In the Beginning
****************
In about 1990 I was talking to my wife about
retirement & she said (yes she really
did) "I'd sorta like to live on a sailboat".
My reply of "Great idea" came after
about 4 nanoseconds of contemplation, and
we started to look at boats. Lots and lots
and lots of boats. We probably spent an average
of 1 - 2 hours a day cruising the net and
browsing the various magazines. Lots of boats
- and lots of decisions about what we wanted.
In the middle of April, 2003 came the first
part of the First Big Step -we listed our
house for sale. As the market was soft in
Port Alberni at the time, we were allowing
several months, at least for it to sell.
That would put us in the time of year that
is traditionally a buyers market for boats.
SURPRISE!!!...the house sold within 8 hours
of being listed - for exactly what we wanted
for it. Good news, but also panic city as
the new owners wanted in by June 1st. Oh,
well - no problem, lots of boats to choose
from, right? WRONG. The only things on the
market seemed to be the ones that were too
much money, or junk, or not quite right.
Time passes - quickly. We spent 10 days living
in a motel and then moved "back home"
to my Dad's place while he and his lady go
on a driving holiday. We even try to buy
a boat in the States, but can't make the
deal. Dad is coming home soon, so unless
we want to live sleeping on his hide-a-bed,
we gotta find something.
Janice had seen a boat in the ads that she
thought looked nice from the outside, and
it had a great name, Gandalf, her favourite
wizard. Yawn. It was a Banner 37, and I had
looked at another Banner 37 and decided that
it was unsuitable. We made a trip over to
Vancouver to see some other boats, all of
which ended up being disappointing. So, as
a last resort, with much prodding from Janice,
we finally went to look at Gandalf.
What a gorgeous boat. I had obviously mis-remembered
the interior layout in the Banner 37, and
it fit us well. After much apologising to
Janice, emailing offer and counter offer
and counter-counter offer, we finally had
a home.
| This is Gandalf III, and that has been her
name since she was launched in 1983. She is a Banner 37, made at Coquitlam BC in 1983 by Cooper Enterprises. A sloop with a removeable inner forestay, she is masthead rigged with fore & aft lowers and twin backstays. She has a single stateroom foreward, a huge nav station, respectable galley and head, and a gorgeous salon |
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