Turbulence
Now, I had a new problem. I told James “I don’t want it”, and with great difficulty had to give it back to him on deck without losing the life ring. To pass up the ring, I had to time the seas just right, and told James to pop loose the safety line, than give me the ring only. When I got into the life ring, with James now holding on to the safety line, it was “heaven sent”, as I could now get my boots off and when James pulled me astern, I climbed aboard. When I caught my breath, I radioed Willie, and we started the whole process all over again.
When we got home, my bride had made a fine dinner of lobsters and bay scallops, but as the rush of adrenalin began to wear off, I became real cold and got the “shakes” – so bad that I could not eat nor go to vote.
The next day, I discovered that all my trouble was not caused by a fouled stern fuel filter. The culprit was a plugged up quarter inch internal screen in the electric fuel pump, precisely the sort of mischief the stern filter is supposed to prevent. (Murphy’s Law).
Turbulence is defined as: 1) a turbulent state; 2) Hydraulics. The haphazard secondary motion due to eddies within a moving fluid………….
I surely was “up close and personal” with lots of “turbulent moving fluid” on Election Day, November 8th, 1994, both in and on Gardiners Bay.
On the bright side, I had James on board to save me, and the following June, one-half mile south of where I had anchored up, I caught my hat, but never found my boots.
Dated: May 1, 2012
Stuart B. Vorpahl
P.O. Box 256
Amagansett, N. Y., 11930
Phone: (631) 324-4179
