For those who haven't heard the latest on the club's largest boat, Soma--a.k.a. the Cow Boat--there is discouraging news.
Having sat at the farm for the past year, and now in need of significant repair, Soma may be destined for recycling. (of course, big fibreglass boats aren't actually recyclable, but that's a topic for another post.) Soma was in decent shape at the end of the 2015 season, but instead of getting standard off-season maintenance, some overeager yahoos started major projects without consulting anyone first, and now the boat needs major repairs. Unfortunately, it looks like Soma might not get them because it's easier to accept new donations, even if they're of junkier boats.
This is bad news for everyone in the club, even if you've never set foot on Soma. Soma is a unique boat unlike anything else the club has. At first glance, it might seem better to have two T-10's than a Mull 34 and one T-10, but that's fallacious for two reasons: (1) Variety makes for more learning opportunities. What if all we had were Techs and J-22's..? (there are people who actually support that idea.) (2) T-10s are mediocre boats. Compared to Soma, a T-10 is like an old Ford vs. a custom Rolls.
25 years of Hoofer abuse has taken a toll, but Soma is well built, so what it comes down to is: are enough people willing to put time in to get Soma seaworthy again? Losing workspace at the farm doesn't help, but that's a reflection on the lack of HSC leadership. Unfortunately, certain club "leaders" (hi Mark G!) are eyeing Soma's trailer like vultures circling a dying horse. They also have another, more insidious motivation: by getting rid of Soma, they can (they hope) get rid of a few individuals who have Soma ratings by making sure that, once Soma is gone, those individuals never get skipper ratings on any other keelboats.
Welcome to Hoofers, where your money goes a...way.
