Thanksgiving 2014
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday; we have so much to be thankful for and as has been my practice in the past, I'd like to take a few minutes to discuss where we stand at Fishermen's Finest this Thanksgiving.
Unlike past years, for the first time, both vessels are at Sea this Thanksgiving. We give thanks to the stewardship of our nations resources that allow us to fish nearly year around in conservatively managed fisheries that will be here for generations to come.
We are on target to have a (near) record year - the American No.1 is due in Captains Bay Friday with trip 36 of the year; the US Intrepid will be in Thanksgiving day with trip 35. We couldn't ask for more productivity from 35 year old vessels and we know that it's not just the boat - it's the crew that makes this possible. We are truly thankful.
Both vessels will have annual shipyard maintenance (US Intrepid had her 5 year ABS drydock at Dakota Creek Shipyard in June, American No.1 5 year last December) and will have Dutch Harbor Shipyards at the Coastal Dock starting around Christmas. You just have to take a look at our vessels to see the pride in ownership and operation - we are thankful and proud to be part of Fishermen's Finest.
As mentioned in last year's Thanksgiving bLog, we have the 'discipline to build our Company ... planning for the next generation of safe, efficient, green, useful trawlers to start the rejuvenation of the American Fishing Fleet.' I am thankful and proud to say that we made true on that commitment just last Tuesday in Ancortes, Washington. Years of dreaming and planning have come together in AMERICAS FINEST and now the building 'marathon' starts in earnest.
And as in the past, I can't stress this enough, we are thankful for the best, loyal, hardworking and dedicated crew in the Industry. Our hats go off to our FFinest Family - the ones that make all of this possible. THANK YOU.
This holiday is a good time to survey your situation and reflect upon your good fortune. We have just under a month of fishing left and then Dutch Harbor shipyard, followed by the 2015 season opener on January 20th in the Bering Sea. I invite you to follow along and watch us grow.
Happy Thanksgiving from Kristian Uri & Team FFI - a team of excellence.
Here's a link to our previous Thanksgiving Ship's bLog entries