Sailors Sand Their Boat's Bottoms for Spring

You probably wax the car or wash your windows when winter finally ends, but the boat enthusiasts at Norwalk Cove Marina have a different take on spring cleaning. "We've got to sand the bottom, make it nice and smooth," said Steve Longo, gesturing at Phoenix, his 33-foot yacht from Denmark. "Get the barnacles off. The smoother it is, the faster it goes."

Speed is important to Steve, who races Phoenix as a member of Cedar Point Yacht Club. To that end, he enlisted buddy Peter O'Neill and nephew Daniel Madden to help him prep Phoenix for the season. All three wore gauzy white painter's jumpsuits over their clothes as protection from materials like resin epoxy, which Steve used to repair a "missing chunk" in the keel. "A line got wrapped around it and took some pieces out," he said. "Got to fix these things when they're out of the water--it costs 500 bucks to pull 'em out, got to do it now."

Retired from IBM, Steve said he moved to Norwalk from Westchester County in 2003 primarily for the "boating scene." From the looks of the crowded marina, he chose his destination well.

 

 

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