Ken, per your request:
We managed to get out this past Saturday for another moonlit sail.
It has finally cooled off here from daily temperatures in the mid to upper 90"s.
Knowing that the wind was forecast to diminish later in the afternoon, we (my wife and I) intended to set sail about 3:00 and play around with the spinnaker until just before dark, drop anchor then try out our new grill with some tasty steaks from our recently butchered cow.
She had a few errands to run, so I went to the boat early to replace one of the hoses on the head and clean up the boat a little. Since we hadn't been to the boat in a while, there was quite a bit more cleaning than I had anticipated. Once the cleaning was finished to what I expected to be to my wife's satisfaction, I started to work on the hose replacement. Upon removing the hose, I found an issue I couldn't resolve.
I then made the mistake of going up on the docks to get other boat owners opinions. Since I hadn't been to the marina in a while, they had to first catch me up on all of the goings on I had missed. Before they were finished with their sea stories, my wife appeared ready to sail. Big whoops! Even though she was 2 hours past our intended departure time, I didn't have the boat ready.
Second big mistake, we set sail anyway without me informing her of the status of the head.
It turned out to be a nice evening for a sail, the wind didn't die off as forecasted and the temperature was pleasant. Ever since I got this boat several years ago, I had never been able to get all of the mainsail leech telltales flying as easily as I could on my previous boat. I finally gave up realizing that I just had old sails that needed replacing. Thinking back on previous threads I had read on the subject got me to pondering of other options to try. What finally worked was cranking in on the mainsheet extra tight and letting out on the traveler. Wow! That was the ticket! The difference I did notice was that I had to pay closer attention to the helm or the boat speed would drop off quicker with this configuration.
When the sun started getting low, it was time to drop anchor and try out our new grill. The steaks came out excellent, a little over done for my taste, but that is how the wife likes them so I considered it an excellent job. As the moon started to rise, we enjoyed a few beverages to top off the evening.
Before we got too far along, I decided I had better come clean about the head repairs. (or lack there of)
Her first question was how long until we get back to shore. Not wanting to miss out on my long anticipated moonlit sail, I informed her it would be several hours. Of course that wasn't good enough. I then informed her that even if we motored back it would still be at least 30 minutes. Without her saying specifically, I realized what she was getting at, so I told her that I had a wash bucket in the lazarette. Shortening up the story, that was her first time using a bucket on a boat. As embarrassing as it was for her to use, it would be even worse for me to empty it for her, so I went forward to raise the anchor while she took care of her business. Next thing I heard was honey, we have a problem. I couldn't imagine what it could be. I have the anchor half way up and she needs my attention immediately at the back of the boat. I tied off the anchor rode where it was and went aft to find she hadn't held on to the lanyard when trying to rinse out the bucket.
OK, now we have a simulated MOB drill. I explained that to her and her role is to keep a eye on the bucket while I finished stowing the anchor and got the boat turned around. She did an excellent job of keeping me informed of the buckets location as I turned the boat around and we went on to finish the evening with another great moonlit sail.
Overall a great evening, I learned some things useful, she can now call herself a real sailor, and I have a great story that she won't ever let me tell to her friends. Thanks for listening my sailing friends!
