The Big Move

[Halvern]

We made it. My friend Brad took the helm to move the S2 11A from Berkeley to Oakley up on the Delta here in CA. Took off around 9:30 AM. We decided to run under power as I had not had a chance to adequately check out the rigging and the sails. We thought that we could handle the 60 nm in 4-5 hours. Well, 12 1/2 hours we made it. Half an hour out we decided to run throttle up from 1500 to 2200, which I understood was a sweet spot for this engine. Not so. When I ran it up she handled it fine for about 10 min. Then the engine stalled. Temperature was right down middle of the gauge, though it did run to the high side when we started her back up. I think that the engine is not getting adequate cooling water to handle the extra heat. Friend suggested diving and checking for possible blockage on the water intake strainer. Needless to say this really made a difference in our speed. After several hours after we went under the Carquinez Bridge we tried it again, with the same results, she stalled again. This time the temperature gauge didn't spike. So I'm at a loss on this one. The fresh water strainer in the engine compartment is clean. I don't know enough about Volvo M17D engine to make any kind of a guess if it could be a fuel delivery issue. Maybe some of you that have the knowledge will chime in. Like I said the 1500 rpm worked, slowly. Fun trip, ran out of bottled tea and the salami and cheese didn't last past the second hour.
Appreciate any assistance.

 

[Tally Ho]

The day I took delivery of my O’Day 322, my friend and co-owner Tom and I had rough conditions on Lake Michigan. We left Holland, MI in rough seas and wind blowing hard on the nose. We were headed to East Chicago, IN (about 70 nm).

We left the sail cover on as we had no intention of trying to sail in those conditions, and pushed the little Yanmar 2GM20F pretty hard bashing into the waves…until the engine alarm went off 15 minutes into our trip. We pulled the throttle back a little and started “what if”-ing plans should the engine seize or die..

But a few minutes later, the alarm stopped. So we ran a bit slower, and got into the first marina we could find that had availability (the Hook race was on that weekend and tied up a lot of slips in the area).

After a beer at the local pub, we inspected the engine and found very little AF in the engine/HX. I guess we missed this on our pre-check…. We filled the HX with water and headed out the next day to:finish our delivery to our marina.

You guys made it, and that is what is important. good luck with the new boat!


Greg

 

[Joe]

60 miles in 4 or 5 hours! That's like 12-15 mph. No, no, no, no, no. Divide by three and your provisioning may catch up to your trip estimates. That speed assumption is absolutely typical of newbies, so we are very pleased to welcome you to the fold. Overestimating travel time is so common, even us old salts are guilty of it, especially if we forget that it's sailing, not powerboating, that we have embraced.

25 years ago I decided to make my first weekender to Catalina from Mission Bay (san Diego). It's only 75 nm, I told my girlfriend and the other couple joining us. 10 - 12hrs at the most.........we leave at Thurs at10 pm, motor all night, get there Fri ,10 am to pick up a mooring... get cleaned up and then go ashore for a nice lunch in Avalon..... . A couple nights then sunday, up early and we spinnaker run 12hrs all the way back to Mission Bay, getting there by 6pm, get the boat cleaned up then the 1.5 hour drive home... ready to be at work bright and early Monday.
..........No, no, no, no...the trip was doomed from the git go... too many opportunities to fail, too many time constraints, too much optimism that the boat could average 7mph (or 6kts), that conditions would be and stay perfect , and way, way too much ignorance and naiveté about cruising... even weekend cruising.

Even though it was a disaster, planwise, the trip turned out to be so much fun... once we let go of our intentions to stick to a "plan". But that's what I needed to learn. That the PLAN is to be open ended and flexible, because you're sailing not hauling ass to Catalina for lunch and a round of golf. Once you get that mindset....the purpose of sailing reveals itself and your destination becomes less important than the journey itself. Good Luck...have fun.

 

[jssailem]

Hull Speed
The theoretical maximum speed that a displacement hull can move efficiently through the water is determined by it's waterline length and displacement. It may be unable to reach this speed if the boat is underpowered or heavily loaded.

Calculated Value for an S2 11A boat
Hull Speed 7.5 kn
Classic: 7.12 kn

Using your estimate of 60 nm and maximum hull speed the time to travel that distance would be 8 hours. Now there are all sorts of factors that could affect that number... The currents over your route during an 8 hour cruise could be as much as 2.5 knots against you or 1.5 helping you. You are in a river that is also tidal. You ground speed would be impacted by that current.

Your boat may be in prime condition with a slick clean hull (optimal and may get you to hull speed) or not (would slow your boats speed through the water. Your auxiliary power system may be working perfectly or not (I guess this is why you posted the message). Even though your boat has a sleek hull shape, if the wind and waves are on your nose, these too can affect your speed ove the ground.

It sounds like you need to become familiar with the auxiliary power system. The Volvo is considered a sound engine. The engine, if the MD17D/MS2, is rated at 36 HP. Trying to push the 6804 kg (15,000lb) boat with not gear or stored materials might have been a factor in your experience.
Here is a link to the engine

https://www.maritimepropulsion.com/files/pdf/1001243

I congratulate you for getting your new boat safely to her new home. Have fun.

 

[jssailem]

One option to help you with tidal currents is to use a tool like DeepZoom.

DeepZoom Trip

View this trip on https://www.deepzoom.com.

www.deepzoom.com