I’ve always had a hankerin’ to try sailing, but never seemed to get to it. In 1997, I spotted, literally, a pile of sail boats in a local vacant field. These were small sail boats ranged 14 foot mono-hulls (Lido 14's, Sunfish and Chrysler 15's) to beach catamarans as small as 11 feet and as long as 19 feet.

After spending a few months, off and on, trying to run down the owner, I finally located him.

I asked how much he wanted for “that old thing” pointing to a rather miserable specimen.

He said he didn’t know anything about sail boats, had received them in trade and wanted to sell the batch.

I told him I also knew nothing about sail boats but only was interested in the one.....

This back and forth, circular discussion went on and on, until I asked the fatal question: “How much for the pile”.

He gave me a figure of $100 per boat and threw in bunches and bunches of peices and parts, as a free "deal" sweetener.

I thought it over, came home, told the story to my wife, and then listened for the next couple of days to the various and ongoing response(s).

I took note, within all that was told me, I had not heard a definitive and distinct “NO...ARE YOU CRAZY”..... I even shared that without that, it could be mistaken by me as support for the idea.

Well, I became the owner of 26....yep.....26 sailboats. I even learned later that there were a dozen more still sitting in California, that were part of this package, at no extra cost. That eventually brought the total to 30+....and I had never even been on a sailboat before.

I’m happy to report, I now know how to sail and do so often...and the fleet is down to only six or so... plus the Stiletto 27 I couldn't do without and the power boat for Lake Powell..

Indeed, each has its purpose and each is stored in the different places I use for goof-off.

(Does that make me a sailboat junky...?)

Besides, all this makes sense when one thinks of them like aspirin. If one’s good, isn’t more, more better?

(I'm now down to seven.... and attending SA ...Sailors Anonymous ... a twelve-step, support group program, that meets regularly at the lake.

We start every meeting by introducing ourselves. Each in turn stands and says something like:: "Hi, I'm (insert name), I'm a sailor."

Tom H.