At long last we learned that Celebrate had splashed down, literally, in Miami as it was hoisted off the deck of a slow boat from China - it took about six weeks to do a normal 25 day run, but who is counting?

From there, a professional crew moved her through customs, and then a famous marathon run around the Keys and up the west coast of Florida to Marlow Marine on Snead Island near Bradenton. It turned out to literally be a marathon run because a minor oil leak developed in the hydraulic pump that drives the stabilizers and in the face of 30+ kt winds a decision was made to hunker down for a couple days in Marathon, FL, and then continue on only one engine. No harm done, just prudent seamanship.

Andrea and I arrived a few days later to find her high and dry in a shed where all the work that needed to be done out of the water was under way. She is probably back in the water at the time of this writing, 4/22/03.

To say we were pleased is the understatement of the year. After over a year of anticipation and building excitement we had very high expectations. The excellent, creative, and quality work led by David Marlow and Howard Chen of Jet Tern was evident from stem to stern. In every way our expectations were greatly exceeded. David met us and was as excited as we were as he gave us a tour for an hour, pointing out feature after feature. Many we expected and it was a refresher, but a lot were new and wonderful surprises like a built-in safe, Vacuflush toilets, and seven (count-em) cedar-lined hanging lockers. Andrea immediately recalculated how many more outfits she could fit in the six she put her name on.

At noon, David said he had other business, but to keep looking around and stop over at the office so we could go over a few details. We said we'd be there in a jiffy. 3-1/2 hours and no lunch later we made it off the boat. Time flies when you're having fun.

For log readers who have had enough, you can go back to the Ship's Log or our Home page now. For those who want more of a tour, keep going. You can click on any picture to get a better view:

Here we go!

At the top of the page you get the big picture, here you get a bit of detail that does a decent job of showing how brilliant  the Awlgrip-on-gelcoat finish is. Andrea could put on her makeup just looking into the side of the boat.

The Salon, Galley, etc.

This huge space for dining, cooking, socializing, etc., also includes the entertainment center. The Sony surround sound system will probably produce citations from law enforcement everywhere. I have heard it, and the sub-woofer actually makes the boat move!

The Pilothouse

A whole different world. Run the boat when it's a mess outside, retreat for some quiet reading or a nap, play with all the switches and controls. The route to the bridge is also from here. This is one of the major reasons we love the boat.

Sleeping Quarters

It's comfortable for the happy wanderers and any guests that find themselves aboard for a while. Guests get the pointy end of the boat.

Crew's Quarters

Ship's business center here where the workstation, files, etc. are housed. By the way, there are bunks for overflow company. When not needed, the top bunk is hinged and folds down to form the back of a settee.

The "Holy Place"

It's as clean, white, and bright as an operating room! All that ugly stuff like engines, generators, stabilizers, fuel tanks, water maker, inverter, batteries (8), pumps, fire suppression stuff, etc., is carefully arranged in an engine room illuminated by fluorescent lights. Plenty of room for gearheads to forage about.

The Bridge

Here is where we will spend a lot of our time. There's the helm, the bar, and the water taxi ready to swing over on an amazing hydraulic davit. Speakers in the radar arch will sound the ship's anthem, "Celebrate," on demand.

Davy Jones' Locker

Take a good look at the water line on the boat right now - it may be the last time you see it after we load all the gear we have in local storage from Grand Banks Celebrate (36 boxes + 12 loose items like tool box, scuba gear) plus the load Chuck drove down in a minivan in a 16 hour sprint on 4/17 (15 more boxes of clothes, books, stuff) plus the results of an hour at West Marine in Bradenton (life jackets, grill, boat hooks, etc.) All told, we think the boat might just bottom out right at the dock!

Hope you liked the tour; now you can return to