Beginning and background

It began with a Facebook Marketplace ad for a 1970s Laguna Windrose 24 in western Connecticut. While I was vaguely aware of Laguna Yachts, I was unfamiliar with the early Windrose line of boats which were swing-keel trailer-sailers ranging from 18-25 feet. For me, the key feature of the 24 is berths for six people. Granted, these are pretty cramped in terms of width, but adequate for basic camp-style family accommodations. This offers the possibility of some weekend getaways with my fiancee and our four youngest kids.

For a bit of background, I grew up near Newport, RI in a sailing family. Like many in similar situations, I was out on my parents sailboat as an infant. For several years starting around age 10, I took sailing lessons at Newport Yacht Club. In the following years I sailed competitively on a variety of boats, especially J/24s, a bit on my own Laser, and often on my parents Tanzer 22 and later San Juan 28. In college, at the University of Rhode Island, I joined the sailing team where I participated in sloops and big-boat events. I was fortunate to be part of the team that won the 1998 Kennedy Cup at the US Naval Academy and as a result was invited to represent the US at the Student Yachting World Cup in La Trinité-sur-Mer, France where we took third out of 18 teams.

During my college years, my brother, dad, and I talked about finding an old, well-constructed race boat and doing a relatively low-cost conversion to a performance cruiser. We came across a 1983 Frers 40 built by New Orleans Marine which we recognized it as one of the models features in the book "Best Boats to Build or Buy" by Ferenc Máté. After a trip to Cleveland, a good survey, and finding a sweet deal on trucking, the newly-named Floating Point arrived in Newport in 1997. After many years of racing and cruising southern New England waters, the financial strain of upkeep and growing family priorities led me to sell my share of the boat to one of my dad's best friends. While I still have access to the boat and do the hull cleanings, during the COVID-19 pandemic I missed sailing since I didn't want to expose my dad or his friends and I didn't feel comfortable single-handing as I was no longer part owner.

In summer of 2020, I bought a 1984 O'Day Day Sailer II which was small enough I could trailer it behind my Toyota Corolla and easily ramp launch as needed. A great little boat for my purposes at that time, I took the kids out a few times to go sailing and swimming in Point Judith Salt Pond. It happened that the City of Newport was also changing the rules around moorings, which were no longer going to be allowed to be transferred between family members after summer of 2020. Another requirement is that anyone assigned a mooring must own a boat and keep it on it at least some of the time during the summer months. My dad gifted me his mooring before the deadline and I registered the O'Day with it.

As the 2021 season approached, I realized I needed to put the O'Day on the mooring. This was at odds with a big part of the boats appeal, the ease of trailering. I also needed to do some work if I was to leave it on the mooring, including making sure it had fresh anti-fouling bottom paint and constructing locking hatch boards to secure belongings. Also by this point I had gotten engaged, acquiring two future step-children in addition to my younger two who live with me. It was time for a slightly bigger boat.

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