At dawn on the last Friday of the year there were just a few ripples in the waters off Owen Park in Vineyard Haven. The temperature hovered in the low 40s as the morning sun first peeked out from behind the treetops on the banks of the Lagoon.
Just then six women rowing a thirty-two-foot Cornish pilot gig appeared from behind the harbor jetty. They had just finished their morning workout, rowing the gig Grace between East and West Chops, and were headed for shore.