Communal Sailing

Paul & Kelly Watts

Howie the Cat

Blaine and Paul sharing a meal at Disney World

The four of us at Disney World

Remember how you did everything with your best friend as a child? Do you remember the times you shared with your college roommate(s), wearing each other’s clothes, studying together, eating together, laughing and crying together? And of course, who can forget the times we got in trouble for sneaking food off of ‘their’ shelf in the refrigerator? We’re experiencing those adventures all over again in what we call ‘Communal Sailing.’

We have been sailing with Paul and Kelly Watts, aboard ‘Cherokee Rose’, since meeting them in Charleston, SC. What started as a buddy-sail from Charleston to St. Augustine, FL has flourished into a friendship of a lifetime. We’ve literally been ‘attached at the hip’ all the way down the coast and will be heading to the Bahamas together as well. We knew it was serious when Paul wrote an email to update his family on their progress thus far. In it he described our relationship as ‘communal – sharing everything except for our wives’!!

We’ve met hundreds of wonderful people since our adventure began in June 2001. However, we’ve always avoided sailing in groups because we’ve seen the group mentality really slow their progress. Everyone has to agree on the weather, destination, and course before the group can leave. We’ve happily sailed on our own, basing our choices on our own preferences and knowing what type of conditions ‘Charbonneau’ and her crew can tolerate. We always caught up with our friends further in our journey. It’s like that out here. You see the same faces over and over again. You never really say good-bye, you just wish them fair winds knowing they’ll surprise you in a future anchorage as they sail in and drop their hook.

But this, this ‘Communal Sailing’, is the first time we’ve met people with such similar tastes, ages, and interests that we couldn’t sail on by ourselves. We’re both sailing with pets and even they are becoming friends. You’ve met Max and Bailey. Now meet ‘Howie the Cat.’ He’s the coolest diabetic cat you’ll ever come to know. We’re both in our mid-thirties and gave up successful careers to go sailing. We’re all addicted to suspending our disbelief in movies; we swap DVDs all the time. And most of all, we’re all the kind of people who look at the world with a positive outlook. The glass of water is always half-full aboard our boats, never half-empty.

So what changes when you fall into ‘Communal Sailing’? The first thing we noticed was that nobody cooks for just two anymore. Cooking for four is the norm, while Janet and Kelly rush to see who has the best idea for dinner. Kelly fed us for almost a week, as we were getting ready to drive back to see our family at Christmas. Janet was sick, we were running around like crazy to get ready, and there was Kelly with meals. It wasn’t something we asked for; it was just something she did. And to top it off, she sent us out on our drive with a ‘goodie bag’ and two very long books on CD. Recently, Kelly and Paul had taken sick. They were busy provisioning for the Bahamas and re-rigging their reefing system. Janet never even asked, she just automatically cooked for four (seven if you count our zoo of pets) and expected them for dinner.

You also find that you go everywhere together. Janet and Kelly jump on the buses to do some shopping while Paul and I stay on the boats to finish up our myriad of boat projects. Even laundry becomes a group experience. We used to take books to read when we did laundry; now we take Paul and Kelly. They are much better company than our books. We go to the pubs together, go out to eat together, and sail together. We even went to Disney World together. You won’t normally find one of us without the other.

One of my favorite perks from ‘Communal Sailing’ is always having someone available for that second opinion or a helping hand with the numerous boat projects. Janet and Kelly enjoy it, as well. They no longer have to drop everything they're doing to help us. Kelly has gotten so used to it that she grumbled at Paul when he needed help while Janet and I were ashore washing the dogs. He asked for help and she laughingly replied, “Why do you need my help, where’s your play mate?”

So, here we are in Vero Beach, FL. We’ve been rafted up together on the same mooring ball for the last three weeks. We no longer have to take the dinghies back and forth or use our radios to share information. We just step off our boat onto the other with a friendly knock and we’re greeted by smiling faces. We’re busy planning our next adventures as we look toward the Bahamas for the winter. It’s just like those early years with your best friends and college roommates. Life has come full circle and I like it.