A Brief Profile of Capt. Ron and the Ericson 38  Kismet

That’s me … I know, I know, the boat’s prettier … that’s the breaks …   The photo was taken by a visiting friend shortly after dropping the hook at Conception Island in the Bahamas.  The boat by the way, is Kismet our 1983 Ericson 38. 

 We bought her in Baltimore in August 2003 and even though she was in great shape, we’ve been fixing her up and modifying her to suit our cruising style … meaning, leave the US (Florida) after Thanksgiving (and hopefully hurricane season) cruise the islands over the winter and return to Florida before June 1.  We’ve managed to complete that mission for the last few years, hopefully with many more to follow.

 We selected the E-38 for a variety of reasons not the least of which was cost. But very high on our list of features was sailing performance and Kismet certainly delivers on that score.  We raced in the Georgetown Cruiser Regatta (2006 version) davits, bimini, radar and all … AND we managed a respectable 4^th in class (2^nd boat for boat) for the ‘round island race (18miles) and 2^nd  (1^st to finish in class) in the buoy race (9 miles).  Not bad for a crew that had never sailed together before and a boat that had never raced in my hands before.  By the way, we had only two sails on the boat (our normal configuration) a 130 genoa on the furler and the old main, recently converted to full battens.  The same regatta in 2007 (same configuration and sails) yielded similar results but with GIs from the Exuma Blackhawk copter base as crew (never sailed before) in the harbor race and just the admiral and me going round the island. 

Me, I’m Captain Ron …  I’ve been sailing since I was 9 … ex Sea Scout, Lifeguard, and retired systems analyst. I hold a current USCG Master license (50 ton) with sail endorsement, which I’ve held since 1986.  I’m also a US Sailing certified Small Boat Instructor (2002).  I'm just plain retired now as I gave up the job of being captain on an 88 foot, two decked, stern paddle-wheel Mississippi River Boat named the Cypress Belle that operates out of Cypress Gardens, central Florida’s oldest theme park.  It was fun when the boat worked.  So it goes. 

Questions about me or Kismet or cruising the islands can be sent to rcbutler@hotmail.com … always happy to give my opinion.