Partner Sandy at the helm. When I bought Mel's Angel, I was living in NYC and sailing in the west end of Long Island Sound - so I opted for the then-offered "tall rig option." Sailing her down to Miami offshore in 1984, it become obvious that the tall right had some limitations - especially when I decided that the Marathon Bridge at Isla Mirada was too close to the top of the mast and antenna there. Now that we sail in Buzzards Bay, where the wind is constant and strong, we almost never raise the main - at 71, 6.5 knots is just fine for me!
