Happy New Season

[SailingChris]

For the New Year, here's a wish that we all have fine sailing seasons. For those of us in the cold-weather belt, it won't start for a few months, and then only after boat-prep season. Others of you are probably sailing now.

The Cal 20 is under her winter cover and will only need the bottom paint touch-up in the spring. Her mooring needs a new chain, if I can coax a diver to go out and do it for me. My other, older boat has a spruce mast. It needed some spot prep on bad spots, which i did this fall. Scrape, sand, and build some varnish coats. In the spring I'll sand the whole thing and add a couple more coats of varnish. The toe rail, mahogany, gets two coats each spring. I did some spot prep on that, too, so I'm ahead of the game. That boat really needs new hull paint. The 1983 Imron is failing and I've just been touching up the big peels with tinted Brightsides. It works under the 20-foot rule.

Chris Campbell
Cal 20 #1220, Martha C

[rcvesselstyn]

Thanks for the good wishes! You have a 20-ft paint job, I have a rainy day gel coat. You're amazing! You still go up the mast to varnish? As a kid I was the youngest so I always got elected to go up. But now, by the time I get to the spreaders I'm more worried about what it's going to feel like hitting the deck than paying attention to the job at hand. Happy New Year all!

[allen]

Happy New Year to all you Cal sailors. Greetings from what some people call a wood Cal-40.

My Lapworth-36 got new hull paint this year. The first time in probably 30 years that I had someone else paint it and wow, they are way better than I was. I walked up today to add wind information to my tiller pilot and was just amazed what a good job they did. Since my dismasting I don't need to paint the mast. It was spruce but painted so I only had to paint maybe every 5 years. Sand on the way up, paint on the way down. I know the drill. The aluminum mast performs at a higher level. I am very happy with the upgrade.

I have done more winter sailing this year than in the 33 years I have had Papoose. It has been a pleasure to sail in 5-10 instead of the usual 20-30 knots we get in the winter races.

This season I raced double handed. What a pleasure. So nice to have a crew that wants to learn and does what I ask. I recommend getting crew that doesn't know how to sail better than you do. It makes for a much more pleasant experience.

Most of you know my website. For those who don't, you should check it out. There are almost 1000 marine manuals online all free. The weather page is very popular. Even the USCG uses it for search and rescue. They helped developed it so I guess that is reasonable. The soft shackle tutorials are also very popular.

Allen
L-36 #5
https://l-36.com

[SailingChris]

Thanks for the good wishes! You have a 20-ft paint job, I have a rainy day gel coat. You're amazing! You still go up the mast to varnish? As a kid I was the youngest so I always got elected to go up. But now, by the time I get to the spreaders I'm more worried about what it's going to feel like hitting the deck than paying attention to the job at hand. Happy New Year all!

No, not up the mast. The boat's in cold storage. The mast is down for the winter. I get special dispensation from the yard to keep the mast next to her so i can do my spring varnishing. All the aluminum spars are in racks or on horses in one area. The boat has been at this marina for 55 years now, 54 years in my care, so the boat gets some extra respect. Most of the indoor storage in now heated. That's great for people who live near enough to run over to the yard for a few hours' work but I'm 2-3/4 hours away. So it's cold indoor storage again, as usual. In the last couple years I've become better at doing as much work in the fall as possible so there is less to deal with in the spring.

Spot prep on the mast varnish is hard enough on the ground--can't imagine trying to do it in a bosun's chair!

Chris Campbell

[Mary Mac]

Happy New Year, everyone! I've been away at training for work but am back to real life now. Looking forward to warmer weather and hearing everyone's sailing/boatwork stories.