Cookin' Chili Tonight!

Tomorrow is the MAST Chili Dump at the McKinley Marina pavilion. Since I have never made "real" chili before, I went to the Internet to find a suitable recipe. I browsed around for 15 minutes or so until I came across a very interesting recipe. Many of the ingredients I would never think to put in chili, but it smells delicious. Here are the ingredients:

2 teaspoons (olive) oil
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb lean ground beef
3/4 lb beef sirloin, cubed
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes (I used hot salsa instead)
1 can dark beer (PBR of course!)
1 cup strong coffee
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
1 can beef broth
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons chili sauce
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon cocoa
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon salt
4 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans
4 chili peppers, chopped

1. Heat oil.
2. Cook onions, garlic and meat until brown.
3. Add tomatoes, beer, coffee, tomato paste and beef broth.
4. Add spices Stir in 2 cans of kidney beans and peppers.
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
6. Add 2 remaining cans of kidney beans and simmer for another 30 minutes.

As I was making this, I couldn't help but picture the Swedish Chef from The Muppets. I had strong urges to just start throwing crap everywhere, but I like my kitchen and didn't feel like cleaning.

I had never heard of a "Chili Dump" before, so I asked John Norman (s/v Corvus) what this whole deal was all about. Evidently, a "Chili Dump" is exactly what it sounds like. Everyone brings about as much home-made chili as they expect to eat (perhaps a little more). You then 'dump' it all together in a Nesco or two, mix it all together, warm it up and then we all share the results. Then we drink beer and talk about sailing. Sounds like a plan! I'll post an update on how the chili was in a couple days.

Congratulations Jeff and Molly!!

While this blog is dedicated to sailing, it's hard not to inject some tid-bits from my non-sailing life. This past weekend (Saturday, October 17th), my best friend of 23 years got married and I was honored to be the best man. We had an absolute blast! It was great to see everyone and meet some new faces!

Photo from left to right: me, Jeff, Molly, Robin, Todd. This picture was taken aboard s/v Blue Pearl (Beneteau First 405) in Muskegon, Michigan after the Queens Cup on June 27, 2009. Since Jeff and Molly live on the other side of the pond, they came up to visit from Grand Haven on Todd's boat while I was in town. I had been awake for 34 hours when this picture was taken. This picture also made the wedding slide show!

Jeff: I drank the Michigan Brewing Company Pale Ale while writing this post. Quite tasty!

Dorking around tonight

Tonight I'm being a loser and staying in. Please note it's a Friday and 2 years ago this would NEVER happen. Most people would assume this is a sign of getting older. Not so fast. Going out would be a use of cash and I'm saving that cash for sailboat crap (i.e. capital expendature - can you tell I analyze cash flow for a living?)! This stuff ain't cheap!

Anyway, with a cold Miller Lite in hand (I know, I know, it should be a PBR), I had a little brainstorming session on how I am going to set up my deck this coming season so that all important lines are coming back to the cockpit. Bear in mind, I was using Microsoft Paint when I made my diagram, so it won't knock your socks off. This is in no way final - just trying to visualize. If you have suggestions, please don't hesitate to shoot me an email. I've got all winter to plan my rig!

To complete this project, I'll need the following:
-Small Mast Step Plate (3 1/2" x 5")
-Ronstan Series 40 Deck Organizer with 2 Sheaves (2)
-Harken Carbo-Cam® Cleat, 1-3/32"H (2)
-Harken Wire Fairlead, 1-1/4"H for Cam Cleat (2)

Of course, I'll need the appropriate line, but the hardware listed should work great. There are currently 2 Harken cam cleats on the boat, so I only need 2 more. I'm planning on buying all new halyards. I haven't chosen a line yet but I'm leaning towards New England Ropes VPC™ Line.

Time to break out the single malt! Cheers!

Jep is resting peacefully for the winter

Today was the most dreaded day of the season. Yep, It's Jep got put away for a long winter slumber.

I woke up this morning around 8:30 and got all of my cleaning supplies and such loaded into my car. I had to make a quick stop at Pick'n'Save to pick up some booze for Chad since he's been such a tremendous help this season. I made my way over to EZ-Storage thinking to myself, "Thank God this is the last time I ever have to come here!" As I rolled my window down to punch in the code to open the gate, the terrible smell of the WE Energies coal plant hit me like a bag of oranges. It took me a few attempts to get the trailer hooked up since I was alone. After I checked the trailer lights and did a final inspection of the rig, it was time to roll.

The drive from Milwaukee to Mukwonago is roughly 40 minutes. Luckily traffic was light. I'm not overly confident in my trailer tires so I try and take it as easy as I can down the highway. The boat pulled well. I made it to Chad's without any problems around 1030.

Chad and I got down to business right away. We finished sanding my hull as prep work for the bottom painting job that will be completed this spring. That took us approximated 45 minutes, then it was on to power washing the deck. Since that is one man job, Chad winterized his motorcycles as I cleaned.

While I was starting to clean the port side of the deck, I looked up and saw two of Chad's neighbors. These clowns were driving their riding mowers over while drinking some delicious beverages. I couldn't help but laugh. Like Harley's, they lined their riding mowers up in Chad's driveway and came to visit for 45 minutes or so. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to take a break and have a couple brewskis. After some talk of sports and politics, Brian and Paul headed back on their "hogs" as Chad and I folded my sails. If I have neighbors like that, I anticipate my transition from city-slicker to suburban delinquent will be quite smooth!

After I washed the hull, Chad got the wood on top of the companionway off. The previous owner must have used a two sided tape or some sort of glue to adhere the wood to the deck. Neither of us could see the logic as all you need to do is put marine silicone in the holes to keep the deck water tight. Nevertheless, Chad got both pieces off. We next used a shop vac to suck out all excess water from the bilge compartment. Finished! We cleaned up and I got on the road over to my storage location.

Once I got to the pole barn, James, the owner, pulled up and helped me get the boat into the barn with his tractor. I pulled off all of the exterior wood so I could again refinish and make look new again.

I pulled away from the barn and sat in silence for a good 10 minutes. Can't wait for spring!

Yep, It's Jep has a home for the 2010 season!

I put a deposit down today for my slip on the Milwaukee River in the Third Ward! Jep will be located in the slips between the Water St. and Broadway St. bridges, as seen in the bing.com maps "birds eye" view snapshot. I'll also be a chip-shot from the Ale House (a Jep favorite), Water Buffalo, Moct, Cafe Luna + Lounge, Rustico, and directly across from Fratello's.

The slips are managed by Performance Yacht Services. I will have the slip for the "season" which is May 15 to October 15. This is very typical of boat slips in the North due to the winter ice. Also, as floating docks are used, they need to be taken out in the winter or run the risk of being destroyed by big chunks of moving concret...errr...ice. Of the river slips on the Milwaukee River, Performance Yacht Services offers by far the best value at the lowest price. As a major bonus, since the slip is so close to my place, I'll be able to ride my super-sweet Target mountain bike to the boat in the summer!

Is it May 15, 2010 yet?

A Sad, Sad Sunday

The mast came down Sunday. It seems like just a few weeks ago I was fabricating a mount for my solar panel and getting the boat all cleaned up for our first sail of the season. I'm currently putting together my end of season "to-do" list. The list keeps getting longer! Oh well.

Last voyage of the 2009 season?

As much as I hate to say it, today could have been my last sail on Jep for the season. As I look at my calendar, it's hard for me to imagine when I'll be able to get out again. Depressing.

Today is Steph's birthday, so we went for breakfast with her sister before an afternoon sail. Since Steph had to go to her parents for a bbq at 2:30, I offered to pick them up at McKinley Marina so they would have a car at close access. The boat launch at McKinley is a stones throw from the north gap of the breakers, so it worked out quite well.

Chad, Wendy, and her sister Patti helped me launch this morning. Once in the water, we motored through the Menomonee and Milwaukee Rivers to get out to the lake. The weather man was calling for an east wind but I quickly figured out it was more a northeast wind. We raised the jib and motor sailed over to McKinley to pick up Steph and her room mate Jess.

Once we had a full crew, we casted off from the fuel dock at McKinley and motored through the mooring "field". During this time, Chad lit a candle on a cupcake he and Wendy brought for Steph and we sang "happy birthday" as we approached the north gap. Happy Birthday babe!

Shortly after we exited the north gap, we raised the main and did some of that sailing, um, stuff. With a crew of 6 (including myself), we easily averaged around 5 knots. Six people on Jep isn't bad when you have a boat full of sailors, but with only Chad and I knowing what to do, we were both a little uneasy about tacking. I shifted people around the deck and had Chad man the soon-to-be active winch while Steph "broke" the sheet as we came about. Much to our surprise, we tacked quite well and headed back to McKinley. We probably got a couple miles off shore before we turned around.

On the trip back, we were on a close reach, so the boat started to heel about 15 degrees. I had very little weather helm. The boat felt great. With 4 on the rail and Chad and I in the cockpit, we clipped back around 5.5 knots.

When we got back to the fuel dock at McKinley, I lost all of my crew except Chad. Chad and I decided to sail jib only back to the river. Amazingly, with my working jib flying, we maintained about 3.3 knots. The sail was quite relaxing. We had cold leftover beer from the Buffett concert along with Kenny and Buffett filling the air. Not a bad way to end the afternoon.

We made one tack and I shot right up the mouth of the river. I finally had to use that noisy thing once we got close to Riverwalk Pizza as the wind gets pretty weird on the river. I also think it may be illegal to sail on the river. Not sure about that one.

Chad and I docked at the Ale House and got some chicken tenders and mott sticks. We ran into a group of dudes we met earlier in the summer when we partied all night at the Ale House and ended up sleeping on the boat. I'll get into that one in future posts. By about 5, both of us were pretty cashed so we decided to call it a day.

Hopefully I'll get one more sail this season, but if I have to end on this note, I'm happy.

What a weekend (and it isn't even over)!

I'm sitting here inside on a beautiful Sunday. It's currently 75 and sunny outside. However, I'm nursing a pretty nasty whiskey cold, so none of that interests me whatsoever at this point.

Last night was my cousin Chris's wedding. Chris and Cathy got married at St. Sebastian's in Wauwatosa. It was a beautiful ceremony. More importantly, their reception was at Hotel Metro which is in downtown Milwaukee. Not surprisingly, by about 10, they had exceeded their "budgeted" bar tab limit. As expected, Chris and Cathy threw their booze "budget" out the window and allowed the guests to continue their merry ways.

The wedding was here in Milwaukee and we had the rehearsal dinner on Friday, so my folks came in on Thursday evening. I took Friday off so we could do some sailing before we had to attend the rehearsal dinner for the wedding on Friday evening.

The rents came over to my place around 0800 and Steph made breakfast. We finally got the boat in the water and casted off around 10:30 am Friday morning. The conditions were expected to be light - east winds around 5 knots with clear skies and seas of 1 foot or less. We had to make a quick stop at the Ale House to pick up Drew. It also gave me the opportunity to give the deck a quick scrub.

After the boat was cleaned up, we casted off from the Ale House and motored down the Milwaukee River through the Water St. and Broadway St. bridges. Once we exited the mouth of the river into the harbor, we were able to confirm the weatherman's forecast. The wind was straight out of the east, so we headed for the main gap. Drew jumped the main halyard while Steph tailed. With the main up, I fell off to a port tack and set my GPS way point for the Bell Buoy. Since the wind was so light, we were able to raise the jib while heading to our mark. My parents were quite delighted with the cruise out to the mark. The green bell buoy is about 4 miles off shore, so you get a terrific view of the city skyline from the water. About mid way to the mark, I handed the tiller over to my dad. This seemed like the perfect opportunity for a cold beer and some beef jerky.

It took about and hour or so to make the mark averaging 3.5 to 4 knots. The wind began to deteriorate the closer we got to the mark. After rounding the mark, we decided to head south to a gap in the breaker that is south of the "south gap". Unfortunately, the wind became so light, we were only able to average about 1.5 knots. I pulled my swing keel up to reduce drag. The head sail wanted to move windward, so Drew got my boat hook and I made it into a whisker pole so we could fly wing on wing. This actually helped our speed by a few tenths of a knot.

We encountered another sailboat on our approach to the smaller gap south of SSYC. Since I had never gone through this gap, I yelled over to ask the depth. They said the depth through the gap was approximately 8 feet, so there was no problem getting through as Jep only drafts 2 feet with the keel up.

We dropped the head sail and motor sailed passed SSYC. Since I bought my dad a SSYC burgee flag for his birthday, I figured he at least had to see the club. From there, we continued to motor sail back to the Ale House. What a day!

My sister and brother-in-law arrived Friday afternoon, so on Saturday we took the boat out again. Since the wedding was at 5 and I had to be at the church at 4:15, we didn't have a whole lot of time, so we motored over to Barnacle Buds for lunch.

While at Buds, they got to see the fork truck from Skipper Buds drop a power boat into the water. The boat was nice, but the captain appeared to be a complete sleaze. He was there with what appeared to be his teenage daughter and her friend. All of us agreed, something wasn't right about that situation. Very creepy.

After lunch, we casted off and motored out into the harbor so Maremy (Mary + Jeremy) could see the skyline from the water. As a side note, I saw captain sleaze and his crew blasting out of the river as we were coming back in. I felt bad we didn't get a chance to sail, but time was of the essence. The conditions were beautiful on Saturday too - sunny with light seas and east wind of about 10 knots. We motored back up the river and had the boat back on the trailer by 2:15.

After 2 action packed days, I don't feel too bad about being a complete pile of garbage today!

Also, congratulations to my cousin Chris and new cousin Cathy! The wedding was a blast! It was great to see everyone this weekend! My stomach finally stopped hurting from laughing at TJ!