Mario and Yaisy's home page

Overnighted in No Name Harbor on KB Thursday night to leave early friday at 3:00am. in tow was our 24' wellcraft. Just as i was settleling in for an 8 hour passage along Hawk Channel, we smack something around 4:00 am in the complete darkness causing a shutdown of the starboard engine. I Immediatly hit the MOB button on the plotter and went to netural. I checked down below to see if water was comming in and my father in law had the search light in hand and spotted a palm tree partally submerged. After regrooping, I put her back in gear and noticed a slight vibration on the starboard side not to bad though. Overall good weather along the 80 nm to Islamorada. We had reservations at Holiday Isle and were the first ones there. We arrived at 11:00am and timed the Whale Harbor channel enterance at high tide (a must for us). After checking in, we quickly set up camp, fired up the grill, cracked open a cold one and setteled in for a crazy weekend at the famous "Tiki Bar" which as usual lived up to it's crazy memoral day traditions. After some fishing which we didn't catch a darn thing, partying and some gulf side cruising in the tender, we packed up and cought the high tide going out at 2:00pm Monday. very breezy which kicked up the seas to about 5' but not to bad a ride since they were mostly head seas which the YF seams to love albeit very wet. It got a little rolly at Fowey Rocks around 9:30 pm so Yaisy picked up the number "2" red marker and bought us in to Key Biscayne for a smooth ride back home to our yacht club on Watson Island at 11:00 pm. after unloading tons of gear and saying goodbye to family and friends, we fired Siboney back up and headed back over to No Name Harbor where we are now where we have the whole harbor to ourselves. 160+ NM of fun and Siboney never skipped a beat!

I'll post pics later because right now I see a Vodka and cranberry in my near future.

Mario

Yes I know I've been abandoning the blog lately. Sorry. At the risk of sounding like an overplayed cliche, we really have been having fun! Since our last update we have cruised to our favorate places in Biscayne Bay, have done boat parades, celebrated birthdays and have spent priceless nights with family and friends. The boat has been running great with minimal problems. All tune-ups have been done and up to date. One thing that we have noticed is that we spend more time on the boat than at home. the boys love being on the boat and have claimed the guest stateroom as their own. There are a few things that seem to follow us around and that is all of the toys that are scattered around in every spot on the boat. What a heart warming feeling it is to step on a piece of Lego or a green army man in the middle of the night while I do my nightly checks while at anchor. It is such a wonderful feeling to see your children having fun while spending time with family. On other days we have entertained friends and have enjoyed having those special moments. On other days the boys grand parents have been wonderful and have taken the boys home on some weekends which have allowed us to escape on weekend get-a-ways. Yaisy and I charish every one of those times we get to spend with each other alone. In Janurary we spent 10 days at Boca Chita located in Biscayne Bay for my 37th birthday. It has always been my dream to one day go there in our Yachtfisher. Yaisy some how was able to keep hidden a chocolate cake from me and the boys. I celebrated my birthday with my wife and my boys and a few unknown cruisers that were there also. A fun time was had by all! Later this month we will head down to Islamorada for memorial weekend. Fishing and fun is on the menu. As usual alot of family and friends will be joining us for the fun. I'll post some pictures that I have taken since October.
Mario

October 21, 2007

What a great day to celebrate a name for a boat. Not just any boat, but our beauty! We cruised over to No Name Harbor this passed Sunday and prepaired for a great party to comemorate her new name Siboney! Celebrating with us was many family and friends. We had a great time until late night when NNH closed and we had to leave. As usual, our friend Ang made a great cake for us that Yaisy quickly made good with. Pascal and Naomi gave us a really great bouquet of "Jolly roger" balloons that fit the theme just perfect.

Why the Name "Siboney"? The name "Siboney" (pronounced 'Sea bo nay') is derived from the accent tribe of the Siboney Indians. The Siboney Indians were native to the island of Cuba and predates the fierce Taino and the Caribe Indians. The Siboneys were highly skilled fisherman and knew the sea well. They lived in close proximity to the shore when other Indian tribes lived in the interior. In reality, little is known of the Siboneys. Most of the history is handed down through the Taino Indians which were the bigger and more powerful tribe, which eventually over ran the Siboneys. "Siboney" is also a beautiful love ballet from the 1920's. Since all of our family and friends have always lovingly called us "the tribe" (in Spanish) because when we go boating we usually have the WHOLE family with us . I guess it's the way we grew up. Yaisy and I figured since we are of Cuban decent and we are considered a tribe we might as well call our boat in tribute to the humblest of all Indians of the Caribbean, the "Siboney"...

After so many years of dreaming and working, Keeping our prospectives during setbacks, the highs and the lows. We finally did it! We have our dream boat. A beautiful example of what a Yacht should be in my oppinion is our lovely 1972 58' Hatteras Yachtfisherman. This particular yacht is in such great shape that it baffels the mind. This boat was restored to like new condition mechanicly and cosmeticly. The owner from who we bought the boat from had a passion for restoring boats and it shows in his latest creation. He is also a man of his word of whom we made this deal based soley on a hand shake.

We hope to bring the boat down from Ft. Laurderdale in the next couple of days. After a boat warming/naming ceremony this weekend we plan on heading out and spending a few days on the hook somewhere in the bay. We can't wait. Our journey continues...

Looks like we're getting close to the new boat. Therefore, the old girl has to go! price reduced to $25,000 but make an offer that I may consider and she's yours! I can't have both boats at the same time.

Yes, I've been pretty quiet. But I have a secret. I guess it's safe to tell everyone now. Well, here it goes. Are you ready? OK then. Guess what? WE HAVE A CONTRACT ON A 1972 58 FOOT HATTERAS YACHTFISHERMAN!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes, it's true. We found a beauty real close to home. The boat is in beautiful condition. The bank approves. Insurance is being worked on though. Insurance is a big problem here in Florida. The survey is complete and all that is left is the sea trial and closing. hopefully by mid July we will have her. We still haven't sold our 34. I hope that the broker can sell her in time or take her as a trade in.

Were getting close. There is light at the end of the tunnel. Keep your fingers crossed...
Pictures soon

P.S. Anybody want a 34' Hatteras Sedan cheap?

It's been a while. I know, I know I haven't been keeping up the blog. Sorry, but we really have been having a lot of fun with the old Hatt. It seems that we have been using our boat almost every weekend since we brought her down from Maryland. We have taken her over to No Name Harbor in Key Biscayne many times, we have anchored out in that harbor several times. We've spent the days playing in the park and riding our bikes or watching the boys fish. We always have family and/or friends over. We all enjoy the relaxation and the family bonding that comes from such a unique setting. At night when the boys are asleep, the grown ups stay up to enjoy the evening with nice drinks and good food. Music is always playing. We have done countless day trips, and recently we have finally enjoyed swimming off our own boat. Our boat has been really good to us.

I know this might sound crazy to many of you but many of you that know me know that I'm just plain crazy. But hear me out, there really is logic to my madness. In the movie "Jaws" the life guard that was with the fisherman on the old boat looking for "Jaws" said it best, he said "We need a bigger boat". And there you have it, we need a bigger boat. "Why" you ask? well it's sorta simple really. In the beginning, if you recall I have always wanted a Hatteras Yachtfish but we ended up with our Sedan. Don't get me wrong, it's great boat but for our application it comes up short. Remember, we usually have a lot of family and friends on board which is ok if it's just for the day. but we usually are gone for the weekend. While we are anchored out we tend to find that the head (bathroom) is too small for us mainly the shower. Although I can take a shower, I can barely move around. Also, since we usually have a minimum of 5 people aboard it creates a traffic jam in the galley/head area, not to mention that the port o potty fills quick which requires me to take it to a proper place to dump. Although I don't complain, it's not one of my favorite things to do. But one of my biggest complaints is that come sleep time, I do not fit in the V berth next to my wife. the other side of the V berth is taken up by the boys. So I have no choice but to sleep on the floor in the saloon on an inflatable mattress. This alone has gotten old real quick. then there are things that the boat needs which I knew required when I bought the boat. Some things are like an on board generator. Incidentally, the boat has one but due to it's age and the fact that I'm not a big gasoline fan, I've left it untouched. The boat also needs a good air conditioner, a must in south Florida come summer time.

So, with these things picking at my mind, I talked it over with Yaisy and she seems to agree with my assessment that we should start looking for our future boat. So now I find myself doing the same thing again, looking at Yachtworld listings and doing my homework. maybe this time with proper patience and determination, we will find what we're looking for.