Storm Damage to Summer Dance Repaired

After Summer Dance was badly damaged in a freak storm, the first mate and I doubted whether we would get her back in the water before the end of the sailing season. I didn’t know how I was going to fix her, whether I could do the work, or whether our insurance claim would pay enough to have the work done professionally. The DIYer in me wanted to save money and learn how to lay up fiberglass. But looking at the complexity of the damage and how long it would take a novice like me to fix it only reinforced the reality that if we wanted to sail again this year, the damage would have to be repaired by professionals.
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Summer Dance Badly Damaged in Freak Storm

It was supposed to be a short casual cruise to a waterfront restaurant and dinner to celebrate our wedding anniversary. My wife and I were spending a four day weekend on our favorite lake with our Catalina 22 named Summer Dance. I had spent the last year refitting and restoring her from stem to stern and she was now a gem we were proud of and enjoyed cruising in. It turned out to be a grueling night that we’ll never forget and our worst anniversary in 37 years.

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