First Sail In Awhile

[rardiH36]

Various situations over the last 18 months or so caused me to radically scale back the frequency of the outings on my 1980 Cherubini Hunter 36. I don't keep a log, but I think the last time was probably in December. I used to take "Wildaire" out two or three times per week.

One of delays was to install a new diesel fuel tank ... and decommission the 1980 OEM original which was evidencing a very slow leak somewhere on its bottom.

Anyway, a fine afternoon on SF Bay. Boat Still Sailed. Brisk wind. 95% jib full out. Mainsail on the second reef. Recently cleaned bottom. Both the GPS' SOG and the impeller knot meter frequently showed 7.5-8.0 kts. In both directions. Sunny in the slot area. Fog was obscuring the top of the Golden Gate Bridge towers. San Francisco Bay at its best! I am now re-motivated.

The trusty 2QM20 engine was happy with the new source of diesel. Didn't hiccup even once.

Time though to breakdown, clean and lube my winches. It's one of the ugh jobs for me.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Great to hear, rardi. While we never did get to sail around together, I'm sure glad we were sailing the same waters.

For me, now, the dent in the sailing season is this bloody thing called winter. Sheez...

 

[chichiflys]

Awesome. I'm in the same boat (no pun intended). Crummy long winter, crazy winds kept me from re-installing the head sail. Had only one sail this season on the Chesapeake Bay, with only the main sail. But just finished the winches and plan to sneak out of work tomorrow - hoping to get the head sail on and fill both sails with some wind. Best of luck.

 

[rardiH36]

If you do happen to leave the berth and actually get some sailing in ... give us a post sail debriefing!

 

[chichiflys]

Made it out Thursday for a day sail. Not a whole lot of wind at first, but that allowed me to get the jib on and eventually had a great day. Freshly cleaned bottom, so we were able to make hull speed a few times with occasional puffs. New sails really hold their shape so much better then the 30+ year old canvas we had previously. Looking forward to some overnights this season. Only got the anchor wet a few times last year.

 

[rardiH36]

Wonderful you got out and the day was a success!

Much better than my dock neighbor yesterday. With a handful of items in his arms he made a misstep when walking next to his boat on his dock finger. And ended up in the water. No injury other than getting drenched. But a totally wet higher end smart phone, that if not one of the newer water resistant ones, might be the real "ouch". A reminder to me anyway always try to be careful around the boat and dock ... even when doing the routine.

 

[chichiflys]

Ouch - the wife almost did the same thing Saturday while we were getting ready to wash the boat (the marina finally turned the water supply back on after a long winter). Luckily I was holding her arm or it could have been a nasty fall. Not sure what she did - all happened in slow-motion. But at least there was no major injury and we could laugh about it later on...