Well, we're on our third Rosebud now, so it seemed like time to update the website.

In 2006 we sold our TP52. Our last regatta was May of that year in Anituga. We had been told we could not compete for the Big Boat Trophy because we were under 60 feet. However, we were still forced to race in the same class as the big boats. We closely corrected over them to finish First in class and fleet. However, we were not awarded the Big Boat Trohy because of the technicality. I was told I'd understand when our 65 footer returned to the Caribbean. I doubted that.

At the end of Antigua Race Week our crew threw Roger into the drink and I dove in after him and we swam from our beloved and successful Reichel-Pugh TP52 to the huge catamaran we'd chartered, Lone Star, where the terrific crew and the cordon bleu chef wined and dined us and our victorious race crew. Rosebud was shipped from there to its new owners and new name, Decision.

After a year without racing on our own boat, (we did a couple of HYC club events with friends over the summer) we took delivery of our new STP65 in May 2007. This Rosebud was designed by Farr and built (again) by Westerly Marine.

This is an elegant ocean going boat. The layout is clean and effective. Three grinding pedestals can be linked by foot buttons on the sole of the cockpit to work any halyard, line, stay, or lifting keel. Most lines are led through conduit below the deck so there is nothing to trip over.

Naturally there are no running back stays. The fore and back stays are hydraulically operated. The floor plan below decks has many bunks with good headroom and a large open area between the foot of the mast, the head opposite it on port, and the galley to starboard and the gangway. I call it, "The Ballroom". It is white and provides ample room for moving sails around. Foreward, ahead of the galley and head, the white paint ends and the entire area is black. (I recommended that a portable, battery operated disco ball, laser light gizmo be employed there during deliveries.) There is a ladder leading up to the forward hatch that makes it easier to fetch the spinnaker on douses.

There is no spinnaker pole (yet). We only use a bowsprit. With the use of the three pedestals the grinders can get the spinnaker up the 90 foot mast in three seconds.

The hydraulic system uses a pump and tubes (naturally) and stores energy in a reservoir so that on buoy races crew doesn't need to come down from the high side to grind in sail adjustments. Theoretically, only one person needs to go down to trim. I haven't seen this work yet. I hope to see it operate at BBS.

At the Hoag Regatta the hydraulics were unoperational. We grinded in a position for the stays, set it, and did our best.

The crew wanted to quit and suggested that to Roger outside of my hearing. When I was told I laughed. They'd all raced with him before, didn't they know he has never ever quit? He'd rather lose or die. (I've seen him douse all sails, bob bare masted while a squall, virtually a tornado, went past him in Lake Tahoe while many others dismasted and had mains explode because they tried to carry sails through it) then raise his sails to finish just to be disappointed that the race had been called.)

In my opinion, the steering is vastly superior to the TP52. It's like the difference between a 1985 Porsche 911 and a 2000 Audi A8. There are kelp cutters on the keel and the rudder. The keel lifts from 15.9 to 10.9 feet for maneuverability into docks. This does seem to adversely affect steering under power and will take getting used to.

The boat and its keel have cradles for shipping if we can't use our preferred Dockwise.

All of the wonderful people who looked at our plans and advised us on the rig and rigging were amazing. The rig, spars, and even the blocks for the sheets are very high tech and use carbon fiber and velcro. And the lines can get snapped in rather than led through. The traveller is clean and safe. The lines are led from the winch down a tube to immediately get to the traveller. There are fewer turns. The jib leads in and out and up and down are hydraulic. All this innovation, at least to me, makes so much sense it feels simpler than the rig of the old TP 52. I got on the boat and looked at it all, smiled, and said, "Of course!" I went down to "The Ballroom" and hugged Roger telling him once agina, "You're brilliant! I could not see why we had to get rid of a winning boat (the TP52) and get something bigger, but this is beautiful!"

But the promise that it wouldn't take anymore people to operate was immediately broken. Since, unlike the TP52, there is no spinnaker pole or struts I joked with Dave to tell Keats when he arrived at LAX that we didn't need him and we'd give him a ride back to the airport. But of course, since the sails are so much bigger we need more guys just to move them around. We hadn't thought of that.

Folding the spinnaker is easier in all that space, but since it's so huge it takes two people just to haul it around while tying it up. It becomes aerobic.

After racing the Hoag, Long Beach, and Transpac I can honestly say that I now understand why the Antigua Race Week people did not want TP52s in the Caribbean Big Boat Series. When I raced on that boat I really thought it was big, even though I always felt crowded. But after racing on the STP65 the TP52 feels like an SC27. The TP52 is a fast boat. It has a great rating, especially since the STP65's rating got changed. But it always was neither here nor there. It was the fastest boat of its size and therefore there was little direct competition from other ocean going yachts. On the TP52 we only had direct competition in a handful of races before the TP52 box rule was changed to allow less seafaring boats to compete around buoys. Otherwise we raced against boats our size that were much slower or boats much bigger. But when a smaller boat races a bigger one around buoys, they always have an edge. They can get their sails down and around and packed to reset much faster than the big guys. In the ocean races they are so far apart, generally, that the ratings can have a huge effect because you are sailing in such different wind.

We hope more STP65s and other competitive boats our size come on the starting line. We're looking forward to meeting new people in new harbors and making new friends while competing for fun.

Roger and I drove to Marina del Rey from SF in a Lincoln Town Car with our blonde toy rastafarian poodle, Figaro. The boat arrived at its dock the same night. Roger, Figaro and I rushed to see it the next morning. Unlike the TP52 which had to grow on me, this boat was love at first sight. We went on its maiden sail shortly after seeing it and it performed amazingly.

Naturally there were some bugs to hunt down and squash. Apparently, the hydraulic pump worked in only three directions, not the four advertised. And we put it in the fourth position. It took some detective work on the part of our chief instigator, Malcolm Park, and our hydraulics expert Jimmy Slaughter, to figure this out and get the system redesigned. Without hydraulics, the boat is difficult to maneuver: think driving a car with power steering when the power steering goes out.

Consequently, we had to alter our race schedule, scrap the long distance race from San Francisco to Santa Barbara, fix the system and pick up only two days of the three day Long Beach Race Week. Roger and crew then sailed over night to the middle of nowhere to satisfy Transpac requirements and work on calibrations.

Picking up Long Beach Race Week instead of racing SF to SB turned out to bite us on the ass. I just wanted to go on the boat again (I really love it) so I jumped at a buoy regatta. Roger wanted time on the water in preparation for Transpac. But we went too fast and our rating was changed for Transpac.

I don't understand all the parameters for ratings so I'm obviously mystified by getting dinged when we built the boat to a formula created by the Transpac Yacht Club and the Storm Trysail Yacht Club to rate us at a specified time. We were measured and met the box rule, but our rating got changed even though the boat stayed the same. I don't get it. But presumably there's a logical, objective explanation and I just haven't heard it yet.

So, fast forward two weeks to Roger and my return to Long Beach for the start of the 2007 Transpac (sans Figaro). Roger and crew prepped and sailed and calibrated for Transpac. Dave Cardinali, Andrew McCorquodale, and I went on daily treasure hunts for: watch batteries, 10 1/2 EEE wet shoes, chocolate covered espresso beans, a shower curtain and bite lites among other things. (We finally found the bite lites the night before setting sail.) Roger and Adrienne Calahan colluded on navigational plans and weather forecasts. Malcolm nearly drove himself into a nervous breakdown he felt so responsible for everything (and he really came through -- even ordering some of the classiest luau shirts seen at the awards banquet). Chris Cantrick got Rosebud decals delivered overnight from his buddy in Fort Lauderdale after the Santa Cruz guy we'd used on the old boat went MIA. Jack Halterman, outwardly calm, kept Roger and I grounded, though Roger was acting like an old pro himself. Hazy, Keats, Matt Smith et al. were equally calm, professional and competent.

The day of the start was socked in with typical marine layer and very light winds. Rosebud immediately broke something and repaired it. Within 15 minutes of the start gun Rosebud had three sail changes! Then they settled down and headed south.

Roger and Ado took a gamble. Pyewacket and others were taking all the weather advice at face value and heading north, expecting the normal summer Pacific High pressure zone to move south. With the change in the ratings, Rosebud's big race was against the TP52s and SC70s. With the light wind at our start, the only chance to do better than the predicted 3d to finish, third overall, was if the weather did something other than predicted.

There was a chance of a hurricane off Mexico. If Rosebud headed south and got into the wind on the edge of the storm and the high went north, Rosebud could be First to Finish, and First Overall. Roger and Adrienne, Malcolm, Jack, et al. figured it was worth the chance.

For two to three days it looked like it would pay off. But the jet stream took a dip, the Pac High swooped lower, the storm kept out of reach and the boats to the north got the breeze. Still Rosebud had bought a good position and made a bee line arriving third to finish, third overall, first fixed keel boat to finish (as long as you don't count lifting and only count kanting) and fastest boat under 72 feet (minus the TP52s who have their own special trophy donated by Phillippe Kahn).

Roger figured that Rosebud had sailed more miles than any other boat and still made a great show. The crew was universally happy with the boat's performance and still want to race with us.

Rosebud was refit with a bulb designed for heavier wind, and upwind racing. In the San Francisco Big Boat Series we had tough competition in Samba Pa Ti and others. It was very hard to race boats that were so far behind us and getting different wind. Samba Pa Ti benefited from the wind gods and beat us. We also had a problem with the main sail foil. It is made of aluminum and fastened by short screws to our carbon fiber mast. It did fine as did the mast. But the screws had nothing to bite into so it peeled away from the mast. Our foredeck man, Justin Clougher, had to climb to the top of the mast and lash the main sail to the top of the rig. We lost the regatta in those two races.

After BBS, Rosebud was shipped to Sydney, Australia for a few regattas in December and January. Getting the boat to Sydney was a massive effort by Malcolm Park, Jack Halterman, and Jimmy Slaughter. Rosebud was shipped on top of a container ship from Long Beach. So the mast and rig had to be dismantled and stored. The boat was shipped with its keel on in a cradle. And a container held our sails and equipment. Jimmy flew down to Sydney to greet the boat and put it back together with the help of Anthony Merrington. Their efforts were superb. The only snag was again the hydraulics. Somehow, even though we'd shipped our boom vang out for work right after the SF BBS in late September, it apparently wasn't looked at until after Thanksgiving and then was shipped to Australia without a guaranteed ship date. If finally arrived the day before our first race. Malcolm relaxed visibly after it was installed and proven to work. He is now enjoying himself (as much as Malcolm can). Jack is still worrying about his baby every time we get near the dock.

Rosebud has been doing well in Sydney. The boat has gone out every day since December 6. Roger has been on it everyday since the 8th. I went out on the 8th and it was blowing hard and there were big swells. The crew practiced reefing the main, putting up the storm jib and the storm trysail. I took pictures. (I've also been on it for every race so far.)

Aussies keep asking us how to pronounce Hyannis and what MA is. Today, Dec. 15, someone came to see the boat with a "Nantucket" T-shirt on. She'd heard there was a boat from Hyannis winning races in the harbor and had to come see if it really was from Hyannis. (She's from Connecticutt but used to own a house in Nantucket.) It is really fun to read about Rosebud in the Sports page each morning and read Hyannis, MA as its home port. One headline read, "Rosebud Blooms." Cool! Makes me feel a little like Forest Gump.

In our first regatta, the SOLAS Big Boat Challenge, we got a first in corrected time. Wild Oats got line honors.

But that's the short story. The real story was the amazing reality of racing large boats on short legs around a long narrow harbor with spectators all over the place. This harbor is narrower than Lewis Bay in Hyannis. At the start line Rosebud got pinned going south on port tack. There were two large boats below us (whose names escape me now). Most of the crew could only see one of the boats and wondered why they were taking us into the shore. Jack Halterman was driving and a bit flustered because we scattered numerous spectator boats and were yelling at them to "Get out of the way!" We're just not used to that.

The legs were very short and caused a challenge for us to get our sails up, down, packed, and reset. And we were rusty! We hadn't raced in three months. At one point we hooked up our head sail upside down. Ooops!

At another point we got very close to Fort Dennison. The second time around the course, Jack was told to stay farther away for comfort.

As difficult as we found it, I was laughing from shear joy. It was a beautiful day, wonderful conditions, no one was hurt and the scenery was spectacular. Having so many boats out there watching and having Christmas parties while they did, was such a novel and heartening experience. We race because we are daft about it, but to see others share our enjoyment and cheer us on, made it better than ever.

We have just completed the third day out of four of the Rolex Rating Series. We have had two races a day and are now in first place by one point. Obviously, the competition is challenging.

But today was our conditions. The sun was shining, the breeze was 15-18 knots. The seas were flat. We were second to finish behind the 100 foot Wild Oats and corrected to first in both races just before Yendys (spell it backward) and Wild Joe. Yendys is a Reichel-Pugh design with fixed keel about a year old. Wild Joe is a kanting keel boat. To beat these two in handicap was gratifying. And Kevin Miller, our tactitian, called the last lay line to finish amazingly accurately. We had only one jibe in the downwind finishing 2.5 nm leg!

Especially after yesterday in lighter winds. Again, it was a beautiful day. There were bigger swells and less breeze. With our current configuration, set for the Hobart race with a heavy keel, we did not have great expectations. Sure enough, we had a second and a fifth. The crew was not pleased that we could not point in the same way that Wild Joe or Yendys could. But, if we had, we would not have finished as well. It was challenging for our competitive crew to come in so poorly. But Roger and I were satisfied with the results, knowing how the boat is handicapped. And we had some beautiful dolphins dancing around our bow much of the day. We also saw the local sea cow which we had only learned about two weeks ago in Queensland from an aborigine.

The first day of the regatta was just what we'd set the boat up for. It was blowing hard and we had 10-15 foot swells that were setting up irregularly. The wind was blowing against the swells out of the southwest. Down here, that's the worst wind you can get and the north easter is the desired wind. It's opposite land down under. Everyone got beat up just trying to get across the boat on the tacks. Rosebud was fast and loved the wind, but she was smashing her crew around. I was glad Roger and I had life jackets on and was wishing for a harness. I could not believe the race organizers were not requiring them nor that none of our crew would wear them. Silly boys afraid to look like sissies.

As hard as it was for us, it was just as hard for others. One boat was dismasted and had to cut away their new main sail to save the hull. Another boat couldn't release their jib around a mark, got back winded and punched a couple of holes in the boat next to them which was on starboard.

Rosebud got a first and a second in the two races that day. But that night and the next morning, I didn't think I could repeat another day like that. Thank goodness the second day had light wind. What a relief! But Roger and I still followed our habit of wearing our life jackets. It's so much easier to make it a habit, like putting on your seat belt when you drive. All my muscles ache.

Corrections/Additions to "The Brief History of a Yacht (Rosebud TP52)

Monday, January 17, 2005 - Key West, Florida

After over four hours of delays due to high winds, Key West Race Week was ready to begin. The delays allowed for only one race to be held on the day, and Rosebud took a third place in conditions with winds at and above 25 mph. The strong winds made for an exciting day out on the Atlantic Ocean, and after the first race the crew was optimistic about improving their finishes throughout the week. Finishing first and second respectively were Esmeralda and Sjambok.

Tuesday, January 18, 2005 - Key West, Florida

Once again high winds threatened to delay racing until the early afternoon. Fortunately, the winds stayed fairly consistent at 19 - 21 mph and the race committee decided to get the sailing started after only a one hour delay. On another cold Key West morning, Rosebud again sailed itself into two third place finishes. The second third however would fail to hold up. Rosebud took a 20% or 2 point penalty for fouling another boat and ended up with a third and a fifth on the day. Once again, Esmeralda took first place two more times and Sjambok took second place twice as well. Later that evening at the Transpac 52 owners meeting, Rosebud owner Roger Sturgeon was presented with a beautiful 18th century porcelain plate, recognizing Rosebud for finishing second in the 2004 Transpac Cup Title.

Wednesday, January 19, 2005 - Key West, Florida

Finally a morning with sunshine and moderate winds was upon Key West. With three races on the schedule, the Rosebud crew was in high spirits and ready to make moves on the leaderboard. In the first race of the day Rosebud was the second TP-52 to cross the line, gaining themselves a point on Sjambok. In the second race, Rosebud was set back 2 points because they finished as the third TP-52 and Numbers a Farr 60 design yacht snuck in between them and Sjambok. In the final race of the day, Rosebud was once again the second TP 52 to finish, behind Esmeralda and ahead of Sjambok, and ended the day with one point gained on Sjambok for second place in the TP-52 class.

Thursday, January 20, 2005 - Key West, Florida

As the second to last day of Race Week commenced it was obvious that first place in the TP-52 class was all sewn up by Esmeralda. However, there was still a chance for Rosebud to catch Sjambok by week's end. In the first race of the day Rosebud was the first boat to round the weather mark for the second time of the week and was by far the first TP-52 to cross the line. It was an excellent showing, and the first time they had beaten Esmeralda in almost 30 races. The wind died way down in the second race of the day and Rosebud trailed Sjambok by appx. 50 seconds after the final downwind mark rounding. Realizing their bad situation they took a risky measure by heading in the opposite direction as all the other boats in an attempt to find wind elsewhere. In the end their move worked out and they ended up edging Sjambok by about 10 seconds. During the final few minutes of that second race, neither Rosebud or Sjambok was going more than 3 to 4 miles per hour, the wind was that dead out there. On the day, Rosebud gained 3 more points on Sjambok and set themselves up to make a huge comeback with a big win on Friday.

Friday, January 21, 2005 - Key West, Florida

With the drama at a new high, Rosebud went into the last race of the week needing to beat Sjambok by 2 spots just to gain a tie for 2nd best TP-52 on the week. Ultimately, they were unable to achieve that goal, but ended the week proud of their ability to gain so much ground over the second part of the week. Key West Race Week 2005 may not have been a giant success for the Rosebud, but as always, the owner's and crew had themselves a great time and when it comes down to it, that's all that really matters in the world of Sailing.

I have a small comment about the SORC in Miami 2003. This was not just a race that Rosebud won, it was a killing. There were 10 races with 1 throw out. Rosebud had 9 firsts and 1 second, so the throw out was the second giving us 9 first places. As a result Rosebud won the State of Florida Governors trophy for the most outstanding boat in the entire regatta. The last time Roger and I were in the Ft Lauderdale YC the trophy was on display there

Rosebud was commissioned in 2001 and finished in June 2002. It was designed by Reichel-Pugh and built by Westerley Marine in Southern California. Her first race was to Hawaii in July 2002. Jack Halterman and Gary Evans were influential in the building process. Rigging was designed by Hall Spars. Our sails are made by North Sails. The idea was that our previous boat, a SC52 racer/cruiser also named Rosebud, would be replaced by two boats: one race boat and one cruise boat. We still don't have the cruise boat.

In Rosebud's first half year we entered a few races. After the Pacific Cup we raced in the Windjammer, from SF to Santa Cruz and the Big Boat Series in SF. This was class racing. We were almost DFL! We stunk! Our crew didn't know what worked, our sails were the wrong shape, we had our weight all wrong, and it was ugly and scary. Afterward, we did a charitable regatta in Santa Cruz and recruited Malcolm Park. He steered and loved the boat. He gave us hope that we could have fun with it, with some changes.

We made the changes and put Rosebud on a truck for Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where we had been living since January 2002. Rosebud got put back together at Director's Marine Yard in Dania, Florida, just a few miles from our home. It entered a feeder race from Fort Lauderdale to Key West in January 2003. (I think we got third, but never got our trophy.) Rosebud was not a year old, but was finally near our home of one year. We were positioned for Key West Race Week.

Key West was cold. Those of us, who had thought to bring it, wore foul weather gear. We won and won and won. On the last day, it was extremely windy and very cold (who'd have thunk?). We didn't really have to race and two other boats in our class opted not to because the winds were so high. Of course, Roger and our crew couldn't stand to be there and not race around. So we did and it was one of the best racing days in our lives. We flew around the course and won the whole shebang.

Next we went on to SORC. Miami was much, much warmer. It was calm and beautiful. The parties on South Beach were a blast. We won it all and can't wait to go back.

Next Rosebud raced from Fort Lauderdale to Jamaica in the Pineapple Cup. A Z86 was the first to finish. There was some confusion about which boats were in which class and we ended up with a Third. But we had a blast. It was one of the most challenging races to navigate and was always exciting. The parties at the end were terrific. The next race was to Isla de Mujeres. We won. It was a terrifying race and the first time Roger Sturgeon ever got sea sick. Many wives who were left at home were frightened because a horrible storm moved in during the race and check ins were only once a day. Roger didn't call home on his satellite phone because he was too sea sick. But I didn't worry because they did check in, and I figured someone would call on the satellite phone if there were a big problem.

When Rosebud got back to Fort Lauderdale, it went on a truck for Chicago. Next race was to Mackinac Island. The guys had fun, but only won their class. It was followed by the Ugotta Regatta in Harbor Springs, MI which they won and had so much fun that they vowed to return again. Finally we raced along the Chicago city front in the Verve Cup Regatta. Our handicap hurt, the drinks were expensive, and the lines for the lady's room were long. We love Chicago, but this regatta wasn't in our top "gotta go back" list.

Rosebud went back onto a truck for SF again and did a tune up in the Windjammer. Then we raced BBS. It was a different story this time. We had a new crew, new sails, and a lot of practice under our belts. We raced with very long spinnaker poles (which are no longer in our class). It was very difficult getting around the course. When I asked Roger why we were racing with these long poles when none of the other Transpac 52s were, he replied, "Because we can." Our crew work was amazing; awe inspiring. We won it all! Roger got his Rolex and cried with happiness. This was huge for him.

Following BBS Rosebud got back onto a truck to return to Fort Lauderdale again. We entered the Fort Lauderdale to Palm Beach Race in December 2003. It was sponsored by the Sailfish Club of Palm Beach. The days before the race were very windy. But the day of the race there was almost no wind. We fought our way into the Gulf Stream and floated to Palm Beach. On arrival the Sailfish Club had the best buffet in the universe waiting. We plan to return in 2004 and are saving our appetites.

Once again we entered the Key West Feeder Race from Fort Lauderdale and Key West Race Week. There were no other boats of our class. But our competition was ready for us and we were demoted from our First Overall of the previous year. It was OK, we were already thinking about the Caribbean series we had planned.

It was a busy season. It seemed we were two weeks home, two weeks on islands, two weeks home, two weeks on an island, two... well, you get it. It was like a dream. Truly a magical time that cannot be overrated. Our first regatta was in St. Thomas. Our crew stayed within walking distance to the sponsoring yacht club. Roger and I were down the road at a beautiful resort where I even learned to wind surf. Of course, that's a hint that we didn't feel we got enough races in to justify the trip. In three days we only had three buoy races. We were done by lunch time. And we made mistakes on one race, so we never had the opportunity to overcome it.

Our next race was scheduled in Tortola in five days. So we took the break on St. Johns for Roger's birthday. We stayed in another dreamlike resort directly on the beach and snorkeled out of our beds. We caught a ferry to Tortola and met the crew who threw Roger a party and gave him a beautiful model by Ruhne as a gift. He was touched. We did great in Tortola. There were two or three races each day. One race took us around the island. It was beautiful. We had one mistake, but we won overall. Our last day of racing was called because there wasn't any wind. We rented a speedboat and took our crew (that wasn't delivering to the next island) for a ride. We went to two or three islands, partying, snorkeling, diving... what a great day.

Our next destination, a few weeks later, was St. Martaan for the Heineken Cup. It was quite a party regatta. We stayed far from the crowd and consequently missed reading some new race instructions that indicated an earlier start time. Ooops! We were late to the start. We still did fine, but it was embarrassing.

Our final Caribbean destination was in early May. We headed for Antigua Race Week. This had to be the most exciting regatta we'd ever entered. It was warm and windy. Racing was fast and crew work had to be excellent. We saw Mari Cha and Mari Cha (at least two of them) across from us at our dock. My sister arrived to cheer us on and said, "I thought Rosebud was bigger than this, when I saw it launched in California." I told her, "It's the same size, it just looks small compared to two racers 150 feet across from us and Pyewacket in front of us." She laughed at the sheer numbers and sizes of boats. The race committee work was excellent. Just when we thought we'd seen everything from our crew, we were amazed again. There were many injuries on other boats, including one near amputation. But the only problem we had was my bone bruise on the next to last day. Consequently, I missed the last day. It felt horrible. I watched from the beach. Many on the overlook above me were later heard to have been betting on us. Rosebud blew up a chute around a mark and one man apparently turned away to tell one of his buddies how terrible that was, and by the time he turned back to see what was happening on the course, Jeff Brock and Keats Keeley, our fore deck crew, had put up a new one. People cheered. We had only one drawback. We were beating even Mari Cha boat for boat (though it started after us) and were first to finish in one race! We thought. Unfortunately, we took one mark to starboard instead of port. It would not have cost us any time to take it the right way, but our navigator forgot. Too bad we can't fire him. We still got Best Ultralight of the week. We missed First Overall because of that one (little?) mistake. Next time!

From the Caribbean Rosebud floated to Rhode Island. There were a couple of tune up races for Bermuda. Rosebud met some new TP 52s in Newport. Esmeralda was in perfect form. But Esmeralda doesn't go offshore. So Rosebud raced from Newport to Bermuda with three other TP 52s. I flew over to meet the crew. I arrived in time for lunch at the Hamilton Princess. There I met a Cape Codder who looked up and said, "Here comes a boat now!" She is an experienced Bermuda Race greeter from the New York Yacht Club. She was amazed that a boat would be in this early. I went over to the sea wall and identified "Rosebud!!!" Although not first to finish, Pyewacket and Windquest entered as experimental boats got those honors, Rosebud was the overall winner. It took days to sink in. And then we still couldn't believe it. Until we received the most gorgeous trophy we'd ever seen and were told we could bring it home and keep it!!! We went to a lot of parties and continued the celebration when we got to our summer home in Hyannis, MA.

To bring us up to date, Rosebud floated back to Fort Lauderdale, loaded onto a truck and returned to California for BBS. It raced against others of its class. For the first time it raced newer TP52s than itself. The competition was exhilarating. We met new owners. We raced hard. Esmeralda didn't make any mistakes. We did. We had a lot of close calls. I don't know how we got this far and could still get into port/starboard issues on the course, but we did. Now Rosebud is on a truck for Director's in Dania again. We're looking forward to that buffet at the Sailfish Club in Palm Beach, a new buoy regatta off Fort Lauderdale (both in December), the feeder race to Key West from Fort Lauderdale and Key West Race Week in January, SORC and the Pineapple Cup and summer in the Mediterranean. I would never have dreamed I'd have this kind of life. (As a kid, growing up on Cape Cod, I did imagine sailing around the world, but not racing around the world.) In 2001 when Roger came to me with the idea of Rosebud, a TP 52, I said "No way! I will never set a toe on a boat like that!" But Roger doesn't make me eat crow now. Our campaigns are nothing like what he imagined either. This is much bigger and much more fun than either of us could have dreamed. I just wanted to win a lot of races and make the class have a viable future so there'd be a market for the boat when we wanted to sell it. I had no idea Rosebud might become a legend. Roger calls it "Our Endless Summer".