Let's review, shall we?

2009, December. Team Red purchases the old Chesapeake Eagle and renames her Red Ranger.

2010, Spring. We write huge checks to fix the deck and the rigging and make a few important upgrades. We learn about the "marina lifestyle": it's okay to stop and chat. Indeed, it's expected. Further, you learn a lot by stopping and chatting with the folks who are working on their boats. Since we're new owners, we have a lot to learn. Boatyard chats are essential parts of the learning process.

By the time we get launched (May, 2010), we've started to spend time hanging out with the crew of Fawkes. They help us with moral support (and catching dock lines) when we finally move Red Ranger into her slip.

The Fawkes refit is extensive, complex, and takes them at least a year, possibly more. They're living at the marina full-time. We're only there on weekends. Consequently, we start having Friday and Saturday night sundowners and barbecues on a fairly regular basis. Fawkes has a lot of experience, and we're eager to soak it up.

Fawkes isn't alone in this. Deltaville Boatyoard is full of boats being refit. We spend a lot of time with the crew of Monday Morning, and Sea Turtle/Flying Lady, also. [The Flying Lady crew also own Sea Turtle. Their story is delightfully complex.]

2010-2011, Winter. We're still playing around with Red Ranger. Fawkes is up on the hard, continuing their refit. For example, we have a Super Bowl party in the Marina Lounge.

2011, Spring. Fawkes is grinding through her refit: paint, engine room rebuild, bow sprit. The final touches are eventually applied.

2011, Fall. Departures. Refit complete, Fawkes heads south for the winter along with Monday Morning and Liquid Therapy (amongst others). Sea Turtle is on the hard, but the crew drives north to retrieve Flying Lady. The class of 2011 split up.

New Chapters

With the class of 2011 gone, the marina social circles all reshape themselves. The weekenders are still there.

2011-2012, Winter. Through the dark of winter it's mostly just Fortuna and Red Ranger. No Super Bowl party at the marina this year. Instead we hang out with friends of friends in Norfolk.

2012, Spring. The marina is different this year without Fawkes or Monday Morning. Liquid Therapy returns, so the weekend parties can sort-of continue. Without a crew living at the marina, the potluck dinners aren't scheduled as regularly.

The crew of Fawkes stopped by this weekend. It was time for them to visit family.

During their refit, they had purchased a car. When they went south in the fall of 2011, they put the car into storage in Deltaville. Now that it's 2012 Hurricane Season, they've got Fawkes safely on the hard at a boatyard in the Caribbean. With the boat secure, they could return to the US to retrieve their car from Deltaville.

The easy way to do that was to fly to Norfolk, and spend the night in our apartment. Then we could drive up to Deltaville to retrieve their car. And. Bonus. As long as we're going to Deltaville, we can email Green Eyes, Liquid Therapy, Fortuna, Puff and Flying Lady and have a big old party. It's a three-day recurring potluck.

Liquid Therapy broke out the guitar. Red Ranger brought the ukelele. Turns out that Flying Lady has a great guitar player, too. Wonderful picking and singing. My Boatyard Blues song went over well. Nothing is more fun than saying "You take this one, Paul," and hearing some really tasty flat-picking.

And now Fawkes is off again. They're driving around the US for several weeks before heading back to the boat.

We hope to rendezvous again in a few years somewhere in the Caribbean.