HEH...it's summer!! What ya all doing???

[Frank]

TIS THE SEASON!!

Who's sailing where? Fixing what? Modifying what? Dreaming about ??

I'm looking forward to returning to the PNW late Sept.
ticking off my list of items needed.

What ya all doing???

[CharlieJ]

Modifying my jib halyard to lead to cockpit, and adding a downhaul. I know, I know. I've long been an advocate of going to the mast, but a rough day single hand in Pensacola Bays fighting a jib down to the deck, convinced me that the jib at least, should be done that way :o

I'm not as steady up there as I once was >:( ::) >:( ::)

Also, an afternoon at Sail Oklahoma talking with designers about adding lazy jacks convinced me.. With designers  like John Welsford, Mik Storer, Richard Woods, Jim Michalak and Matt Leyden all touting the handiness for single handing, who wouldn't listen ?

[Norman]

Welcome to the club, CJ! :)

The skipper of my boat has a hard and fast rule.  The skipper does not go forward of the cockpit when the boat is under way.  No exceptions.  Since I sail single handed most of the time when out in my boat, anything that goes wrong while under way stays that way until at anchor, and the anchor is deployed from the cockpit.

About 15 years ago, my right knee started collapsing completely at unpredictable times  :(, and with no side deck on a Mac, no place to hold on, the odds of over the side was 50/50.  Not good odds.

Halyards and down hauls for jib and main to the cockpit and keep sailing.

One day, I rigged main and Genoa in a protected cove, raised the main, and sailed out into the river.  The surprise was that the wind was curving arround the point more than 45 degrees, the fetch was more than ten miles instead of the expected 3, and wind speed doubled.  Waves were soon breaking over the bow and nearly back to the mast.  The Genoa, which was sheeted tight to keep it on deck until needed filled with water and was in danger of splitting seams, so I released the sheet, and let it wash overboard, and dump the water.  Until  reaching the shelter of an island, and anchoring near shore, the fore deck mess stayed a mess.

Pretty much all the time, I have either wire luff roller furling, or hank on with down haul for the fore sail.  The main is readily manhandled down from the cabin sliding hatch, so rarely a down haul on it, but the halyard is to the cockpit.

Old age and a desire to survive changes ideas of the correct way to do things.  Reflexes slow a bit each year, the muscles are weaker and slower moving, the gyro in your head is less sensative to the start of a fall.  It all adds up in small increments, hardly noticeable, but if you do not recognize that it is happening, you get a big unpleasant surprise!

20 years ago I flew a spinnaker solo,but no more. :P

Frank, your topic has been hijacked! :(

I do expect to get out this week for a day sail on a friends boat, all my sailing this year has been on his Catalina, kept in a slip.

On a big plus, 6 of the last 14 weeks were visiting grand kids, and another ten days other relatives, so time well spent! :)

[CharlieJ]

Yes sir. Have noticed a little unsteadiness when moving around the boat. I don't just jump over to the dock any more- I make sure of footing. Nothing major, but best be safer right?

So I am making some concessions ;)

[Godot]

I've done a fair amount of weekend sailing this year. Maybe got out for nine or ten nights. Hopefully, I'll have some sailing with my best gal before she returns to work (school teacher) in two weeks. Late September into October, though, I have a day under three weeks all to myself for some Chesapeake sailing in the best sailing months. I will start off by heading to the SSCA gam in Annapolis, and go where the wind takes me from there.

Can't wait.

[Frank]

I like the "where the wind takes me" concept....always more fun   :D
Enjoy yourself!

[Frank]

Welcome to the club, CJ! :)

The skipper of my boat has a hard and fast rule.  The skipper does not go forward of the cockpit when the boat is under way.  No exceptions.  Since I sail single handed most of the time when out in my boat, anything that goes wrong while under way stays that way until at anchor, and the anchor is deployed from the cockpit.

About 15 years ago, my right knee started collapsing completely at unpredictable times  :(, and with no side deck on a Mac, no place to hold on, the odds of over the side was 50/50.  Not good odds.

Halyards and down hauls for jib and main to the cockpit and keep sailing.

One day, I rigged main and Genoa in a protected cove, raised the main, and sailed out into the river.  The surprise was that the wind was curving arround the point more than 45 degrees, the fetch was more than ten miles instead of the expected 3, and wind speed doubled.  Waves were soon breaking over the bow and nearly back to the mast.  The Genoa, which was sheeted tight to keep it on deck until needed filled with water and was in danger of splitting seams, so I released the sheet, and let it wash overboard, and dump the water.  Until  reaching the shelter of an island, and anchoring near shore, the fore deck mess stayed a mess.

Pretty much all the time, I have either wire luff roller furling, or hank on with down haul for the fore sail.  The main is readily manhandled down from the cabin sliding hatch, so rarely a down haul on it, but the halyard is to the cockpit.

Old age and a desire to survive changes ideas of the correct way to do things.  Reflexes slow a bit each year, the muscles are weaker and slower moving, the gyro in your head is less sensative to the start of a fall.  It all adds up in small increments, hardly noticeable, but if you do not recognize that it is happening, you get a big unpleasant surprise!

20 years ago I flew a spinnaker solo,but no more. :P

Frank, your topic has been hijacked! :(

I do expect to get out this week for a day sail on a friends boat, all my sailing this year has been on his Catalina, kept in a slip.

On a big plus, 6 of the last 14 weeks were visiting grand kids, and another ten days other relatives, so time well spent! :)

Yep....things DO change. I reached up to pull down the main on my lil Suncat last summer....next thing I new I couldn't move. Threw my back out! A SOB just getting the 12lb anchor out and set! Then the rudder line (kick-up) got caught in the prop! A nice afternoon sail went south so fast it was unbelievable!
Deaf on one side, back is temperamental, knees shot, eyes fading and right shoulder shot..... Caution is now the word   :o 

[CharlieJ]

As long as we are looking at flowers,, and not roots ;D

[lance on cloud nine]

I have been weekend racing a 16' AMF Sunbird on a Midwestern lake with my wife as crew - and having a good time! I was donated a small Banshee racing dinghy, complete, but with a little hull damage. I have been walking around the garage looking at it - trying to envision putting a little cabin on it and making kind of a high speed Scamp out of it. I have also finally ordered a new mainsail for our O'Day 23. I have been sailing this boat in Florida for a decade. This winter will probably be the first time we will sail it with a clean bottom and decent sails simultaneously! We hope to sail her from Anna Maria Island, south to Cayo Costa and just hide out for a week this winter. Hope you all are having a great Summer!

[lastgreatgeneration]

I lived aboard in 2013 on my Pearson Ariel. long story short: I sold it moved to Washington state then Southern California and now in route to philadelphia pa to build up the kitty and buy another cruising boat. Of course armed with much needed knowledge I know what I really need in a boat and working my way towards that goal. I'm very excited to be back on the east coast and the chesapeake. Lots of great fun people and cruising grounds. My time line is realistically 1.5 years from now. So, there it is I have this post as a reference as to when I should just go and untie the dock lines. Thank you, to the community and the posters of sailfar to making my former dreams possible and my future dreams probable as well!

[CharlieJ]

Been out sailing on Weds for last three weeks. Yesterday was a great day. Light winds for a change ( last week had reefed jib and single reefed main)