Our day started around noon on Woodwind II. We were planning on doing three sails that were all public, 2-hour cruises.
The day started with Woodwind (with my Dad aboard) going into Back Creek for a tour of the local waterfront marinas and properties. This is what we sometimes do when there isn’t much wind in the Bay. As we left our dock space, Woodwind was leaving Back Creek as well. We motored along side and asked them to coordinate a giant wave. This is what we got! Click here to see video. Woodwind Wave
As we came around the corner and into the harbor- we realized we were going against the traffic of the Alberg 30, 50th Birthday Parade. There were over 50 sailboats, 30-foot long, that were parading around the harbor under full flags- we call that dressed ship.
“The association was formed in 1964 when 10 local Annapolitans made a group-purchase of 10 Albergs. Delivery of the boats began early in 1965 and got the Association’s first active season underway. In 1966, The Baltimore Sun stated: “The Albergs pioneered large boat one-design racing on the Chesapeake” in the Sunday edition of the newspaper. In addition to the racing, the club began its cruising legacy when 8 of these new boats, with families, headed up to coast to attend the New York World’s Fair.
Thus began a 50 year love affair with the pursuit of all that sailing offers, magically choreographed by the allure of our Chesapeake Bay. Today membership stands at 250 member-families with Annapolis being the center of activity. The Alberg 30 truly has a unique place in Annapolis’s nautical history.” Taken from the Alberg 30 website: http://www.alberg30.org/50th/
We yelled and waved, “Happy Birthday” to as many boats as we could. Some didn’t know why we were wishing them Happy Birthday. It was fun, and everyone enjoyed it.
This weekend was also Plebe Parent’s Weekend and we got a fair amount of Plebes sailing with us with their whole family. When I asked if the summer was as tough as they expected, most of them said it was exactly what they expected. I thought that was pretty interesting. We had folks from South Carolina, Colorado, Virginia, and Florida.
It was a fantastic day, and even though the breeze was light, all had a very pleasant day!