It's been a little more than a month. 4 weekends of some really fabulous sailing and one weekend of installing a diesel heater. All good fun. I have absolutely no complaints about the new boat. When you buy something that is nineteen years old and reasonably complex, you expect to find at least one nasty surprise somewhere, but as I open up electrical panels and drill holes in diesel tanks, I find that the boat is in near new condition. Not fanatically maintained, just untouched and well preserved. It could be five years old. (except every light in the cabin and they're all replaced now).
Life is good. Well except for a few things...
The one challenge I have is actually getting out of my slip.
Moorage is tight in Vancouver. People buy brand new boats and leave them sitting on the hard for two years before they can splash them in the drink. So when my marina manager assigned me to my new 35' slip that the stern of my 34' boat hangs out of by 4ft, I just smiled and wrote the cheque. Between me and my neighbour, there is exactly one foot of space (on a perfectly executed docking maneuver the fenders kind of compress and roll against each other as they pass). There is about 38 feet between the piling on my port side and the transoms of the boats opposite. I need to make a sharp turn to starboard in a little more than a boat length as I back out.
You're already smiling. You know all about the whole prop walk thing. But wait it get's better. After a big rainstorm the creek at the end of the cove (my starboard side) registers 11 on the knot meter of the little sailboat over on the sales dock (sea trials only on dry days at high tide - I have pictures that make it look like a river rafting adventure). My slip is 30 boats away and two aisles over so I'm sure I'm only dealing with an unfavourable current of 2 to 3 knots. On a perfect day with an incoming tide and and a no wind or wind on the port beam with a good shot of throttle in reverse for half a boat length or so, I can get enough way on, shift to neutral, I can turn about 45 degrees. Another shot of throttle in forward with the wheel hard over the other way avoids imminent gelcoat and pushpit rail demise and kicks the stern around enough that I am nearly pointed in the right direction and a little work from the foredeck crew with a boat hook on the piling (by the way the shiny new telescoping boat hook from WM? - crap) and we're on our way.
With an incoming tide or wind on the starboard beam, (common) I end up backing down the channel past another 25 boats until I can turn around. Any suggestions from veteran C34 handlers? There was a great FAQ on backing into a slip, but I'm damned if I can back out.
Thanks,
Steve
BTW - Why is that the marine stores all sell shiny deck fill fittings marked "diesel", "water", "waste" or "gas", but nowhere can I find a fitting marked "rum"? Without the right parts that project may have to wait until after the windlass install and the dodger...
Life is good. Well except for a few things...
The one challenge I have is actually getting out of my slip.
Moorage is tight in Vancouver. People buy brand new boats and leave them sitting on the hard for two years before they can splash them in the drink. So when my marina manager assigned me to my new 35' slip that the stern of my 34' boat hangs out of by 4ft, I just smiled and wrote the cheque. Between me and my neighbour, there is exactly one foot of space (on a perfectly executed docking maneuver the fenders kind of compress and roll against each other as they pass). There is about 38 feet between the piling on my port side and the transoms of the boats opposite. I need to make a sharp turn to starboard in a little more than a boat length as I back out.
You're already smiling. You know all about the whole prop walk thing. But wait it get's better. After a big rainstorm the creek at the end of the cove (my starboard side) registers 11 on the knot meter of the little sailboat over on the sales dock (sea trials only on dry days at high tide - I have pictures that make it look like a river rafting adventure). My slip is 30 boats away and two aisles over so I'm sure I'm only dealing with an unfavourable current of 2 to 3 knots. On a perfect day with an incoming tide and and a no wind or wind on the port beam with a good shot of throttle in reverse for half a boat length or so, I can get enough way on, shift to neutral, I can turn about 45 degrees. Another shot of throttle in forward with the wheel hard over the other way avoids imminent gelcoat and pushpit rail demise and kicks the stern around enough that I am nearly pointed in the right direction and a little work from the foredeck crew with a boat hook on the piling (by the way the shiny new telescoping boat hook from WM? - crap) and we're on our way.
With an incoming tide or wind on the starboard beam, (common) I end up backing down the channel past another 25 boats until I can turn around. Any suggestions from veteran C34 handlers? There was a great FAQ on backing into a slip, but I'm damned if I can back out.
Thanks,
Steve
BTW - Why is that the marine stores all sell shiny deck fill fittings marked "diesel", "water", "waste" or "gas", but nowhere can I find a fitting marked "rum"? Without the right parts that project may have to wait until after the windlass install and the dodger...