Alpha 4 & Charlie 3 Day 11: Today Is The Day, Today Is Challenge Day

written by Alpha/Charlie mate, Addie Benthien
August 17, 2017

It is day 11 of program and our crews are now very comfortable with boat life. We’ve soaked in all the lessons that we have been taught in the previous 10 days, such as points of sail, tacking, raising the jib and main sail, and navigating. We’ve learned to cook for our “family” and keep the boat clean. Now, we are ore than ready to be put it to the test. Today is Challenge Day and each boat will be tasked with getting their vessel from Anegada to Trellis Bay without the help of their captain or mate! The crew must run the boat for the entire day and may only ask three questions to the captain or mate should they not know the answer amongst themselves.

As the rest of the crew slumbered, the skipper of the day, mate and navigator crept off of their boats and made their way to staff boat for a Challenge Day briefing and to receive the day’s schedule. With the fate of each boat now in the hands of its student crew, the captain and mate sat back, made a ‘cuppa’ tea, and played the role of a camper first learning to sail. Echoes of “how do I tie a Bowline” and “where’s my water bottle” could be heard all day from the captain and mate as the crew properly de-moored, put up their main sails and navigated their way to Trellis Bay. Like a well-oiled machine, the crews worked together to secure their vessel to a mooring ball at Trellis Bay, make lunch to feed their deserving crew and debrief their entire sail as their captain and mate would on any given day.

For the remainder of the day, the crew was now responsible for their boats time management of the day’s activities. From trash cleans to shop time, the crew took on the responsibility of completely  and smoothly managing the itinerary. By the time their heads hit their pillows at the end of the day, each crew member was happily exhausted from a day of laughter and hard work.