COLUMNS DEPARTMENTS 8 Mail Cal Seasonal Disorders confusing to . ‘our psyches when the mos elible events Channel 9 —say, the atval of fall—are detained, 27 OnBoas Thank goociness when fal dave it . Gear & Gadgets came with a good book and a cup of joe 34 cniser’s Calendar Capain Knievel reaning 68: cameos evtable that your boat wl ea When intoa cay atthe circa 36 Q5 Tide Table docs, se these ips fom Fant Lanier to Chack Royster watches a fn out where tne waters comin om. BONE WA carcsiaterptarcicuowsy Advertising Sections dangerous tun... and then has rescue bi * Upto Speed — 39 eee ot 5 Cave Hideaway—Stansbury Yacht Basin i the 65 Janae The Right ey perfect gotsway for avon eth Jeon Koren Stuf Fashing sacral, says of Page Moser. Besides being treated ike family, the aviation ‘museum and a good restaurant are a shon walk aw. 4O o ofTene ard Tileo—Thnks oe ctged ane aul Clancy vis Bennett Creek, where he enjoys Walarns. And when honing your craft o perfection its important to know your fish and your tools wel 9 6 arge Clear Water Rememberec—Clean water is lear ‘water, says To Horton, aniif we want the Bay 0 Cassels O4 —Adventisers index retum to its once clear tate, some serious hard work is in order ‘reat meal and, while wating forthe tide tors, some 000 oc peace an quiet TILGHMAN-ON-CHESAPEAKE | YACHT CLUB & MARINA COMMUNITY | Tiina On Cheapeatcineiest86.) | ses ih eto Mind ting sk main. hb, anda goreeons weer Poaceae ack | Enchercape cod and 2 ro ny anh Thive of ost madch have eer tes onthe fist floor. And our profesional fiend "Neliou"tndel is open 7 dys 4 ‘vss, Priced fm $565, 00 es ncenes AYachsman’s padi, just minutes to the best sailing ishing, cruiking, and erabbing that che Chesapeake has to off. 6 o-s:s222 Bey Maaazne December 2007 Dinecdoms Take Re 53,12 mils beyond | Se Mies Tile pu desi |Captain Knievel A Potomac River cruise gets interesting (and scary) for a couple of newlyweds when a nearby boat attempts an idiotic feat. Ihe sun was high, the wind was relatively calm, and my brand-new ‘wife Cecelia (Cee) and | were putter- ing smarty along in High Ratutn’ Floozie after topping off at James Creek Marina on the Anacostia River near Washington, D.C. Itwas a beautiful summer Saturday, so we decided to take a short cruise, sip a few ‘eo0l ones and catch a few rays. Whal we had forgotten, ‘was that on just such a summer Saturday the upper Potomac around Hains Point was likely to be an absolute madhouse, Aswe lel the marina, Cee and I settled in for an enjoyable ride. As I recall, we watched the grand old Witson Line tour “6 boat George Washington lumber down the Washington Channel and then strug- gled to make her turn into the Potomac. Turning the enormously beamy tour boat Jn such a narrow channel was no mean feat, As most Potomac River rats know (and especially this one, due to an earlier prop-shattering experience), there is seri= ‘ous shoal water just outside the channel markers between Hains Foint and the northern end of runway 19 at the Reagan National Airport on the Virginia side of the river, At low tide, there is less than two feet of water within 30 yards of the big center-channel buey. We watched as George Washington's captain cranked the wheel furiously to ort as he powered up to near full ahead on the starboard shaft to make the turn. by Chuck Royster (No bow thrusters here.) This process kicked up a gigantic wake, which fanned. ‘out aeross the entire channel and sent beautiful foaming white curls of water spreading out from the ship's fantail up the Washington Channel and across the river atthe tip of Hains Point. In salute, and to prevent any spillage of good beer, ‘Cee and I raised our cool ones high as ‘we crossed the wake to continue our journey northward, in the opposite direc- tion ofthe George Washington. But then the calmness ofthe afternoon ‘was shattered with the throaty baritone grow! ofa pair of fully throitled open headers ofa big block Chevy engine, reader rendezvous Headed southbound from out of the Potomac River channel came the glistening blur of a beautiful, blue and gold metal- flaked Donzi, running full tit toward the stern of the laboring George Washington. Alits helm was a widely grinning young rman, the very picture of a modern mari- time daredevil, withthe backwards base- ball cap, open Hawaiian shirt (chest halrs ‘a-showin’) and NASCAR shades. His equipage consisted of a beer drinking Dueddy and a pretty bikiniclad young lady, ‘whose long blond hair pointed straight behind her as it blew in the wind, flowing almost over the boat's transom. Now, having only recently left behind (OuessPeaxe Bay Macazne Decernber 2007 61reatler rentiezvous this stage of meatheadediness myself (he new wife made me get rd of the go-fast), new immediately what he intended to do: He was going to jump the wake of the George Washington. But | also knew at once from my previous youthful and ‘extremely stupid experiences that tis ‘was a formula for disaster, since his in tended angle-of-attack was nowhere near perpendicular to the wake. In fact, at that speed, this angle would cause the boat to “ramp up” the wake and rotate to one side as it crossed over. This was going to be bas. Cee heard and saw the Donzi, too NOWAVAILABLE... YANMAR BY-Series ‘Yanmar's reputation for power, performance and reliability has ‘made it the leader in repower diesel engines. Now, with the new generation BY Series Yanmar engine, you will enjoy even greater fuel economy and reduced weight, MACK BORING & PARTS COMPANY 179 Pove bane ha Poe 62 Cressreaxe Bay Macrame December 2007 Y— YANMAR The leader in diesel repower just got stronger! ere) Oe eres DRC ees eure te Ld See usa Sea ees eee eat ser r = DIESEL ENGINE SALES « SERVICE* TRAINING 800-709-0672 » repower@mackboring.com “That nut iso? going to try to jump that ‘wake, is he?” she asked. “Yup,” I said, as I goosed the throttle to get out of the way. "Hope he makes it!" He didn't. And it was the damnedest and dumbest thing I ever saw, The Donzi hit the wake and arced up, rising more than 15 feet out ofthe water. As it did so, it rotated a full 360 degrees along its Jongitudinal axis. Terrified, Cee and ‘watched asthe three occupants fell out ‘of the inverted cockpit ike so many eggs out of an upside-down catton—plink, plunk, splosh—and landed within 10 yards of our boat allin a best-in-class, compact envelope. Your boat deserves the best. Repower with Yanmar. To repower, call Mack Boring today for the name of your local Yanmar dealer! We’re the BDI Ee fle “Oh =I" said, “Cee, grab the cushions and some life vests to throw!" [ spun the wheel to port to begin a rescue attempt, “We gotta get to them fast... If they make it Meanwhile, the driverless Donzi had taken on a life ofits own. It made a perfect three point landing on the other side of the wake and then, stil ranning with the throttle wide open, began spinning ina {ullspeed counter-clockwise circle in the middle of the channel between Hains Point, the northern tip of Bolling Air Force Base and Fort McNair. This was not go0d—the channel was full of sailboats, powerboats, puttering dinghies and everything else that could float, I called the D.C. Harbor Patrol on the VHF and re ported the incident as | steered Floozie slowly toward the three former occupants ‘of the Donzi—who were al, miraculously, treading water. We hauled them onboard and began to give them frst aid, They ‘were full of scratches and cuts, but none of them was seriously hurt, We all watched as three D.C, Harbor Patrol boats struggled to get the Donzi ccorralled and under control, After whiat seemed like an hour's worth of dangerous attempls, one of the officers —with great courage, fortitude and boat handling skil—managed to get his Boston Whaler beside the Donzi, hook the throttle with a boat hook and shut it down, Exhausted and wringing wet with sweat, the officer proceeded stralg iy boat and growled: “Which one of you ‘was the driver of that boat?" Young Captain Evel Knievel meekly raised his hand, “Your ‘come with mel” the officer said, And so ended another beautiful sur mer Saturday on the Potomac. a (Chuck Royster ives in Galthersbux nas been boating on the Potomac Fiver andl the Chesaveske Bey fr more than 20 years. Hes ho CEO at ‘Systems Inter Group, lo, com: Mid, arch ptr services fem intanham, Ma and keeps his Doral 380 at Cotumea Islet Macina i Washington, DC