Brother Country Boy wrote a song titled "Brotherhood Day" that was featured on the CD published for last June's National Zaf in Norfolk. The song speaks about each of the U.S. tables (with the exception of Solomons Island which was not in existence at the time). It intimates the fabric of the Brotherhood that connects each brother to his table and the tables to each other.
As the year comes to a close, I was reflecting on Country Boy's song the other day. That is when I realized it has been a Brotherhood Year for my captive, June, and myself. Looking through the log of our sailboat, Talisman, it is evident that most of our boating was centered around our relations with the other brothers of the table. With very few exceptions, each excursion from our marina was to meet or anchor with another brother or group of brothers. Then there were all the days and nights the four brothers at Bay Point Marina, of which I am one, spent visiting with each other: Sharing a glass of wine or jigger of rhum at sunset, casual "come-on-over" dinners and, of course, helping out with the inevitable boat projects.
It started out in February with the land cruise to Marathon, Florida, for the President’s Day Zaf: a savage, non-stop excursion with El Maestro & AJ. Eighteen hours later we pulled into Snapper King & Margie’s driveway in need of a nap before the Friday night reception at Sparky & Lori’s beautiful house. The rest of the weekend was a blur. On the return, we broke things up with an overnight in St. Augustine.All through the winter and spring months, we met constantly to prepare for our sponsorship of the U.S. National Zaf, scheduled to coincide with the Sail Virginia 2007 celebration in early June. Originally assigned to the Hospitality Committee, I spent most of my time as the recording engineer for the CD of songs that was distributed at the Zaf.
Spring arrived late, as usual, owing to the large bodies of water that surround our area and the fierce northeast winds sweeping in off the Atlantic Ocean. We gathered our boats together for the Memorial Day Weekend and initiated Brother Floater into our table and the Brotherhood. June and I finished up the holiday weekend with Passenjero John Williams and his wife, Susan.
Then it was June and time for the National Zaf! Almost one hundred brothers and captives came together to celebrate the Sail Virginia event and the anniversary of the nation's first colony at Jamestown. Almost all of the Chesapeake Bay brothers had their boats in Friday’s Parade of Sail: many of the visiting brothers and captives went along for the ride. Fireworks from the terrace of the Norfolk Marriott capped the event on Saturday night. That weekend also witnessed the passing of the helm of Chesapeake Bay Table from "Captain-for-Life" Blue Stache to Rocket Boy.
After the Zaf, Limey & Holly were making ready for a cruise to the northeast. June, I and some of the other brothers on "C" pier held a splendid bon voyage dinner party for them and hoped we would see them in the autumn as they came through the Chesapeake on their way south. Problems with the motor had them back the next day. Multiple repairs, false starts and at least three more bon voyage parties occurred before they were finally able to depart. But, the repairs took a number of weeks and their window for a northeast cruise had passed. They spent the rest of the summer months cruising the Chesapeake and were able to join everyone in Solomons Island in early August.
June and I spent the week of the summer solstice with (passenjero) John & Susan cruising the middle and northern peninsulas of Virginia. This is where I learned of John’s love of the sea. He had running engine problems but, unlike many sailors, hung in there throughout the week. I also discovered that there is at least one couple in this world that likes to sleep in while cruising.After the July Fourth weekend, it was the Town Point Yacht Club (TPYC) raft-up. While not directly affiliated with the Brotherhood, many of the Chesapeake Bay brothers are members. Most of the TPYC members with boats are brothers so it looked like a brotherhood raft-up from the shore. It felt like a brotherhood raft-up and we ate as if it were one.
The next week, it was a brotherhood Tip-a-Few on the water (a raft-up) at Willoughby Bay sponsored by (Captain) Rocket Boy & Sherry. We discussed the upcoming trip to meet the passenjeros of the Solomons Table and decided it would be appropriate to promote John Williams to engagé so he could attend the event. Calls were made to get everyone’s approval and by Saturday afternoon, John had become "Jongagé."The blur of weekend events continued the next weekend with the Crab Regatta at Rebel Marina, where a number of brothers keep their boats. It is one of the premier boating events in the Hampton Roads area and was attended by most of the Chesapeake Bay brothers.
The first week of August brought a road trip to Solomons Island to meet with the eight passenjeros of the forming table and
orient them to our fraternity. June and I took Talisman up the Bay on a magical summer night and arrived at the pier of Snapper King & Margie sixteen hours later, in need of a nap (deja vu?). After a day together with the pasenjeros, we discovered they could hold their rhum rations and found them all to be worthy. On our way home, we pulled into Dividing Creek for an overnight raft-up with Cruz & Ann. June and I were thankful for the evening thunderstorms that cooled the heat of the day and for our good friends who fed us after a long day on the water.The second week of August seemed like the first weekend in a long time that was not scheduled with an event. But Talisman is our home on summer weekends and the weather was fair. I called a few brothers about a local cruise and raft-up and found Jongagé & Susan willing. We spent the evening in Hampton Harbor. Pilot & Francine stopped by the next day on Cat Nap for a short visit before we broke the raft and headed back to our home ports.
Two weeks later found most of the brothers at Bay Creek Marina on the lower Eastern Shore of Virginia for another TPYC event. That event was followed, the next week, by the 3rd annual Labor Day Brotherhood raft-up. This year we held it in Put-In Creek, a small tributary of the East River in Mathews County. This was a joint Tip-a-Few event sponsored by the crews of Talisman and Cat Nap. The high revelry (read: frequent cannon fire) of the event drew some annoyance from the locals who, after Saturday night, asked if we could cease and desist at sundown on Sunday evening.
The warm weather lasts well past Labor Day in the Chesapeake. The annual Bay Days event the following weekend found the crews of Blue Moon, Fresh Air and Talisman rafted together in Hampton Harbor for the event. A few weeks later found the same crews sailing in the vicinity of (the body of water named) Hampton Roads. Via radio, we agreed to an impromptu raft-up in Mill Creek where we shared snacks and liquid refreshments for a few hours before heading home.
The last weekend in September defined another Brotherhood weekend for June and I as we sailed down the Elizabeth River for a raft-up with Rocket Boy & Sherry aboard Blue Moon. We had wanted to spend some time with them as, for the second year in a row, they would not be able to head north with what has become an annual event for us: the autumn cruise up the Chesapeake Bay.
Four days later, Talisman left for points north. Our first stop was, again, the pier of Snapper King & Margie in Solomons Island. Upon arrival, we were informed we had 45 minutes to get ready for an emergency party: Brother Felix was in port with Magic. We were there an hour later along with passenjeros Pete Chabot, Smitty Smith and their wives. We left the next morning for Annapolis and the annual U.S. Sailboat Show. A number of the Chesapeake Bay brothers were in town for the show: Shanty was anchored in the harbor and Rocket Boy & Sherry had driven to the event. They spent the night aboard Talisman before heading home Sunday morning. Country Boy was working the show Sunday and Monday and was our guest Sunday night. Following a brief visit to Galesville, we stopped at Solomons Island and the pier of Snapper King again. This time we were invited to a dinner at the Solomons Island Yacht Club where passenjero Al Redfield and his wife, Cynde, were hosting the dinner that night. Passenjero Sonny Forrst and his wife, Charlene, were also there for the dinner. We left the next day, headed back to the southern end of the Bay and the finish line for the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race which had started that afternoon. Piper and his beautiful schooner, Shanty, were in the race being ably crewed by other brothers of our table. At Portsmouth, many of the brothers in our table gathered for the end-of-the-race celebrations. It had been a Brotherhood cruise.
As October grew older, it was time for another annual event along the Norfolk waterfront: the Festevent Wine Festival. Brother El Maestro had been working on Maraj all summer and was ready to take her to the event. June and I crewed her to the event and spent a great day soaking up the sun and wine. Orza was at the Waterside Marina with Blue Moon and Fresh Air rafted up across the river at the Hospital Point anchorage. June and I spent the night on Blue Moon and finished up yet another Brotherhood weekend with a fine breakfast the next morning.
November rolled around bringing with it cooler temperatures, northerly winds and shorter days. But there was no resting: in mid-month we were visited by the brothers from the Norway table and the magnificent tall ship - the Statsraad Lehmkuhl - they command and crew. Brother Dogwaes had boarded the ship in Bermuda to spend some time with his two sons (brothers from the Bergen Table) who are Captain and Executive Officer. After their departure, a reception was held for Brother Dogwaes and Swedish Navigator (who had traveled from the Florida to pick up Dogwaes) at the home of Rocket Boy.
The next week, the week of Thanksgiving, Heinz and Brigitte Scheel from the Tisch Lübeck - Travemünde Table of Germany came to the lower Chesapeake as part of their U.S. Brotherhood tour. Again, a reception was held at the home of Rocket Boy followed, the next day, by a water tour of the area aboard Orza with a compliment of Chesapeake Bay brothers as crew.
Then, with the full press of the holiday season, our formal gatherings started winding down as everyone pursued the events and errands preceding Christmas. But even then, we continued meeting and enjoying the company of our good friends, all of them brothers, in the lead up to Christmas: the dinner with Rocket Boy & Sherry; dinner and tree decorating at the home of Jongagé & Susan. The day after Christmas is the annual Tip-a-Few/Boxing Day event at the home of Cruz & Ann where we came together for the last time of the year as a group. Finally, Rocket Boy & Sherry, Jongagé & Susan and June & I came together one final time for New Year’s Eve festivities at the marinas of Willoughby Bay.That is my retrospective of the year 2007. It was truly a Brotherhood year. But more than that, it is the definition of a lifestyle: the brothers of the Chesapeake Bay Table are first and foremost a group of good friends who enjoy each others company. Ultimately, that is the fabric of the Brotherhood - friends who love, admire and support one another through the common bond that is the love of the sea.
