The Incident

Article by Chuck Pierce

Four weeks later the dreams are still there. They are a little different every time, usually involving some variation of me sailing the ECDuck with her jury-rigged mast and three reefs in the sail. We are headed towards the horizon in heavy chop with no other boats in sight. These are not nightmares, quite the opposite. They are serene and calm. I am smiling, my only thought to helm the boat, to keep her moving well.

This is unusual. The dreams usually stop after a week or so. Was this Texas 200 (my sixth) somehow more meaningful than the others? It certainly seems to have made more of an impression. Maybe it was The Incident, in which I was on the receiving end of a rescue effort for the first time in my life.