Viva La France!

[John Stone]

A few days ago I became friends with a French single hander whose boat I spied in the boat basin at our boatyard. I was intrigued by his boat, a FRP Choy Lee Offshore 38. Had a very cool hard dodger on it. We got to talking, his English was barely understandable...but certainly better than my French.

Turns out, last week he was sailing N up the coast outside the GS and got smashed by a winter storm. Broke his steering. Water boarded the boat. The whole nine yards. He rigged the emergency tiller and along with his auto pilot managed to make it in to Beaufort, NC. Over the next couple days I assisted him getting his boat back together. Same as any of us would have done. What a fun enjoyable time. We had to use a Google translator at times but it was all good. We had many meals together. I took him to the local chandeliers, etc. He had Gayle and me aboard his boat for supper in his last night. What a hoot. Did I mention he was a retired French chef! And we drank a bunch of French wine. Excellent. I had no idea.

Yesterday morning, I helped him install a cabinet style Isotherm fridge as his was defunct. Didn't take long and he got underway in the afternoon bound around Cape Hatteras and on to the Chesapeake and ultimately back to France via the Azores.

One of the great things about sailing and voyaging is the fantastic people you meet. I am enriched by having met Jean Claude Meunier. Bon Voyage Jen Claude!

[Frenchy]

That's pretty neat, John. I'm sure Jean Claude left with a good impression of Americans because of you. It's
amazing what sailors do for each other. You're right about the dodger- that's the cat's pajamas/ - Jean

[John Stone]

Jean, it was a really fun time. Very charming fellow. He said he learned English watching American TV and movies. He raved over Forrest Gump because as he said it showed many places in America in one film. He made a point to say the Americans he met were very nice. I was happy to hear that.

Re the boat--The dodger was cored so not too heavy and really nicely molded. No square corners. Must have been built in a mold. Windows do not open though so not much breeze in cockpit in the tropics. My impression is the French are keen on hard dodgers. The wheel was huge. Interesting interior layout. The fit and finish overall was pretty good. Cabin top kinda tall but it looked good overall. Hardware not as nice as CDs. Lots of teak that Jean Claude wisely left bare. Not a fan of the teak decks except to walk on them.

"John Stone my new American friend. You must come to France. I insist. I take care of you. I have many friends. We find a place for your boat." Hahahaha.

[Jim Walsh]

Nice hard dodger. Steve Laume has a beautiful one on Raven.
I noticed he has running backstays, the staysail must be a retrofit. I also see he has roller furling on both headsails. That has been a godsend for me on many occasions. Staying off the foredeck in dicey weather is a luxury.
Glad you had the opportunity to act as a goodwill ambassador for a sailor in need. Goodonya, as my buddy from New Zealand says.

[John Stone]

Nice hard dodger. Steve Laume has a beautiful one on Raven.
I noticed he has running backstays, the staysail must be a retrofit. I also see he has roller furling on both headsails. That has been a godsend for me on many occasions. Staying off the foredeck in dicey weather is a luxury.
Glad you had the opportunity to act as a goodwill ambassador for a sailor in need. Goodonya, as my buddy from New Zealand says.

That's the nicest hard dodger I have seen so far. Very professionally built. I wish Steve had shared with the forum how he built his.

I have mixed feelings on dodgers. Very nice when you need it but otherwise seems like a big hassle. How do you spell boat? Compromise.

[Paul D.]

Thanks for representing John. Looks like your next passage is to the Azores and then NW!