Meet Enzo-The Ferrari of Dinghies

Meet Enzo-The Ferrari of Dinghies

On the second day, my Humans were ready to go into town; it was my Female Human’s turn to drive Enzo. They loaded into him sans grace, and then she began to practice.

“Go Left,” my Male Human would say, and she would go in a circle.

“OK, go towards the boat” and she would end up going in reverse towards the ferry lanes.

I watched from afar as Enzo stopped, and my Male Human gave instructions. It’s not her fault. She has never driven a dinghy before, and Enzo is complex, being set up backward and all. Eventually, she made a few slow laps around me, slow being the operative word, and then they were off across the bay to Friday Harbor.

But, once they arrived there, it fell apart. She navigated the pillars well, but at the last moment, as she was trying to direct Enzo into a vacant spot, she tapped his nose on a prop that had been left up.  Enzo says that Dinghy Dock etiquette is to leave motors down in the water, for this reason. Well, this one was not, and my Female Human smacked Enzo’s nose right into it. My Male Human raised his voice at her; “Heather, you have to get better at this.” As you can imagine, my Female Human cried, at which point my Male Human apologized to no avail. My Female Human got out of Enzo and left.

My male Human and Enzo came back by themselves. I wasn’t there, so this is Enzo’s version of events. His nose wasn’t even scraped, so, I think it was an overreaction on my Humans parts. We spent the afternoon by ourselves while my Female Human explored Friday Harbor, and my male Human busied himself with tasks and how to ‘make it up’ to his favorite human.

Eventually, Enzo and My Male Human returned to Friday Harbor, to retrieve my Female, who had been enjoying her day.

My Humans went to Friday’s Crab House, where they allegedly had the best oysters. They returned, and my Female Human had a bottle of wine from a wine-tasting room called Madrone. Even though it is named after a tree she is familiar with from her home state of Oregon, “I wouldn’t write home about it,” was her assessment.

The next morning, my female got up, determined as ever to drive Enzo, and she did. She did well. She talked herself through all the pieces of Enzo:

“First, squeeze the ball to prime Enzo; now lower his motor into the water; next, pull this red stop button to insert the key; now, bring the tiller down (deep breath)—and pull the cord once—OK, maybe twice to start. YES!!! He is running. Oh, Hooray— OK, OK—I will let Enzo warm up for 60 seconds. Time to go—-and I’m going to point the tiller in the opposite direction than I want to go.”

And they were off with success. I watched them get smaller and smaller as they whizzed away.

They returned, after a very productive day of shopping, laundry, mailing handwritten postcards, and eating more oysters.

She said my Female Human had purchased two bottles of Maryhill wine, which was ‘worth writing home about.’ Grapes are a passion of hers.  A hundred years ago, Sam Hill Washington landed to create an independent farming community named after his wife, Mary. Today, some new owners have cared for the land and grapes and produce incredible-award-winning wines. My Female will say that she likes to taste the dirt–because that’s where the stories are buried.

My Humans toasted the sunset, read some books, and went to bed, where I keep them cozy in my berth.

My Female Human is going to do fine.

If you like this post, check out the one where Enzo got lost.

Until Next Time….

Fear-Less/Adventure-More!

S/V Gypsea Explorer and Her Humans: Heather & Chris

My Top 5 Enzo Inspired Songs!

“I Can’t Drive 55”  Sammy Hagar

 “Mr. Speed”  KISS

“Passenger”  Iggy Pop

“King of the Road”  Roger Miller

“I’m Free” The Rolling Stones

And, if this tickles your propellor, grab 5 Months of Amazon Prime Music Here–FREE!

Explore My Amazon Store and uncover a world of music, sailing essentials, and specialty items you won’t find anywhere else. Your next favorite find is just a click away!