The OCC heads to the USA

Dublin the morning of our flight.  

Several years ago, when I joined the Board of the Ocean Cruising Club as Rear Commodore, I immediately wrote a proposal to circulate the OCC AGM and Awards dinner amongst the countries hosting the most members. Three years ago, we made the decision to hold the 2020 meeting in Annapolis MD. This was a major move as the AGM had always been held in the UK, and, until a few years ago, always in London. It then moved to Henley, Bristol and Wales, moving ever closer to the US. Of course, just as we were about to fly over, Covid erupted and all plans were cancelled. It was a wild time when no one knew what to expect and millions were dying from a disease unknown just months before. 

Fast forward two years, and mRNA and vector vaccines made it possible to consider a reboot of the event. And so we re-booked our trip to Annapolis with trepidation but also with anticipation. It had been two years of isolation and masked madness, and it was time to emerge out of our cocoons. 

We were warned of the long queues at the airport and so we drove to Dublin the night before and stayed at the Clayton where we left our car. Our flight was at 1230 and we arrived at the airport at 8 am. We flew through the first security checkpoint and then entered the queues for the US Preclearance which took a little longer. Simon and Sally Currin joined our flight from the UK and Rachelle and Tony had to rebook as their connecting flight was delayed. We saw two movies (No Time to Die and WW84) and tried to sleep with no luck. The flight was packed and I was wedged in with a large man next to me. The food was inedible. It was torture. But we made it unscathed. 

Queue at Budget/Avis

We arrived at Dulles some eight hours later, having sat masked in an FFP2 through 5 hours at the airport and another 8+ hours on the plane. Then came the queues at Budget Rent-a-car. At least one hour when we arrived, it was longer than 2 hours by the time we left. It was a really long day. When we got to the car, there were already people in it and they had their ticket with the assignment. So back to the counter Alex trudged and managed to snag an upgrade! Nice Mistubishi 4x4. 

We drove the hour to Annapolis and checked into the Graduate Hotel. The beds were very comfortable and they have off-street parking, but that's about all I would say positively about it. We had drinks and a simple dinner at the hotel Thursday night, which was good cause I couldn't have walked any further after the transatlantic ordeal. The drinks were ridiculously expensive and the service was burly and slow, the food mediocre and the bands loud. They even blocked off the bar for a private party on Saturday night without any option for bar service for hotel guests. I would not recommend it. But it didn't stop us from setting a jolly tone for the weekend. 

Meeting up at the Graduate Hotel

We had the day free on Friday and just needed to set up and check the equipment for the following day's meetings in the evening. We started with breakfast at the famous Chick and Ruth's diner. Eggs Benedict with crab cake! Dustin Reynolds, the double-amputee single-handed sailor flew in from Hawaii to receive his Barton Cup. He hung out with us for drinks and dinner and breakfast. Such a nice guy. 

After a stroll through Annapolis and lunch at Pusser's overlooking Ego Alley, Alex and I decided to drive off in a new direction and went to Edgewater where we discovered a historical project in which 18th and 19th-century slave, servant and plantation owner's quarters were recreated on archaeologically excavated sites. Edgewater is a suburb located southwest of Annapolis on the south side of the tidal South River. It is bordered by Mayo to the east, Riva to the west, and Lothian to the south. The place is a hodgepodge of small ticky tacky homes and palatial estates. Interesting. When we returned, dinner was organised somewhat loosely by Bill & Lydia Strickland and a bunch of us wandered off to a tapas restaurant nearby. 

The morning talks on Saturday and the AGM went off without a hitch except for complaints from the online crowd that they couldn't see the slides or movies Gary Jobson was showing. Too bad, they should have come in person. Gary was great as a moderator about where sailing has been and where it's heading. I'd forgotten that he was on board Ted Turner's yacht in the infamous Fastnet Race when they won and so many perished.  The tugboat skipper and ship's pilot did a great job explaining what they see from where they are and what happens when they encounter small boats in shipping lanes. It was really excellent and instructive. 

Susanne Huber-Curphey and The Rev Bob Shepton were both elected Honorary Members. The OCC is in excellent financial shape so it all flowed smoothly. The other positions were uncontested. 

The afternoon was free so we wandered into town for lunch in the glorious sunshine at McGarvey's Saloon and Oyster Bar where we ate more crab! There was a parade in honour of Martin Luter King Jr with lots of dancers, drummers, and bands. Very festive. 

Then it was time to visit the Naval Academy. We had two Midshipmen telling us about their lives at the Academy. Both are in their final year and will be leaving in May. It was an interesting tour and discussion about sailing offshore. I told them about the OCC Youth Sponsorship. Naturally, the father of the US Navy is Irish born John Barry. 

Finally, it was time for the main event. With eight award recipients present, it would prove to be most interesting. Held at the Annapolis Yacht Club, their new facilities are impressive.  The meal was delicious and served at a nice pace. The MCs Janet Garnier and Henry DiPietro were lively and entertaining. The cake, decorated with the OCC burgee, was magnificent. 

Randall Reeves, who was last year's recipient of the Barton Cup for his Figure 8 Voyage, presented an emotional Dustin Reynolds with his for completion of his single-handed circumnavigation. After having had his arm and leg amputated due to a motorcycle accident, he bought a boat and started sailing around the world, even though he had no clue how to sail and no self-tailing winches. He tailed the sheets with his teeth. That's determination. 

We got to catch up with Matt Rutherford, too, and hear about his new projects of mapping the seafloor (for which he gets funding) and polar climate change research (for which they cannot raise any funding). You can read all about it in the April issue of Spinsheet pages 47-49. We also heard about Randall's plans for Alaska and beyond. Legendary ice router Victor Wejer was so proud to be there as Port Officer for the NW Passage. 

We spent the next three days with family, Alex and Andrew Moch and their two boys, Ziggy and Miles, and Andrew's mother Maria. We handled banking issues in Alexandria Va and renewed my driving license in Salem NJ. We ate at the Oak Steakhouse, the best in the area. Pricey but excellent. We ordered Mexican for delivery the next night and had a lovely evening at home just chatting. 

On our last day, we opted for a tour of the cherry blossoms in DC which we had never seen before. Although it was past its prime, it was still beautiful even though the weather wasn't. It held off sufficiently to not be unpleasant. 

Then it was Wednesday and time to head home. Back to the airport. Pretty easy on the American side. And a short return with the jet stream only 6 hours. Saw the third movie -- House of Gucci, then tried to sleep without success even though we were lucky and had an open seat next to us. 

The ride home from Dublin at 5 am on Thursday was uneventful. I went right to bed, Alex stayed up for a bit then joined me. By the evening, we were both feeling out of sorts - Alex with fever and sore throat, me with coughing. We tested negative for Covid but developed fevers overnight. On repeat testing two days later, we were very positive. Lung congestion, sore throat, fever has gone, no weird symptoms. It was inevitable at some stage. With all the potential exposure we had, it was not surprising at all. Just glad to have timed it right. 

So now we go from isolating and convalescing right into burial service for Meike out on Inishloy. Let's hope we recover fully with no residual long Covid effects and the weather cooperates.

What a week, what a month, what a year. Glad to be back home.