Post shake down first trip reflection

[Aeolus]

Hi,
Sorry to hear about the fog laiden maiden journey!
Out of curiosity, did the survey find the issue with the GPS etc, and Im assuming if so, there was an adjustment made for that? Im not digging for prices, just curious about the process around surveying and subsequent negotiations?
Another question if I may, relating to hiring a skipper, was this a long time ago, and if not, where could I expect to do the same, and if possible, what would be expected costs? Yes im expecting a how long is a piece of string answer, but just as a ball-park on a per-day basis kind of thing to give me something for beer-mat guestimates please

The survey didn't spot the problem and, since it was an intermittent fault, was unlikely to have been able to do so. In any event, I doubt that any survey could give complete assurances about the reliability of a boat's electronics. If they switched on during the survey, then I suspect they would be marked as OK. The survey did find some minor faults which enabled me to negotiate a reduction in the price I paid by more than the cost of the survey. Plus, of course, the survey report then served to meet the needs of the insurance company.

Re costs....it was 17 years ago and I think I paid something like £150 per day plus travel costs for the skipper and also travel costs for a friend of his who offered to crew without payment. I had hoped to complete the whole trip in three days but, in the end it took, I seem to recall, four.

 

[mrming]

My first shakedown was low drama as the boat was trailable and only sailed locally. The main sheet track did snap though - a previous owner had moved it and had used jib track with holes in. Replaced it with the correct spec Harken main sheet track. Other than that we were re-fitting the boat for racing so we did a season first to see what needed doing. That led to a slurry blast / bottom job (Coppercoat), keel fairing, a new suit of sails, some additional deck organisers and clutches, new running rigging, new guardrails, some electronics fixes and safety equipment. We raced and cruised her for 7 years, then 2 small children meant it was time for an upgrade.

We were on a budget (and decided on no finance). £20k max with some money kept back for upgrades. After shortlisting and viewing some boats, and given our racing background, we were surprised to discover that the Westerly Fulmar best fit our needs and price range. Other contenders included the Sigma 33 and various older Beneteaus and Jeanneaus.

Concerto of these forums helped us assess some ads for Fulmars and we eventually settled on a boat in the Solent (we’re based in Kent). It was on the hard when we viewed and purchased. After doing some basic stuff that came up in the survey (seacocks, new batteries) we got her launched and took her for a shakedown. Everything worked, we had some trouble with the roller furler but that turned out to be too much halyard tension. I upgraded the software on the various Raymarine electronics and re-calibrated the autopilot. I also had a local company fit a class B AIS transceiver as we’d be sailing overnight on the delivery back to Kent.

Now all that remained was to wait for a weather window. Typically, there were weeks of northerlies! The marina berth in the Solent was 4x the cost of the one in Kent so a window couldn’t come soon enough.

Eventually the wind swung into the South, at the weekend, and a couple of friends agreed to come on the trip, one an experienced sailor and one less experienced but who had been out on our smaller boat a number of times racing and had enjoyed it.

It looked a little breezy with F5 gusting F6 forecast, but we knew the Fulmar was a tough boat so we felt confident sailing downwind in those conditions. We decided it was too breezy to enter the Looe Channel, so as we left the Solent, we stood well out around 10 miles or so. The breeze was building and the waves were starting to build too. Unfortunately my less experienced crew member started to turn green and it wasn’t long before he was very seasick. Once clear of Selsey Bill we turned back inshore and managed to persuade him to lie down and sleep. It got dark as we got further inshore and we took the decision to drop him off at Brighton Marina. The weather was a little sporty, but my other crew member had been in there before at night so we decided to go for it. My other half booked a hotel for the patient and we armed him with a local taxi number.

Once he was safely ashore we looked at each other, listening to the wind howling through the rigging and discussed what to do. It was midnight. I had half an eye on a warm bunk but my other crew member was keen to depart as the tide was still favourable. I dug deep, and we set off, the stiff southerly creating a tricky cross sea as we emerged from behind the breakwater. At this point tiredness became a factor and I got confused by the autopilot momentarily. I took a deep breath, had a think and figured it out, and we bore away up the coast. We decided to do without the main overnight and set the genoa only. Once we were settled, surfing along on some sizeable rollers, my crew turned in for a sleep and I took a 4 hour watch as we passed Eastbourne and the Royal Sovereign Light. My mind played various tricks on me throughout that period and I was far more scared than I should have been. However eventually it was my turn to head below and after an hour or so of feeling the boat rise and fall on the waves in a reasonably alarming fashion I dropped off to sleep.

When I awoke, the sea had settled down, the sun was out, and we were back in home waters, just off Dungeness. My crew cooked a 10/10 fry up, we hoisted the main, and shot up the coast in bright sunshine and beautiful sailing conditions. The trip from Hamble to Ramsgate took 26 hours including the drop off in Brighton, and the next week my partner and I took the boat the final leg to her new home in the Swale.

On reflection the boat was well prepared and shaken down, but there were a couple of things I could have done better. I should have thought about the impact of heavier weather on my less experienced crew. I also wish I had known the boat’s systems a bit better, in particular the plotter and autopilot. I also should have been less scared in the dark (and will be next time). All in all we made a safe, reasonably swift delivery, but lessons were still learned.