Hot And Cold

I’ve been hot before, and I’ve been cold before.

I’ll start with Hot:

I hiked from the rim of the Grand Canyon to the river, and back up in about a day and a half…in AUG. That was hot. I’ve also been in a Central American jungle in AUG. That was hot…humidity hot. Felt like I was in a damn sauna.

Cold:

I fell through the ice on a pond once…chest deep…couldn’t breath, and couldn’t find my dick for a week. If I’d been alone, I would’ve died.

I was doing a 200-250 mile sailboat race once. It was pouring rain like a motherfucker, blowing a steady 40-45 MPH, and gusting to 65 MPH. That’s a pretty good blow. Damn, we had some ice on the rigging. You can’t get out of the wind and rain. You’re soaking wet, but still have to drive the boat. You’ve got to handle the sails and steer and navigate…and the wind never slowed. Even though we were reefed to the max, you still have to drive it, and pay attention. Hang on, if you will. You still need a mainsail, and a storm jib (for steerage) to make any headway. The last leg was a beat, which as some know, it takes much longer to cover the same distance compared to a reach. Upwind compared to downwind.

I was so cold I was praying to The Maker to set me free. I was so cold my hands and fingers could barely function.

I don’t care what type of foul-weather gear you’re wearing…nothing works in those conditions. It was an experience for the whole crew, to say the least. Hell, we had eight of us on a Wavelength 30. Not a large boat, but fast. Hell, we blew out a couple of high-dollar sails trying to pass boats in the beginning. It was wild! I was concerned if the rigging would hold. Good thing, but it really doesn’t matter when you’re sailing in those conditions. I’m talking cold and dangerous, and fearing for your life. We put on the harnesses and tied ourselves off. If you went overboard, you were dead, and that boat was bouncing around like a rubber duck in a bathtub. The wind was howling so loud we (all on deck) couldn’t hear each other…had to use hand signals.

Would I do it again…Probably, and that’s why some say I’m crazy. Yes, I would do it again if NASA would make my foul weather gear.

That’s the coldest I’ve ever been, but I still have my nuts.