Pilot Schooner Timberwind "Pulling The Main"By Doug Mills
Maritime Editor
RCN America Network
It is damp and dreary as workers gather at the dock in Rockport harbor. As with all wooden boats there is much to be done to keep these historic vessels seaworthy. Today crews will pull the main mast on the Timberwind. "we have a section just above the saddle that has rotted ... We will do a 12:1 scarf with fir/ epoxy lamination ... should be good as new" said Captain Bob Tassi.
It has been 81 years since she was first launched in Portland, Maine. Herbert Hoover was president, U.S. unemployment reaches 8 million. In Germany, the National Socialist Party is gaining strength under the leadership of Adolf Hitler.Timberwind served as the Portland Pilot until 1969 when she was replaced with a new diesel powered steel hulled pilot. She was brought to Rockport and transformed for carrying passengers along the coast of Maine. This was the start of a completely new life for this hard working boat.
Much like his boat, Captain Bob Tassi started a completely new life in 1998 when he moved his family from Nashville, where he was a successful music promoter, to Maine where he took a job as a deckhand on a local schooner. He worked his way to Mate and soon to Captain. Now he is the owner of the Timberwind. He is a long way from Nashville living out his dreams on the coast of Maine.
The Timberwind sails out of Rockport, Maine carrying passengers on the vacation of their lives.
To learn more about this national treasure or to see how you can sail on the Timberwind go to: http://www.schoonertimberwind.com
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