A Sailor's Life for Me

Sailing has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. My parents' best friends are their fellow sailors on the docks. They have become family to us! We have had a sailboat since I was 18 months old. In total my parents have had three different boats. Over the years we've upgraded boats as my parents love of sailing has increased (or as my mom gave in to my dad's nagging). At one point in time, I even had a small sailboat of my own on Lake DeGray.

Since the beginning, I've always enjoined spending a weekend at the lake. I have wonderful memories of being woken up way too early on Saturday mornings and listening to Car Talk or the Beach Boys as we drove down to the lake. I think taking us to the lake every weekend also kept my brother and I out of trouble when we reached our teenage years. (The weekends we didn't go with them to the lake definitely led to some 'lectures' when they got home!)

Terms like halyard, jib, main, tacking, heel, stay, and helm come naturally to me now. Sailing is a weird combination of hard work and a laid-back vibe. There is nothing better than a day with great wind that takes you all the way down the lake. We are a part of  the Iron Mountain Yacht Club (website) that has parties and races on different weekends throughout the year. I personally have only won one race, but I did recieve an awesome trophy with a base made of beer cans (it's a prized possession). I hope that sailing will always be in my life. With a beautiful lake only 15 min. from our new place in PA, I've already got my eye on a few boats on craigslist :)  I snapped a few pictures on my last sailing trip with my parents to give y'all a glimpse into what it's all about.