, instead putting the worn-out part back on the
boat. This information was quite disturbing. Obviously, the
alternator issue could have been avoided and we would not
have wasted time and money flying a crew to Florida for a
crossing that didn't happen.
At this time, 19th Green is still in Florida. The
plan is to have two captains from the Corpus Christi sailing
school move her starting the first week in December. We hope
that Nick will be able to accompany them on at least part
of the trip. Since the steady onslaught of cold fronts has
begun, the move will probably involve several legs rather
than a straight shot across the Gulf. We are hoping to have
her home before Christmas.
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