Ironically, my wife and sister have been trying to talk me out of sailing south for the winter, while all of the guys I know say "WOW - wish I could do that!" My sister said "What would happen if you had a fatal heart attack while out on that boat, in the ocean, all alone?" I replied "I would be dead! Just as dead as I would be if I had a fatal heart attack anywhere else." She said "Damned, you're exasperating." My wife said the same thing.

I figure that I've worked very hard and saved all my life to do what I'm hoping to do in the next few months, and by golly, I'm gonna do it if my health allows.

Thanks again guys,

Gary

GO FOR IT, Gary. All my life I've wanted to ride a motorcycle from Kentucky to Fairbanks and back. I lived there as a kid when my dad was stationed at Ladd AFB.

I even know the motorcycle; a 2016 CB 500X. I'd take a month to go up and back. We drove the Alcan highway up and back years ago.

Sadly, at 70 year old, I have overseas playing commitments and just took on an Italian line of coating products that will take about 5 years to fully develop for the US market.

I'll never go on the ride I've wanted to do for 50 years.

Have a long cool one for me on your boat.

Wish I could tag along. I LOVE sailing.

Russ

Best of luck Gary.

Hope you are still on tap for a little advice to those of us still totin the gear to the gigs.

This afternoon, I announced that I would retire on October 1st to an audience of about 80 at an upscale retirement community where I have been performing monthly since it opened 6 years ago. Several people came up to me and asked why, and when I explained my health issues, they fully understood. A significant number of them are cancer survivors, and have a host of nasty health problems themselves. A couple ladies offered to crew my sailboat down to the Florida Keys and said the read that Viagra was on sale at Rite Aid and they would purchase a case of it if necessary, and they would be packed and ready to go in the morning. These are wonderful individuals that I have grown to love and admire over the years and I really hate to leave them. Just no way around it, though.

Gary