Sailing Before the Storm - Sailing HideAway

In times of quarantine it's good to get away for awhile.  This video was shot last August as hurricane Dorian threatened our area.   May we all have the same good fortune as that day.

SMALL BOATS ROCK!

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Sailing HideAway- Installing New Trailer Guides- The Video

The proper way to bring in the New Year is a first day morning sail on the HideAway.  After a perfect launch sequence New Year’s Eve we tied off on a finger pier and went to our sailing club party.  Of course, we stayed for the World Famous Cooler Drop, a celebratory paper flute of champagne, and danced a jig or two before retiring aboard the HideAway. 

The first morning of the new decade brought sunny skies and light air- more of a float than a sail, but after exceeding the sailor’s allowed time ashore, we were happy to be aboard.

Recovery was a different story.  Overconfident perhaps, I don't know- but somehow, backing down, I jacked our new trailer away from the dock. Somehow, Linda didn't see it.  Somehow, the keel missed the keel board- landing between the trailer bunk supports which heeled the boat over- way over- towards the dock.  Somehow, I got too far down the bumpy ramp and put the rear truck wheels in the water up to the bumper.   Bob C. saw our predicament and came running to help.  He saved more than the day.  

Recently, we had non-sailor guests aboard for a sail on Boca Ciega Bay-Gulfport Fl.  We went over the usual safety list.  We explained that because of HideAway’s small size everybody is a crew member and that whomever is on the tiller is the Captain. The confirmed wind that day was 14-18 kn gusting to 23 kn. Because of this we may need to talk very loudly and that all commands must be repeated.  The boat will heel 25 degrees, but will not tip over, you may feel some spray and the rigging may howl.

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Sailing Swiss Cheese Winds

 Like Swiss Cheese: The bay has holes in the wind or wind in the holes, depending on your point of view. You can be rail down one moment and in the doldrums the next.   There is nothing so frustrating as to see a boat only a hundred yards away with a bone in her teeth while you sit becalmed, although watching catspaws come close by only to fade two breaths away is in the running.

Sailing with Wide Eyes

Usually the higher wind is on the West side of the bay nearer to the Gulf of Mexico.  On this day the high velocity wind was on the East side.  That meant our never-been-on-a-sailboat guests, now promoted to crew, would have to learn early and fast on our cruise to nowhere.  It would be robust, wide-eyed sailing to the lighter winds on the West end of the bay.   

Never heard of Wide Eye Sailing?  Well, it’s a HideAway thing.  If we have new crew aboard the Captain and the First Mate watch their eyes.  The wider the crew’s eyes become the more conservative the sailing must be.   It’s time to come in if they get really wide, or missing that: If the wind in the rigging is not the source of the howling.

Returning to the same pier, Mr. E our ever hardy 28 year old outboard, coughed then ceased to function as we tied up.  The new Crew had fairly wide eyes and we were fairly worn out, so we decided to let the HideAway rest overnight.  

Now the Fun Begins

Hoping for calmer winds, we returned the next day to recover the boat. Mr. E ran for almost 10 seconds, decided he’d had enough, and quit. Usually, I can persuade him to start, but not this time.  In order to get back to the ramp we had to turn the boat 180 degrees through the 20-25kn wind and then approach the ramp under bare poles.  It’s not the sailing that's hard- it’s the concrete boat ramp that is the worry.

Richard W. came over from his boat.  It took the three of us to combat the wind, however we were successful in phase one of the project.   To gain better steerage I raised HideAway's kick up rudder slightly and shoved off.  Under no sail we gained more speed than necessary or comfortable. I fish tailed the rudder and held it askew to slow down.  Steve H. and Richard were at the dock ramp to prevent the fiberglass from meeting the concrete. 

Sailing HideAway Rudder Partially Raised 

The boat safely tied to the boat ramp dock, now all that we needed to do was put it on the trailer.  I brought the trailer around and started to back down the ramp, but by then the wind had blown HideAway's stern away from the dock. Aha! But this time I had the new trailer guides. (See the video below).   

Under normal conditions the trailer guide would be the fulcrum to lever the stern in. The wind, blowing well into the 20s, over powered both Linda and my efforts to center the boat.  Raising the white flag of surrender, I began to pull the empty trailer out when Ed M. and Steve saw our plight from the club house and came to help. Between the three of them they were able to hold the boat straight and the recovery was successful. The rest, as it has been said, is history.   

Sailing HideAway- High Wind Recovery

  

Even with careful planning and help from our heroic friends, recovering the HideAway has become too much of an adventure.

In the past we judged wind speed in terms of sailing the boat.  In both of these cases the wind and water conditions were within the boat’s capabilities.  Indeed, we have sailed much longer in much higher seas and wind conditions.  During the events described here we were under full sail with the 135 jib.  Reefing and a smaller jib would have made sailing less tiring, however, even with my full body weight I could barely pull the boat to the dock.

The sailing is not the issue

Now when we look at the wind forecast boat recovery must be in the equation.  The new trailer guides should keep us sailing for a long while yet. 

  

SMALL BOATS ROCK!!

Sailing HideAway New Trailer: Horizon 20 or Com Pac 23?

FIRST LAUNCH - WHAT'S WRONG? 

We wondered why we could not get the boat far enough to the front of the trailer to balance the load.
The initial launch/recovery left the tongue so light the boat threatened to tip back on on the trailer. 

KEEL IS WAY TO FAR AFT

During the process of adjusting various trailer parts we discovered the name on the trailer was "20 Horizon ".  The Horizon is a 20 foot centerboard cat boat that draws less and is lighter than the HideAway, a Com Pac 23.  The trailer keel board, a 2 x 6, is hopefully a SYP Pressure treated board, yet seems much to narrow for HideAways 11" wide keel.  





A phone call to Com Pac confirmed both boats use the same trailer. 

Really?    

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Sailing HideAway- ComPac 23 New Trailer Launch- What You Should Know First

Fitting your sailboat to a new trailer, even a trailer that has been built to the boat manufacturer's specification, is a risky business.  Do not assume it is a finished product.  In the image below the red arrow at the stern of the boat shows the HideAway lifted off the trailer, supported only by the rear supports or a anti-gravity device was installed at no charge if the sailboat manufacture was correct.

The attached video is longer than most I've produced because I wanted to give you a real sense of what fitting the boat to the trailer entails. After viewing the video I realized we made some mistakes in the process but ultimately were successful.   As I've written before: You are as likely to see a mistake as much as the correct way to do things.  In other words I've made the mistakes and successes for you to see.  Fair winds.

Stoned Sailing Squirrels et al - Sailing HideAway

THE GOLDEN HOUR ARRIVES

Recently, I found myself in a small, backwater, coastal town 

down in Florida.  So remote was the place that most 

of the inhabitants spend their entire lives searching for it.   

Only a few are successful.  

Caladesi Island State Park, Dunedin, Fl 

My excuse was a wrong turn down a sandy, palm tree 

lined road, and you know the kind, where the grass 

grows in the middle and red headed lizards wait 

for prey in the soft, white sand tracks among the pines.

FISH HAWK AKA OSPREY

The voice of the Fish Hawk lead me towards a small marina

 hidden by thick mangroves, on a day so hot the plastic

 wood dock threatened to melt into ice cube trays to cool off. 

(You remember ice cube trays, I’m sure, right?).

After moments of searching I have found concrete proof 

of what happens to sailors who fail to sail often enough.

  The poor creatures are hard to find.  Now I know why.

There were no witnesses when I first saw the couple, out

 of the corner of my eye, sitting on the dock.  I wasn’t sure

 what my corner eye saw initially, except the couple

 were, in fact, contemplating climbing  aboard a nice

 blue sailing cruiser. They did not seem to move, 

at least not quickly.

CONCRETE EVIDENCE- STONED SQUIRRELS

The sailors, you must understand, had been too long 

ashore, lost their sea legs and much in the way 

galvanized steel turns to rust, they had turned to stone.

  Worse, they had become... Well - Squirrels.

SAILING HIDEAWAY Another Adventure Begins

 Don’t let this happen to you!  

Untie that boat! Raise her sails! 

Let your inner stone squirrel fly free!

See Sailing HideAway Videos Here

SMALL BOATS ROCK!

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Sailing HideAway Prepare for The Storm - Main Sail Tie Down

In this video we show a quick, easy way to tie down your main sail, however if the word "Hurricane" appears in the forecast, we strip the boat, tie it down the best we can, and go home.

Building or Buying a Sailboat Trailer? Check this out What You Should Know

Rusted Suspension Nuts

Rust it seems, interferes with every salt water sailor’s allotted distance made good over water. 

No matter what the reason, whether long neglected home improvement projects – After all we don’t live aboard the HideAway.  Or worse, our sailing dollar must include costs to keep the 20 year old pickup wandering down the road. –No truck means no launch capability. Not many sail their trucks but on the HideAway it’s a fact of life. 

 Well you get the picture

So, for the last many tides the HideAway sat unattended but not abandoned.  She is fully found.  Her keel thirsty for any water that does not fall from the sky.

The Scene

After a particularly heavy deluge of sky water I climbed HideAways ladder, tied it off to the stern cleat, and opened the cabin to check the water depth in the small buckets hanging from partially opened ports.  Three inches port side - One inch starboard.  The rain was more horizontal than vertical that.


I dumped the water down the sink and then on a whim, flipped on the bilge pump.  Yeah, I know it should be automatic – Another incomplete project.   Sadly, these days HideAway does not spend enough time in the water for that to be worrisome.    Pumped about a quart.  Must have been some storm.

Going With The Flow

Structural Rust 

The pumped or dumped water follows the contours of the hull. I tracked it along the boat’s sides, under the hull, down along the keel coming to rest for a moment on the 2x12 keel plank, then on to the trailer frame and finally, mother asphalt.
It is important for you to know this because when I returned the next day I found water still dripping from a trailer cross member.  The beginning of a trailer sailor’s nightmare.   Horses aside, I reached under the beam and dislodged a hand full of rusted boat trailer. 

My Savings Account Moaned 

Further inspection revealed more rust, some of it structural, all of it too costly to repair.   Our ten year old junk yard trailer needs a one way ticket to its former home.

The Trailer Has Traveled Its Last Mile

Hopefully it has few more yards left in it. One more launch is all we need. 

Here’s the rusty details and some cool sailing scenes if I must say, and do.

“A Sailboat Trailer’s End”   The movie- Part One

Next time we'll talk about the spanking new trailer.

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SMALL BOATS ROCK!!

Evinrude - Johnson Gas Line Connection

I'm motoring southbound in the Gulfport Fl channel on a fine sunny day.

The West wind is pushing us ever closer to the concrete seawall.

I compensate.

Our venerable, meaning old,  8hp Evinrude sputters a bit.

A twist of the throttle brings a surge of speed.

Almost out of the channel now-free of concrete but approaching
 sandy shallows port and starboard.

Then ....... Mr.  E, as he is known with affection and occasional consternation-

Sputters and quits.

The West wind belches a lusty gust.

Linda begins to raise HideAway's jib.

I glance at the motor and see the gas line dangling from the transom....

Again.

Evinrude/Johnson gas line connector 

I hesitate to tell you how long I have put up with this obvious manufacturing defect. (It can't be me)
Let's just state that the hose recently was replaced after becoming brittle with age.

Part of the sailing culture is knowing how to pinch pennies until they squeal.  My effort to keep this fine tradition alive and well consisted of purchasing a new gas line assembly at an "marine"establishment that also sells vegetables.

Much to my dismay the new hose had the same problem as the old- An owner with too few brain cells left over from the 60s.

Then it struck me - No, really, it did.   I dropped the hose on my foot and noticed that silver thingie on top of the black connector and deduced that it may have some function.  I was having a good day.

Aftermarket OMC Evinrude Johnson gas line connector

That little tab by the big red arrow can be bent to engage the blurry slot by the smaller red arrow.  (you didn't expect a sharp image did you? Where's the fun in that?)

Turns out that if you bend the small tab just so it will take the dangle out of your hose for a good long while.

Motoring down the Gulfport channel will never be the same

SMALL BOATS ROCK!!

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A Trailer Sailor's Nightmare: Does Your Sail Boat have Tires?

The HideAway has four, along with the attendant axles, springs, and rust.

Driven by a nonresident wet slip rate of close to $265 per month (just over $3100 per year) the HideAways were motivated to sprout wheels regardless of additional maintenance worries.     

  

The Florida sun has an insatiable appetite for trailer tires. 

It’s sneaky too.  A tire with plenty of tread can look perfectly fine with no observable spider web wall cracks, yet fail without warning, or a tire can have all the warning signs no tread and still hold air.  I should mention that the HideAway has only left the left the marina once and that on good wheels.

I LIKED THIS TIRE BECAUSE IT SLID EASILY 

  

A Maintenance Library

The rebuilt junk yard trailer of unknown lineage has kept the hull off the asphalt for a solid decade and provided a library of trailer maintenance experience.

The most important lesson I've learned is constant vigilance  

I do a thorough inspection every month and always before the trailer moves.  That way in all likelihood, I'll trip over a tie down line, discover a wheel chock still doing its job, or my 8 foot ladder bumming a ride to the ramp before I start the truck.  All these annoyances have occurred, mercifully not at the same launching. 

With these thoughts in mind I noticed this boat in the marina.

At first glance the tire looks fine.   In fact it made the journey from the far north just last spring.  

No cracks - Nice deep tread

As I walked by something didn’t look right.  Upon inspection --

If That Weren't Enough

About a foot off the ground

The cock pit was nearly full of water and the boat was sitting on its rudder. 

  

Cockpit bath tubs are over rated

I called the owner who sent someone to make emergency repairs.

SOME WATER LEAKED INTO THE HULL

As a sailor you have to be creatively resourceful – 

 As bad as this looks they relieved the rudder stress and prevented more damage

But Wait There's More!

Sometimes the universe just does not like you that much.

Glad it’s not my turn

SMALL BOATS ROCK!

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Sailing to the Moon via the Sun

SAILING DOWN HILL

Not all sailing voyages have to include screaming, rigging wind does it?

After all sailing is about quiet contemplation of your place in space and time, being one with the wind and waves and perhaps an adult beverage as it were.

Cruise To Your Dream- Sorta

You finally leave on your dream cruise with the full realization that you must reach a mark  on the chart before dark or you will not see the sun set under the yard arm while you sip  an exotic drink and your adoring crew fans you with fresh cut palm fronds.

Why is it that  a cruise to your paradise of choice is fraught with all this stressful planing and goals?  Sailing in modern times has little to do with practically anyway so why have a plan in the first place?

So I Ask You --

Is a 200 yard cruise as satisfying as a 200 mile voyage?

Is it more stimulating to run from a storm as it is a competitor chasing you around a triangle?

Is a lazy drift among zephyrs as fullfilling as a hard battle to windward in big seas and dense fog?

Shoulder Forecast

Many people travel the world during the "shoulder season"  to avoid crowds and higher costs.

A good shoulder season for the sailor is a day when the weather looks questionably unstable enough to keep the less risk inclined ashore, but not so fearful to keel and sail to give you pause.  Of course everyone has a different pause threshold, but you get my drift, I'm sure.

Night On A Shoulder Sail

On a steamy Fourth of July night on Boca Ciega Bay we lay at anchor in the gathering darkness to wait for the fireworks to start.   Well over a hundred lost souls of kindred spirits, many of whom had  insufficient knowledge of anchoring, made entertaining efforts to throw, rather than drop, the heavy anchor overboard.   Some of them had a rope tied to it, but several  anchors were tossed lacking that accessory.

Not that we were any better.  Upon pulling the anchor a miscommunication and a lazy outboard nearly had us in the custom boat business, narrowly missing a expensive fiberglass condo.

The fireworks preshow began with an impressive display of loud explosions that lit up the sky and strong gusty wind and rain that made our bow disappear.   A normal Florida summer storm with a 20 minute duration.  After it passed a third of the hardly anchored boats were gone and another third were untangling their rodes with the clear intention seeking land.   After an hour's delay, the city of Gulfport (FL) lit the match with only a precious few boats left to enjoy the show, the HideAways among them.

With these thoughts in mind we present our latest video Sailing to the Moon via the Sun- In Light Air

Whew! Who thought that one up?   Oh....

SMALL BOATS ROCK!