New Boat 4 Sled

[sleddog]

Like many on this Forum, I much enjoy sailing and racing shorthanded, either singlehanded or doublehanded.

I've raced with big crews, 15-20 on the maxi WINDWARD PASSAGE, 8-16 on MERLIN and Santa Cruz 70's, 6-9 on Santa Cruz 50's, and 4-5 on Moore 24's. Whether day racing, overnight, or across oceans, shorthanded is just more fun, simpler, less crowded, and rewards creativeness, teamwork, anticipation, and trust.

Yesterday, in consistent, prefrontal, southerly breeze of 10-18 knots, there were 86 DH entries in 10 classes competing in a 14 mile DH race, in the Bay, sponsored by the YRA. For Kim and I on the Wylie-39 CHECKERED PAST, with close competition in our 10 boat class, we had much fun sharing our similar outlooks and 65 years of experience of sailing with and against each other. Kim started CHECKERED PAST, steered the upwind legs (2) and mark roundings (2) while I tended the XL mainsail with its twin topping lifts, choker, vang, Cunningham, and mainsheet. Kim let me drive downwind with GREEN BUFFALO breathing down our necks, two sails against one.

It was fun watching the BUFFALO crew of Jim Q. and son Stephen pull off multiple 2 pole spinnaker gybes with aplomb just astern.

Also in the hunt were Cinde Lou, Millie B, and the ship's dog aboard the all electric Alerion Express ANOTHER GIRL. And not far behind were Gordie and Ruth on ARCADIA, and Pat and Michael on the WylieCat 30 NANCY. It was a Time-on-Time Race, not Time on Distance, so consistent good breeze likely favored the faster boats on handicap, both overall and in class.

All in all, a fun day, even for the RYC neighbors on their J-100 that were never able to properly fly their spinnaker on the 7 mile run from Blossom to "R-14" by the Richmond Bridge center span due to top down spinnaker furler malfunction. I seem to remember similar issues aboard RAGTIME! some years ago. Clearly, there is a learning curve, just as there is for a spinnaker snuffer. When they work, they're great. And when they don't, all hell can break loose.

Race Results here: https://www.jibeset.net/show.php?RR=YRA_T006911464&DOC=r1&TYP=html

 

[sleddog]

A recent mast failure (it stayed upright) on a local Olson-30 featured a below deck horizontal crack beginning at a instrumentation wire hole in the front of the mast the size of a coax connector. The crack almost entirely circled the mast before it was noticed.

~ 50% of aluminum mast failures occur in this vicinity: 6" either side of the mast partner at the deck. One culprit is corrosion behind the boom vang plate, where stainless fasteners interact with aluminum sidewall. Another problem area is at the deck collar, where adjustable backstays provide continual working stress, like bending an aluminum can back and forth. Cracks in this area can be hidden by waterproofing attempts and only revealed when the mast is unstepped.

Holes drilled in an aluminum mast for wiring exits should be on the side, not on the front where stress is concentrated.

The fix for mast cracks in these areas is to internally sleeve the mast. In fact, sleeving older masts before a crack develops is not out of the question.

 

[solosailor]

Charge cords really don’t like sea boats. The devices themselves are typically fine, it’s the charging that takes them down. Every charge cord, of every type (USB-A to micro-USB, USB-A to mini-SUB, USB-A to USB-C, USB-C to USB-C, laptop charge bricks) has failed at least once. So the lesson is, hard-wire everything with heat-shrink connectors.

Corrosion-X is your friend. I hit all my cable ends and ports with it.

 

[DaveH]

A recent mast failure (it stayed upright) on a local Olson-30 featured a below deck horizontal crack beginning at a instrumentation wire hole in the front of the mast the size of a coax connector. The crack almost entirely circled the mast before it was noticed.

~ 50% of aluminum mast failures occur in this vicinity: 6" either side of the mast partner at the deck. One culprit is corrosion behind the boom vang plate, where stainless fasteners interact with aluminum sidewall. Another problem area is at the deck collar, where adjustable backstays provide continual working stress, like bending an aluminum can back and forth. Cracks in this area can be hidden by waterproofing attempts and only revealed when the mast is unstepped.

Holes drilled in an aluminum mast for wiring exits should be on the side, not on the front where stress is concentrated.

The fix for mast cracks in these areas is to internally sleeve the mast. In fact, sleeving older masts before a crack develops is not out of the question.

Hedgehog's mast an evolved version of the O-30 mast - Internally sleeved from jump, the wire cuts are in the side, and sized to barely accommodate the wire sans connector (ok also the NMEA micro plug). They're also about 4" above the step, just above the internal shoe.
Doesn't get me out of pulling the gasket more or less annually.

 

[sleddog]

Hedgehog's mast an evolved version of the O-30 mast - Internally sleeved from jump, .

Where's the "jump.?" Was the internal sleeve originally stock, or a later addition? Is the boom internally sleeved at the vang? Inquiring minds and such. For those unfamiliar, Hedgehog the Sailor, not the boat, has put his masthead in the water during a SHTP. Doggies.

 

[everydaysailor]

The PCExpress underwent mast inspection/repairs in Jan. We found some serious ugly at the mast base and cut an inch and a half off the bottom. It's now supported by a nice block of phenolic. Thank you Pacific Rigging!

 

[DaveH]

Where's the "jump.?" Was the internal sleeve originally stock, or a later addition? Is the boom internally sleeved at the vang? Inquiring minds and such. For those unfamiliar, Hedgehog the Sailor, not the boat, has put his masthead in the water during a SHTP. Doggies.

yes, the OEM mast for the O-29 from Ballenger is internally sleeved up to 10' above deck. Basically to just below the first spreaders.
Hedgehog's boom is not the OEM aluminum one, but a carbon section of a Melges 24 mast with custom SS fittings at both ends. The vang attachment point is reinforced, but primarily with external vacuum bagged carbon build up (internal receiver plates. but not sleeving per se).

Ironically, Dominos mast, which is the one I dipped in 2016, was one of the original single spreader O-30 masts... Proctor made it, it was/is a tree trunk!
DH

 

[Philpott]

For those unfamiliar, Hedgehog the Sailor, not the boat, has put his masthead in the water during a SHTP. Doggies.

Ah, yes. Mr Hedgehog. Why, I remember watching his little boatie on the tracker as the fleet crossed the Pacific toward Kauai in 2016.

"What's this?!" cried the race committee. "A hurricane approaching! Oh, hell! (or something like that) Is it outside assistance if we notify the fleet of its approach?!"

Dithering ... Angsting ... beating of chests ensued.

"YES!" Was the consensus. "Or NO!" In any event, the fleet was notified.

We watched as, one by one the little boaties turned to starboard, away from the dreadful, fearful approach of the hurricane.

But, wait! What was that lone boatie boat doing!? It was not turning to starboard. It was turning ... uh! uh! THE WRONG WAY! It was turning SOUTH! Right into the path of the big bad hurricane.

"WTH!!!" *cried the Race Chair. "What is Herrigel doing? Did he not get the memo?!!"

And the rest, as they say, is part of SSS history. I will leave the conclusion of that particular story to others. It's one of my favorites, and one that causes me to say to E Dock arrivistes: "I know him"


* WTH = What The Hell, this being a NotAnarchy site

 

[sleddog]

The PCExpress underwent mast inspection/repairs in Jan. We found some serious ugly at the mast base and cut an inch and a half off the bottom. It's now supported by a nice block of phenolic. Thank you Pacific Rigging!

 

[sleddog]

Can anyone tell what is going on here and why?

 

[AntsUiga]

Can anyone tell what is going on here and why?

View attachment 6339

It seems to be an entrance to a barge traffic tunnel. The photo does not support 2 way traffic.

My guess is location is in Europe - there is an extensive barge network for hauling freight.

Ants

 

[BobJ]

This article has more details, and a more recent article suggests it will be ready for use in a couple more years:

https://www.wired.com/2017/04/norways-bold-maybe-foolhardy-plan-build-worlds-first-ship-tunnel/

 

[sleddog]

It seems to be an entrance to a barge traffic tunnel. The photo does not support 2 way traffic. My guess is location is in Europe - there is an extensive barge network for hauling freight. Ants

Thanks, Ants and BobJ. No ordinary European barge tunnel this. But the first so called "ship tunnel" to be blasted out of a mountain in Norway (construction has not yet started.) It will save shipping having to round the Stadlandet Peninsula, the Cape Horn of Norway and its notorious rough seas.



I cannot fathom the amount of blasting and tunneling this project will take. Good gravy!

Reminds of Helgoland, a small German island in the North Sea where we sailed the 1969 One Ton World Championships. During WWII, Helgoland had been hollowed out by the Germans with a warren of tunnels that accommodated thousands of soldiers and a fleet of U-boats (submarines)

The Brits got pissed at the proximity of this German redoubt and on April 18th, 1945 sent 1,000 bombers to blast Helgoland off the face of the earth with little effect.

Two years later the Brits packed the tunnels with explosives and created the largest non-nuclear explosion in history.



Again, the island didn't budge, and today Helgoland is a pleasant, if rather windy, resort where visitors enjoy duty free shopping and lie on sand beaches inside metallic wind barriers that reflect northern European sunlight onto white skin.



Tip to the Norwegians: before beginning to blast a mile of rock underground for the ship tunnel, best to have a Plan B.

 

[sleddog]

Many readers are likely familiar with the Tres Marias Islands, 70 miles NW of Banderas Bay and Puerto Vallarta. As a Mexican penal colony, they were off limits to approach by passing yachts. As of this week, things are changing. Here's the scoop from the Darien newspaper.



MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican officials said ferries and cruise ships may soon be visiting the former Isla Marias prison, after the last island penal colony in the Americas was closed and turned into an environmental education center in 2019.

The education camp hasn’t gone very well — only 40 youths have been trained on the island — and the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is now trying a different tack, because the island hasn't been offsetting the costs associated with keeping it open.

Officials said Saturday they are planning to build a dock for larger ships on the Isla Madre main island, the only one of the four Marias islands that is inhabited. Visitors will be able to tour the remote island jail, but not stay overnight. Tourism Secretary Miguel Torruco described future tours.

“The experience begins with the cruise ship or ferry arriving from Mazatalán or San Blas, to Isla Madre, and on the voyage the passengers can admire the beauty of the ocean," Torruco said. It would be quite a long ride; the four islands are located 70 miles (110 kilometers) off the Pacific coast of Nayarit state.

“Visitors will have their first contact with the former island prison which for 100 years sheltered numerous criminals,” Torruco said. Officials compared it to the now-closed U.S. prison at Alcatraz, and said tourist visits could start within three months.
Read More

The penal colony, founded in 1905, passed through some periods of infamous brutality, and as recently as 2013, the Islas Marias held 8,000 inmates.

The hemisphere was once dotted with remote island jails like the one depicted in the movie “Papillon,” but they all gradually closed. When Panama closed its Isla Coiba penal colony in 2004, Isla Marias became the last one remaining in the Americas.

But far from the bloody reputation of places like Devil’s Island — the French Guiana penal colony shuttered in 1946 — toward the end, the Islas Marias harbored many lower-risk or well-behaved inmates and the colony was viewed as a step toward release or rehabilitation.

While the prison kept mass tourism at bay, the islands suffered severe environmental degradation from over a century of use as a penal colony.

Island penal colonies were used around the world starting in the 1700s as remote, escape-proof places to “rehabilitate” inmates through hard labor. Often known as “prisons without bars,” with the ocean serving as the most effective barrier to escape, the penal colonies were also known for being at least in part self-supporting and a way to settle remote islands.

But in the end, the Islas Marias wound up costing Mexico far more per prisoner than did mainland jails.

Chile closed its Santa Maria prison island in the late 1980s, Costa Rica’s Isla San Lucas penal colony closed in 1991 and Brazil’s Isla Grande in 1994. Peru dramatically ended its El Fronton island prison in 1986: Gunboats blew up most of the buildings to put down a riot, killing more than 100 inmates.

 

[AntsUiga]

There is no doubt there could be an interesting travel itinerary to visit closed prisons without walls (from Alcatraz to wherever your vessel will take you). However, all are in historical status and no active encounters would happen.

For a visit to an active institution, a trip to monasteries on a world wide basis, such as Mt Athos in Greece may be an alternative. Unfortunately, the monastic tradition at Mt Athos since their founding does not allow female visitors (sorry, Jacquie), with some historical reference of the land being consecrated to Mary, when she left the promised land and set foot on the Mt Athos peninsula.

Due to reports of scandalous behavior by the monks, female versions of sheep, goats, and other domestic mammals were also banned.

Other than a few eccentric protocols, visiting would surely be a delight.

Ants

 

[sleddog]

Anatomy of a grounding



What's wrong with this picture?

1) The economy of the World relies on the success of this front hoe driver. He's unlicensed, works for packs of cigarettes, and quits at 5. The owner of the ship has written an apology to the World.

2) The waterline was painted by the same company that attached the bulb on the bow crooked.

3) The ship can't back up, it's too long to clear the land astern

4) The captain on the bridge can't see what's happening, he's surrounded by containers and his cameras stopped working in the dust storm.

5) Helicopters may start unloading containers from the ship shortly, greatly increasing wealth of the Bedouin locals.

6) All of the above.

A good friend is captain of a near identical ship to the EVER GIVEN, 1,300 feet x 18,800 TEU. My friend wrote me this after near grounding in Suez Canal last year.

During this Suez Canal transit I was very close to grounding. Pilot was an old, tired man, helmsman not the brightest seaman on board, duty 2nd mate just the average one. He is Arab guy and they usually don't show too much activity except when it concerns food and rest.

So, I was just sending an email from the computer next to navigation table when I heard orders from pilot 'port ten' immediately followed by more excited voice 'port twenty'. I immediately realized something
went wrong and moved next to helmsman and ME telegraph. We were running at ME rpm between dead slow and slow, just entering section turning some 20 degrees to port. Our draft was 15.6 m, nearly fully
loaded.

I saw our bow approaching shallow water on the starboard side with rate of turn just 1 degree per minute to port. I informed pilot that helmsman will now follow my orders, moved telegraph to full ahead, ordered rudder full to port. After that we finally started turning faster to port as necessary but our stern was, at the same time, approaching pretty fast shallow water on the starboard side, we could feel the bank effect acting.

Next I ordered rudder full to starboard. As soon as the stern stopped approaching the shore I moved telegraph to 'slow ahead' in order not to speed up too much. With the ship loaded like EVER GIVEN you are asking for trouble in Suez in case the speed reaches some 12 knots. As soon as you move from the center of canal you feel the bow or stern, whichever is closer to shore, is sucked to
the side.

Of course reducing of speed also reduces maneuverability. Our bow started to be sucked to port side shore no matter the rudder was all the time at hard starboard. Again moved telegraph to 'full
ahead' and when bow started to move to starboard reduced to 'slow ahead' and rudder full to port. After that we stabilized our movement more or less in the middle of the canal, slowly turning to port as we
needed.

Pilot told me half an hour before that incident that he is the senior Suez Canal pilot and that I can go to take a rest in my cabin ... Luckily I know those 'professionals' and don't leave the bridge during the whole SC transit. If I was not on the bridge in that situation I'm 100% sure we would run aground. Well, we managed to avoid the accident and saved at the same time some cigarettes as I didn't give the pilot anything. And believe or not, he was not even surprised .

 

[Philpott]

“The owner of the ship has written an apology to the World.“ great line, Skip. If he’s really really sorry then I’m willing to offer absolution. How about you?

 

[sleddog]

Hi Jackie,
The Japanese owner of EVERGREEN Marine, Shoei Kisen Kaishais, is Japanese and I assume a Buddhist. I doubt he'll give a whit about our absolutions, as it's not in their playbook. However, kharma is...

So what can we take away from this ship grounding that, if not resolved shortly, is going to bring the world economy to its knees? One opinion is petro-chemical products are going to be more scarce and costly. All those tankers are going to have to sail around Africa, adding nearly two weeks to a shipment. Prius and Tesla owners are going to be smiling.

More seriously, a close friend in WA state, a sailor, naturalist, writer, and editor of the Pathfinder wrote this "Reflection" last month. I find paying attention to what Evelyn observes is time well spent.

Reflection by Evelyn Adams

It’s bad enough when land is desecrated and a species put at risk of going extinct because of humans. It’s even worse when it’s done in the name of “green” energy.

Used to be, we were horrified by mountaintop removal for coal extraction or tar sands tailing ponds filled with toxic waste to keep the fossil-fueled train rolling. Now it’s open-pit mining to access the lithium needed for all the electric cars that will help get us to “net-zero” by 2050.

President Biden wants to “put the United States on a path to achieve net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by no later than 2050.” Sounds good and necessary in this desperate time, until you think about that “net-zero.”* To reach net-zero, any carbon we put into the air needs to be taken out again, either by natural means (e.g. regenerative ag, reforestation) or technological means (e.g. direct air carbon capture and storage). It’s a bit like saying we can have our carbon-cake and eat it too.

Only we can’t. The “solutions” available to us are largely unproven and can’t scale up enough in an impossibly short time to keep us below 1.5°C. We can’t stay on a path still hell-bent on growth and negate all of the energy that requires. Something has to give.

Should it be the Earth? Do we continue our wholesale assault on the planet, most recently documented by two new biodiversity crisis reports? (See “Climate Updates”)

Current extinction rates are about 100 to 1,000 times higher than normal, and increasing. One species teetering on the brink is Tiehm’s Buckwheat, a lovely desert flower that lives only on ten acres of public land in Nevada’s Thacker Pass. If a mining company gets its way, the plant will disappear forever.



So? Why are some folks fighting to prevent the “clean energy” future the world needs, wonders a mining executive. “Climate change poses an immediate threat to all the species on Earth.” Shouldn’t we sacrifice a small flower to save many?

But ramping up clean-energy production doesn’t save life on earth, it saves our way of life on earth. Or we hope it will.

It’s not just one flower at risk in Thatcher Pass. Another mine proposed nearby threatens the Greater sage grouse, trout, pygmy rabbits, Pronghorn antelopes, burrowing owls, bighorn sheep, golden eagles, bats, bees, and more.

What is it we really need? More cars to zoom around in or functioning, flourishing ecosystems that support life in all of its amazing complexity?

Maybe we could draw down much of the emissions we generate if we scaled back our enormous appetites and lived within the limits of the Earth to provide for all of its beings. Radically reduce our consumption, and our population.

Biden’s impressive but top-heavy climate plan makes no mention of asking the American people to step up and scale down. Is it too much to suggest we come together over the common purpose of figuring out how to live more lightly on the planet? Instead we’re talking about tearing up the earth to keep the energy ball rolling. And counting on unproven methods to clean up our mess.

Shall we kill the earth then, to save the earth? Or, more particularly, to save our powered-up way of life?

Thousands of claims to mine lithium have been staked on federal lands in anticipation of the growing need for EV batteries. The rush was likely fueled when the Biden campaign told miners in October that he wanted to increase domestic lithium production.

Meanwhile, scientists and conservationists have sent an urgent request to the President to save the Tiehm’s Buckwheat. Says one, “The Biden administration can stop this species’ slide toward extinction if they act urgently to protect it.”

We shall see. A small plant isn’t all that’s at stake here.


*To learn more about the problem with net-zero, see this excellent article: https://www.climatechangenews.com/2020/12/11/10-myths-net-zero-targets-carbon-offsetting-busted/

 

[sleddog]

CBC is known for its sometimes unorthodox expeditions. This would be the story of one.

It would be hard to overstate the springtime beauty of the Merced River canyon leading to Yosemite at this time of year. I'd left CBC early, before dawn, with my kayak and bike stowed aboard, and drove towards the Sierra for a little paddling adventure.

The lush green mountain slopes were exploding with large swaths of poppies, while closer to the Merced River the pink redbud trees were also blooming just inland from the river rapids.



Once in Yosemite Valley I drove to Cathedral Beach, about a mile up valley from Bridalveil Fall. With no one around, I left my bike locked to a tree and drove 4 miles on South Side Drive to historical Stoneman Bridge (1933), my intended launch put-in.



Merced River water temp was barely above freezing from snowmelt up high (this was Wednesday, 3/24/21) but it was shorts and T-shirt weather on the Valley floor.. It felt good to be launching a boat with zero moving parts except for its human, especially with spectacular Yosemite views on all points of the compass: Half Dome behind, Royal Arches and Washington Column to starboard, Sentinel Dome to port, and El Cap and Cathedral Spires on the bow.

Mostly, the current wasn't very fast except at occasional narrows and bends. Just as well, I hadn't brought a spray skirt, wet suit, or camera dry bag. However, a short ways downstream was Sentinel Footbridge. As I approached I could see the channel was narrowed by a fallen tree under the bridge. In fact, there was only a narrow passage on river left, about 8 feet wide. And in the middle was a protruding rock with 1 foot standing waves on both sides.

This did give momentary pause. But fortunately my sit-inside kayak is stable and indestructible polyethelene. Just as well, as I bounced off the rock with a thud that I'm sure entertained the spectators peering downward overhead on the footbridge.

After that encounter, there were no other obstacles, traffic, or spectators, except for many merganzers and mallards, and one coyote hoofing along the bank.

After about an hour of paddling and coasting, I approached a grand view of El Capitan ("the Captain") on the bow. Navigation had been relatively easy, though there were places the bottom of the kayak scraped over shingle pebbles. An SUP's 6" skeg would have been more problematical.



But now a challenge appeared ahead: There was a large tree, 70 feet long and 6' in diameter, blocking the river from bank to bank, with no way over, under, or around. Hmmmm.

Taking a page from the recent Suez Canal grounding, I nosed into the river bank, and got one leg out of the kayak cockpit to hold position while reconnoitering how to ascend the 8 foot vertical riverbank of soft, black, dirt. Nothing for it but to dig in my fingers and claw up.

The short ascent was successful, and I pulled the kayak up behind. Then portaged through 50 yards of forest to a relaunch site on a narrow beach below. All good!

That was pretty much it. 200 yards further on I hauled out on Cathedral Beach, walked across some unmelted snow, exchanged my locked bike against the tree for the kayak, and peddled back to retrieve the car.



I was home to CBC by dark, enough scenery, exercise, and occasional challenges to satisfy any modest yachting adventure.

 

[sleddog]

John Wayne's character uttered the famous phrase "she's coming in on one wing and prayer in the 1943 movie The Flying Tigers.

It's going to take more than a wing and a prayer to get the EVER GIVEN unstuck in the Suez Canal.



When the head of the famed Dutch salvage firm Smit Salvage says, "you're not going to pull that ship off any time soon," you can take that to the bank. Unloading and lightening ship seems an option. But the ship is so top heavy that offloading fuel will likely cause the ship to capsize. And beginning to offload a portion of 20,000 containers could take months.

A wing and a prayer seems optimistic. However, what may have contributed to the grounding is the fact the two Suez Canal pilots in charge aboard EVER GIVEN when it grounded were reportedly under a table on the bridge on rugs praying in the direction of Mecca. As well, the wind was being clocked aboard at 27 knots, that's Force 6, a strong breeze.

Houston, we have a problem.