What are your spring plans?

[Bilgemaster]

(...snip!)

On a side note but related: i cannot imagine how folks are able to handle the costs on those large vessels you see sitting at the marinas.

Many of your larger craft are kept afloat at least partly through various tax fiddles.  They might be bought and depreciated and maintained as "business expenses"...for entertaining potential clients, you understand (wink-wink) or financed, with attendant mortgage interest and other deductions, as "2nd homes"...or both in succession.  For this to work well either way, you'll want her leveraged and financed to the gunwales.  Only peasants like us own their boats outright...or even a substantial part thereof.

[HeaveToo]

Yep....I can buy a full suite of sails for Saga, including an asymmetrical spinnaker, for the price of 1 sail on my old Catalina 30.  I do miss the space though!!!!

[Mas]

Many of your larger craft are kept afloat at least partly through various tax fiddles.  They might be bought and depreciated and maintained as "business expenses"...for entertaining potential clients, you understand (wink-wink) or financed, with attendant mortgage interest and other deductions, as "2nd homes"...or both in succession.  For this to work well either way, you'll want her leveraged and financed to the gunwales.  Only peasants like us own their boats outright...or even a substantial part thereof.

Yup, it was the only way we could afford Interlude. She is our home there. The mortgages are very reasonable with zero closing costs and it makes the vessel a stand alone deal rather than using home equity and thus potentially placing your home at risk. We could have rented a place down there but it is a fact that you can sleep on your boat but you can't sail an apartment! Thus the floataminium! A sweet one at that. 

Mas on the other hand is all ours!

Weather looks to break for spring finally so it'll be wash and wax time before we splash Interlude. Gotta reseat the screws holding the companionway slide guides on Mas as they leaked a little. Was simply going to remove one at a time and put sealant in the hole and screw it back in, clean up the residual and call it done. (hopefully!) Looking forward to the improved handling of her with her new foiled rudder blade that everyone has talked about. Sure there will be other spring projects that creep up, boats right?

[Elk River]

Wow!  I'm already over my head.  I'm sitting here in front of the computer just trying to figure out how to put my life together.  The Com-Pac 19 sits in the back yard.  I did manage to get the snow and ice off the cover that came with the ice storm we had last week.  The cover will not do for next year and I've got to find a way to unload the Parker-Dawson 25 which sits behind it in a better shed structure so I can use that next winter.  #2 is to invest in a new cover for the better structure since the one on it will soon blow away in a stiff breeze.  After that I'll have to look into reassembling the rudder which Brad got rebuilt last fall.  We got the bottom paint and the waxing done but didn't get the boat in the water.  There is a beautiful new arch to support the mast which replaced the center compression post.  That will make sleeping in the forward birth a lot more comfortable.  The new engineering will have to be tested and I'll have to decide whether a kick away strut is called for during heavy weather sailing.  I'm not planning on any heavy weather sailing in the foreseeable future but you never know.  Next I need to do some more research on a Torqeedo 1003C probably and then spend the money to get one.  After that I'll need to convince the neighborhood guys that they aren't going to be in jeopardy for helping me get the boat in the water and probably convince my son-in-law that he won't be signing his life away to help me with the mast.  After that everything is easy peasy kInd of.  I'll let you know how it goes....Mrs.  Elk 

[Mas]

A little over a year and half ago we returned to sailing and a lost world opened up again. Many new friends, many of whom I've felt like Ive  known my entire life, the frustration of work that cost us much, new tasks that must be done, and the knowledge that time is not my friend, has left me grateful for the quiet and meditative quality that sailing provides. All the work melts away when the sails fill, at least for a while anyway.

Spring signals rebirth. (along with the chores, glad i have them as it gives me purpose along with experience) Don't get me wrong, one less task is good unless it means can't sail. 

[Reighnman]

Just finished building the shopping cart at Defender:
1. new pawl springs for the winches. Previous owner wasn't into maintenance or cleaning. 
2. New cotter rings for the turnbuckles
3. new spreader boots
4. Schaefer wind indicator
5. Teak plugs (Someone removed the handrails at some point and didn't replace the plugs.)

Already purchased:
1. All new halyard & sheet lines. Need to cut and splice. Went with Cajun Ropes.
2. new mailsail (went with National per many recommendations)
3. Interlux Brightside Sapphire Blue to cover the faded brown cove stripe
4. Varnish Remover and Te-Ka Cleaner. Teak needs to have the varnish removed on a few pieces then all of it needs a good cleaning and oil. Boat came with the deck grate so that should come out really nice.
5. Pick-up new 4hp Yamaha and see if she fits ok on the modified board the previous owner built.

Might do list(Waiting on accountant for final refund $, or so I hope):
Whisker pole
New Genoa (the one that came with the boat is fine but it's Green, Orange, and Yellow. Not sure if I can take looking at that all summer. Though the family will be able to spot me anywhere on the bay with it.

I need a beer just typing all of this work.