free boat-final act.............

[sailormanbigd]

thanks everyone

good morning, Thanks for the congrats. I don't feel it was lucky that i made it. I feel it was not too big a risk as everyone seems to make it out to be, The boat is solid, fittings are strong and mostly in working condition. The sails are fair with three headsail options. The hull was sound, the only question was how much would the rudder post leak. I made preparations, six days worth. Hell, it is a sailboat, not a motor boat. The only regret i have is to not have gotten to scrapeing the keel. That would have sped up my journey. I know the morgan 33oi is not a fast boat, but had the keel been more slick i could have gotten another 1-2 knots out of her. She sailed at 2.8-3.8k in 10-15 knot winds. I don't know her theoretical hull speed but suppose it is around 6.5k? I was never out of site of land/shore. Hell i could have made the trip in a hobie cat or small 14ft dinghy. I would not have gone offshore as far, cus i wouldn't have to worry about draft. The weather was near perfect, could have used more wind though. Some people are just too scarred-period. Patrick

 

[Seadaddler]

Nice Job

No problem,sounds to me like you did everything that needed to bedone,checked the weather and made sure the boat was sea worthy.Good luck with your new to you boat and have fun and many happy sailing trips.Nick

 

[Ross]

Patrick, The advise that you received and

the cautions that were given were based on the assessment of the boat as given by you in your posts. If you go back to your early discription of the boat and then to your last discription one would be inclined to think that two different boats were being discribed. The vessel that your discribed in your early posts was not fit to take anywhere without an escort. The boat that you have just discribed needs a good cleaning. I stand by my early advise that the boat your discribed early got you to your home port by the approval of the gods.

 

[Ctskip]

Congratulations are in order here

Now you can enjoy your Christmas all the more. You are a happier man for doing what your heart and head told you to do. I'll bet you are grinning from ear to ear. You should be proud. I congratulate you. I knew you'd make it. You had the determination to do it. You would of made it even if you had a home made raft of logs. You checked out the wind and the weather and you even had a full moon and charts to boot. You even came here and sought advice. Smart, very smart. Smart about the towing insurance. They should give you a discount now. I'll bet some went out and purchased it, because of your experience. It doesn't get any better. Now you get to spend countless nights wondering if the vessel is still afloat. Wondering if the bow lines are still intact and if you closed all the thru-hulls before you left. Let me be one of the first to welcome you to boat ownership. It's awesome. One thing I wished I had done was to take pictures before and during and after. They tell stories. Good luck and keep us updated. I for one am anxiously waiting for more acts to follow. Great story. Keep it up, Ctskip

 

[CharlieCobra]

Well done Patrick.

Take down and Jib and remove the sunbrella from it yourself. Depending on the size, you can have the sticky back UV stuff put on by a loft. I wouldn't have sailed the boat at night without lights either, not around shipping for sure. Enjoy that boat and keep us informed.

 

[Ben16737]

Glad you made it.

Congratulations, sounds like you have a firmer grasp of "learning by doing" than some of us.Your experience with the tow boat reminds me of my father, and his experience in being a AAA member. As a broke college student, he owned a parade of truly horrendous $50 used cars, which would last a month or two before they died in some catastrophic way - broken rods, snapped drive shafts, etc.After calling AAA to get towed yet again, a friend asked him, "how can you afford the membership?" He said, "with cars like this, I can't afford not to!"