... have small beginnings. (a line from which film?)
First sail of 2013 was great. After over six weeks of not sailing much/at all, yesterday’s day-sail was just what the doctor ordered.
Press-ganged my youngest as crew and headed north at the crack of dawn (8-ish these days). Quick trip up. When we laid eyes on the boat she looked a forlorn and sorry sight. Decks a paler shade of green. These last few weeks of torrential rain have taken their toll.
Checked in with the marina office to see if we were OK in our current berth (we were) and made ready for sea. Single all moorings, get sails ready to hoist/unfurl, start engine, switch on and check all instruments, good to go. Everyone ready? Cast off.
Motored out, turned into the wind, got the main up (one reef in case some of those forecast 25kts gusts materialised) and we headed for open sea. Pushing the tide we made just over 5kts over the ground. Nothing to get excited about, but not bad either. Landguard came and went as we headed for Medusa. Rounded that and headed back from where we had come. Relative wind around the 15-20kts mark. Just a perfect pleasant little sail.
Once we headed back up the river speed over the ground never dropped below 8kts. Not bad for an old heavy displacement cruiser. One moment I toyed with the idea of shaking out the reef, but I really couldn’t be bothered. It hardly seemed worth the effort.
Off the marina we started the engine again, dropped the sails, made ready all lines and fenders and motored in. Parked, doubled up all lines, finished with engines, stacked/secured all sails, shore-power connected, we’re done. Warm, satisfying post-sail glow. What more could you ask for?
Received an e-mail from the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club (the AZAB 2015 organisers): they’ve noted our interest in the race and will keep us up to date. The Notice Of Race should be released soon. This thing could really be the focal point we need to get the boat ready for offshore sailing, and I’m quite looking forward to the trip.
I’ve also re-examined the list of things to do before the AZAB. I don’t plan to kit her out as a racer ‘pur sang’ – this is not what she was built for. Main aims are in order of priority:
- Arrive in one piece
- Sail in comfort
- Enjoy the trip.
When it comes to the boat, I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist. However, I must resist the temptation to want to build the perfect boat. Sometimes ‘good enough’ is just that: good enough.
Now actively scouring the internet for second-hand windvane steering (Aries or Monitor) and SSB and/or satphone equipment.
For the moment, the house gets priority, but once that’s sorted all attention will once again be on the boat. The sooner we can get this behind us the better. If all goes well we should be ready for our AZAB qualifying cruise in 2014.