Extension time - The Tent

A few years ago, (in fact when I bought Nimrod) I had a spay hood made for her.
I suppose it met the criteria I gave "as big as possible".

On a D35 there are a few issues to contend with:

1) The main sheet / track (this significantly limits the ability to bring the hood aft)
2) The hight of the boom (this limits the hight of the hood, and for most people I feel this means that we would look over the hood most of the time), Spray hood???

The track is also a potential hazard either when tacking or gybing and has a nasty habit of getting stuck round the companion way....

So from a distance it looked "OK".

The pic above is with the boom held up.

But the real issue was it was just too low

The smiles are from the crew having just tied up after a very hard slog across the Irish Sea, but look at the height of the hood.

So after being somewhat annoyed with my hood and knowing the boat a bit better.
That old process of don't do anything until you really know the boat!!!

I knew I needed a new mainsail, the old one (possible original) was fairly shot.

So that gave me an option to raise the boom.
That reminds me I have to clean the old sealant off.
I raised the boom aprox 6" from the old position. I believe originally she would have had a sliding gooseneck.

And if you going to do that why not take the opportunity to move the main sheet!!

I must admit I have spent a HUGE amount of time on the track.
I had a very expensive piece of SS cut and angled to fit the deck.

I have had a dual mainsheet, Port or Starboard.
But do you know what.
Its just not necessary. I have played with strops onto U bolts of varying lengths and found the one which works well for me.

I will be taking off the U bolts for the last time this winter and having a wire strop made.

You can see the blocks from where I had a different set up.

The result is neet and fits nicely infant of the hood (the angle on the boom is good) and when it blows and you have a reef in then its at the end of the boom).

The other leads are for reef lines / outhaul / jib / Kicker etc as needed.

The old Track location has been filled and now holds no hazards (and that includes passing drinks out, we have all been there!)

But the big deal was increasing our living area.

Not a problem if your in the warmer climates but for us in the damp / wet North, a tent is fantastic.

This shot was taken one damp Sunday morning having had a great night, we get to enjoy the evening outside rather than all sitting below decks.

The boom is actually on the bottom of its stop and is apron 3' above the hood.
The tent zips to the hood and each side / or the back can be rolled up independently.

We sailed back from Wales with the hood up. Now thats big boat stuff eh!
T shirts rather than Full OilSkins
Works for me!

The tent can be quickly removed but as there is quite a lot of clear panels I opt to roll it round the supports. It make for fast deployment and doesn't get in the way.

Having said all that

I much prefer the hood down when possible

A look back as to where it all began...

A Podcast from my father John Williams, where he tells of his love of sailing following the sale of my parents Dufour Arpege.
Link to Podcast page

Microburst

So, I had this interesting phenomenon happen August 2013 and when I spoke about it people thought I was joking.So I put it away in the back of my mind and forgot about it.Well that was until I heard an interview on 59 North Podcast by Andy Schell with his interview with Yan Miles, Yan spoke of a Microburst and it got me thinking if thats what I had experienced.

So I was out for a nice sail

Sailing between Dun Laoghaire and around Lambay Island en rout back to Dun Laoghaire.

Wind was steady around 20kts so I had one reef in (my reef's take out 2Mtrs of main each).

Then the an interesting pattern came into play in the sky!

The sky was bright round the weather system but really nasty under it.

I saw what looked like small rain storms, and oh yes they were headed my way!!!

Still bright and maybe a small look of apprehension on my face !!

Maybe 3-4 mins before it hit me.

I rolled up 2/3rds of the jib and held onto the jib sheet.

As the squall hit the wind changed direction, vilantly by around 60 degrees which caused me to tack, fortunately I was holding the jib sheet so I just let it go.

Just look at the windspeed!

Up it goes

Still going up

Not sure the instrument goes any higher.

And back down again. Thank the lord.

A short clip.

So what happened.

Now I think it may have been a Microburst,
Wikipedia definition

This is a clip from someone who had replied to the podcast.
Tucson Wet Microburst | August 8th, 2015

From my side:

• I learned to prepare for squalls. I could see it for miles and it lasted only 3-4 mins in total.
• To roll up the jib prior to it hitting as jib as the whole of the sacrificial strip sticking was blown out and needed re stitching.
• One of the wind speed cups broke off during the squall.
• The VHF whip disappeared.

I think holding the jib sheet saved me from a sure knock down, but rolling the jib would have saved the jib!!

After all that there was only just enough wind to sail home!!!!

We live and learn

Introduction

Nimrod goes podcasting

Introduction

Cockpit Tour

Uploaded video of showing Nimrod's cockpit
Cockpit Tour