Boatless in Michigan

I need sympathy, listmates. My other boat got hauled for the season yesterday, after a weekend of high winds that prevented my from sailing one last time. I could have reefed and toughed it out, I suppose, but it would have been a bit too wet and windy for comfort in October, so I didn't. On Monday it was still blowing hard enough the my furniture-quality varnished spruce mast blew over on its mast stands after we unstepped it. @#$%***!!!. No real harm done, but I didn't examine it too closely (ignorance is bliss). The good news is that the hauling and unstepping process went without a hitch. The first time we hauled this boat was in 1968. She has a hinged mast step, a heavy bronze and stainless affair that's almost a tabernacle. So Chris, always eager to save a few bucks, decided that we could easily unstep it ourselves--my dad, brother, and me. I had not accounted for the physics of the changing angle on the line we used to hold it from forward nor the weight of a spruce mast. (Ignorance was no longer bliss.) It took me three weeks for my shoulder to recover from the strained muscles and about that long for my hand to heal after I cut it on the glass masthead light lens we broke. So much for economy. Or, more accurately, so much for cheapness. The guy who runs the mast crane at the yard always achieves pinpoint accuracy and the guys all give the boat lots of care because she's an old and pretty lady, and always well maintained. Chris Campbell

Chris, if it's any consolation, It's cold, damp, and foggy today in SoCal, and having two races left to the season, and having a boat at a slip that needs to be sailed, that means I'll be forced to go race her this evening in your stead. Pitty me! The days being short, we'll be finishing in the dark. Maybe I'll don me foulies. Brrr! At least Sunday's sail was in warm clear weather, with the light air at the start turning into a brisk breeze. It took as long a wait at the yacht club, three hours, as the race of 13.4 miles took, only to get bogus results when the PO messed up my and the commodore's handicaps. Jerry From: Chris Campbell <cc… [at] lsnm.org> To: "Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2011 12:58 PM Subject: [Cal_Boats] Boatless in Michigan I need sympathy, listmates. My other boat got hauled for the season yesterday, after a weekend of high winds that prevented my from sailing one last time. I could have reefed and toughed it out, I suppose, but it would have been a bit too wet and windy for comfort in October, so I didn't. On Monday it was still blowing hard enough the my furniture-quality varnished spruce mast blew over on its mast stands after we unstepped it. @#$%***!!!. No real harm done, but I didn't examine it too closely (ignorance is bliss). The good news is that the hauling and unstepping process went without a hitch. The first time we hauled this boat was in 1968. She has a hinged mast step, a heavy bronze and stainless affair that's almost a tabernacle. So Chris, always eager to save a few bucks, decided that we could easily unstep it ourselves--my dad, brother, and me. I had not accounted for the physics of the changing angle on the line we used to hold it from forward nor the weight of a spruce mast. (Ignorance was no longer bliss.) It took me three weeks for my shoulder to recover from the strained muscles and about that long for my hand to heal after I cut it on the glass masthead light lens we broke. So much for economy. Or, more accurately, so much for cheapness. The guy who runs the mast crane at the yard always achieves pinpoint accuracy and the guys all give the boat lots of care because she's an old and pretty lady, and always well maintained. Chris Campbell

On 10/18/2011 4:43 PM, Gerald Sobel wrote: > > Chris, if it's any consolation, > It's cold, damp, and foggy today in SoCal, and having two races left > to the season, and having a boat at a slip that needs to be sailed, > that means I'll be forced to go race her this evening in your stead. > Pitty me! The days being short, we'll be finishing in the dark. Maybe > I'll don me foulies. Brrr! At least Sunday's sail was in warm clear > weather, with the light air at the start turning into a brisk breeze. > It took as long a wait at the yacht club, three hours, as the race of > 13.4 miles took, only to get bogus results when the PO messed up my > and the commodore's handicaps. I'm not consoled. And I assume that in SoCal "cold damp and foggy" means 75º F. and a slight haze on the horizon. Chris

Chris, no, brrr-chatter. It's down in the brrr-chatter low sixties, durn it! Your blood thins when you're down hear, and you lose your ability to withstand weather extreeeems. Honest. (crawls back inside igloo and closes ice door) Jerry From: Chris Campbell <cc… [at] lsnm.org> To: "Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2011 2:00 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] Boatless in Michigan(Chris) On 10/18/2011 4:43 PM, Gerald Sobel wrote: > > >Chris, if it's any consolation, >It's cold, damp, and foggy today in SoCal, and having two races left to the season, and having a boat at a slip that needs to be sailed, that means I'll be forced to go race her this evening in your stead. Pitty me! The days being short, we'll be finishing in the dark. Maybe I'll don me foulies. Brrr! At least Sunday's sail was in warm clear weather, with the light air at the start turning into a brisk breeze. It took as long a wait at the yacht club, three hours, as the race of 13.4 miles took, only to get bogus results when the PO messed up my and the commodore's handicaps. I'm not consoled. And I assume that in SoCal "cold damp and foggy" means 75º F. and a slight haze on the horizon. Chris

Hey Chris, You have my best wishes old buddy! I sailed the SSS Vallejo 1-2 race on Sat & Sunday. I was lying in 8th place in the singlehanded division for the 8 race series. Sailing the successor to Rambler and Coyote both Cal 20's, Yellow Jack, Santa Cruz 27 hull 58 usa 57313. Now I have sailed SC 27's since 1976. I was there at the launch of Merlin. My job asked me to work late on Friday when I wanted to launch from the trailer at about 3pm. OK No worries. I motored to the Corrinthian YC to spend the nite aboard. I plugged in the Simrad TP10 and the lights came on---OK. I should have engaged but I did not. 15 hours later no joy! No ap. So no spinnaker. I'm singlehanded so I will not set a kite if I do not have a functioning autopilot.. I lost 5+ boats and another Yellow SC 27 that was 5 min behind. It was such a mental mind fuc-. It took a lot to get beyond it. At 5am on Sunday morning I took the ap apart and after 5 times ( apart and together) I had it happy again. On Sunday I set the kite in the Napa river and hauled ass! This was so joyful! I finished mid fleet what is what I deserved. I got greedy and took 1 too many tacks out into the flood but that's who I know I am. We (YJ&me) had a good finish to a first race season. I will live with this till next year unless I do the mid winters. I'm 66 years old and I beat 30 somethings. My wife (3rd) says I'm old! That may be true but I have the will of a 17 year old, I believe. We sail all year in California. I need to replace the standing wire and do some more projects. I will sail the 3 bridges race in late January. It was a good season. A steep learning curve. My first year of singlehanded racing. Best finish was the 2nd place in the Richmond South Bay Race. Shi- happened, It's how we respond. Winston S. Churchill said " Never give in, Never give in, Never give in. He was the only WWII leader beside Harry S Truman who actually killed the enemy in battle. Words to live by. My Best, Mike Farrell, former owner of eight Cal 20 sailboats now a single boat owner and I like it. From: Chris Campbell <cc… [at] lsnm.org> To: "Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2011 12:58 PM Subject: [Cal_Boats] Boatless in Michigan I need sympathy, listmates. My other boat got hauled for the season yesterday, after a weekend of high winds that prevented my from sailing one last time. I could have reefed and toughed it out, I suppose, but it would have been a bit too wet and windy for comfort in October, so I didn't. On Monday it was still blowing hard enough the my furniture-quality varnished spruce mast blew over on its mast stands after we unstepped it. @#$%***!!!. No real harm done, but I didn't examine it too closely (ignorance is bliss). The good news is that the hauling and unstepping process went without a hitch. The first time we hauled this boat was in 1968. She has a hinged mast step, a heavy bronze and stainless affair that's almost a tabernacle. So Chris, always eager to save a few bucks, decided that we could easily unstep it ourselves--my dad, brother, and me. I had not accounted for the physics of the changing angle on the line we used to hold it from forward nor the weight of a spruce mast. (Ignorance was no longer bliss.) It took me three weeks for my shoulder to recover from the strained muscles and about that long for my hand to heal after I cut it on the glass masthead light lens we broke. So much for economy. Or, more accurately, so much for cheapness. The guy who runs the mast crane at the yard always achieves pinpoint accuracy and the guys all give the boat lots of care because she's an old and pretty lady, and always well maintained. Chris Campbell ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

You have our sympathy, but isn't it you who gets to go play in the snow? Remember to take home all the pieces you intend to fix, all the measurements for those little projects, and you will keep boating alive all winter! Ed and Helen From: Chris Campbell <cc… [at] lsnm.org> To: "Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2011 12:58 PM Subject: [Cal_Boats] Boatless in Michigan I need sympathy, listmates. My other boat got hauled for the season yesterday, after a weekend of high winds that prevented my from sailing one last time. I could have reefed and toughed it out, I suppose, but it would have been a bit too wet and windy for comfort in October, so I didn't. On Monday it was still blowing hard enough the my furniture-quality varnished spruce mast blew over on its mast stands after we unstepped it. @#$%***!!!. No real harm done, but I didn't examine it too closely (ignorance is bliss). The good news is that the hauling and unstepping process went without a hitch. The first time we hauled this boat was in 1968. She has a hinged mast step, a heavy bronze and stainless affair that's almost a tabernacle. So Chris, always eager to save a few bucks, decided that we could easily unstep it ourselves--my dad, brother, and me. I had not accounted for the physics of the changing angle on the line we used to hold it from forward nor the weight of a spruce mast. (Ignorance was no longer bliss.) It took me three weeks for my shoulder to recover from the strained muscles and about that long for my hand to heal after I cut it on the glass masthead light lens we broke. So much for economy. Or, more accurately, so much for cheapness. The guy who runs the mast crane at the yard always achieves pinpoint accuracy and the guys all give the boat lots of care because she's an old and pretty lady, and always well maintained. Chris Campbell

And in Santa Cruz, the line between the sky and the water was invisible. The decks at home looked like someone was running a hose. It's 3:15pm and still icky. So, the wind won't do much, the visibillty is bad and getting worse, and you'll get soaked through with no waves and freeze as the sun? goes down in a couple of hours along with the temps. HH From: Gerald Sobel <so… [at] yahoo.com> To: "Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2011 2:04 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] Boatless in Michigan(Chris) Chris, no, brrr-chatter. It's down in the brrr-chatter low sixties, durn it! Your blood thins when you're down hear, and you lose your ability to withstand weather extreeeems. Honest. (crawls back inside igloo and closes ice door) Jerry From: Chris Campbell <cc… [at] lsnm.org> To: "Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com" <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2011 2:00 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] Boatless in Michigan(Chris) On 10/18/2011 4:43 PM, Gerald Sobel wrote: > > >Chris, if it's any consolation, >It's cold, damp, and foggy today in SoCal, and having two races left to the season, and having a boat at a slip that needs to be sailed, that means I'll be forced to go race her this evening in your stead. Pitty me! The days being short, we'll be finishing in the dark. Maybe I'll don me foulies. Brrr! At least Sunday's sail was in warm clear weather, with the light air at the start turning into a brisk breeze. It took as long a wait at the yacht club, three hours, as the race of 13.4 miles took, only to get bogus results when the PO messed up my and the commodore's handicaps. I'm not consoled. And I assume that in SoCal "cold damp and foggy" means 75º F. and a slight haze on the horizon. Chris