Commander #274 Old Glory

[Stephan]

Well,

(melancholy alert)

It seems like I started sailing my commander just yesterday, but in fact it's been 4 months and the season in Chicago is drawing to a close already.  I envy all you guys who live in milder climates and can sail all year round.

I'll have to sail or motor my boat to a marina about 45 miles north of Chicago and keep her there for the next 6 months. You heard me right. Having a boat in Chicago for one year means 5.5 months of sailing, and 6.5 months of storage on the hard. I can only hope that the weather will hold for the next two weeks and give me some nice last trips and a decent sail to my storage place, but I'm cutting it close actually, many boats have already gone into storage here. If the wind blows from the north on my big trip I'll be in for some awful ride.

And then I'll have to make everything ready for the first frost, which might well arrive before November. Don't want the bilge pump to explode, or the portapotty :eek: . I'll store the good outboard in a heated place, but the spare outboard will maybe stay on the boat (to save the storage fee) and I have to prepare it to survive 0 degrees Fahrenheit.

So, guys, count yourselves lucky who are in nicer locations. Every winter I seriously consider relocating to somewhere warmer, and one day I will!

Greetings, Stephan

[Faith]

Ahoy Stephen,
If you're hauling out at Larson's tell the folks there that the Fauls and Faith miss them (but not the Chicago winter!)  My family and I made that September or October (and occasionally November) sail every year for 30 years - once or twice in the snow!  Lake Michigan is the greatest sailing ground there is, if only for 5 months a year.
Have a good winter!
Sean

Commander #239 "Faith"
Berkeley, CA (Formerly Chicago, IL)

[Stephan]

Hi Sean,

great to hear from you. I read about your haul to SF even before I bought my Commander last March. Your journal had no small part in exciting me about our beautiful boats. I'm glad to see you here because I'm sure many people wondered what happened to you after your journey.

I sailed my boat up to Winthrop Harbor three weeks ago, on the very day the harbor in Chicago closed. I was lucky with the weather being fine, since then it has gotten nasty very quickly.

I'm happy you say Lake Michigan is great sailing, but I envy all of you in the SF Bay area now until May.

So, what's up with you there? Are you living on "Faith"? Are you still sailing her around a lot in the bay? Did you get in touch with some of the many forum members around there?

Happy Sailing!

Stephan

[Stephan]

End of season here in Chicago.......

[Stephan]

I have to tell you guys with a heavy heart that I'm now deprived of my Commander. I sold it to a group of guys here in Chicago that will hopefully join into this forum next season.
The Commander must be the perfect day sailer - I would never have sold it if I wanted to day sail or weekend sail only. For living aboard my 'Ariel 35' is a little more convenient.
#274 will live on in good hands I'm sure. I'll stay around with my 'Ariel' unless you kick me out...

[ebb]

Sad but happy!
All the best,
and a thousand happy miles in your A-35!
:cool:

[Commander 274]

Stephan et al.,
 
I am already here!  I have gained a wealth of knowledge by reading these postings and look forward to many seasons of sailing aboard DAS BOOT.
 
Michael

[Commander 274]

Hello All,
 
While I wouldn't call myself active on this forum, I do read new posts daily to try to absorb as much knowledge as possible on these fantastic boats. Since Stephan is posting pictures of his super sized Ariel, I figured I would post a picture of the old and new owner(s) as a good way to further transition myself onto this forum.
 
I managed to get a couple buddies of mine from college to pool some funds and buy this boat. While I am the only one with significant experience sailing, my sailing is limited to racing smaller dinghies. So both teaching my friends and learning the ropes of a larger boat will be a challenge.
 
You can see that the boat has been renamed "Old Glory" (Regarding placement of the name... the wind caught a hold of our decal and decided to place it higher on the transom than we wished. We didn't want to mess with it, so we just decided to go with what Mother Nature intended)
 
I don't know if it is possible to re-name a thread, but it might be worthwhile to keep all postings related to this wonderful boat in the same place.
 
Thanks for all of your help so far. I hope to be able to contribute to the knowledge base that is contained here soon enough.
 
Michael

[Chance]

I had the pleasure of meeting Old Glory's former steward and captain, Stephan. I also was priviledged to have been on the water in your Commander when I was in search of one myself. For other reasons, I elected to purchase "Ceili" (hull #256) out of Falmouth, Maine and bring her down to NC where I'm doing work on her now.
     Congratulations on your selection to one of the finest sailing vessels ever made!  
     Keep us posted on your sailing and any work you do with her. Photos strongly encouraged!

[Commander 274]

quick question, need a quick answer.  I did a search but did not find any.  So I just thought I would clog up my own thread.
 
I am working towards making some new coamings.  As stated earlier in this thread the coamings on 274 are beyond the point of restoration.  I had a tough time getting them off yesterday... it was brutal.
 
What are the dimensions of the coamings on the Commander?  (Basically, what amount of wood do I need to order and what size?)

Unfortunately, my boat winters an hour and a half away from me, so access is limited and I forgot my notes in the cabin.
 
Thanks.
 
Michael

[Commander 147]

Michael
 
You probably don't need the answer any longer but I just read your post for the first time today. I recently replaced the coamings on C147 and I had some issues finding the materials. The old coamings were 13" wide and 10'-4" long. There were 1" thick. If you are a woodworker you probably know that to end up with 1" thickness you need to buy 5/4 material. So I went looking for 5/4 mahogany 14" wide and 11' long but could not find it here in central Florida. What I finally found was 5/4 Sapelli and I had to buy a couple boards that were 15" wide by 14' long to get what I needed. It cost me $496.00 for the boards but the added material is being used to replace all of the wood around the campanionway. In addition I made new handrails out of some of it.
 
Hope this helps.

[Commander 274]

I haven't been the most active participant of this message board, but I would rank myself as one of the most active readers. My admiration of your craftsmanship and my boring desk job are to credit for my daily reading habit. I would like to thank all of you for providing a respite from crunching numbers. Unfortunately, life has taken me away from Chicago and I have sold Old Glory. The new owners are another group of guys, similar to my group of friends 3 years ago. If they are anything like us, I contend that Old Glory sees the most beer consumption of any Commander on the high seas. We made some improvements to the boat (coamings, motor, etc) and I hope they continue the trend.
I'll be in Chapel Hill, NC... so if anybody is passing through the Outer Banks, let me know. I'll still be reading!
 
Michael
 
p.s. when I was launching OG for the new owners, I ran into a no-name Ariel. I didn't want to climb into the cockpit to get her number. But I figured I would post a picture to aid in tracking these great boats as they move around the world. This boat was at Skyway Yachtworks on the south side of Chicago.