Skidding in Sideways?

When we first saw this snapshot from the July Fourth weekend, we were reminded of a quote by flamboyant author Hunter S. Thompson: "Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, ‘Wow! What a Ride!’"

We suspect, however, that the backstory to this photo has little to do with making a bold arrival, but a lot to do with the skipper’s not paying enough attention to the tide tables. We’d bet that he or she won’t make the same mistake again any time soon. During our own checkered sailing history, we’ve found that truly embarrassing and/or life-threatening errors etch deepest into our mental catalog of lessons learned. This nicely careened centerpiece, we’re told, belongs to a local sailing school.