SCAMP Christening/Disaster Day . . . . .

[Charles Brennan]

STARTED out, OK: 
The sight that greeted me this morning, when I left the house.
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Nothing makes a catch in my breath, like a boat ready to go somewhere. 

Hitched up, lights checked, and chocks removed.
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Drove to Cedar Key and checked out the Gulf side ramp:
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Even though the winds were only 10 - 15 mph, there was a little more wave action than I wanted to deal with today; I was trying to be cautious and take things slowly. 

Decided I would launch in the protected ramp and simply tool around in the (small) harbor for a while, rather than drop the mast and sneak under the bridge.
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Got my parking ticket from the machine and got ready to rig the boat.
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Check that blue Velcro strap, securing the mast lines.

Starting with getting the mast up and adding the sail rig.
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TWICE!!    Since I had neglected to remove the blue Velcro strap first, before stepping the mast the first time! 

Set up the Bimini top and the fenders, etc.
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And finally, all the flags and streamers.
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Checked the solar array readings on my phone and had a minor panic attack, when it said it was only putting out 13.45 volts and 23 watts.
Huh?!?    Did a circuit somehow, open up on me?    Did one of my two brand-new panels fail?!? 
Then felt dumb; the array was wired in series, if any connection had failed, it would put out zero volts, not half of what I expected.
After a moment's thought, I realized the sail was blocking off half the array's sunlight. DUHHH!!! 

Enlisted  my Bride, Mary, in Christening the boat with some Harp lager from Ireland. (This is a beer kind of a boat, not a champagne kind of a boat.) 
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Grabbed a local branch to observe all Nautical Traditions, scrupulously.
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Studiously avoided a Bad Omen in the parking lot, next to the truck. 
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A rusty tapered roller bearing off somebody's boat trailer; bet there's a Sad Story there, somewhere. 

Got the fenders and lines ready:
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The boat launched easily, but doing so with the sails still up was a Big Mistake. 
It kept trying to sail up the dock line on one tack or the other and I needed a helpful bystander to handle a dock line, until I could get over to the dock and tie down the main sheet.
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(Wife getting a little nervous, at this point.)

Parked the truck and trailer, then got back to the boat and got the ballast tank filled up.
Trying to play it conservatively, I put two reefs in the sail. 
Tried dropping the centerboard, but it wouldn't go down, properly.
Thought I FIXED that already!!    Turns out, I did!!    It was just too shallow at the dock for it to drop all the way down.
(Which should have been my first clue.) 
Invited the wife aboard, pointing out how stable the hull was with water ballast.
Got her seated and moved to the stern to slip the dock lines and start the trolling motor.
So far, so good. 
Hull backed off sedately, I wheeled her around and put the '90's era trolling motor in forward gear.
First problem was setting 4 on the motor, which has worked without fail in the carport over the past year or so, would die when that switch selection speed was chosen.
OK, minor setback and something to fix when I get back home again, but we ARE moving! 
Figured I'd take one circuit around the harbor and bring her back in; didn't really want to wring out the boat with the wife aboard, figured I'd do that on the next trip by myself.

And that's the precise moment, it all went sideways. 

We'd left downwind from the ramp and were getting a little too close, to the bridge that chokes off that ramp from the Gulf.
Turned the motor to turn back to the ramp and nothing happened.
OK, sail in auxiliary mode, Charles!    Motor AND Sail!!    Hauled in the main sheet.
Did half a tack; what the Ancient Mariners called: "In Irons"    and got zero forward progress.
Suddenly noticed I was motionless in the water.
What the Ancient Mariners called: "Aground". 
Hmmm . . . . . . .
Pulled up the centerboard, then kicked the rudder and the motor over, to head back to the ramp.
Veered a little too close to some pilings for my wife's taste and quickly reversed course, trying desperately to get out of all that pluff mud, in the center of the harbor.
Headed south towards the reserved docks, tried tacking back out, but my turn was too sluggish (Urchin reflexes, on a SCAMP dinghy) and all I managed to do, was to hit the dock bumper with my bow.
But I WAS in a slip!! 
I tied off quickly even though it was someone else's dock space.
The wife was visibly upset    with my total lack of performance, thus far.
She said she would feel safer walking up the dock back to the ramp and meeting me again, when/if I managed to get the boat back to the ramp.
Not the first passenger, ever to "jump ship" on me!! 
I was secretly relieved. 
Now I could pursue more aggressive sailing tactics, in what I was beginning to appreciate was a tough challenge,  against the wind in a boat I had no experience with.

I pulled myself along the dock into open water and promptly got headed back towards the bridge.  The motor was no help whatsoever in arresting my progress, or aiding in steering. 
That double reef in the sail wasn't sufficient, to tack against the still moderate winds. All I managed was to get stuck in the middle of the harbor, where all the pluff mud piles up.
OK, NOW I was panicked!!    Threw out the stern anchor I regard as my "parking brake" to arrest any more progress towards the bridge.
Calm down and assess, Charles. 
1) Trolling motor inadequate for some reason.  This was strange, because it pushed Urchin around for 3 years, with nothing more serious, than range issues.
2) Cannot point sufficiently to tack back to the ramp.  Not completely certain that shaking out the two reefs is going to alleviate that problem,    since I just don't know this boat well enough, yet.
3) Clear case of a need for the 9 foot oars, that this boat comes with.

Dug the oars out, assembled them, put on the oar locks, retrieved the anchor and started rowing, performing a perfect impression of a living room rowing machine. 
Boat would not move. 
After a bit, I worked out that the rudder was also stuck in the mud and lifted it. By that logic, I realized the trolling motor was similarly stuck and so I lifted it also clear of the water.
Yeah, I was well and truly stuck. 
And the tide was going out, toward the bridge. 
Sudden visions of being stuck here all night,    until the next tide change. (Tides are much more leisurely, on the Gulf coast.)
Tried pushing off the mud with an oar; moved a little, but not nearly enough to traverse the distance back to the ramp.
Wondered if the pluff mud was too gooey to kedge my way back, with one of my two anchors. 

A local in a skiff, returning from a fishing trip, took pity on me and gingerly approached the mud flats as closely as he dared and tossed me a  short line.
Too short to do anything useful, but I quickly tied it on to a bow line and we were off! 
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Egad!!    Towed ignominiously (a feeling, not entirely unknown to me!)    back to the ramp!
But at least, I was out of all that horrid mud. 
Always knew it was shallow over there and usually avoided it when I was in the RIB, but sure didn't know it was THAT shallow!! 
Or that gooey. 

With the boat safely back on the trailer, I next turned my attention to the trolling motor.
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But, hey!!    How about that TSBB burgee and owner's burgee?!? 
How cool is THAT?!?!? 

Mystery solved.
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Explains why it was fine for the first 50 feet, or so.
The 35 year old plastic prop must have disintegrated; ya know, ya pay good money for something, you'd think it would LAST!! 
I see some spare props in my future.

As I surveyed the wreckage of my trashed cockpit:
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I realized,  I must have had a Helluva day, on the boat!! 
And that's really, what it's all about.
Drove home, making a mental list of repairs, upgrades, and improvements.
And an equally long list of what NOT to do, the NEXT time!! 

Charles Brennan

[Captain Kidd]

Well, at least you made a memory!

My first thought was why launch with sail up in 10-15 mph winds?

And I can feel your wife's pain. Unfortunately, I have too many stories to tell to make my wife enjoy sailing. Nope! We did have a few nice outings but even one mishap spoils a trip in her mind.

Stuck in the mud reminds me of my first "big outing". I had only been sailing for a year and never on "big" water. We went to the Chesapeake Bay, all four of us. I had already lost a trailer wheel on the way up which cost a night in a motel and $500 to fix. UGH! We launched and went out as a "nor'easter" was brewing. Wind blowing like snot!. I was careful to watch the channel markers as we motored out of the marina when all of a sudden I was dragging bottom! What!? In my inexperience I had failed to allow for leeway. I threw the motor into reverse, took my boat hook and pushed on the bottom and fortunately was able to get back into deeper water. Whew! That was too close for comfort! Could have been real trouble!

A few pics from that trip (July 2000 - planned to go during the tall ship parade celebrating the new millenium but daughter #1 had a car accident and wasn't fit so had to postpone it.)

2 happy girls at anchor in the Rhode River

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Can't you just feel the joy?

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skipper

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lame trailer

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Anyway, not to steal your thunder. Glad you got out. Only gets better from here.

[Doug SC]

I find that sailing can be much more adventuresome than either my sea kayak or canoe excursions into wild places. The wind and the sailboat often have a way of punishing me for my mistakes. They seem to enjoy thwarting my intentions.

I agree with Captain that launching with the sail up is a bit of a beginner mistake. Don't ask me how I know this. I look forward to your next launch. I'll bet it will be a much better experience. BTW, I am jealous of the flags. That's a nice touch.

[Wolverine]

Charles, I have found when everything goes as planned, I seldom remember the event.  Mishaps make for great stories and are easily remembered, and embellished. A christening day such as this makes for good conversation. Tell it well and tell it often.

[Charles Brennan]

Dale, No need for any "thunder" apology, swapping tales is at the very heart of the TSBB; I for one, would enjoy seeing more of that.

Doug SC,Your quote: (Along with Dale's)

I agree with Captain that launching with the sail up is a bit of a beginner mistake.

In retrospect, it certainly would seem that way, but we are all creatures of habit, even bad habits. 
I routinely raised the main sail on Urchin either just prior to launch, or at the dock. That way, when (not if) the motor failed me, I simply sailed away from the ramp. 
Just forgot to do the arithmetic! 
90 sq ft of main sail on the Windrose, vs 100 sq ft on the SCAMP, and a 400 lb swing keel on the Windrose vs a 40 lb swing keel on the SCAMP, or 1500 lbs displacement, versus 500 lbs.
Yeah, in hind sight it WAS pretty dumb, but I had done it that way for over 40 years, without major issues.  I would  NEVER do that if the winds were freshening, but I was lulled into complacency, by the moderate winds at the ramp.
And I agree strongly with you, that small sailboats have a way of exposing any lack, or shortcoming, in sailing skills, or proficiency.

Ah, well. 1st lesson learned on the new boat. 
2nd was blowing the tack that put me into a slip (whether I wanted to be, or not!)  and was another example of years of Urchin sailing reflexes, vs the very different sailing characteristics, of a small sailing dinghy.
I'm still trying to wrap my mind around that one.  Seems like the only remedy, is more sailing!! 

Flags ARE pretty cool, aren't they?!?  You're only a small block, a light line, and a section of broken fishing rod away from your own flags, ya know. 

Wolverine, Thanks for your kind words. I think only amateurs prize the (unexpected!) successes.
Seems like the people most compulsive about any endeavor, are the long-term enthusiasts, who only relate the disasters:
1) Golfers decrying the putt that veered when only 1 inch away from the cup.
2) Fishermen lamenting the hook that pulled, right at the boat, when the gaff was about to be sunk into the monster fish.
3) The tennis player describing how the ball smacked against the racket frame, instead of the racket center, at the last second.
4) The sailor that blows a critical tack.
5) Or launches a very light boat, with the sails up!! 
DOHHH!!!! 

I came to terms (rather quickly!)  with the sudden knowledge, that I have a brand-new learning curve to deal with and several larger boat habits, that will have to be un-learned.

When I first moved to north central Florida, from a life-time in south Florida, it was with anticipation.  Back in south Florida, I had gotten the least bit jaded; I knew the species and approximate weight of any fish that tugged on my line by the way it tugged and how hard. Up here, the fish are different species and behave very differently.  Back in south Florida, I had been in and out of my favorite ramps so many times, I could return in rain, fog, darkness, whatever, because I KNEW where everything was.  First time sailing up here at Cedar Key, I had to keep looking back as I left the ramp, so I could recognize where to go and what it looked like, when I needed to return.  Even set a MOB point on the GPS, just in case . . . . . 

I really anticipate all the new skills I will need to effectively handle this boat and look forward to SAILING THE PAINT OFF of it!! 

Thanks all,
Charles Brennan

[Frank B.]

What is all the fuss about?? Isn't that just a normal day of attempting to sail?   I certainly have as many attempting to sail days as actual sailing days.

But I have a complaint.  For well over two years you, with eloquence and great attention to detail, outlined the trials and tribulations of building a boat.  That was very effective at keeping me from launching my own boat building event. Mission accomplished.

However, now is the time to lie. You have a fully finished boat now so all posts should only be of the great success you are having with same, because I don't want to be deterred from sailing my existing boat, no matter the many years of experience with it.  I think I could take those same pictures and rewrite the script to that end. Well maybe I would have a little trouble with the trolling motor picture, but I could give it a shot.

Just having fun,   I know you'll work out the kinks with new boat/new sailing area. At least the boat has that broken in look now.

[Captain Kidd]

Dale, No need for any "thunder" apology, swapping tales is at the very heart of the TSBB; I for one, would enjoy seeing more of that....

I really anticipate all the new skills I will need to effectively handle this boat and look forward to SAILING THE PAINT OFF of it!! 

Thanks all,
Charles Brennan

Charles, you're a good ol' chap. Looking forward to you having to repaint that new girl!

[Doug SC]

CB, I guess I should come clean. At the club we have 2 racing fleets and a fleet of cruisers. We have some long-time sailors and experienced racers. A number are retired and are often at the club sitting under the fans on the covered porch. Need I say they watch with interest as boats are launched at the ramp and sailed on the water. Every boat and sailor are critiqued as a matter of course. You learn quickly to be on your Ps and Qs in front of the peanut gallery. I do appreciate their wisdom and now take pains not to look the fool. The first time I capsized my Wayfarer 16 they had their front seat view and sent out a motorboat to be of help. It was a windy day, and a gust hit me while close hauled. I had quickly righted the boat and got back onboard. When the boat pulled up and asked if I needed help, I said no I was going to sail the water out the scuppers and continue sailing. When I pulled out at the ramp and walked up to the group, they explained what I should have done to prevent the capsize. I enjoyed the good-natured ribbing for it but gained insight and got points for taking care of business after the capsize and sailing on. You can bet I launch and sail away from the dock with extra care when they are watching.

[Riley Smith]

Conversely....

I NEVER launch with the sail up EXCEPT that time at the FL 120 when you gave assistance. I did THAT time because the wind was huffing ( even with a reef). I had doubts that first couple hundred yards whether ONE reef was enough! I wasn't sure I could hoist and get it set solo, so I did it initially. Which worked out ok with your help getting the boat headed in the right direction. . MOST docks are MUCH HIGHER than the boat. There is REAL danger of ripping a sail. So I had to develop a procedure to do it on the water. It also allows me to get everything shipshape after the launch and BEFORE the Chinese fire drill of setting sail.

First I quarter into the wind with it on starboard and the boom to the port. This gives me room at the front to access the halyards. Then I begin hoisting. Almost immediately  the boat heads up and stalls (most of the time) as the sail fills, and I can finish setting the sail, fall off, and then begin actually sailing. This is rarely the end though, because with a gaff rig, there is a happy medium between the throat and peak halyard, topping lift, and height of the boom and you're not going to get it perfect on the first attempt. You CAN do it with two people but I rarely have crew to steer while I'm messing with the sail. A small boat reacts very fast to the sail and that's the reason I called it a Chinese Fire Drill. It can be REALLY intense with the wind huffing as it was that day of the FL 120. All of that is negated with a crew to steer while I hoist the sail.

I'm glad to see that boat hit the water! She looks great and sure, it maybe wasn't what you had in mind. You're  maybe going to have to relearn some things and it is a different boat than what you are accustomed to. All part of it. Congratulations!!!!

[Captain Kidd]

Conversely....

I NEVER launch with the sail up EXCEPT that time at the FL 120 when you gave assistance. I did THAT time because the wind was huffing ( even with a reef). I had doubts that first couple hundred yards whether ONE reef was enough! I wasn't sure I could hoist and get it set solo, so I did it initially. Which worked out ok with your help getting the boat headed in the right direction. . MOST docks are MUCH HIGHER than the boat. There is REAL danger of ripping a sail. So I had to develop a procedure to do it on the water. It also allows me to get everything shipshape after the launch and BEFORE the Chinese fire drill of setting sail.

First I quarter into the wind with it on starboard and the boom to the port. This gives me room at the front to access the halyards. Then I begin hoisting. Almost immediately  the boat heads up and stalls (most of the time) as the sail fills, and I can finish setting the sail, fall off, and then begin actually sailing. This is rarely the end though, because with a gaff rig, there is a happy medium between the throat and peak halyard, topping lift, and height of the boom and you're not going to get it perfect on the first attempt. You CAN do it with two people but I rarely have crew to steer while I'm messing with the sail. A small boat reacts very fast to the sail and that's the reason I called it a Chinese Fire Drill. It can be REALLY intense with the wind huffing as it was that day of the FL 120. All of that is negated with a crew to steer while I hoist the sail.

I'm glad to see that boat hit the water! She looks great and sure, it maybe wasn't what you had in mind. You're  maybe going to have to relearn some things and it is a different boat than what you are accustomed to. All part of it. Congratulations!!!!

That's the benefit of a mizzen. When it's sheeted tight it'll keep you generally head to wind, though there is a little of shifting direction.

[Riley Smith]

The CFD part REALLY happens if the bow goes through the wind. THEN you have to duck the boom and the halyards become hard to manage. It really sounds more complicated than it is except that you can't steer and hoist at the same time. With someone managing the tiller, it's a piece of cake. (I'd love to have a mizzen!) One of the changes I made was to make a boom lift to give some relief in just this situation.

 And it can get hairy with a big wind. Heart rate is definitely up when it's all said and done. I thought I had messed up and not went with the 2nd reef at the FL 120 but was able to round into the wind until I got in closer to the far shore and more in the wind shadow there. After that I turned more downwind and things got lots better. The boat is fast on a downwind and you can get in trouble there too with what they call a death roll, but I have never experienced it and hope I don't!

The only OTHER time I've felt I lost control was once with my wife and daughter. I STILL don't know what happened that time but nothing I did helped and she couldn't help with the tiller, either. I made Sonya get up on the side deck as counterweight. Usually you can just let go of the sheet and everything STOPS, but that didn't happen and I thought we were going over. Lauren had crept UNDER the forward deck and I was as scared as I've ever been on a boat because I would have had to dig her out of there if we had capsized. I theorize that we got caught in a "swirl" as there was a section of trees downwind and then a small channel which may have created a venturi effect. I also had too much sail in the air. The catboat can bite with too much sail. Not a good tactic!!!

There is a reason they recommend reefing early on a catboat. Live and learn. And we lived that day. Somehow.

[Travis Chapman]

Seems about par for the course. I recall a spring trip to launch from a local ramp and troll to the marina on my Aquarius 23. Should have been 20 minutes, tops, with my wife waiting to help return me to the ramp. Blew the fuses on the battery within 100 feet of the launch due to heavy winds and got blown into a local marina, thankfully trapped against two pilings that protected all the other boats. Had to wait 6 hours about until I got towed off by some other idiots who thought it was a good day to be out on the water! Sheesh...

Glad everything was at least safe, and a good adventure to remember down the line. She looks great Charles!!