A.K.A. Hooligan's Chattahoochee Coup

Fleet 77 is well known for their annual Northern Gulf Coast Cruise, which has attracted C22 sailors from all over the country and Canada. The cruise is approximately one week long and follows the Intracoastal Waterway from Ft. Walton Beach, Florida to Wolf Bay, Alabama and back. This year Fleet 77 offered a second weeklong cruise. Paul Gallant, owner and skipper of Hooligan, came up with the idea for this cruise and did the research and planning. It soon became known as Hooligan’s Chattahoochee Coup. Understandably, one may not want to spend an extended cruise or brave an ocean passage on a smaller boat such as a Catalina 22, but adventure awaits the skipper of even the smallest yacht. Hooligan’s Chattahoochee Coup was just such an adventure.

This year Dora and I did a little something different for our 2011 October cruise. We sailed out of New York on the MSC Poesia. My brother Don and his wife Beth arranged the cruise. In addition to Don and Beth our group consisted of Gary and Susan Moll. We had sailed with Gary and Susan along the west coast of Mexico a few years ago. Also cruising with us this time were Gary's two brothers Frank and his wife Diana, John and his wife Kathy and Gary's sister Christa and her husband Jim. They were all awesome and it was great fun to sail with them.

On July 9, 2011, Dora and I took a little different water adventure, white water rafting down the Chattooga River.The Chattooga River is where the movie "Deliverance" was filmed and we rafted many of the same rapids as featured in the movie. We went with two other couples who are friends of ours. David and Franziska Heinze, David and Franziska live in Germany. Scott and Jamie Gross live in the Atlanta area. David, Franziska, Scott, and I all work for Siemens.