Sail on Orisha, Lunch with Jak, Autopilot Head

Arnold and I sailed with Chris Boscole aboard his McGregor 65 "Orisha" on Saturday afternoon.  We arrived at the Utsalady boat ramp on Camano Island at 1 PM and soon we saw Chris paddling to shore from his boat which is on a mooring.  He was in a small inflatable towing a larger inflatable and he explained that his outboard motor had failed and this was the best way to get the three of us on board in one trip.  As we approached Orisha I commented that the furled headsails appeared to be new and so they were.  The headsail was brand new and the staysail was about a year old.  The mainsail was also near new, giving him a very good wardrobe of sails.

Chris playing Tugboat, Orisha in Background

It was generally sunny day with a cool and gentle wind.  We spent a pleasant three hours sailing gently and chatting in the cockpit catching up on things while having a good lunch accompanied by cold beers.  At 4 PM we headed back to shore and said our goodbyes and expressed the hope that we would do it again next year.

On Monday morning I was back in Port Townsend and Jean and I drove to Point Hudson to meet Jak for lunch.  I had carelessly invited Jak and Corine to the "Point Hudson Cafe" not realizing that there are two eating establishments at Point Hudson, the other one being the actual cafe.  Fortunately Jak caught sight of Jean and myself at the restaurant and all was well, though unfortunately Corine was not able to come.  The three of us had a great chat, talking about our boats and sailing with, thanks to the presence of Jean, a good balance of local topics. 

After lunch Jean and I drove to West Marine near the PT Boat Haven so that I could pick up the Raymarine surface mounted ST6002 Plus autopilot control head (E12098-P) that had arrived during the previous week.  I went into the store expecting to do battle over the price.  When I had placed the order I had been told that WM would match any price on the internet.  I decided to balk at any price over $500 and was was prepared to show internet prices of $474 (though the prices for the unit ranged up to $688).

West Marine charged me $299 for the unit.

Autopilot Control Head

I gulped and managed to keep my cool, resisting the urge to jump over the counter yelling "I'll take it I'll take it!"  The woman I was dealing with then suggested that I consider purchasing the WM "Plus Plan" extended warranty.  I was very sceptical but politely listened.  Raymarine gives a 3-year warranty on the unit, with all shipment costs borne by the customer.  The WM "Plus Plan" extends the warranty by 2 years and includes free shipment to any part of the world.  She assured me that the warranty would cover salt water damage.  I asked "How much?"  She said that it would cost $45 and was a very good deal.  I told her that she was a very good salesperson and she replied that she really, really believes in the product.

Given that the unit will have a hard life exposed to the elements on the binnacle and the unexpectedly low base price I accepted the offer.  The final cost including the extended warranty and my contribution to the State of Washington was $373.24.

I then popped by Mark's office and dropped off an issue of National Geographic from Brazil that he might find of interest then visited Port Townsend Rigging looking for Dan.  I saw Lisa and Shannon but unfortunately Dan was out working on a boat. 

 I arrived back at the house in Kingston just before dark happy that I had seen Jak and also had the number one USA purchase item in my hands.