Is that a Mt. Gay Rum Hat? Do you sail?

The other day I was staring at the pile of clothes on my floor thinking, "wow, I should clean", then I went home for the weekend with my best friend Meg (clearly not cleaning). While home Meg let my mom in on the fact that my room looked like a bomb went off, so I actually did clean (I promise mom!) when I arrived back home. In cleaning I started to pick up the multitude of hats that I have. Not winter hats (interesting fact: winter hats are call Tuks in Canada...strange) and not girly hats, just normal hats. I suddenly realized; I have a ton of hats! I was even more taken aback to realize I had a bag under my bed.... with more hats! Oh, and dare I mention the pile I have going in my closet at my parents house in Chicago. How did I acquire all of these hats? Ahh yes...I race sail boats.

I mean honestly, how am I supposed to get through all of these?!?! Every event that Mt. Gay sponsors…BAM another hat (not that I’m hating on Mt. Gay…I love Mt. Gay and thank them for supporting a good amount of my summer time drinking), it never ends! Round out my collection with some Rolex hats, Volvo, and my Cubs hat, and I am really set for life. But I can almost guarantee that come June, July, and August, I will manage to collect more hats.
Here is my favorite thing about the red Mt. Gay hat though, it is like a glowing beacon, the red nose on Rudolph, signaling to people far and wide, “YES! LOOK AT ME! I SAIL! Do you sail? YOU DO! We should totally be friends!”
Well, I’ve done some thinking, and I really think there are some Mt. Gay hat “guidelines” we might all want to consider. I don’t want to call these “Rules”, and I swear, I don’t judge people based on the hat they wear (well maybe just a tiny bit ☺). These are just some things I consider. First off, (so you know where I’m coming from) regardless of my plethora of Mt. Gay hats, I really only wear one…that’s right, and quite often I would rather wear at hat from Miami OCR, or my Brazil hat from the 2005 Volvo. So I have my one hat, and it is old. The 1999 Chicago NOOD regatta. Here is the funny part…I never was given this hat for sailing! I was wearing a Navy hat and traded it with a drunk guy who thought I went to the academy (I was going into 9th grade at the time) I won out. This hat has the old logo…that’s how you know it’s good.
1. Logo year (we just discussed this)
2. Is the hat being worn during the regatta in which you are currently attending? –This is a big pet peeve of mine; don’t wear the hat until the event is over! You’ll jinx it! I also take this as a sign of a new sailor
3. How faded is the hat? Be careful here people cheat and put them in the dishwasher! Terrible, I know.
4. What is the event?!?! Some events are run of the mill. You can tell the better sailors from the rest if they are wearing a more exotic hat. Key West Race Week = more exotic than any NOOD. The exception to this rule, really small random events.

Believe me, I’m not hating on Mt. Gay hats. I’m pretty sure I was the coolest 9th grader EVER because I had one. I just think they are funny. Mt. Gay has done an amazing job of creating a symbol for our tribe of sailors. It’s a symbol that we spot from a mile away, on ski hills out West, across city streets, and in the check out line at the grocery store. We may never talk to these people we spot, but we know, we exchange a smile and acknowledge that we are all part of a special group, the same tribe, and a the end of the day...we may even make a friend. They are pretty amazing hats…no wonder I have them stock piled in my closet!