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The SIRENA Story

 

Three Great Sailors Visit Sirena

 

11 July 2003 was an incredible day.   I had the great honor to meet and sail with the famous Yoh Aoki, who was visiting for the day from Osaka.   My Potter friend and Trailer Sailor

legend Bill Payne accompanied him.  Later in the day, another sailing buddy Greg McPhee joined us from Shizuoka prefecture.  Mother Nature gave her blessing to our gathering with a generous helping of sunshine, after 5 days of rain. 

 

Yoh Aoki is the famous sailor who, at age 22 circumnavigated the globe in his homemade

21 foot sailboat, the Ahodori.  This feat earned him a place in the Guiness Book of Records for the smallest sailboat to make such a round the world trip.    His current pursuits are running the only certified ASA (American Sailing Association) school in Japan as well as being a master in Zen Buddhism.    His expertise in both Zen and Sailing make a very

unique and complementary combination we call Zen Sailing.     On top of all of that he is a very nice guy.  Here is a picture of Yoh at the helm of Sirena practising his art:

 

                      Photo courtesy of Gaijin Sailing Association:                 Yoh Aoki at the helm.   Brian in Sailin’ Satori 

 

Both Yoh and Bill were so anxious to get underway that I had hardly pulled the cord of the outboard motor, and they were busy raising the sails.   While I didn’t mention that this was against marina policy, it was helpful as the motor would sputter and die every few minutes.   Once out on the briny blue I got my first taste of  Zen Sailing.     Yoh had Sirena flying along, and just as I was contemplating the sound of one halyard slapping, I found myself raised vertically while standing on the side of the footwell starting down at the water rushing OVER the rail!    While Sirena was christened a few weeks previously, I suppose this must have been a kind of  baptism.    Later Bill had to go out and buy a new clinometer which shows the degree of heel, with separate measurements for use by Bill and Yoh:

 

                       Photo courtesy of Gaijin Sailing Association:           Actually Yoh would probably consistently peg the meter.                             

 

Our sail continued but it was getting time to turn back.  I was worried about the motor continuing to fail.  In my mind I was having visions of smashing into the concrete pier and seeing how well these famous sailors could swim.    It must have been the Zen working that caused me to check the fuel tank on the outboard,  which was completely empty.   ‘Ku’ or ‘Emptyness’  -  both in the fuel tank and between the Skipper’s ears.   After adding a little gas from the spare tank, the engine gurgled contentedly all the way back to the slip.

 

Bill Payne, founder of the Gaijin Sailors Association is another sailing legend.   While he has not sailed continuously around the world he has sailed many bits and pieces of it.   One of his greatest adventures was sailing 10,000 miles at an average speed of 55 knots along the highways of America, trailering Pilgrim, his West Wight Potter 15 from coast to coast and top to bottom.  These days he sails Catch 22, a 21 foot Yamaha, out of Kobe.    Bill helped me immensely in the project of buying the Potter with encouragement and lots of great information.  He is an expert on Potters and sailing in Japan, and has a knack for getting gaijin (foreigners) who are interested in sailing together, as he did on this day.

 

            Photo courtesy of Yoh Aoki:                 Bill Payne’s quote for the day:     ‘The rail was UNDER the water!

 

 

Greg McPhee was my classmate in the Tokyo Power Squadron preparations for the marine license exams.    Greg just recently purchased a 19 foot Potter for his father in Michigan.  He doesn’t circumnavigate the world, instead he positions several sailboats at strategic locations around it.  He has a Laser in Shizuoka, another in Hawaii, and soon a Potter in Michigan.   Greg is a very talented and experienced sailor.    He and I went out for a great afternoon sail, and I learned a lot about sail-shape, reading the wind, etc.     As the wind kicked up I was more than happy to let him take the helm and get us home.

 

Here are those three super sailors:

 

Photo courtesy of Gaijin Sailing Association:                       Left to Right:  Bill Payne, Yoh Aoki, Greg McPhee

 

 

We capped off the day with an little Apres Voile:

 

Photo courtesy of Yoh Aoki:                                   Left to Right:  Yoh Aoki,Bill Payne, me, Greg McPhee

 

 

And we had our first meeting of the Gaijin Sailors Association (note our official burgee):

 

 

Photo courtesy of Gaijin Sailing Association     See Commodore Bill Payne for entry to this prestigious club. 

 

It was a great day for Sirena and I!

 

When I bought the Potter, it was a step up from singlehanded Dinghy sailing to include my family.   But much of the attraction of sailing, is that it is a wonderful temporary escape from the crowds of people and complicated relationships that one finds in big cities ashore.

 

What a paradox that I discover how this pastime would draw me to a wonderful new group of people who share my passion.   This adds so much to the whole experience.  After all, a nice sunny day, sturdy boat, good wind, good food, good (and not so good) jokes with good friends  - life doesn’t get much better than that.

 

Stay Tuned for more adventures of Sirena COMING SOON

 

“A tourist remains an outsider throughout his visit, but a sailor is part of the local scene from the moment he arrives”

            --- Ann Davis