Hello All,
I know some of you were wondering how I'd make out bringing my "new"
Vega ("Lyra", #2456) home from Puerto Vallarta to Seattle. The
process isn't finished yet, but the boat and I made it from PV to San
Diego in 17 days (about 1,000 miles straight line). There were some
serious challenges posed by an ailing alternator (cured, as expected
by a Mexican small town mechanic) and a fuel system filled with bits
of black/brown crud that plugged the Racor about every 20 hours of
running time. Weather ranged from flat calm to quite boisterous. I
took Steve Birch's advice and had a 3rd reef added to the main
instead of worrying about a tri-sail and am very glad. The 3rd reef
is easy to use and did just fine. The worst breeze we encountered
only required the 3rd reef and about 6 or 7 rolls in the small jib.
With that combination we made 5.5 knots about 50 or 55 degrees off
the wind, heeling 20 degrees more or less. . .and bouncing around a
lot of course.
I'm already home in Seattle and the boat is being loaded on a truck
tomorrow to follow me home after the holidays...will be in Seattle on
the 2nd of December and on her new mooring the next day I hope.
I think it was Steve who said something positive about the Navik wind
vane for a Vega. My boat has one and having sailed from here to
there with it I have to say it's the most marvelous machine and does
a fabulous job, steering under sail under any conditions and under
power whenever there's 4 or 5 knots of breeze from some direction or
another. So anyway, thanks to everyone who has helped over the
months since I bought her and I'll try to get a decent trip report
typed up in the next few days. . .
Ken Preston
I know some of you were wondering how I'd make out bringing my "new"
Vega ("Lyra", #2456) home from Puerto Vallarta to Seattle. The
process isn't finished yet, but the boat and I made it from PV to San
Diego in 17 days (about 1,000 miles straight line). There were some
serious challenges posed by an ailing alternator (cured, as expected
by a Mexican small town mechanic) and a fuel system filled with bits
of black/brown crud that plugged the Racor about every 20 hours of
running time. Weather ranged from flat calm to quite boisterous. I
took Steve Birch's advice and had a 3rd reef added to the main
instead of worrying about a tri-sail and am very glad. The 3rd reef
is easy to use and did just fine. The worst breeze we encountered
only required the 3rd reef and about 6 or 7 rolls in the small jib.
With that combination we made 5.5 knots about 50 or 55 degrees off
the wind, heeling 20 degrees more or less. . .and bouncing around a
lot of course.
I'm already home in Seattle and the boat is being loaded on a truck
tomorrow to follow me home after the holidays...will be in Seattle on
the 2nd of December and on her new mooring the next day I hope.
I think it was Steve who said something positive about the Navik wind
vane for a Vega. My boat has one and having sailed from here to
there with it I have to say it's the most marvelous machine and does
a fabulous job, steering under sail under any conditions and under
power whenever there's 4 or 5 knots of breeze from some direction or
another. So anyway, thanks to everyone who has helped over the
months since I bought her and I'll try to get a decent trip report
typed up in the next few days. . .
Ken Preston