On the Hard: Winter on the Water

It has been six months since my last posting. I appreciate anyone who will come back and read the blog. The summer has been eventful, we added Baby Salt to our crew and we've been slowly adjusting.

Being in the Northeast, most sailors I know pull their boats out of the water and store them on land (on the hard) in cradle or on jackstands for the Winter months. This is to protect the hull from ice damage. We pulled our boat out of the water in September and a week later we covered her up to protect it from filling with water, and, most importantly, to keep the cats out of the cockpit and cabin. If the cats get in there, your boat is going to stink and you'll have a mess to clean up in the fall. We also take the winter to prepare a list of projects we plan to tackle in the Spring and off season.  It is also a great time to purchase new sails (which are discounted off season) and other equipment that may be out of stock when you need it.

However, there are a few die hard sailors (and a few I know of in Sheepshead Bay), that keep their boats in the water all year (Brooklyn Salt is not one of them). The good is that these sailors are ready to go out on those freakishly warm winter days. It also means that these sailors are very prepared to take the annual Polar Bear Sail on New Years Day. Just as the Coney Island Polar Bears head into the water for their New Years Day ritual, a group of sailors from Miramar Yacht Club, head offshore for a short sail to see the action off of Coney Island Beach.  We will do our best to report the events.

Stay tuned.