Page 34 - South Mississippi Living - November, 2015

PEOPLE the schooner the better
84
is just a number
Seasoned captain keeps Biloxi Schooners sailing
story and photos by Julian Brunt
Captain Ronald Reiter worked on his first schooner when he was just nine years old. He started hanging out at a Lake Erie yacht club
in Toledo, Ohio, when other kids his age were running paper routes and playing baseball. He loved the club and did odd jobs. His hard work paid off when he was hired to work on a wooden schooner — just like the one he works on now for the Maritime and Seafood Industry Museum in Biloxi. That first schooner job was 75 years ago!
The Maritime Museum maintains two replica wooden schooners as
part of their collection, but they are working boats and are available for charter. That means they have to be kept in top shape, and the U.S. Coast Guard makes sure of it with annual inspections. Captain Ron works 30 to 50 hours a week making sure the boats meet that challenge.
These are wooden boats, and anyone who has lived on the Mississippi Coast for any length of time knows what
the hot and humid weather can do
to wood. Captain Ron replaces any wood that has started to deteriorate,
sands and paints as needed, makes sure the engines are running smoothly, has the boats hauled out for annual bottom work, and has to take care of the rigging as well. Sailboat rigging consists of lines, sails, and tall masts, and on occasion up those masts
the captain must go. It would be
a daunting task for most men, but Captain Ron, at 84 years of age, has no problem with it.
It’s obvious this is a job of some heavy responsibility, but that’s only half of it. Captain Ron is a Coast Guard 100-ton licensed captain with a sailing endorsement. In addition to
34 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • November 2015
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