This is an authorized translation in English of a post in French by Vincent Le Roy (@vincentleroy): La Saga PLOUF [Episode 10] : L'inconscience du débutant

^{As my primary language is not English, there are probably some mistakes in my translation.}

Remember that the person who speaks here is NOT me, Vincent Celier (@vcelier), but Vincent Le Roy (@vincentleroy), a French guy.

Note: "Plouf", in French, is an onomatopoeia that phonetically imitates the sound of an object that falls in the water. The equivalent in English would be "Plop" or "Splash". That is a strange name for a boat!

Brief summary of previous episodes

In January 2016, I am given a boat, a tiny sailboat. A kid's dream. Her name is Plouf. And in fact the canoe is in a state not possible and I do not know much except sailing. I tell you the journey that I traveled with this small boat, that have become my fourth baby! The refurbishing job is finished, and a first outing with Julien was organized. Today, I will sail alone with the children ... in the big bath as they say!

The PLOUF Saga [Part 10 of 17] - The unconsciousness of the beginner

A nice sun for this Saturday morning to accompany our second exit. The weather report has changed a bit. Winds are north this time: 25 knots announced and a slight swell. I went in front of the Harbor Master's office to check that it was playable. No special alert. So go!

Maneuvers to the millimeter, imperial exit from the harbor! It's at sea that things get a bit complicated. Indeed, the wind really blows. But at least it is steady. There is swell too. It's kinda shake. My son takes the helm and I set the sails. He cuts the engine and the canoe starts to face the waves. It shakes a little but it's funny. The children are happy.

We make two rather long tacks but it is rather cold and my crew would like to go back. It is clear that we are not well equipped. I propose to my son to go and buy shift jackets in the afternoon. Sold, as they say. I lower the sails and we return to the pontoon. Everybody smiles. I return to the Harbor Master's Office.

Yann greets me: "Sincerely, you are sailing very well because the conditions are at the limit for your boat today. I did not let you go for a minute with the binoculars." And he's telling me that only now? At the same time, it's reassuring because we were under surveillance. I will have to learn to read better the weather report. to decrypt it and to adapt.

In the afternoon, the bank card warms up at the hardware store. Wind vane, new compass, pulleys of all kinds and ropes for my moorings and sheets. Ronan promises to go tomorrow to put all this in place. I paw the ground. In a very short time, Plouf will become a super fully equipped boat, ready to go and play with the biggest ones during regattas. Oh yes, we are not going to stop in such a good way.

On Sunday, Ronan actually came and set everything up. A real joy. The splices are beautiful and the boat slams well. All the pulleys are in place, the new clean listening makes me a sign of the eye. In the days that followed, I brought everything back to the cockpit as planned. I decided that I will do all the painting of the bridge with non slip areas this summer.

In the weeks that follow, I make a lot of changes planned on the boat. All pulleys are new and upscale. The whole is brought back to the cockpit. To please my Plouf, I even offer him a brand new compass! I go out almost everyday with friends. Never alone. Until this famous Sunday morning ... The day of the beating ...