Just two weeks ago BEOWULF sailed past the towers of the World Trade Center.

We’ve always been proponents of going cruising sooner rather than later-with what you can afford now-as opposed to waiting until you can afford something better.

Cruising doesn’t get easier as you get older. There are more ties to home and family, life tends to be more complex, and there are from time to time medical problems which creep up. There’s usually more money for a fancier boat, but in our opinion the budget which typically comes with age never offsets the pleasures of going earlier, with less.

And now we have a new incentive to go now-a world which has just taken a turn in in a direction we’d all rather ignore-but which has become the new reality.

You don’t need a big boat or the latest gear. A sound structure, of course, is a pre-requisite. But this comes in many forms. Beyond this, good ground tackle, some storm canvas, a few good working sails, and most important, an understanding of the basics of seamanship and you’re ready to go cruising.

If you’re working towards the cruising dream, take last week’s events as a wake-up call. Pare the “to do” or “purchase” list to a minimum, concentrate on getting up to speed on seamanship and weather…and just go.