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!!