1300 miles, $486.94 in gas, 43 hours, 2.5 boxes of tissues, and 1 best friend. That's what it took to get our new baby home.
Amber, myself, and my longest friend "Buddy," (who actually has a real name but i won't be using that because i never used that growing up and just because he now uses his real name in the professional circles that he runs in I still won't be calling him by that name because I have always and will always call him "buddy") made the flight up to Saratoga Ny to snatch-and-grab our new beautiful sailboat. We packed a few nights worth of clothing, some stuff to do on the drive back down, a tool box, and a full sized 3 ton floor jack. Yes we brought all this on the plane.
It was 7pm on Saturday by the time we got everything ready to start our southbound journey to Florida. We had to switch around vehicles with our friends Rick and Tracy so we could use their Sequoia to haul "big bertha" as we kept calling the boat. This nickname was partially from her physical size and partially from her nearly 6000 pounds of tow weight. We also opted to change all 4 wheel bearing on the trailer for safety's sake. This was especially a concern because Rick had burned up a wheel bearing on the trip up from Florida. The other three were in poor condition and we all felt better for changing them. We had to float the boat in the public ramp at Saratoga in order to get the boat seated fully up to the bow bumper also. Lastly was the winch on the trailer which needed some oiling and a bolt tightened to get it to hold.
The first night we made it somewhere into Pennsylvania where we stopped at a Walmart to "provision." We picked up a cooler, beer, bed sheets, pillows, and other road trip necessary items. We brought our gear back to the truck and boat and decided to eat at the Chili's connected to the Walmart parking lot. On the way into Chili's I was admiring three cars that were parked a few rows from us. They were "tuner cars" and they brought back a lot of memories to Buddy and myself from our street racing days. When we left the restaurant we discovered our rig was smack dab in the middle of a Saturday night street meet for gear heads. There were probably 50-60 cars parked around us. It was exactly like Buddy and I remembered from years ago. There was every genre of car culture represented. You had civics, nissans (including one of the cleanest s14's i have seen in a long time), 1/4 mile track muscle, some sick wrx's, some ricey tuners, and of course mustangs. In every group of tuner cars there is always the guy with the mustang. Which I don't get but hey, to each their own. :)
Buddy and I did a walk-through the "car show" before deciding with Amber's urging that we should leave. She overheard some of the people talking and being stereotypical asshole car guys. Most of them where probably just hating on our very impressive rig. It looks like we have a ton of money with the big new SUV and the big nice boat. If they only knew how opposite that was.
Buddy drove while I nodded off. It was a little while later that I awoke as we pulled into a rest area to catch some sleep. I found both Buddy and Amber thoroughly shaken, mentally and physically, as they had just drove through several miles of heavy construction between concrete barriers barely big enough to accommodate an average size car let alone a huge SUV/boat combination. I'm glad I slept through the whole ordeal.
In the rest area we locked up the truck, climbed aboard the boat, and locked ourselves in. This had to be one of the coolest parts of the trip. Here we were, in the middle of Pennsylvania, inside our new boat, drinking beers, listening to the radio, and getting ready to sleep while we enjoyed each others company. It was a ridiculously packed first day even by Amber and my standards.
The morning we stumbled out of the boat and cleaned ourselves up at the rest area in preparation for a full day of traveling. We motored through mountainous Pennsylvania until we passed a sign decreeing Pottsville next exit. It took me a second to realize that it was indeed the Pottsville in Pennsylvania that is home to Yuengling brewery. We took a 15 minute off route excursion which dumped us directly into downtown. It was a beautiful, old town full of brick and ornate stone buildings. The streets are ridiculously steep (especially for somebody from Florida) and very narrow. We laughed the whole time at the variety of bemused and bewildered looks we received at probably the first sailboat to go through downtown Pottsville.
We parked our rig in a parallel parking spot and got out to explore the town. We had three goals. Check out the Yuengling brewery, drink a Yuengling in Pottsville, and find a bathroom. Unfortunately for us this was a Sunday. So the Yuengling brewery was closed. We got some pictures from the outside of the brewery but that was it. Next was a bathroom. This was not as easy as it seemed. We did not want to use one in the many churches that were open and finding a business that was open before noon was difficult. We ended up walking way downtown before finding a cafe that was open to use their restroom. I bought a Mt Dew as a peace offering before leaving. Now we were faced with the even more difficult task of finding a draft Yuengling on a Sunday before noon.
We ended up stumbling upon a busy pizza joint called Roma Pizza. They only had bottles downstairs but the guys said there was a bar upstairs and someone would probably be up there to help us. We shuffled upstairs to find a bar that wasn't open yet. Chairs were still flipped up on the bar top. There was girl behind the bar with what we suppose was the owner. We explained our situation and borderline pleaded with them to let us buy a draft Yuengling. They obliged us and we helped flip a few chairs over so we could sit. I like Yuengling anyway, especially Yuengling light, and there was something magical about drinking it in the town it was brewed.
After we puttered out of Pottsville and back onto the highway it was back to the grind. We put a lot of road between behind us before getting hungry and stopping at a restaurant in Woodbridge, VA called The Electric Palm. It is situated on an offshoot of the Potomac River and is definitely Amber and my kind of place. Live music, boats everywhere, drinks galore, and overall happy atmosphere and people. It was a great excursion and a lucky find. But we always seem to find the coolest places on our adventures.
We spent the rest of the day driving. This is the first real road trip i had done on my own like this so it was very exciting for me. Amber, while she was loving the trip, had spent the few days before trying to fight off a severe cold/flu. Now it was hitting her full force. She spent most of the trip coughing, sniffling, and blowing her nose. I felt so bad for her but we both agreed that sick or not this was not a trip to be missed. In total she went through 2.5 boxes of tissues and countless different cold medicines. She jokes that she doesn't even remember the Carolinas because the magic medicine NyQuil did the trick and finally gave her some much needed sleep. Before the Nyquil she couldn't sleep because her coughing kept waking her up just as she would doze off. It actually took her a couple of days after the trip before she finally recovered. I guess gallivanting all over the country isn't the best way to recovery.
We stopped in a rest area late Sunday night just before Savannah Georgia. We barely finished our beers before passing out in our mobile camper/boat.
The next morning we crossed into Georgia and then into Florida. It was a very strange revelation for me coming cross country the way we did. I was thrilled to be back in Florida. I kept getting happier and happier as we moved from South Carolina into Georgia and then into Florida. I am not a fan of the cold. I have never really yearned to live in the mountain. I don't really have any desire to be up north. I like tropical. I like sun. I like sand and water and flat ground. I like it hot. Nothing about the north appealed to me as anything more than something new and exciting to look at and experience. I know this is just a product of me growing up in Florida but it is hard for me to explain the overwhelming sense of happiness, peace, and belonging that I felt as we got closer to Florida. The happiness was almost palpable. It was so strong it was almost a physical feeling. I don't think I can do the feeling justice with my words but it really put things into prospective for me as far as rather I could live up north or not.
We strolled into town at 3pm on Monday thoroughly accomplished and exhausted. The SUV pulled the boat well even though with her size and weight "big bertha" was not an easy tow. Our overall height was a little over 11 feet and we were constantly watching low hanging trees and power lines. It was a road trip to be remembered and now she just needed to be put in the water.
Yesterday was full of sailing. Well not on the water. Just full of things to do with sailing. Early early early (very early) in the morning Rick and I drove down to Precision boat works in Palmetto, FL. He was interested in their 23ft model and arranged to take a tour of the factory. 
We arrived in what could only be described as an industrial park bordering a ghetto. As we pull up to the building with a sign proclaiming Precision Boat Works we both look at each other and question rather it would be safe leaving his "toy car" outside. It is a very fast, very pretty car. When we entered the warehouse we finally knew we were in the right place. Boats were scattered everywhere in a decidedly haphazard fashion throughout the facility. Boats were in varying stages of build all the way from first lay fiberglass sections up to completed, fully hardware equipped vessels. The first boat we saw was actually a Colgate 26 with a full keel sitting on a trailer. It was tall enough i could walk under the transom without ducking. It was very impressive and looked very fun.
We met with Bart who gave us information on the 23 and chatted with us about what to expect when we go on the boat and about his philosophies about his company, how and why they build their boats, and sailing in general. He was extremely knowledgeable and passionate. He's not a salesmen but he sold both of us on his boats strictly from his enthusiasm for his products and why he thinks they are better than the rest.
Precision boats are extremely well thought out. Everything they put into their boat is purposeful, functional, and simple. They make quality, beautiful, and well functioning boats with the emphasis on proper sailing characteristics. After all you take them out sailing you aren't buying a tug boat.
After climbing aboard the 23 and exploring we met back up with Bart and he gave us a tour of the dirty parts. He showed us some centerboards fresh off the mold. They use airplane wing shaped to help with pointing ability as it provides lift as well as pointing angle. We saw fresh off the mold hulls and lead cast ballasts. All in all it was and amazing experience and I am definitely a fan-boy of Precision Boat Works now
After leaving the factory we headed into St Pete to check out the municipal marina. I was interested in prices and i think that the marina would be the perfect spot to do some sailing and exploring. My grandpa use to keep his Kittiwake 23 at O'neill's marina not too far from the St Pete Marina.
