Archive for June 2015
Passion scored a handy second on handicap behind a very slippery Izzi today.
The forecast for a north westerly breeze direction was accurate but not the strength. Instead of the ten plus knots we were greeted with drifting conditions off the start line for a tight reach to the south head. We stayed on the windward side of the fleet and were rewarded with stronger and more consistent breeze than L’eau Co and Aggrovation who were not far to leeward. L’eau Co was well in front of us when they stopped in their own calm patch and it was this patch that Aggrovation sailed into. We had Larrikin creeping up behind us and were keeping high both for the wind and for clear air. Rainbow half way between us and L’eau Co missed the calm and was able to work out just ahead of us a the turn.
Panorama photo of the spectacular double rainbow over Sydeny taken on my HTC M8 from the mooring in Woolwich
The track back was much tighter than expected as the wind was shifting left. In the distance we could see the late starting fleet with genoas poled out so we went as high as possible to have room for the approaching header. In this position we were also keeping Larrikin at bay and did so until we had to free up for Steel Point. Larrikin did go over the top and managed to pass Rainbow and keep in front for the shortened course finish in Rose Bay. Rainbow hung on to beat us over the line and only L’eau Co and Aggrovation were behind but our handicap moves us up to second place.
The breeze freshened as we rounded the finish buoy and we had the best work of the day up the harbour to find a sheltered place to drop the main and genoa.
At the mooring the setting sun peeked out below the cloud cover and produced a spectacular double rainbow and bathe the city in golden light. A picture perfect way to end the day.
Dave at the helm and Cockatoo Ferry behind
The West Harbour Race 3 was started in a 3 knot breeze which quickly decreased to nothing.
After an hour of sailing (drifting idle like Coleridge’s painted ship upon a painted ocean) Passion had covered just under one kilometre and the race officials took pity on everyone and abandoned the race.
We had a very nice day on the harbour and provided some entertainment for the ferry passengers at Cockatoo Island. The drifting fleet also presented some challenges for the ferry masters to navigate at the Muster Station Wharf on the Island. All good
Winner on the day Aggrovation
We went back to the black genoa today as the breeze was forecast to be fifteen to twenty. For the first time we poled it out on the long pole and ran downwind very successfully to be just next to Larrikin and Allegro at the turning mark.
It had been a strange day and it was about to get stranger. On the downwind leg we had done very well in the middle of the course and we were battling it out with Britannia and Larrikin for second place behind the flying tiger. Inshore the fleet was becalmed and L Eau Co who had gone further to leeward was a distant last. Then it all changed. The freshening breeze from the south carried almost all the windward fleet past us while behind L Eau Co picked up a big westerly shift and was flying down on us with their genoa poled out.
Eventually L Eau Co’s breeze came down to us and we regained some respectability against the more southerly positioned yachts who had to gybe back to the mark. At this point Larrikin had the inside overlap and managed to come in on port to claim their mark room. On rounding we tacked away before Rainbow could point up to our line and got first use of a lift and on tacking back had made up ground on the fleet.
Two tacks later we heard a crunch under the hull and I felt Passion slow markedly. The helm became heavy and I feared we had a problem with the rudder.
Immediately the fleet started to draw away and now I suspected we had picked up some fishing traps. Kevin looked over the stern and thought he saw a black line. so we started tacking more to see if we could dislodge the object than to take advantage of any wind shifts.
A kilometer up the course we were still in trouble and I suggested to the crew that we might not be able to finish the race. One more tack and I saw a log appearing behind the transom but still stuck to the rudder. I climbed onto the boarding platform and reached down to wriggle the log around and as it came away we could see why we had been slow.
Our consensus estimate is that the log was 1.5 metres long. It was definitely forked at one end with each branch around 75 mm diameter and along the length were multiple branches with an outside diameter of around 300 mm.
I don’t know if it was the fork of the log or one of the many smaller branches that was stuck on the rudder but whatever it was it stayed with us through that kilometer of windward work and multiple tacks.
The really disappointing aspect of this encounter was that it occurred during the freshest part or the day and by the time we cleared it the wind had lightened and we were sitting to leeward tacking for Steel Point surrounded by the big yachts from the Division 1s.
The surprising result from the day is that we did not finish last. Rainbow managed to find some holes up in Rose Bay and had to tack for the Point Piper rounding mark in next to no breeze while we shot the mark without the extra tack. On the final run to the shortened course finish line we had breeze from behind that made our finish a little more respectable.
Another surprise of the day was the second place to L Eau Co who had been stone motherless last out the back on the first run but recovered with the fresh westerly breeze on the run and picked up another westerly shift on the work back. Aggrovation sailed well without any of our dramas to score a well earned first on handicap.
The unseasonally warm weather has been ideal for glassing the hull of our Didi 40 Cr. As of this evening just over half of the hull is covered with 425 gram double bias glass and two or three fine days should see the task finished.
I am mixing enough resin for a resin to glass ratio of 1.67 and generally have a tiny amount of resin over. The glass content is 37% and with these properties the thickness should be 0.75 mm. With this amount of resin I can completely wet out the glass and the laminate should provide both structural strength and water proofing for the plywood for years to come.
Just over half of the hull of our Didi 40 Cr is now covered in 425 gram double bias glass in West system epoxy resin
Today I put the first section of the 425 gram double bias glass cloth on the exterior of our Didi 40 Cr. It seems a long process to get to this stage from the initial fairing some many weeks ago. All the finishing steps like fitting the stem, adding the 2 mm of glass in the keel floor area under the keel shoe, fitting and shaping the keel shoe, drilling the keel bolt holes, planing the ‘V’ of the bottom and adding back the 9 mm ply layer and then shaping that back to the ‘V’ all takes time. As well I left the glass reinforcement of the exterior side of the butt joins in the plywood to the last so that there would be a good chemical bond as well as physical bond to the overlying glass.
Today’s task was the last layer of glass over the keel shoe, and glassing the last two butt joins. After a break for a late morning coffee it was back to final fairing of the stern section and sanding all the weathered timber from the plywood so that the glass was onto a clean sanded surface.
Next task was to make sure the new ‘V’ on the bottom was exactly on the centre line and straight and that needed some fine adjustment with a sanding board loaded up with some 36 grit abrasive. Some final torture boarding of the radius chine finished me off as far as physical activity for the day was concerned. Finally the time came for the first layer of glass. Then it was mix the epoxy and spread the epoxy then roll it out evenly with a foam roller then roll the glass onto the resin squeezing it flat with a plastic spreader as it was rolled out. This process went surprisingly well as the surface is very flat and the glass rolled onto a cardboard tube was well behaved.
Once the glass was well rolled down with the bubble pricking roller the last of the resin was rolled onto the surface and then spread again with the plastic spreader. With all the bubbles removed the peel ply was rolled out using a second cardboard tube and it went equally well. Using the plastic spreader again all the air bubbles between the peel ply and the glass were spread out an in the process the laminate smoothed out reasonably well.
A butt join grooved ready for the reinforcing glass
A butt join with 1.2 kg of glass per m2 across the join and covered in peel ply
A butt join across the bottom of the hull with continuous glass from radius chine to radius chine
Wednesday was another light day with just enough breeze for a full length course in chilly conditions.
Again we sailed well downwind with our big genoa poled out but with more breeze around than last week we were mid fleet at the turning mark for the long beat home.
The breeze was forecast to swing left so I wanted to be on the shore side of the course on the beat back. As luck would have L Eau Co and Mercedes IV went right and got more breeze and a big right hander to bring them out well ahead of us.
We had a duel with Rainbow and Agrovation to get to the finish line first. We had Rainbow pinned below us on port going to the finish line but he pulled away enough to attempt a tack onto Starboard and I was unsure if he would clear us so I took the precaution of tacking below him but in the process could not make the finish line on Starboard. The line was so biased to the boat there was only room for a single yacht on starboard to pass the line so we had to wait for Agrovation to come steaming in behind Rainbow before we could tack to port for the cross. The maneuver cost us a minute and a half and one place on handicap but it was worth a lot more in the pride stakes.
With hindsight I should have headed away while on port giving Rainbow no room to tack to the finish line and that is what will happen next time. The alternative of playing chicken and having a collision with them mid tack is not worth the angst.