Thursday was Pirate Night at the Elliot Bay Yacht Club. On Pirate Night, the boats get decorated to look like pirate ships and the crew try to look as piratey as possible. I myself had a makeshift costume purchased via consignment. I looked more like a 80's ghetto pirate, but I did ok. During the race, boats try to get close to each other so that water balloons and supersoakers can be accurately and effectively fired onto other boat crews. Some even have noise makers that sound as if a cannon is being fired. Each boat also has 2 naval officers who have been borrowed from the destroyer parked near the marina for fleet week.

All in all, this has the makings of a fabulously entertaining evening. Except when it is pelting with rain and is freezing. Don't know if any of you have ever sailed in the rain, but it is entirely not fun. You get seriously wet and the boat itself is extremely slippery, making going overboard even easier that usual. We didn't even get our naval officers on loan - understandably they felt that sailing in this weather would not be enjoyable.

I had had high hopes of great photographs from this event. I do not. It was simply raining too hard. AAARRRggggghhhh!!!!