Jennie Ogden If you’ve spent any time with sailors you know that one of the first things you talk about when getting to know each other is the name of your boat and why you chose it. Honestly, it’s one of my favorite topics when we meet other liveaboards and cruisers because every vessel has a story behind it’s name as unique as it’s owners. We chose to call our boat Everlon and, because sailors are a superstitious lot, we also completed a ritual renaming ceremony to appease Poseidon and assure safe passage for our future voyages.
When we bought our boat she was named Tiger Lily II by the previous owners, Denis and Arleen. When we asked about the name we learned that they named her Tiger Lily after the provincial flower of their home in the Canadian territory of Saskatchewan (the II was because she was the second boat they owned with that name). That name made sense to me, it was their way of taking a piece of home with them as they sailed the Caribbean. But, since that name didn’t hold any personal meaning for us, we decide to rename her long before we even got home to St. Croix.
When deciding on a name for the boat Steven had several rules. First, it had to be easy to spell phonetically. Second, it had to be relatively short and easy to say in the event we ever have to call for help over the radio. Third, it couldn’t be “pun-ny”. To Steven’s point, if you’re ever in a mayday situation you don’t want to have the Coast Guard laughing at your boat name while you’re in the middle of an emergency. Fourth, and most importantly, it had to be something unique and meaningful to us. Keeping all these things in mind, we began brainstorming names.
Being romantics at heart, I suggested Everlon. Everlon is a jewelers term for the design Steven picked for my engagement ring, which also happens to be a Hercules (or reef) knot. I thought the nautical tie-in was perfect, but we later found out about an unintentional connection that made the name even more fitting! Hylas, the model of our boat, was the companion to Hercules in classical mythology. The Hercules knot is also a wedding symbol that represents undying love and commitment, and is known as the “tie that binds.” In Roman weddings, the Hercules knot was tied around the bride and only her groom could untie it, which is thought to be the origin of the phrase “tying the knot.” The name Everlon not only met all of Steven’s requirements, but was also romantic. So, with all the boxes ticked, we set out to rename her.
Sailors are VERY superstitious, so avoiding “bad luck” when renaming a boat comes with a whole ritual ceremony complete with offerings to the Poseidon and the gods of the four winds. Renaming a boat “properly” has five steps, and to make sure we got it right we took ours from a blog on Discoverboating.com. Luckily for me, Steven LOVES a good ritual so he was the master of ceremonies when we renamed Everlon. Here’s what we did to properly rename her:
1. We removed all traces of the current name.
We had to take EVERY item bearing the boat’s old name off of the boat – sail bags, décor, name plates, and every record onboard, like log books and maintenance documents. Then, we couldn’t take even one item with the new name onboard until we completed the other steps below!
2. We performed a purging ceremony.
We got some of our closest friends together at Green Cay Marina so we could perform the purging ceremony in front of witnesses, as is the custom. Here’s where Steven’s theatrical skills came in handy… during the official purging ceremony Steven addressed Poseidon and asked him to “expunge for all time from his records and recollections” the name Tiger Lily II. I then dropped a metal tag with Tiger Lily II written in water-soluble ink over the bow into the water so it would be erased from Poseidon’s records. To thank Poseidon for erasing the old boat name, Steven poured half a bottle of champagne into the water, from east to west (yes, even the direction you pour the champagne during this ceremony matters).
3. We began the renaming ceremony.
After we purged the old name from Poseidon’s register, Steven spoke the following directly to Poseidon once again, paying homage to him and imploring him to: “…take unto your records and recollection this worthy vessel hereafter and for all time known as Everlon, guarding her with your mighty arm and trident and ensuring her of safe and rapid passage throughout her journeys within your realm.” Then he poured another offering of champagne into the water, this time from west to east.
4. We appeased the four wind gods.
Renaming a boat also involves asking for fair winds and calm seas for your pending voyages. So, after we appeased Poseidon with our offerings, Steven grandiosely addressed each of the four wind gods individually: Great Boreas, exalted ruler of the North Wind; Great Zephyrus, exalted ruler of the West Wind; Great Eurus, exalted ruler of the East Wind; and, Great Notus, exalted ruler of the South Wind. While addressing each of these wind gods we faced the corresponding direction, poured champagne into a champagne flute, then tossed it into the wind while saying: “… grant us permission to use your mighty powers in the pursuit of our lawful endeavors, ever sparing us the overwhelming scourge of your [mighty] breath.”
5. Revealed the New Boat Name and Finished Off the Champagne
Finally we got to the best part, we uncovered the new name which we has applied to the transom, and finished off the champagne toasting to Everlon with our friends. Now we were official!
Everlon is a name that is special to us, and we look forward to our many sailing adventures aboard her. A renaming ceremony is a fun and memorable sailors tradition, and everyone in attendance at ours had a great time. As they said in Discoverboating.com blog about this ceremony: “Yes, this is incredibly detailed, and incredibly superstitious. But would you rather tempt fate?” The answer is definitely NO, we wouldn’t! We look forward to years of smooth sailing!