One day in early 2002, I could not resist the temptation to climb aboard the sadly neglected, Wind Dancer, a large, mysterious sailboat awkwardly compressed into a nonnegotiable corner "slip" at Haven Harbor Marina. I reached down to take hold of the slimy, frazzled line and pulled her closer to the dock. She was heavy, stripped of all sail and canvas - and very dirty. I carefully stepped over the lifelines and surveyed the spacious open deck, decorated with bird droppings, inhabited by spiders and dulled over with years of oxidation. I could only imagine what the inside must look like. As it turned out, she was left unlocked as if inviting me to have a look. So I removed the Plexiglas hatch boards and stepped inside. Entering the companionway, I began to feel sort of like Howard Carter descending into Tutankhaman's long forgotten tomb. As I looked around, I was amazed. She was gorgeous, with all her gear neatly stored in the cavernous, superbly-maintained cabin. Wind Dancer was a buried treasure! And if she was for sale, she had more than enough potential for what I had in mind! I came to learn that Wind Dancer was a 1979 Watkins 36, and had been donated to Washington College to be sold in October. I made up my mind right on the spot that she would make a perfect charter boat, replacing the original Blue Crab, the Pelle Petterson built, Maxi, we had used since 1994. By May of 2003, in what might be heralded as the Louisiana Purchase of sailboat buying history, Wind Dancer became Crab Imperial. Now, in 2012, with well over 1500 charter sails, a 5000 plus mile offshore island adventure, and six winters as our "condo in Philadelphia", she is now as ship-shape as she ever was - Maybe Better!
