FINALLY!

[calden]

Hey all:

If you recall, class, my tale of woe and misery last year (see thread on "Sailus Interruptus") wherein I actually got my DSI in the water but it was pointed out to me that the reg had expired, and I couldn't go anywhere, and I just about busted a gut - well, that was then, but today, TODAY, I finally got out on the water and took her on the maiden voyage.

Man, this was more fun than I thought - just like tooling around in my Sunfish but bigger and with more wind power to deal with. My wife, Janine, went with me, and we had a blast - but she almost took a swim when the boat heeled unexpectedly. Silly me - I had forgotten to put the centerboard down. Ooops! But just like the Sunfish, I spilled the wind and the boat came right back up for me.

After an hour of fooling around we got pretty good at feeling the wind and what to do. However, I'm still confused about the jib, and exactly how to shape it. What do I look for? Just pull it tight then let back until it seems right? I've got no experience working with the jib and how to use it.

So - no major leaks (saw a little bit of water sneaking in drop by drop at the centerboard), and we had a blast - 60-65 degrees, fair gusty winds, and verrrrrry cold water on beautiful Lake Coeur d'Alene in Idaho.

I'll post some pictures of the boat with the newly refinished coamings.

Carlos

[michaelyogi]

Congratulations Carlos!! What a great feeling!! All that winter /early spring work finally starts reaping some rewards. You couldn't have picked a nicer day, we had variable breezes and warm temps in our area.
I think the jib shape is controlled through halyard and sheet tension. There's more but I haven't the expertise to know it. Barber Haulers are a cool piece of running rigging if you got 'em.

[calden]

Michael:

Let's work out some date we can meet at Banks Lake. I'm eager to do some morning hiking on Steamboat Rock and some afternoon sailing.

Carlos