Maggie Jedda 22 NOT for sale!!

After spending a few hours on the boat on Sunday...and having somebody inquire about her...I've decided NOT to entertain the selling idea!!
Renovation rescue here we come!!! 

..."a power boat will get you there quicker, but with a yacht you're already there"...

thanks Howard...requoting somebody...

Scanned Print - Mordialloc Beach, 2005ish (i think)

Current Gear

I'm currently using one of these...

photo by Ken Rockwell...check out his site by clicking on this text

...a Nikon F80, with this lens...the Nikkor AF-D 24-85mm...

and i'm upgrading to this beasty when it gets into the country..

photos by Ken Rockwell...check out his site by clicking on this text

...which will apparently be early next month or so...the plan is initially to stick with the same lens and see how it performs.

So in the interim, any photos i will be taken form scans of my printed film shots or from my compact digi. 

My Photo Page

I've decided that seeing i am about to get my new camera, i thought i'd start a second blog... in case you've missed it, my first is loosely based around my random sailing misadventures...

Timbo's Sailing Stuff

...while this blog is going to be a place where i'll dump photos which i think warrant display.

It should be noted that i'm probably in the world's best 6 billion photographers, so advice on how i could have improve photos is always welcome!!

Maggie Jedda 22 NOT For Sale...if anybody is interested...

After spending a long weekend up at Lake Macquarie racing and socialising, it appears the time may have come to forego the excellent sea keeping qualities of the Jedda for something a little bit lighter (easier to tow) and faster.

Details are as follows:

Builder Ossie Whitley
Year unknown but thought to be circa late 70's
Length 22' - 6.7m
Beam 7' - 2.1m
Draft 0.6m / 1.2m
Displacement approx 1500kgs (empty)
Keel / Ballast swing keel  approx 338kg / total ballast approx 522kg
Hull Material GRP
Deck Material GRP
Outboard 2008 Yamaha 8hp, low hours
Toilet porta potti
Accommodation 2 in V berth, 2 in quarter berths
Galley Sink, 2 burner metho stove, shelving, sealed storage areas suitable for ice chests, water bladder
Ground Tackle Anchor, chain and rope
Safety Gear 2 no. Fire extinguishers, flares, life ring, boat hook
Electronics Battery, solar panel, cabin lights, nav lights, switch panel
Electronic / Navigation  Raymarine ST40 Bi-Data depth sounder / speed log, ST1000 autohelm, VHF and 27MHz radios, FM radio / cassette player, Compass
Sail Inventory 2010 Main sail, Genoa, #2 Jib, #3 Jib (hank on headsails - all fair condition)
Deck Gear 3 winches, all lines to cockpit except clew reefing lines which terminate on boom
Covers boom mounted sun shade

Yard Trailer
  
If anybody is interested...leave me a message (i won't publish it) or email me at sorrygonesailing at gmail dot com

edit: i'm not selling because i have to, it's just part of a longer term plan...so the longer Maggie takes to sell, the more improvements will take place...therefore the price won't drop with time...i'm just sayin'

2nd edit: NOT SELLING!! i changed my mind...i'm libran, and it's part of my charm...

Video of HCW

This video is an edit of action which was shot by AJ and Mick aboard AJ's boat Afta Hours sitting just off Wangi Point during the 2010 HCW Yacht Race. Some boats had spinnakers up prior to rounding the point while others chose to wait until a bit after the point.
Masterful editing by Singo from www.tscom.org and sound track by the Wolverine.

I make a few appearances on the video, on the rail and bow of the Ross 780 Viva La Vida (sail #169) - it's a touch quicker than Maggie...

Our Long Weekend Away & HCW Wrap Up

A few pics from the weekend - i'll write do a bit of a write up later...needless to say we'll be heading back up again next year!!

On the rail waiting for my first spin hoist... 

Spinnaker run after passing Wangi Point...Viva la Vida has blue, white and gold spin  - just to right of centre, it's set so I obviously did something right...

Viva la Vida ahead of arch-rival Zorro...

Viva la Vida to far left of shot with Walko on Guns Blazing with red spin to centre...

Just after the start looking beneath the boom to leeward...It was an amazing start with sailing boats of all descriptions ranging from foiling moths to 40-odd foot yachts and everything in between. 

View after start looking aft...

My GPS track dumped onto google earth...showing the 21.9nm we covered in just under 4hrs at an average speed of 6kts. It'll be interesting to see how this compares to Singo's track from boat.

Photos courtesy of Singo and Impy and ripped from TSCom Website. Track from Google Earth dump of my GPS plot.

The Hatch...and The Issue...

And the piccys of the gap between the existing deck and the hatch...

So as mentioned previously the plan is to make a timber frame / sleeve to fit between the window and the existing opening...just need to get advice on how to seal the timber...

New Hatch Arrived and Time to Ponder Installation Design...

So the new hatch has arrived...and is currently on the dining room table - i don't know whether that's better or worse than when the new sail was on the lounge room floor?? Probably best that it ends up on the boat ASAP!!


Fitting the new hatch isn't going to be straight forward, but it should be too hard either. The deck in that area is curved, and therefore so is the hatch opening...obviously! There is also a lip where the old hatch cover fits over. And the existing hole is bigger than the hatch - and before you ask, i couldn't go a bigger hatch - not enough room. So the plan...


I'm proposing to trim the front and back of the lip slightly to start the level plain and construct a timber from which will sit on/in the existing opening and into which the hatch will fit. The frame will be screwed onto the deck to gain some structural integrity and trimmed/smoothed to a nice shape.


Then the issue is...do i fibreglass over the timber frame and exposed section of old lip to create a nice smooth surface or do i just use an epoxy mix...
I think i might chat to a few people in the know...


I'll take some pic's to show what I'm trying to say... 

Dylan Winter just Keeps on Turning Left...

Just a quick shout out to Dylan Winter and Super Slug his almost 50 year old 19ft Van De Stadt designed Mirror Offshore triple keeled sail boat, which in his own words "sails like a pig".

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Dylan and his adventures, he has been slowly undertaking a circumnavigation of Britain poking into every waterway which he can.

Linky thing to Keep Turning Left Website

Along his journey he has been making regular documentary style snippets of the trip, which along with the sailing, include local history and geography...it's actually quite entertaining.
I've recently starting watching the videos again. Originally the videos were posted on youtube, at a relatively low quality. However, Dylan now has his own website and you can either watch the vid's in postage stamp size windows or for the measly sum of US$5 (or AUS$5 and a bit), you can access (and download) the HD versions.


I was having a few issues downloading the vid's, so a quick email off to Dylan and he was more than happy to help sort me out...turns out all it needed was for me to try doing it with a beer in my hand...who'd have thought!!


So anybody who wants to have a bit of a look at the British coastline through the eyes of a local sailor, you could do a lot worse than dropping $5 in his direction.


Happy Sailing...

With My Birthday Coming Soon, It's Time To Think Of Boat Toys....

I'm thinking maybe I need to install wind instrumentation on Maggie....
and the obvious choice is the Raymarine ST40 to match the existing ST40 Depth/Speed Log...

...particularly if Maggie ends up as shiny as that boat!!

Is Jessica Too Young???

With the second half of the year into full swing, things in the sailing world are naturally heading to the other, and dare I say it, more interesting Boxing Day event - The Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.  Along with the increase in safety requirements brought about by the tragic events of the 1998 S2H, a minimum age requirement of 18 years was also brought into the race rules... 

  ...now enter the diminutive Jessica Watson. 

For those who missed the single line article in the Sunshine Coast Daily, apparently Jessica (aged 16 at the time) recently completed a solo circumnavigation in a little pink yacht. 

As it turns out, Jessica would therefore be ineligible to sail in this years race.

I followed the journey on her blog and have seen the documentary of her trip, and i really doubt the conditions she would encounter could be much worse than those experienced on her recent travels...don't get me wrong, i have the utmost respect for the strip of water down the SE coast and Bass Strait...i've also seen the footage of the '98 S2H - and those were horrendous conditions. 

But are there times when we should allow the rules to be tweaked slightly???

The number of people who have been exposed to sailing thanks to the efforts of Jessica's marketing team has been phenomenal, why don't we want these people also following ocean racing???   

Meanwhile in, after what I can only describe after watching her DVD as Jessica's relaxed style, she hasn't entered the debate. She doing the important things, like learning to drive and having fun, yacht racing at Hamilton Island....

...just the thoughts of a relatively fair weather sailor, sailing his little boat in protected waters...

Heaven Can Wait Yacht Race

The Heaven Can Wait 24 hour race was conceived and promoted by Lake Macquarie resident, keen sailor and cancer survivor Shaun Lewicki as a major annual sailing event on the lake, to promote sailing, the Lake Macquarie/Newcastle/Hunter region – and to raise funds for cancer research.


The inaugural Heaven Can Wait 24 hour race was held on Lake Macquarie during the 2006 October Labour Day Long Weekend and attracted over 30 boats. In 2007, it was again held on Labour Day Long Weekend with the fleet almost doubling in size.


The 2009 event raised a record amount of funds -- nearly $25,000 -- for our charities, the NSW Cancer Council, Hunter Region, and the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol Lake Macquarie Division.
The 2010 event, the fifth Heaven Can Wait 24 Hour Yacht Race and One Lap Dash have been scheduled by the Heaven Can Wait Yacht Club and Toronto Royal Motor Yacht Club for October 2-3, 2010 and a significant growth in fleet size is again expected.


If you own a sailboat that can comply with YA’s Category 5N requirements, start planning now to come along and make your own little bit of history on NSW’s Lake Macquarie during the October 2010 Long Weekend.
Proceeds of the 2010 will again benefit the NSW Cancer Council and the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol (now Marine Rescue NSW).

Click on linky for more information...

As luck would have it, a mate was looking for crew and i thought it'd be a great excuse to drag the family and the new caravan up the Hume for a quick trip. So i'm going in the One Lap Dash, which is 28nm race anticipated to take about 5 or 6 hours ???. Should be plenty of fun, with serious bragging rights for skippers up for grabs!!


So if you feel like donating to a good cause and don't know anybody competing...feel free to donate in the name of the boat i'll be crewing on... 

http://www.everydayhero.com.au/viva_la_vida2010

New Hatch Ordered!

Just got back from...well another internet window...where i have just ordered a new front hatch from Whitworths... I ended up going with the one mentioned in my last post (again if you missed it).

Now I just have to wait for it to arrive and then the installation fun begins, obviously I'll keep you all informed!!


Until next time...Happy sailing!!

I May Have Found a Suitable Front Hatch...

Browsing through Whitworth's on-line catalogue, as i tend to do, i think i may have found a suitable front hatch for Maggie, made by Bomar...

Key Benefits & Features:
Lightweight, strong, leakproof, low profile deck hatches. Frame and cover are moulded from supertough black polycarbonate and the tops are impact resistant tinted Lexan. All hardware is in non corrosive marine materials. All models include inside/outside handles and a locking vent position to allow air flow when the boat is unattended.

I just need to check a few more things and then...well, it may be time to break out the good old credit card!!

Next Major Ticket Item...New Front Hatch...

One of the very few times we have trailered (not a word i know, but you know what i mean) the Jedda, we (OK I) managed to loose the front hatch. 
Several attempts have been made over the years to build a new one. With the overriding desire for something strong enough to stand on being the major factor.
Here's the latest offering...

...which isn't too bad, but i'd prefer something a touch better.


So it's time to go looking for a new one, something a touch like this one...

It may be over capitalising on the Jedda a touch...but in the current market washing it is over-capitalisation...besides, i like the boat and ain't planning on getting rid of it anytime soon...

The only dilemma i may face is finding one which will fit without too much trimming / building up, etc required.

Anyway, i have dimensions from catalogues so the next step is to go and measure the hole for size...no doubt i'll keep you all updated!!

Happy sailing!!

New Blocks & Deck Organiser

So after having the got the new sail for Maggie a good month or two ago, and last month attaching the reefing hardware to the boom, i finally got about doing the next stage. 


Originally i was only running the foresail and mainsail halyards to jammers located near the cockpit on the cabintop. However as part of the reno, I am now running a couple of extra lines, the cunningham / reefing line and the topping lift, back to cockpit I needed to re-organise the blocks at the mast base and replace the old twin deck organiser with a quad to accommodate the extra lines.


Anyway enough words...time for pics. 


First pic shows the new blocks at the mast base and the deck organiser.

And the second pic shows the new jammer (shiny one on the left), with the organiser and blocks in the background. 

Now I just have to wait for a day with nothing on so I can get her back on the water.

Cheers!

New Reefing System installed for New Mainsail

Well finally after much deliberation, conversation and general stuffing about, i finally got the slab reefing system for Maggie's new mainsail installed...YEAH!!

I went down to Yaringa, after the weatherman telling me it was going to be a nice day, to be greeted by teeming rain... :( ...

so the decision was made to bring the boom home to work on...probably should have done that a while ago... oh well...

...so now with a couple of hours free in the morning, i set about drilling, lathering everything with duralac and riveting...and what do you know...i've got a reefing system...
 so here's the general set up...(i hope you all like my mdf mainsail!!)

once i get it back onto the yacht i'll tidy up the bowline around the saddle...

I've decided to cleat off the reefing lines on the boom, primarily to save room on the cabin roof. The cabin of the Jedda goes from gunnel to gunnel and doesn't have the "track" around the edge which many other yachts have...

If i don't like how it works...i'll just change it...simple...!!


And if you're wondering why that reef point looks a long way forward on the boom...it's the 3rd reef...it's really, really deep - 50% area reduction!! Hopefully deeper than i'll need but it's there just in case...


The reefing at the tack is done via the cunningham, which has also just been set up!


Hopefully, i'll be able to get Maggie on the water soon and test the system!!


Happy Sailing...


Just a quick edit:


I'm not actually going to end the reefing lines on the saddle as shown on the earlier photo. What I'm going to do is loop the line around the boom and tie off with either...

...a bowline...

...or Huw's Slippy Knot...

This way the boom is taking the load from the line and line isn't just trying to wrench the saddle out.


Bye...

Almost time to get to work!!

I've finally got all (??) the hardware together to get the reefing system set up...I've managed to borrow a fairly heavy duty rivet gun...so now i just need to source some duralac and i'll be ready to go...now just gotta find some time to get to the boat...fingers crossed for Sunday...???...


Bye...

My New Main Sail Finally Left The Lounge Room Floor

Following is a little story by my wife Claire relating her joy that my new main sail had finally left the lounge room floor.


Yay - the new sail has actually left the lounge room. A family trip to the boat (just to make sure it stayed on the boat and didn't return to the lounge room). Emily & I did have to travel in the car with it on our heads though  

James had to help put the sail up as I failed...conversation went a little like this.
Tim: Claire - pull the red line

Claire: the what?? (I was on best behaviour as the children were present)
Tim:  the red rope
Claire: this one?
Tim: No! The other red one
Claire:  
Tim (pointing & getting a little impatient): That one!
Claire: Ohh, the GREEN one (assuming Tim's colour blindness was the problem)
Tim: No, it's red
Claire: Really?? 
Tim: It may be a little mouldy
Claire: EEEWWWW...mouldy??? James, pull this rope!

Anyway the finished product...

& the happy sailor...(still giving directions to those not listening...  )

THE END!!

Now i just have to find time to attach the reefing lines and cunningham and we're ready to sail...YEAH!!

NEW SAIL

I have my new sail...WOO HOO!!!

It's currently on the lounge room floor...i must find a moment to take it down to the boat, install the new reefing system and get it up!!

Quick Update

Hardware from Whitworths online: Check
4mm Spectra from Ebay: Check

Just need new mainsail...should be ready this week...may get to fit stuff on weekend...fingers crossed

Blocks and Stuff for the new sail!!

Just been doing a bit of thinking about what sort of hardware i'm going to need to get the new sail set up. Essentially I am going to add a double line reefing system - with the new cunningham / downhaul doubling as tack reefing line and a new line to the clew reefing line. 

I've been looking at the Ronstan and Whitworths sites and pretty much have the gear sorted.


I'll be needing the following...

a few of these to get sheets turning corners 

        one of these to run the sheet along the boom after going through the clew reefing cringle

these guys to get 6:1 purchase on the cunningham / downhaul / tack reefing line

and one of these guys to assist organise all the sheets being led back to the cockpit

and maybe a double block to go on top of the quad block - that way i can also lead the topping lift and vang back

  

Looking at the recommended prices on the Ronstan site compared to the Whitworths online site...it might be an online shopping expedition for this lot!!


Anyway time to get back to work - I'll update again when things happen...

Happy sailing all

General Update

As you can probably tell things have been a bit slow on the update front here. I've been a bit busy with study and life in general. Also, the weather down here hasn't been the best, every time i seem to have a free day it's either pouring with rain or blowing an absolute gale.


Anyway, in the last few days i've: managed to find a life jacket to fit 3 - 10kg, so Emily can now come on the boat; and had the sail maker down to the marina to measure up for a new mainsail, so things are happening on that front too.


Now that the new sail is happening i need to get things happening to convert the reefing system from roller to slab reefing - no doubt this will entail many updates as things progress.


Claire has found a sailing course (OK so I found it for her) which looks pretty good and she has a couple of friends also interested. Their only concern is that Champagne wasn't mentioned in the add...


Anyway, until next time...happy sailing...   

New Mainsail Getting Closer

Well, after a visit to the sail maker we are a step closer to getting the new mainsail sorted. 
The sail maker is going to visit the yacht next week to get measurements and then...it's time to cut and stitch!!
So in the interim I need to plan the new reefing system, which is going to involve new cleats, blocks, sheets and all manner of yacht type hardware...as well as sorting out riveting stuff onto the mast and boom!!
I'll keep y'all updated...

New mainsail for Maggie

The time has come to replace the existing mainsail with something a bit less blown-out, grubby and mould riddled...

I've been running the idea past some sailing buddies and gathering general advice prior to talking to the sail maker - who will be Peter Green Sails. While I'm getting a new sail I thought it also a good time to update the reefing from roller reefing to slab reefing - linky thing for wiki explanation of different reefing systems - which will help maintain a better sail shape once reefed and with all the lines led back to the cockpit, no reason to go forward to reef the main.

The general consensus has been to go for a loose footed main - so I will take that idea to the sail maker.

Other things which need considering are:

1. Reef Points: I'll probably go with 2. But has been pointed out to me - if I want to race to Cat5, I must be able to reef to 25% reduction in luff (which is the bit that runs up the mast) length.
2. Material - I'll stick with dacron, which is the standard stuff.
3. Batten - do I just go leach battens or full battens.

The other point to consider is am I going to remove the main after each use or leave it on the boat? If I am going to leave it on, do I get a sail cover also and do I install lazy jacks??

I think I will probably remove it and keep it below.

Finally, I think is the reefing system. I am probably sold on single line reefing with the lines running to the cabin top.

I'll keep the updates coming...

Maggie goes for a sail - it's been a while!!

The planets must have been aligned on Monday, as it was a day off work with fine weather and no other commitments. So I took the opportunity to go for a sail - YEAH!!!

It was an ideal autumnal day on Western Port, the cooler weather had ensured the crowds had long since gone and only a handful of other boats were on the water and it looked a lot like this...

Before too long, I let the crew take control and I sat back and enjoyed the ride...

The autohelm does a marvellous job and I would definitely recommend one to anybody that does a bit of solo sailing. It is particularly good when you need to reef sails and do any other boatly duties and even gives you the freedom to wander about the boat and attempt to take artistic photos...

...or not...it was worth a try!

Well, the wind began to blow and we saw some good speed out of Maggie...

4.1 kts...not to bad, c'mon we can do better...

4.5 kts...now we're getting better...

4.8 kts...not a bad job, maybe I should take over from the autohelm just to see how quick this old thing will go...

5.5 kts...now we're talking...

At about this stage, I was holding the tiller with my foot, the mainsheet traveller line with one hand and the camera with the other and I could feel that Maggie wanted to accelerate...so unfortunately I had to ditch the camera...we got to 6.2 kts close hauled (well as close as a Jedda gets) in about 10-12 kts of breeze, which to my way of thinking isn't too bad for a heavy, slow, old yacht...

...a quick look behind still shows nobody about...

...and not too long after it began, it all ended...

 ...and we headed back into the marina...where we discovered...

...water...BUGGER...obviously the leak isn't fixed!!

And once again thanks to Mr Google...here's where we went...

So as you can see, it was a quick sail but a good sail...