Blond Ambition Launched

[Mundaysj]

Hi All,
Well ... Blond Ambition is safely at her mooring ball in Atlantic Highlands. 
The adventure begins on Friday night... I was ready to leave Pennsylvania with her strapped on my illegal trailer, checked the lights and ... they weren't working.  Oh dear... well maybe I better leave while there is still some light.  So I gathered up a few things and two short hours later .. off we went.  Gee.... it got a little dark in that time.  Hopefully I will make it down to Atlantic Hightlands without being stopped by one of PA or NJ's finest. 

As I enter a work zone on Highway 78, I look in my rearview mirror and notice one of my two ratchet straps was dangling freely.  Oh crap!  A semi comes roaring up the work area on my left yelling about the strap.  Yeah ... thanks... where exactly do you want me to stop and fix it???  I finally come up to an exit and pull off onto the right shoulder.  I jump out of the car (in my stilettos and mini skirt) and try to reattach the ratchet straps as cars and trucks go whizzing by.  Some road crew guy pulls up and asks if I wanted help... Does a bear shit in the woods??  So he helps me tighten the strap .. as it turns out he has an O'Day of his own... nice guy.  Back on the road ... the rest of the drive is uneventful.

Saturday morning my friend meets me but gives me the bad news that our other friend got called into work.  Time to pick up my new engine... a nissan 9.8hp.. ooo.. she is pretty...  grab a couple of fellow yacht club members to hook it on the boat.  (I will take pictures this weekend) 

Then I had the pleasure of meeting Bob... he took my old engine off my hands... THANKS Bob.. it was a pleasure meeting you!

Time to raise the mast.... we rounded up some of the guys around the marina... 5 at my last count.  (It is always an event when Blond Ambition comes to town.. LOL.)  So... up goes the mast... and everyone goes back to their own boats and all the spring work that needs to be done.  My friend and I tighten up the shrouds... I rely on his eyes to get it even...  It would have to be really off for me to notice...  maybe I should get a level?  Run the halyards through the blocks and ... OH NO.... I got the jib and main halyards reversed.  Jib ended up on starboard and would have to run across the main to go through the blocks on the port side.  OH Crap!!!  Well... I am not going to embarass myself by asking all those people to lower and then raise the mast again.  I'll figure something out.

Dropping her into the water was smooth as silk... (New Nissan and high tide made all the difference from last year).  Funny story though... while she is sitting at the dock by the ramp... a motor boat gets pulled in by a tow boat and they put her on her trailer, but don't strap her on, then the guy pulls his truck away, the trailer pops off and the boat goes sliding down the ramp with the engine going bounce bounce bounce... LOL....I felt bad for the guy... but it was the funniest site.

Took Blond Ambition out to break in her new motor.  Wow is that quiet compared to the 2 stroke!!  Wanted to sail her on Sunday but 30+ knot gusts kept her on her mooring ball.  Gave me a chance to buy 50 ft of line ... I am going to try taping it end to end with the halyard and see if I can run it through the mast head and then reverse it.  But I will bring my rock climbing harness just in case.  If the climb is necessary... I will definitely post pictures of that!!  LOL

Hope I haven't put you all to sleep!
Looking forward to the first sail of the season... hopefully this weekend.
Cheers,
Sherie

[mrb]

Sherie

Let me be the first to welcome you back on to the water this season.  The Nissan sounds nice, or is that doesn't sound.

Why can't you use the hallyards the way they are.  Assuming they are collord coordinated and any one wants to know why they are backwards, just tell them it to see how observant they are being.

Many good adventures.

Melvin

[Bob23]

Sherie:
   "Blonde" is a beautiful boat but I'm sure she is a prankster at heart. As I drove home with your old motor, I got wonderfully lost in areas that I know pretty well. I wonder if that motor will treat me as well as it did you?
   Melvin's right...just use 'em the way they are, me thinks. How do I know? I've done the same thing, but they were twisted and somehow we got 'em right without lowering the mast.
   That sure looks like a great marina to be in and you have some wonderful sailing grounds. Lots of water, lots of opportunity for winds so a lot of adventures will surely be had. Like I said, "The Continuing Adventures of Blonde Ambition" should be a book. Do I hear movie?
   Down here, some rain is forecast for the next 4 days but, being in a loaned slip, I must move out. Looking forward to some wet sailing!
Bob23- raingeared out.

[kickingbug1]

   sherrie, just a little friendly advice from a retired police sgt. i would get your trailer in order. working lights are a must and from my perspective nothing says "stop me" like inoperable taillights. legal concerns aside, if you are involved in an accident you might be sued. ive seen it happen. happy sailing and safe driving to you.

[Mundaysj]

Not to worry officer...
The boat is off the trailer and I left the trailer in a friend's yard down in Atlantic Highlands.  I am currently trying to make arrangements to have the work done that it needs to get it registered.  I agree... I don't feel safe driving it as it is... and I am all about the safety!!

[HideAway]

Sherrie,

Glad to hear you are in the water again!  And thanks for sending the rain.  At the mere mention of a drought in a different post you somehow started our rainy season a month early - its been raining several times a day for the last four days and forecast to continue all week - Could you turn it off for the week end perhaps??

You might want to take a couple stitches using your whipping line to hold the butt ends of the halyards.  There is not much clearance for the tape at the top of the mast.  This worked for us during a cruise when the main halyard failed and we had to repair it underway.   
The thought of climbing up the mast while on a mooring is really spooky to me -  I'd rather take the mast down.   Matt

[Mundaysj]

Well... I am going to climb the mast this weekend. 

I tried taping some line to the halyards and it worked ... part of the way.  I ran the line through, reversed the halyard and it worked just fine for the main.  But when I tried repeating the process for the jib ... the halyard came through fine, then I reversed it and just as it went through the top of the mast, it broke free.... AUGH!! 

So.. this weekend I will bring my rock climbing harness down to Atlantic Highlands.  I have a friend that will belay me... a good  friend I am hoping!!  I believe I will bring Blond Ambition over to the yacht club dock and tie her down.  It should reduce some of the sway.

I will definitely take pictures... none at the ER I hope!!

Will keep you all posted.

[Bob23]

Your plan sounds good except for climbing at the yacht club. Plenty of onlookers, although I don't think that bothers you much. I've never climbed my mast let alone climbed rocks  but one thing comes to mind: make sure wherever your friend cleats you off to will hold your weight. Hope you don't think I'm assuming you're a blonde...we just don't want to see any er pictures!
Bob23, working too much and sailing too little!

[newt]

Sherrie,
My CP-23 takes about 15 minutes to drop the mast. Could I implore you to look at that option? I would do it with you if I wasn't 4000 miles away. Just tie a rope to the sheet on the front, tighten it, release the forestay, release two of the shrouds on each side (leaving the aft shroud intact on both sides) and have someone next to the mast and someone slowly feed out the front sheet. Takes two about 15 minutes in my boat. Raise the mast-reverse the procedure. Just have a way to keep the jib sheet/rope tight while you reattach the forestay.

[Bob23]

   'Tis true, but this is much easier done on land than in the water.  The upper shrouds and aft lower shrouds can be left intact as well as the backstay. Only the forestay and forward lower shrouds need to be loosened and dettached. I find it advantageous to loosen the bobstay before detaching the forestay.
   Meself, I use a halyard with an extendo line tied to it to lower and raise the mast. Doesn't matter which halyard because I use the end that cleats off to the mast as my working end.
   Maybe you can try yet again tying a line through the troublesome halyard to rework it.
Best, Bob23