We took sailing lessons at  Annapolis Sailing School in Tampa Bay after we bought our first boat.  We had a couple of different instructors and one of them was quite emphatic about not falling into habit of just ‘delivering the boat’.

Over the years we’ve pondered about what the heck that means.  We wonder how we can cruise without delivering this boat.  Isn’t that what cruising is all about?  We choose a destination, figure out how the heck to get there and set off.

For the most part we tend to sail rather than motor when we travel.  But there are plenty of times when the winds are nonexistent or from the wrong direction.  It’s then that we douse the sails, start the motor and continue on our way. Do we like to do that?  Please–we motor at  5-6  knots per hour. The noise from the engine cancels out all the sounds of the wind in the sails, the water rushing by and the waves slapping the hull.

Believe me there is no greater pleasure than turning off that motor and hearing the sweet sound of the water  moving along the hull of the boat.  It may be two knots or seven knots–it’s just wonderful!

What do other sailors do?  Do they even think about this question? I wish I knew.