Here’s a picture taken near the start of the big 2013 Mariner Rendezvous. Skipper Anne Fogarty with crew Greg Koski are motoring #2654 TIA MARIA in the rain through the Niantic bridges out into Niantic Bay. The docile conditions pictured here quickly changed turned into a storm out in the bay with gusts to 30 knots. While most Mariners successfully fought their way to Mystic Seaport, TIA MARIA’s rudder and tiller broke while still in Niantic Bay; at the same time, her outboard stopped working. Drifting dangerously toward shore, Anne and Greg managed to set their anchor and radio for assistance. Dan Meaney, close by in #2024 CLEW-SEA-NUF, turned around and managed to take them in tow back to the launch ramp. (He then sailed over the following day to join the group at the Seaport.) Although TIA MARIA was out of action for the event, Anne and Greg simply drove over to the Seaport to join in the fun with everybody else.

Steve Creighton and Joanne McCarthy surge ahead in Mariner #1969 THE POD with Bruce Robbins in #3200 NORA ROSE close behind. They are sailing up the Connecticut River during the 2022 Mariner Rendezvous to Essex, and keen observers may notice a couple more Mariners in the far right background; a total of 16 boats participated in the event. Robert Stelpstra is sitting on NORA ROSE’s cabin top - Robert drove all the way from Quebec, Canada to join in the fun, and Bruce kindly offered to have him crew for him on the way from Niantic to Essex. He hopes to one day participate in a Rendezvous with his own boat! THE POD is actually Steve and Joanne’s second Mariner as their primary Mariner, the old-style #629 BLIND SQUIRREL, is used (quite successfully) for racing in their home waters of Brant Beach, Long Beach Island, New Jersey. THE POD, a mid-style boat, offers slightly more comfortable cabin accommodations for cruising, but she is also quite speedy on the water.

Stuart Mariner #4195 ALIKAT sails in light winds on Portage Lake, Onekama, Michigan. ALIKAT’s boom is perhaps a bit higher than most; while this may cut down on sail area and therefore boat speed, it certainly does not seem to bother her skipper, Curt Bosket, who is all smiles on this gorgeous day on the water. It also provides an excellent view forward, but Mariner sailors must be cautious about raising the boom up too high lest it inadvertently - and dangerously - catch on the backstay when tacking or jibing. ALIKAT’s bow pulpit certainly helps keep a sailor safe when working on the foredeck, and her roller-furling jib is a breeze (get it?) when sailing solo. Curt is sailing her with a working jib today with the jib sheets led through cabin top blocks and swiveling cam cleats, but she is also set up for a genoa jib as evidenced by the block on a sliding track and snubber winch - used as a handhold by one of the crew in this picture - on the starboard coaming top.

There’s no chance of mistaking this boat on the water! This is Blas Buono’s ultra-green BANDIDA, a late-style Mariner part of the Puerto Rico Mariner Fleet. She is often raced, and you can see the four sets of telltales on the mainsail leech, a series of telltales on the jib, and draft lines which help the sailors to shape the sails depending on what the wind is doing. In this picture, BANDIDA’s crew is hiking way over the side of the boat, something not allowed in Association-sanctioned races; crew are expected to keep their feet in the cockpit area. But this is a local regatta where some rules may be bent a bit, and the Puerto Rican sailors generally sail with one skipper and two crew to aid in ballasting the boat given the typically strong winds in that region.

While racing, daysailing and cruising continues all year long in parts of Florida and Puerto Rico, those of us in the northeast are chomping at the bit to get back out on the water. The snow is falling here in Connecticut as I write this, and it reminded me of this picture I have been saving for a while. This late-style Mariner in Virginia is quickly getting covered as she sits in her driveway for the winter months. Her owner didn’t have time to put a cover on her before the snow began, but no matter; she will be back in the water before too long.

Andy Stotz with wife Bonnie sail by the New London waterfront in their late-style Mariner, #3223 SHELDON JONES, during the Mariner National Rendezvous last August. Andy and Bonnie have participated in six consecutive Mariner Rendezvous so far, and they recently confirmed their attendance for this year’s event with the excited Facebook posting that their “room is reserved and ready to go!!!” They trailer SHELDON JONES all the way from Maine, making them the northern-most regular participants. Notice their gold-anodized boom; this is actually a second-hand boom taken from a slightly older Mariner built during the time when all spars were gold anodized to recognize and celebrate George O’Day’s gold medal won for sailing during the 1960 Olympics. Photo: Steve Hock.

Jose "Chupi" Bermudez smiles as he finishes putting final touches on O’Day Mariner #3122 JULEPITO. He’s getting ready for next weekend’s Festival de Vela Regatta to be sailed in Salinas, Puerto Rico. According to fellow Puerto Rican Mariner sailor Miguel Casellas, “Festival de Vela will have the participation of Optis, ILCA, 420's, Sunfish, Hobie Cats and Mariners and our Mariner fleet has decided to name it the Caribbean Midwinters. Chupi is a very accomplished sailor with lots of hours under his belt, having crewed for top notch boats around the Caribbean and doing foredeck with famous boats like TITAN, having won the Rolex Cup - St. Thomas, BVI Regatta and Antigua Sailing Week multiple times just to name a few.” Thanks to Miguel for passing along the photograph, and good luck to all Mariner sailors in next week’s regatta!

Jim Nicolini and Nicholas Nicolini concentrate as they approach one of the marks during the 2023 Mariner National Championships at Narrasketuck Yacht Club, New York. Members of Brant Beach Yacht Club (New Jersey) and sailing O'Day Mariner #3574, they scored two firsts, one second and one fourth place in the four races sailed Saturday, July 22nd. The shallow waters in Great South Bay are notoriously tricky to navigate, and sailors must keep a constant eye on the centerboard lest it start to drag in the mud. Unfortunately, racing was canceled the following day due to lack of wind, but that kept the Nicolinis in first place allowing them to take home the Championship trophy! Photo credit: Alan Hlavenka, a professional photographer (and Mariner sailor) based at Narrasketuck Yacht Club who has taken many fantastic Mariner pictures over the years.

The mid-style O’Day Mariner AIRE blasts through the water with a huge bone in her teeth during the second Festival de Vela in Salinas, Puerto Rico a couple of weekends ago. Hosted by the Borinquen Islands Sailing Association, twelve O’Day Mariners from the Mariner Class Association’s Puerto Rico Mariner fleet turned out for this event, and AIRE placed seventh with skipper Luisma Rodriguez at the helm. One skipper and two crew are the rule for racing in Puerto Rico with their strong winds; notice also their 2:1 jib sheets for extra power sheeting in the jib. The Puerto Rico fleet takes great pride in their Mariners, and many of them are either painted with bright colors or they sport custom decals applied on the hull. This fantastic action picture and many others were taken by photographer Carlos G. Lee.

Back in 2015, nine Mariners sailed to Mystic Seaport the same weekend the WoodenBoat Show held their event. All the docks were filled with boats on display, so those of us who sailed from Niantic had to tow dinghies and anchor in the anchorage above the Seaport. Here, Tim and Erin Reiche have anchored and set a full cockpit cover over their Mariner, #2170 MAGGIE, near the historic yawl KLANG II. Built in 1924 in Falmouth, England, KLANG II took part in Operation Ariel as one of the famous “Little Ships” that helped to rescue over 338,000 British and Allied troops from the shores of Dunkirk and other French ports in 1940 near the start of World War Two. She crossed the Atlantic in the mid-1960s, spending most of her time near Essex and later at Mystic. Unfortunately, since this picture was taken, KLANG II has fallen on hard times and was last reported to be on the hard at a Rhode Island boat yard, available for free to anyone with deep enough pockets to be able to restore her. Let’s hope she receives the attention she so desperately needs and deserves.

Scott Cavato, of Deland, Florida, smiles as he stands proudly next to his new-to-him mid-style Mariner, #1720. He writes, “Sure, she needs a couple of things but is ready to sail as is. The PO [previous owner] took my girlfriend and I out on the water for a brief test sail. This was my first time ever sailing (as well as my GF), and I loved every minute of it. The winds did get a bit spicy shortly after getting out on the water- perhaps 25-30 knots with a reefed main and choppy water. During a jibe, the boat laid almost completely horizontal, rail underwater, and the cockpit combing sitting just a hair above. My girlfriend and I immediately jumped the the other side of the boat, myself trying to hike out. Once the mainsheet was free, #1720 righted herself right up. My girlfriend and I thought we were getting ready to capsize (perhaps we were). Risk aside, it was an exciting ride! This definitely was an eye opener as to how a jibe could pose a capsize risk. I'm taking a brief sailing course next week and look forward to getting this old Mariner out on the water!” Congratulations, Scott - you have a fantastic boat!

I’m a sucker for sunset shots, especially ones with Mariners in it, and this one sent to me by Dave Satter is just about as good as it gets. He sent this to me back in 2023 from his early-style #735W WILDFLOWER, and it’s the kind of picture that makes you wish you were right there at this very moment. Dave’s restoration of WILDFLOWER is nothing short of remarkable; his knowledge and expertise in woodworking is extensive, and his website - Satter’s Restorations - shows some of his past and current projects. His boat has been featured in this column several times in the past, and I’m looking forward to sharing more of his beautiful pictures.

Warren Katz’s early-style O’Day Mariner, #1176, calmly sits at her mooring, sails bent on, ready to go as the wind makes its way across the lake in New Hampshire where he keeps his boat. While Warren admits to being somewhat new to sailing, he couldn’t have picked a better boat in which to learn; the Mariner is incredibly forgiving. She is in fantastic shape with a gloss-black hull, white bootstripe and topsides, and red bottom paint along with varnished coaming tops. While her sails are original and suffer from a few dime-sized holes in her mainsail, that doesn’t stop Warren from having an absolute blast sailing her, and he is no doubt looking forward to a full season of sailing #1176 since he just bought her last September.