|
|
|
Real Stories Real People
Marcia
Brixey • Paulette
Ensign • Claire
Hegarty • Jennifer
Clare • Joyce
Zee • Michelle
Hill • Frank
Traditi • Robin
Sparks • Cecilia
Saleme • SoccerKidsUSA
• Brigitte
Nadeau • Dinah
Chapman • Gail
Foley • Jim
Goebelbecker • Minna
Vallentine •
Cat
Marrs • Suzanne
Kincaid • Anita
Flegg • Jieranai
T. Maier • Tamah
Nakamura • Bonnie
Vining • Mark
Sincevich • Rosemary-Martino
Rodriguez • Jan
Louthain • Mark
McMahon • Heather
and Murray Rand • Susan
Jennings • Hank
Bochenski • Serena
Williamson• Miriam
Benard• Kevin
McDonald • Dolores
Arste • Faith
Smith • Jennifer
Wright • Joe
Kasper • ArLyne
Diamond • Monica
Lee • Dan
Millman • Dana
Hall • Carl
Battiste • Shawn
Snyder • Roberta
Carasso • Colleen
Read • Cory
Johnson • Kevin
O'Neil • Craig
Barton • Peter
Bowers • Mike
Munter • Glen
Smith • Nancy
Ceridwyn • Deanna
Kim • Anasuya
Krishnaswamy • Hilton
Paoli
Couple leave their jobs to live on a
boat!!
 Murray
and Heather Rand sold their St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada
home in the spring of 1997 and moved aboard Windswept
IV, a C&C 40 sailboat. That summer, they left their
jobs and began their travels. Since then, they head south
to the Bahamas for the winter and come back to Canada
for the summer. That commitment led to a shift, PUTTING
IT ALL TOGETHER, into living a life beyond their dreams.
Of course, this is not something they just did on the
spur of the moment. They were planning this for many years
before it happened. They also believed it was critical
to follow their PASSION.
Neither Murray nor Heather had ever sailed before they
bought their 16 foot dinghy. A visit to the local library
gave them some books on "Learn to Sail". They
photocopied pertinent pages and prepared to raise the
sails in their backyard. The boat almost sailed off the
trailer.
Down to Long Point Bay they went along with their two
boys, Jeremy & Steve aged 8 and 6. They launched the
boat, raised the mast and installed the sails. It was
still early spring and quite cold and all of them wore
lifejackets. They practiced the maneuvers shown in the
books and all enjoyed the day. But, soon they came to
realize that a few lessons were in order.
"Sailing lessons" said the ad," on evenings
and weekends". Heather and Murray called and arranged
to share the total time between them. A couple of days
later, the instructor called to say that he had to cancel
as he was going to summer school but his parents were
willing to teach them. And that is how they met Manfred
& Lisa Kanter.
They taught Heather and Murray to sail in a Soling, a
26 ft keel boat used for Olympic racing. While they sailed
they told Heather and Murray of their time sailing to
Europe and the Caribbean with their two boys. What an
adventure!
By the end of that summer, Heather and Murray knew that
sailing was something that they wanted to do - but not
in a dinghy. They sold it and purchased a Mirage 24. It
had sleeping accommodation for the four and a toilet.
For the next seven years, they sailed it every weekend
and spent their summer vacations aboard cruising on Lake
Erie. The boys had soon tired of sailing with their parents
and asked for their own boat. They acquired a Mirror dinghy
and became very good sailors.
In 1982, Manfred & Lisa Kanter offered to loan Heather
and Murray their boat, a 45 footer. In the Bahamas. For
2 whole weeks. It was wonderful. There they met cruisers
who lived board their boats full-time. They traveled the
east coast of the US, into the Bahamas chain and down
to the Caribbean. Could they do this too?
That spring, they sold the 24 ft and moved up to a 33
ft C&C. Murray thought that it was big enough to live
on. For the next 10 years, Heather and Murray cruised
further in the Great Lakes and honed their skills. Their
son's were in high school at the time and they thought
this was not a good time to pull them out for a year living
aboard. So, they planned and saved with the aim towards
retiring at age 50 and heading south.
The galley (or kitchen) on the 33 was small and storagewas
a problem. In 1992 they started to look for a boat on
which they could live comfortably. Finally, they found
a C&C 40 aft cabin. It didn't have much storage, but
Heather and Murray figured they could create some. A five
year plan was drawn up and modifications made to the boat
on a yearly basis. Murray took a ham radio course and
gained his license. Both of them read everything they
could get their hands on about cruising and living aboard.
They took First Aid courses and not just your usual Red
Cross ones. They took Offshore First Aid or what to do
when out of reach of medical care.
Their house was sold in May of 1997 and they also sold
most of their furniture and belongings. Not much fits
aboard except clothes, some books, tools and charts. For
another month or so, they continued to work. In July of
1997, Heather and Murray severed their ties with work
and said goodbye to family and friends.
In August of 1997, they cast off their lines and left
the dock with the bow headed south. Did they make it by
50? Not quite as they are both now 51. But, they did make
it. Their dream is coming true.
Now, it is 2004 and Heather and Murray are still aboard.
Do they love it? Most days, they report it is absolutely
wonderful. There have been moments of sheer terror but
those have been few and far between. Mostly there have
been beautiful anchorages, wonderful beaches, great sailing
friends and all the time in the world for Heather and
Murray to spend together. They report this has been one
of the top benefits from this adventure. Currently, they
live aboard for 6 or 7 months and have a summer job in
Canada for 4 or 5 months.
Heather and Murray still dream and plan. Maybe a trip
to Europe or perhaps to the western Caribbean is in their
future. They still read and talk to other sailors about
their adventures. Who knows? They may even go around the
world. They are certainly not wealthy but they are not
broke either. They live in the PRESENT and do enjoy
every day as it comes and spend as much as possible of
that day out of doors. They believe life is much too short
to waste a moment of it. When asked "How long will
you continue to do this?" Their answer is still "As
long as we are having FUN!"
P.S. They said, "If it is your dream, go sooner
rather than later". The islands are changing year
by year. More and more boats are out here. And our lives
can change so much at the drop of a hat, the screech of
a tire, or the words of a physician. Your dream may be
modified while underway.
What can we learn from Murray and Heather?
PASSION is something that one has to grab and run
with. If you wait, well, life just gets in the way. Also,
it makes it that much more enjoyable to have someone who
shares your passion along for the ride!
back to top |
|
|
