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Underway
May 17, 2020
Needless to say, this was an odd start to the sailing season.
New York is still not yet "open" due to the Coronavirus, but the marinas are open and the experts have said that UV rays and fresh air are good combatants against the spread of Covid-19*.
The nice thing about our vessel Gitana is that she has plenty of room to socially distance.
We keep our sails to a minimum crew, and we have plenty of distance between each other. 'Tis not only prudent to be good stewards of the sea, but also of other's health as well.
This year, we welcome back two of our original syndicate members: Benjamin and Amy Rand. Ben was part of the OGC (Original Gitana Crew) who brought Gitana down to her new home of NYC from Maine in 2015.
It's great to have them back onboard.
Gitana celebrates her 84th birthday this year and she sails just as good as the day she was built! (Who's around to dispute that?)
Earlier this week we removed the winter covers, hanked on the sails, and fired up the engine on our beloved vessel Gitana.
On Saturday, May 16th, we had our inaugural sail of the season: aka the "shakedown sail". Everything, for the most part, shook down just fine. As to be expected, there were a few minor hiccups along the way: the impeller needed to be replaced but fortunately Florian was on it right away and Ben had the necessary tools at his disposal.
* "Science suggests that being outside in sunlight, with good ventilation, are both highly protective against transmission of the virus."
Alan Penn, a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage)
We were able to perform a "COB" (crew overboard) maneuver and rescue some debris from the Long Island sound. We just hate seeing litter in the water, so we jump on any opportunity to help keep the waterways clean.
The conditions were wonderful. The sun was out and temps in the 70's. We had just enough wind to keep the boat constantly moving forward.
