Elaine Before WINOS

When I was in my early 20's I had a neighbor with an old sailboat on a trailer parked in their driveway long ago forgotten by them. I  was curious and fascinated by what kind of adventures could be had with this neglected 21 foot thing.  My ex husband being the bold guy he is knocked on the door and offered to buy it. Now I have to stress that neither of us knew a thing about sailing and we also where not what you would call strong swimmers or water sport enthusiasts. It sounded easy enough.Tow the thing to the water, stand the pole thingy on top up, clip on some sails, pull some ropes (which I now know are lines and sheets) and off we go right? Well anyone who knows anything about sailing will realize that its never that simple. We spent a lot of hours on Lake Washington learning how not to kill each other out of frustration. We eventually figured things outs, had a whole lotta fun and moved on to owning several other boat over the 16 years we where together. Some smaller and some larger but one thing they had in common was the effect they had on me. Being on the water was a place I felt at home. It was a place to forget about everything but what was at hand. Eventually we felt confident enough to cruise in the Caribbean and even dabble in a little racing. When my ex and I divorced in the 90's I felt like I was divorced from sailing too. In fact the last few years of our marriage we where boat less. Looking back now I see that not having a way to get out on the water was not a good thing at all for me or our relationship. I had formed a "bond" with sailing. Not to be too dramatic but having it taken away left a hole in my heart.  Fortunately five years ago I found a group called TWSA (Tacoma Women's Sailing Association). From there I took some lessons to reacquaint myself with sailing.  Women In Need Of Sailing or Team WINOS as we call ourselves was formed from our sailing class. We race every Wednesday evening in the spring and summer. We also like to enjoy a good glass of vino afterward and share a meal. Last year we spent time cursing in the San Juan's and have a trip planned this summer in the South Sound. I hit the jack pot with this group of friends. They have helped heal over that hole in my heart. Cheers WINOS!