Commander #155 'Mephisto Cat'

[Rico]

Thanks Jerry!
- Yes; The Mephisto Cat's (C-155) brightwork is ALL teak. I imagine teh Mahogany on C-147 must be original as the upgrade would have been VERY expensive... But who knows. It seems that Pearson offered different trim options for the interior layout, Interior fixtures, deck equipment, and I/b or O/b motors... Perhaps the choice of wood used was also an option?

C-187 had all Mahogany brightwork, which looked like it was the original brightwork... - and it will be getting all new Mahogany during refurbishment. It was hard to find THAT material as it was...
- I cannot imagine what a 1'-2" x 3/4" x 10'-6" teak board would cost - even if you could find it!!

Finally sailing after the 2010 very WET season!
The Official season opening race on the bay is in two weeks... Last year we had a very mild winter and it was not hard at all to sail right through. We even some 80 degree days in February and did quite a bit of sailing around the bay even before opening day.

This year, on the other hand, is has been VERY wet, and it was not until this past weekend that I managed to get a full weekend-sail in nice weather -after enough dry days to complete a few projects -in addition to 'spring cleaning'...
- As we all do; I do still have a long list of pending upgrades & little projects.

I had a sailor friend in town, and not only did we manage a sail down to Sausalito; but he also helped with a couple little boat projects. What a pleasure it is to have a bit of help now & then!! - At least to help dirink the beer!

We took off in light winds (about 10kt) on the ebb tide in bright sunshine, but it slowly picked-up as we got closer to the central Bay. We were entertained by some large ship trafffic while in San Pablo Bay. By the time we reached Richmond, we had 10-15kt winds with a few puffs and we could see a few other sailboats.

We reached Sausalito and had a few other friends meet us for a beer at the slip before we headed off to dinner at one of the cafes. We spent a great night on the boat, and after a good breakfast on-shore we went sailing again. We spent a bit of time in the central Bay and then headed back home riding a nice strong flood. We lost the wind for a while, but then a light westerly set-in and we swiched to the mighty 180% genoa and sailed wing - on - wing.

Picture 1: Great sailing in mild conditions... A bit of wind - plus the ebb tide pushing us along... The ebb tide pulls a lot of river sediment along making the water murky.

Picture 2: Another shot right after lunch and a beer...

Picture 3: Having a rest after stowing the boat away for the night.

Picture 4: These racers did not stand a chance against the lightning fast Mephisto Cat!!! (-relatively lightning fast!)... We flew past all of them before they took off towards Angel island. It was fun watching these little sailors cruise along in the little dinghies - and we did make sure to stay well clear.

- I wish I'd gotten into sailing that early! These sailing kids are doing drills, rounding markers and enjoying some excellent sailing in Raccoon straights; An area that is well respected by sailors in much larger boats!

Picture 5: On a Strarboard tack