Solace - John

[Solace]

Hi all,

Figured I'd post in here a little about myself.
Solace is a 1979 Columbia 8.3. When I don't have my two girls (Lauren 14, Kristen 12) I am sailing Solace single handed. Five years ago single handed seemed like I had extra crew - anyone with kids can probably understand that. Nowadays, they are both becoming more than capable cruisers and very much enjoy sailing.
Solace is my second sailboat. The first was a 1973 Northern 24 (1/4 ton) named Boondoggle.
We cruise mostly Lake Ontario, but each year I do get an opportunity to crew on boats in Georgian Bay.
Several years back I was part of the crew to bring a 50 Jenneau from Hollywood, FL to Annapolis, MD. At the moment, that is my sum total of ocean sailing.
If you are in the Ontario area, we have a cruising group called the Mañana Cruisers - www.mananacruisers.com. I also have a regular column in Ontario Sailor. Yep - that's my mug.

I'll try to post a pic of Solace below - hoping for the best here

Cheers!

John

[Frank]

if memory serves me (failing at times) the northern 24 is the same boat as a mirage 24.....a C+C design. Nice looking boats...how did it sail??Looked fast.Always liked the look of them

[CapnK]

John -

The pic posting worked - cool! :)

Some friends had a Columbia, a 7.6 (same as what Kailyst sails), it was a nice sailing boat, seemed to be well thought-out and fairly well built, too. I'll link your group on the sites Links page next time I edit it.

[Solace]

CapnK - thanks for the link!
I am a fan of the Columbia Super wide cruisers by Alan Payne. This boat is almost identical to the 8.7 (the little sister). They are towards the heavy side for its length but sail steady in a storm. Everything is oversized when you compare it to boats of a similar size. I love her. And thanks for the promotion - I see I made it to Sr. Member - I can hardly wait to make it to hero  ;D

Frank - the Northern, Mirage and C&C 24 seemed to share the same hull. However, the Northern and the Mirage were the most alike. From the dock they're hard to tell apart - I think the Mirage had a stern railing whereas the Northern (at least mine) didn't. They sail very fast. Beautiful little boat that I hated to get rid of. I am fortunate that I sold it to a good friend of mine (we only met when he bought the boat) and can get my fill of her anytime.

Cheers guys!

John

[Jack Tar]

It's sure a small world John. My father worked for Avro near Hamilton. We lived in Milton for seven years. Great place to grow up.