Happy New Year

Happy New Year. I realize that it is the second day of the year and wanted you to know that I had every intention of posting yesterday, but something happened to me that I want to take some time to write about my harrowing experience and some of the lessons that I learned. Yesterday was like any other day. My family had gathered for the holidays and we were totally enjoying each others company. I had been looking forward to taking my son-in-law Brian and brother-in-law Dennis out on Leviathan for an enjoyable afternoon of sailing.
There was a good ten knot wind blowing out of the south that was warm with an occasional gust. We had started out north in shoals so I had not yet secured my rudder, which is my normal procedure when taking off in the shallow cove where I launch the boat. As we made our way north east, I had Dennis take the tiller as I was lying out over the stern attempting to lock the rudder in place by securing the rudder pin. We were making way pretty quickly and I could not secure the rudder because of the speed we were making. I turned my head and upper body toward Dennis who was midship and at the same time a gust of wind hammered the mainsail, causing the boat to heel to starboard, rolling me off into the 55 degree waters of the St. Johns River.
At this point I became very concerned for Dennis and Brian and their safety because they both have very little working knowledge of a sailing vessel. I began to shout commands from the water as they were barreling away from me at a very rapid clip. I found myself floating and observing from afar, realizing there was nothing that I could do to help these guys.
They finally figured out how to bring the boat about and on a very close haul began to head back towards my position. I watched as they were making quick progress towards me. As they were bearing down on me I began to shout “turn it into the wind, turn it in to the wind”. At about 15 yards out it became evident that I was directly in the path of the boat and it was closing quick. The next thing I thought of was the fact that while I was onboard I had extended the centerboard fully and knew that I needed to go deep and do it immediately. I dove as fast and hard as I could and at about 8 feet I felt the center board hit my right thigh. I was then rolled into a full flip and coming up quickly hitting the back of my head on the hull. I surfaced and watched as the Leviathan was swiftly departing with me floating in her wake.
I thought my right femur had been fractured and knew that I needed to head toward the beach. My head was pounding from the lick that I took on the hull and I was losing sight of the boat. I began to swim toward shore, occasionally turning onto my back and floating. I was in severe pain but continued swimming. At this point they somehow managed to bring the boat next to me. I grabbed the shroud and held tightly on the starboard side of the boat, but could not kick hard enough with my injured leg to get into the boat. Brian had a death grip on my hand and did not want to let me go. I convinced him to let me go and hand over hand I made my to the port side of the boat where I could get my non-injured leg over the side and was finally back into the boat.
I could see the relief on the faces of both Brian and Dennis as I took the tiller back in hand. My leg was bleeding and looking at the open wound I knew that I needed sutures. The wind was blowing wonderfully and Leviathan was responding well to my touch on the rudder and I must admit the thoughts of staying out and making a couple of good runs crossed my mind. Brian and Dennis wanted me to get the boat back and seek medical attention.
It took a little while to tack and jibe back to the beach and by this time I had lost a significant amount of blood and the affects of being in the cold water had taken its toll. Going to the urgent care center, they took me back and cleaned the wound, pulling a fairly big piece of fiberglass from my leg. As the doctor began to suture, I was feeling all of the bruises setting in. I have never been hit so hard by anything in my lifetime and I have taken some very hard licks. Coming home and sitting in my chair, I began to reflect on the events of the day. Several things come to mind. I am thankful for my family who truly care about me, but understand my passion for sailing. I am going to do a better job in training those who sail with me to take over in the event of an emergency. I am looking forward to getting the sutures out and my leg back to normal and making my way back out on the water.
My son-in-law made a list of things that we must have before we take the boat back out! I am thankful that he wants to go back out with me. You have to truly love what you do, and do what you love. I love sailing, I love living on the edge and I am looking forward to many more days on the water. Thanks to all of those who prayed for me. I am on the mend and fully expect to be back at work tomorrow. Remember to keep Jesus first in your life and love those around you. Have a very happy New Year!