Venture 17 Gunkholing and Racing The Big Boats

Article By Richard Frye

(continuation from gunkholing article)
That time period was when I had my 1968 Venture 21, and that was back in the early 70s! Wish I had another V-21, but that is why I have her little sister now....the Venture 17. For one...it brings back a lot of old memories, and second, it's just the right size for GUNKHOLING, and it's lighter which is a bonus for me, and don't take up as much room to store, and still has more than enough room for poking around the gunkholes.

Having bought the first 17 about a year later after the first 21, I only kept her for about 5 months and didn't have the room for both boats, so I opted to keep the 21...you know...bigger was better at the time and I really enjoyed smoking a lot of Hunter 25s with my little but very fast V-21, and it did give me a lot more room. Plus she was my first BIG sailboat. She was called Sea Mistress. I would give anything if I had a picture of the old girl, but all was lost when our trailer burned down many years ago while we were at work. Some teenagers had a little too much beer and set a field on fire and it moved to my trailer and a neighbors house too. I only had it a month and it was new right off the lot. Some things were saved by being at my sisters house!

ANYWAY!..... Back to outrunning the 25s. They didn't like it and one guy said it was theoretically impossible!... Oh Well...so much for his theory! He was still yelling that it couldn't be done as I waved good bye , leaving him in my wake. I remember heading toward open ocean to round Wassaw Island, and point south along the coast to find some gunkholing spots. It was in the fall and I was hoping to get a Marsh Hen or two for dinner back in some of the saltwater creeks at low tide when they walk along the mud flats foraging. I Love that word gunkholing myself! Although it does sound a little perverted and sick though don't it! Even now when I use the term and look around, I see raised eyebrows on some, and but they don't pay much attention to whay you say now day. Most don't have any idea what I'm talking about anyway! Others get excited, that is ...the older ones like me, and they start packing! Makes you think.... "OMG...I think I hear banjo music!" hehehhe... that's probably what that woman was thinking at the time. It was hilarious though! A picture of her would be worth a thousand words.

I think the little 17 that I have aquired might possibly be called Sea Mistress Too! I'm going down to storage before the snow storm comes..I think it's coming tomorrow evening and over the weekend, and go through some more stuff today.

Ok....here is a pic of the old V-17 I just got with me and Monkey my little companion of over 8-1/2 years now. He will be 9 on March 15th. He goes with me everywhere...sailing, kayaking, shooting, fishing, etc. does it all. He has is own life jacket as well as many other clothes.....he's got more clothes that I have. Monkey also goes to the shooting range with me. Everytime I fire a shot he wants to run downrange to see if I kilt anything! Thinks he's a hunting dog when ever I even pick up anthing that resembles a gun...even an air rifle! He is ready to go! People often ask what kind of dog he is...I just say "Spoiled"...but he's acutally a Toy cockapoo with a touch of some kind of terrier. If you see me you will most likely see him too! He's a great little companion..

later R