The new bimini

It really is too hot to sail all day in a Northern Rivers summer without some shade. I investigated getting one made to measure but baulked at the price. Then Peter rashly offered to install one for me if I bought an off the shelf model. We measured up carefully and I scoured websites for a reddish one that would fit.

The end result is splendid. John Woods came down to the BRSC specially to help me check if the boom would clear the bimini and it does perfectly.

 A huge thank you to Peter. It turned out (as often seems to be the case) a fiddly and rather time consuming job.

You may wonder why the photo of the U bolt on the bow of my boat. The story is that after sailing hard at the Bridge to Breakers regatta I found the cabin soaking wet. The U bolt had pulled slightly loose and was letting water in. The bolt looked fine to me until Peter pulled it out and it was like a honeycomb - electrolysis. Old age. As often seems to be the case it was not easy getting a bolt that was just right. Even Whitworths don't stock them. However I sourced one that was nearly right and Peter managed to modify it to make it fit tight. Peter also fashioned a splendid bush out of some super duper black plastic (look closely at the photo). Yet another fiddly maintenance task. Thanks again Peter.

PS from Peter

"You forgot to mention the O-rings, although If you had been here when I fitted it I couldn't find ones that fitted perfectly, so I used some slightly larger rubber bushes with a taper on one end and with a bit of lanoline applied they seemed to squeeze nicely into the countersink I drilled on the inside of the nylon pad. I'm pretty sure you'll not have any prob's with it leaking now."

PPS From Peter

"It doesn't matter Pam but I was trying to explain (not very well obviously) that between that black pad and the stem there is a rubber bush (instead of an O-Ring) that has a 45 degree end to it. I have drilled a good big countersink into the back of the black pad where the shafts of the D-bolt or U-bolt (or whatever you like to call it) pokes through it. I then slipped the two bushes onto the u-bolt with a bit of lanolin on it and the 45 degree end facing forward into the countersink so that as I tightened the nuts on the u-bolt it squeezed the rubber hard into the 45 degree hole thus compressing it around the bolt very tightly. I had to take it out and redo the countersink a bit deeper as there was a little too much squeeze the first time. So there you have it fully explained (I hope).

I think that proves my point - these seemingly simple jobs never are. Pam

Wooden spoon to joint third - Part 2

13 November 2010 - Bridge to Breakers Regatta

"The Sunday format consisted of two races. The lighter conditions during the morning race gave way to a marked freshening after lunch and the afternoon race featured some spectacular displays of high speed sailing as winds gusted above 20 knots. The catamarans and skiffs particularly reveled in the conditions despite the fact that some of the rides were interrupted by the occasional capsizes." [extract from the BRSC press release]

Noela couldn't stay for Sunday and another of my ocean swimming friends, Neil McKenzie, was keen to crew. Neil has a sailing background, most recently in windsurfers, but it was the first time we had sailed together.

The morning race consisted of 2 rounds of a fairly short course and we sailed a round each. Although we came in, as usual, close to the tail end were pretty happy that we had given it a fair shot. Neil was really getting back into the swing of racing and kept wondering if he should buy an NS14. Yes I know that I own a plodder and we just couldn't get her to point high enough. I still prefer cruising and giving novices the chance to give it a go on a very forgiving Little Dragon, but I know that racing will improve my sailing skills.

As the forecast for the afternoon races was over 20 knots we decided to reef. We motored into the middle of the river and anchored to put in the reef. Knowing that the luff of the main was not taut on Saturday we did our best to get it taut this time - but our best was not good enough. After the race John Woods came to see for himself how we were reefed and demonstrated that neither the luff nor the out haul on the boom were tight enough. If we had the sails setting better we might have been able to point higher.

The afternoon course was 3 rounds of the morning course. This time we got a pretty good start and initially we were right up there with the others in Division 7. It was quite dispiriting to watch them pull ahead. In the increasing wind we just couldn't point as high as they were. We retired after completing 2 rounds as everyone else had finished all 3 rounds and it was time for the prize giving.

We were a bit disappointed that the BRSC doesn't give a wooden spoon prize as we thought we would win it. To my amazement the race officer did some calculations with the handicaps and we found ourselves joint third out of the 7 in our division. A complete mystery to me but rather good to be able to boast to my ocean swimming mates "we came joint third".

Thanks to Russell Witt for taking the photos of Little Dragon under way. His images of all the competitors can be viewed at http://photos.dragmania.com.au/thumbnails.php?album=119

Thanks also to all the BRSC members who worked so hard to make this yet again a great regatta.

Sunrise at Harwood on Monday 14 November. So still and quiet. Hard to remember the well over 20 knot gusts the day before and to predict that Monday afternoon would be even wilder.

"Work the main!" - Part 1

12 November 2010 Bridge to Breakers regatta

"A fleet of 56 boats descended on the Big River Sailing Club last weekend to contest the annual Bridge to Breakers regatta. The event continues to be well patronised by regular visitors who travel from all parts of New South Wales and South East Queensland and this year attracted an entrant from Victoria... The fresh north to north east breeze tested competitors on the Saturday when boats made the grueling trek downriver from the Harwood Bridge to Iluka and return. By race end most boats had been on the water for three to four hours and it was a generally weary bunch of sailors that gathered on the Saturday night to rehydrate and recount the day's adventures." [extract from the BRSC press release]

A year ago I decided that it was time to stop being a total race refusenik. I got the additional insurance and chose sail number 98 (my birthday is the 9th August and I can do with help from all quarters. 9 and 8 are lucky numbers in Chinese cosmology).  Last February Noela Yates and I tried our luck at racing was in Grafton and that time there was hardly any wind. Despite that we had fun and decided to give it a go again but this time was quite different, there was more than enough wind. We reefed.   The "grueling trek" in the official account was almost 20 kms head to wind  down river against a strong tide. Soon all the off the beach classes that started 5 mins after us overtook us and the fast catamarans were our of sight way ahead. Our handicap shows that near the tail end is our rightful place.

John Woods, the BRSC training officer, was in the rescue boat keeping a watchful eye on the tail enders. He kept zooming up to us and yelling "Work the Main, Don't Cleat It!" Noela and I were taking turn and turn about tacking downstream.  We both knew the theory of easing off on a gust and sheeting in between gusts but the reality was that whichever of us had the main sheet felt as if our arms were being pulled out of their sockets. We just didn't have the strength not to "cleat it" some of the time. John also pointed out that the luff of our mainsail was not taut. Our sails should be as flat as possible in strong winds. I am still learning how to achieve that when the boat is reefed. 

 

It took us over 4 hours to reach the Goodwood mark which is around two thirds of the way to Iluka. We were quite relieved when the committee boat ordered us to shorten course. We were enjoying ourselves (at least in retrospect) but getting very weary. We fairly whooshed back to the finish line in less than 30 mins with wind and tide behind us, really exhilarating.

Luckily before I took to the water with this bunch of experienced and serious racers I had been practicing the excellent on line racing rules quiz  http://game.finckh.net/indexe.htm I felt reasonably confident that I knew who had mark room at a buoy although my intention was to keep out of every one's way all the time. The photo below shows us in the middle of the fleet with boats heading every which way.

We were still tacking downstream and the fast cats were returning on a spinnaker run for the second time. Justin Forrester, who skippered the winning fast cat Stingray, approached us like a bat out of hell. We just didn't see him and we tacked right into his path. We were just stunned and he somehow had the skill to swerve round us. We were 100% in the wrong. I know we should have done 2 penalty turns but I confess I didn't. After 4 hours at the tail end of the fleet in what I felt was more than a mere "breeze" it just seemed too much. However I did seek him out ashore and offer him a beer. He was very gracious and declined but he did remember the incident with the "THAT red mono hull". I will also remember the incident for a long while.

This photo shows most of the 7 "slower trailer sailors" in Division 7 stern anchored on Saturday night.