About Us (and Water Strider)
Our boating story began decades ago with run-about boats for fishing, camping and water skiing. In 1993, after ten years of annual cruises in the San Juan Islands, the sailing bug finally got a good bite on David. He completed several ASA certified classes and paid for a sailing share in the Island Sailing Club in Portland, Oregon. A year of at-least-once-a-week sailing on the Columbia River aboard club boats only increased his enthusiasm and dedication. In 1995, we purchased a sailboat of our own: Ru’ach, a 1979 Spirit 28’ mono-hull.
Our day-sailing increased, and we were able to make more frequent weekend cruises. We supplemented this with annual charters in the San Juan and Gulf Islands. For the next eight years, life was almost as good as it gets. But sailors have a roving eye. It’s no accident that Chapter 2 of How to Buy a Sailboat is “My boat is too small” and Chapter 3 is “My boat is too big.”
In 2002, on a whim, David and his sailing buddy stepped onto a Gemini catamaran at the Seattle Boats Afloat show. Wow! Sure looked good inside. But what about sailing? For months, we searched out every available Gemini we could find in the Pacific Northwest. We took a couple of test sails. The first was on a blustery day on the Columbia. David talked sailor-tech with the boat owner. Meanwhile, Patty — enjoying the warmth and the great view from inside (it doesn’t feel “below deck” on a Gemini) — noticed how much faster than usual the landscape seemed to be passing by. Each look, each test sail brought us closer to the decision point. We traveled back to Annapolis, MD and visited Performance Cruising, Inc., the designer/manufacturer for the Gemini and the deal was sealed.
Our very own Gemini 105Mc, Water Strider, was delivered in November 2003. We have been sailing regularly ever since. Do we miss the heeling we experienced on the mono-hull on a down-river tack? You may as well ask, Do you wish your cat sailed slower, like the mono-hull? Do you wish you still had to dash to catch the gear you forgot to stow before that tack? No, no and no! And judging from the crew that shows up for David’s mid-week sails, those guys still get plenty of excitement on the cat.
Satisfied that we’d made the right choice and anxious to spread the good word about the joys of catamaran cruising, we became sub-agents to Cruising Cats USA. We look forward to telling you more about life as cat-boaters!
