SV Kiviuq

Several folk have asked how Kiviuq is performing. Well, after about 700 miles of shakedown cruising the answer is quite nicely. Sailing-wise she is a quick boat and once into her stride she eats up the miles, and quite comfortably so.
Hoisting the large main calls for some muscle, which Marilou is quite capable of providing. On leaving Torshavn she handed it up to the second spreaders, then used high gear in the primary winch to the jumper struts and finished with low gear to the top without breaking into a sweat or speaking unkind words about the sailmaker or riggers. That said it is well over 600 sq.feet of heavily constructed mainsail that takes two fit persons to lift when bagged. Add to that the friction in the four reef lines that may have to be hauled out on hoisting and getting the sail to the top of the rather tall mast, and setting the full main is not for the timid and under-nourished.
The B&G autopilot with its 3-way rate gyro compass is impressive and has done the majority of the helming since we left Inverness. And control at the chart table is a dream to have. But we have to reach a deeper understanding with the Hydrovane self-steering, although it did well through most of one day on a broad reach in lightish winds. More work and bonding required there.
The systems - electrical, fuel, fresh water, refrigeration and heating - are all performing well. With regard to instruments, the majority being B&G, most have impressed. New to us is AIS integration with the chartplotter and radar. This is great, especially when one is trying to find a way through a fleet of Icelandic fishing vessels in the middle of the night while flying along at eight or nine knots in poor visibility under all plain sail. The only instrument that isn't playing is the Nasa navtex receiver. We suspect an antenna problem and will investigate further in due course.
Now what about those things that have shaken out? On preparing for the Torshavn to Seydisfjordur passage we found the bent spinnaker pole car fitting that we described in the previous post. On further investigation we found that neither pole car had been correctly assembled by the makers. And the alloy boom section to gooseneck casting joint will need attention at some point. We have also found that the long tensioner on the inner forestay requires one to stand to hank on the staysails. This is perhaps acceptable for the heavy weather staysail but not for the storm jib. Hanking on the latter in the conditions that would call for its deployment (if it is left that late) should be done in a kneeling position or with one's rear end firmly on deck. We are considering how we might improve the system.
As for random issues, we had some water in the early diesel offtakes from our smaller fuel tank, but the fuel system handled it and it didn't cause a problem.
The last thing to report at this stage is that we are enjoying a comfortable, attractive and functional interior. For this thanks must go to Kiviuq's shipwright Nigel Swearse and her cabinet maker Mark Zygadlo. And Alan will be forever grateful to Marilou and Nigel for pressing for the installation of the Taylors diesel cabin heater. Lighting it is a bit of a ritual with a slight risk of total immolation, but once going and with the igniting diesel chuckling in the burner pot (it really does), it turns a cold saloon into a cosy space in short order.
Finally, we are aware that some text characters do not translate well between emailed blog postings and the web pages. We can correct these when we can get online and will do so as necessary until the bug is sorted out by the blog service provider. In the meantime, please bear with us.