The chance meeting occurred aboard a replica of the Pinta of Christopher Columbus fame. Remember the Nina, Pinta and the Santa Maria? Replicas of the Nina and Pinta were sailing up the Mississippi River and docked in my old hometown of Winona, Minn. (There was no word what happened to the Santa Maria. We were told it was not Columbus’ favorite ship.)
I was in town attending my 40th high school reunion with my bride, Maureen. The reunion was over and we were making plans to head back to our home in Des Moines. We could see sailing ship masts from our riverside motel. The ships were docked at the city pier along the Mississippi River. I tried to imagine using sail power to go up and down the Mississippi River. It didn’t make sense to me so we decided to investigate. We found the replica ships were on a grand tour of the U.S. They were open for visitation and would soon be on their way north to the Twin Cities.
We paid our money to go aboard and we toured the old ships.
The ships were interesting. Built in Brazil, they’ve traveled the world and been through the Panama Canal seven times. They are powered by Mercedes Benz diesels and they are very cramped. The Nina is 65-feet long and built of wood. By comparison, BELKNAP was 54 feet 10 inches wide and built of steel and aluminum. Does that give you a bit of perspective?
Jim Condon lives in Winsted, Minn., which is west of St. Paul and three hours from Winona. He saw a news report about the replica ships’ visit and gathered his family for a Sunday drive to Winona to see them. He said he chose to drive past the Twin Cities and see the replica ships in Winona because it was a weekend stop and he thought the crowds would be much smaller.
I am grateful he decided to visit the ships and wear his BELKNAP ball cap.
“Shipmate!” I said when I saw Jim’s ball cap. “I’m Dick Tremain. I sailed aboard BELKNAP from 1972 to 1975. When were you aboard her?” And our conversation was off and running.
Jim told me he was a GMM2 (gunner’s mate missiles). He is a plank owner and he served in BELKNAP from 1980 to 81.
We caught up on our lives, introduced our families to each other and talked about reunions. I told Jim I don’t remember seeing him at any of our reunions. He said he thought about going to the one last year in St. Louis, but he didn’t think he’d know anyone there. I told him he didn’t need to worry about that. He’s got good friends just waiting to meet him. All he needs do is join us at a reunion. I told him, “You’ve got plenty of buddies you know and those you’ll soon meet. Just come to the reunion.”
Jim said he wants to join us in Tampa. That’s music to my ears.
Personally, I go through phases. Sometimes I like to wear hats and sometimes I can’t stand them. I find them too restrictive at times and, at others, I need the sun visor to shade my eyes. Who knows what my hat whim will be? Jim Condon taught me a very valuable lesson. I simply need to wear a hat from now on and it must say USS BELKNAP. Why? I’ve got more shipmates to meet, more buddies to know.
Jim, let’s get together again in Tampa with our shipmates, buddies and friends. Look for me. I’ll be wearing a USS BELKNAP ball cap, too.
JO3 Dick Tremain, 1972-75, talks with MM2 Jim Condon, 1980-81, aboard the replica ship Pinta docked in Winona, MN. It was a chance meeting. Tremain spied Condon’s ball cap in the crowd and met a fellow BELKNAP shipmate from another time.