Alright, so you’re asking about Captain Pete’s maiden North Carolina adventure. Man, that was a trip. Not in the good way, mostly. Pete, he’s a character, always has been. And this first run down to NC, it was supposed to be something, you know? His big new thing.
I got dragged into it, like I always do with Pete’s schemes. He calls me up, all excited, “Got this boat, gonna make a killing in North Carolina! Need you, buddy!” Famous last words, those. I should’ve known better, but hey, sometimes you just gotta see how the story unfolds, right?
The “Grand” Plan
So, the plan. If you could call it a plan. Mostly it seemed to live in Pete’s head, scribbled on a bunch of napkins. The idea was to sail this… “classic” vessel he’d acquired down the coast to set up some kind of charter business. Simple, he said. Smooth sailing, he said.
The boat itself? Let’s just say “needs work” was an understatement. I swear, half the stuff on it was held together with duct tape and hope. But Pete, he’s an optimist. Or maybe just stubborn. “She’s got character!” he’d bellow. Yeah, the character of a sinking ship, I thought.
What Actually Went Down
The trip itself? Oh boy. It was one thing after another. You want a list? I can give you a list.
- The engine sputtered more than it ran for the first two days. We spent more time drifting than sailing.
- The “state-of-the-art” navigation system turned out to be an old tablet with a cracked screen and no charger.
- Pete’s idea of stocking provisions was three bags of chips and a case of warm soda. For a multi-day trip.
- We hit weather. Of course, we hit weather. The kind that makes you question all your life choices.
I remember one night, waves crashing over the bow, rain coming in sideways, and Pete’s just humming to himself, trying to fix a leaky window with a plastic bag. A plastic bag! I was soaked, cold, and pretty sure we were going to end up as fish food. Good old Pete, though, he was “enjoying the challenge.”
We did eventually make it to North Carolina. Barely. The boat looked like it had been through a war, and frankly, so did I. Did Pete make his killing? Not on that trip, not by a long shot. We spent most of the first week there doing repairs. Just to make the darn thing float reliably.
So, What Did I Get Out Of It?
You might ask, what was the point? Well, for Pete, I think it was another story to tell. For me? I learned a few things. Mostly about what not to do. And I learned that sometimes, even when everything’s going sideways, you just gotta find a way to laugh about it later. Much later, in this case.
That “maiden voyage” was a disaster, no two ways about it. But it was an experience. A very wet, very frustrating experience. Would I do it again? Absolutely not. But it sure makes for a good story, doesn’t it? And it definitely taught me to pack my own snacks. And maybe a life raft.
