When I say “often” I mean that Ed fires them whenever he has a “good” reason, and sometimes just because the mood strikes. \u00a0Good reasons include, but are not limited to, leaving the dock, returning to the dock, passing a boat or a resort on shore and finishing a race. \u00a0Of course, finishing a race, or better winning the race, calls for a “double broadside” or firing of both cannons together.<\/p>\n
Well, when we were racing in the Newport Bucket Regatta, a few weeks ago, the “mood struck” often. \u00a0 The first time we heard Ed holler, “fire in the hole” was as we were leaving the dock for race one. \u00a0Everyone instinctively covered their ears (the “ladies” were issued earplugs of course) and BOOOM!!! the cannon “spoke”.<\/p>\n
These cannons are not the little sort of “pop-guns” that you hear at yacht clubs shooting 10ga blank shells at sunset. \u00a0These babies fire custom packed 8oz charges of black powder packed in aluminum foil packages. \u00a0For fun, I asked Rich, Marie’s<\/em> engineer, to guide me through the process of preparing the cannon for firing.<\/p>\n Here goes..<\/p>\n The first thing that Rich does is get out is the “charge”. \u00a0 It’s an 80z prepared slug of black powder wrapped securely in aluminum foil and rammed down the barrel. \u00a0I don’t know how much explosive force that much black powder has exactly but let me tell you, it’s plenty LOUD and it spits out a very satisfying cloud of white smoke. \u00a0Anyway, I am getting ahead of myself.<\/p>\n Here’s Rich patiently posing for me. \u00a0Note the foil “package” in his hand. That’s 8oz of black powder that provides the “business” portion of the cannon. Caution: \u00a0No open flames!!! When this is deformed, or pulled, the flint gives off a spark which lights a small charge in the tube. This “spark” ignites the powder in the primer tube and, you guessed it, BOOOM!!! or should I say BOOOM!!!<\/span> Yank the cord. and yes, BOOOM!!! \u00a0Of course, there are the occasional miss-fires. \u00a0Not to worry, Ed has TWO cannons, so there’s always a backup.<\/p>\n So, there will always be a terrific BOOOM!!! \u00a0Sometimes they are fired in close quarters, like in this shot. \u00a0I’ll bet that the neighbors really appreciated the attention. I wonder what the FAA would think of a surface-to-air cannon bombardment from Marie toward this helicopter? \u00a0Probably a pretty dim view, I would expect. This little red chopper circled around Marie quite a bit taking pictures. \u00a0Hey Ed, want to buy a photo of your boat? \u00a0Take this…”fire in the hole!!!”\u00a0![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/8-25-14b-026.jpg\" "\\"OLYMPUS")
<\/a>Ramming the charge home to be sure it’s well packed into the bottom of the barrel.<\/span><\/a>Next, Rich jams a narrow metal rod into the priming hole at the back of the cannon. \u00a0This allows him to pierce the foil in the charge. <\/a>Note the protective canvas on the cabin side. \u00a0Don’t mar the varnish. \u00a0 Also note that there are ropes on the base of the cannon. \u00a0They were added after someone inadvertently put two charges into one of the cannon and the resulting recoil was so great that the cannon slammed into the cabin side. \u00a0Oops!\u00a0<\/a>Next, he pours a cap-full of powder into the priming hole. <\/a>Then, \u00a0he fully packs the priming into the hole to ensure that there are no gaps that might lead to a misfire. <\/a>Finally, a “primer” is placed into the hole. \u00a0 The “primer” is a small brass tube with a flint, sort of like striker on a match. \u00a0Note the little wire loop on the primer. \u00a0A lanyard is clipped to this so it can be pulled from a safe distance. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/a><\/span>All set! \u00a0All that’s left is for Ed to bellow, loud enough to be heard from one end of Marie’s 180′ deck to the other, “fire in the hole”. \u00a0Oh yeah, Rich, closest to the “action” dons a good set of ear-muffs himself.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/a>Other times he fires when Marie is “at sea”. \u00a0 I am not sure that his little foiling sailboat aptly called \u00a0a “moth” would fare well against Marie and her cannon.<\/a>Interestingly, these little boats are REALLY fast and when they get going they rise up on hydro-foils and scoot across the water. \u00a0 I’ll bet that they are tough to sail but a real thrill if you master the technique.<\/p>\n<\/a>This stately yacht might be a cause for a “salute” from Marie. \u00a0 What a lovely vessel. \u00a0 \u00a0She looked right at home in the waters off of Newport.\u00a0<\/span><\/a>All and all, I can’t think of any pastime that goes quite as well with sailing as firing cannons. \u00a0And, it seems that Ed has the resources, combined with a teenagers love of LOUD NOISES, and the cannon to make the best of both, \u00a0to “puncuate” his outings in a way that makes his point “loud and clear”. \u00a0What fun. \u00a0I LOVED IT!!!<\/p>\n