Judy Waldman

Just short of the Panama Canal, the owner calls Peter Sever and says she is having mechanical difficulties and bringing the boat back to Fl. and dry-docking. I’m not sure at what point, but it was soon after return to Lauderdale that it was determined she supposedly had dirty fuel filters and neither she nor the mate knew changing the filters would have enabled an onward passage through the canal. But dry-docked at Lauderdale Marine Center, all personal items removed, there she sat. But not for long. I got an “alert” from YachtWorld that M/V Billy was new to market. The list price was a crazy low number, especially for a new Cape Horn 55 that had cost well over a million dollars to build. The broker who had the listing was a local broker who specialized in Hatteras. I called the broker and asked for history and information. The broker didn’t seem to know much and had never heard of Cape Horn before.

I immediately called the owner of  of the 2nd of the 3 Kanter/Cape Horn 55s. I told him the ask price and to wire me full funds – no negotiating, just a simple unconditional contract, vessel as is/where is at ask price with immediate closing upon acceptance of contract. And that was how Billy was in the hands of owner # 2 and renamed Serendipity.

This new owner had spent several weeks in Lauderdale having his own Cape Horn 55 serviced for warranty work at Derecktor’s Shipyards and he had started his cruise back north for the Great Lakes and had gotten as far as Washington DC when he got the call from me. This couple spent several months living aboard their CH 55 at Lauderdale Marine Center with their CH 55 Serendipity in the adjacent dock.  They were anxious to resume their own cruising plans but knew the diversion for Serendipity would pay off. And indeed it did. After new transmission and minor upgrades and refinements, Serendipity was ready for resale. I sold Serendipity to her third and current owner somewhat over  a year from the time she was near the Panama Canal enroute to Hong Kong.

Owner # 2 continued cruising their CH 55 for several years both on the East Coast and in the PNW before they decided to put her up for sale to spend more time back home with new grandchildren. The 2nd owner of that boat was cruising South America last I heard and heading towards the Cape, and that was about 8 years ago.

And thus began the cruising dream for owner # 3 and his family, starting back in the beginning of 2004 on the newly named M/V Discover. The initial plan was to get a captain onboard for training from Lauderdale to Central America and then owner would take it from Panama to Vancouver. Problem was this new owner got his feet wet in the Bahamas. Diving and fishing became a serious and significant delay and way-point change.