It was a lovely sunny morning with light winds this morning and I was working up to take Derry for a row, when Jamie contacted me. He wanted to launch his recently acquired Hartley TS14, and suggested Altona. I changed gears and got the Core Sound out instead. It was a really pleasant day on the water.
I am really happy for Jamie and Kylie, Irene is a lovely boat, in great condition. A great addition to the fleet of dinghy cruisers.
I had my first sail in the Skerry yesterday. It was a light winds day, and supposed to be sunny, though it stayed grey and cold and overcast here the whole time. It was a nice social occasion, Daniel and Bjorn came to say hello and see the boat, a passing grandad with nice children in tow stopped to say hello and inspect the boat. Bjorn is a great photographer and captured some great images of the launch. If only my sail was set better!
Jamie and Gerard and Steve launched their boats, which was very good of them as collectively they had to travel quite a few miles to get here. And Gerard really stuck close and took lots of great photos and video of the boat in action.
I learned a lot. The attatchment to yard and boom all slip around, leading to crappy shape. I could pass the others downwind, but upwind no way, and tacking was difficult. The oar buttons are too small and the trailer is definitely got to go, I incurred a few gouges on the bottom when Jamie and I pulled the boat back on the trailer. I have a bit of a jobs list to work on.
On the plus side, Derry is very stable and remarkably comfortable, with masses of room for Oz and me and stuff. I was very tempted to launch again today, but I have some catching up to do.
This morning I fixed the name onto the stern of the Skerry, and after lunch walked Derry down to the beach in front of the yacht club. Anne did the honours, very eloquently, and the boat, the sea, and the assembled humans all got a good splosh of Tullamore Dew.
Then Anne, Oz and I went for a row.
Derry feels reassuringly stable and rows very nicely. I was mighty pleased.
Restrictions have eased, and we can have two visitors now, so Jess and Chris came by and helped me carry the Skerry through the house. Maggie thd cat had to give the hull a very close inspection, and she is right, a bit of sanding and paint required there. I also dropped the boat on the concrete in the shed getting ready to move it, and there is a small crack in the gunnel near the stern. Dammit. Hopefully I can get some epoxy in there and noone will ever know.
Jess and Chris have the keys to their new house. A bit of fixing required, and then moving Tuesday Wednesday. I felt a bit weary today, after a bit of running around, and got very little done on the boat. But I did put the sails up and attached a few fittings. And I had a think about how to tackle the remaining jobs to finish. Slow progress but progress none the less.
I had most of a can of Toplac Oxford Blue left from Peregrina, so I painted the top strake of Derry the Skerry with a nice stripe. It added a couple of days to the painting project but I think it is worth it. Toplac is very nice paint. I will be very glad to get back on the water.
I took the plunge today, put the sandpaper aside, and rolled undercoat on the Skerry's hull. I was planning to roll and tip, but all the foam brushes were cactus. Hopefully Bunnings will be open again so I can resupply before the next coat.
I was pleased though, the surface seems fairly good, a few spots and holes to patch. I have to wait 30 hours plus at these wintry temperatures before I can sand and start the next coat.
