Prep for next year

[Ceirwan]

Good on you!

It must be a huge liberation to not worry about your boats ability to cope with the conditions, especially if as you say you are normally used to fair weather sailing.

You'll find as you regularly go out in F6 and above it becomes fairly commonplace unless its a particularly bad day. I'd say going out in those conditions makes people better sailors.


My preps completed this weekend include selling my 106 Rallye and getting a cheap diesel (hard to give it up but I need the money), replacing the old cover that was falling to bits and getting everything organised to ensure maximum efficiency in the work ahead.

 

[PacketRat]

Spot on Ceirwan. Cover's going to prove its worth. Keep up that good work. Well done.

 

[PacketRat]

Prep Trip Blues Part II

Following the excitement of advancing Scouse Mouse's log to a massive 82.9 nautical miles worth of accumulated sailing experience, I am sorry to have to report that in the last four weeks I've failed to do the prep trip and I've got to postpone the idea for a bit.

It's sixteen weeks since I stopped work to "put the finishing touches" to my project and I've done nothing else. Unbelievable, isn't it?

Current excuses? Item one: Jordan drogue - magicseaweed wind charts have been showing force 8, 9, 10 and localised F11 in the area. So I'm not going anywhere without a jordan drogue. Item two: Daylight is down to eight hours and I'm restricted to solar power plus what's in the battery. The lights would go out before I got back. Item three: parking fine.

I ordered a drogue kit, but part of the shipment has been delayed. Meantime I've had to fit the boat with a means of retrieval, which is an inherent problem with the series drogue. I also ordered a wind generator, that was not in my budget. It fits on a 31mm i/d tube and I happened to have that. Turns out it needs to be 31.7 mm. The days tick by. As for the parking fine, I just lost it - drove past an unlit sign in the dark and got caught up in a private car parking scam, for those who know. Illegal. Using the DVLA database. I've wasted more time in incandescent rage over that than I've spent on anything else.

The cost of the wind generator and the shock of attempted confiscation of my remaining funds has put me back on the work trail. I'm signing up for the dole tomorrow. Tried to avoid it, but got a state enabled mugging attempt. I'm just totally and utterly hacked off.

Better news next post! Come to think of it, I'm due a tax rebate!

 

[Noddy]

Cheer up Packet Rat,

You sound a bit down. You've achieved lots so far, so here is a bit of Psychobabble for you. It will either help as intended or give you a good laugh. Either way is cool:

You say in this thread:
"Truth is, and the real reason I'm sitting writing this, I'm having a severe case of the jitters. Bottling it."

Very sensible emotional response.

What might be helpful is for you to know that anxiety has some predictable effects on our thinking:
Catastrophising - assuming the worst, always seeing the dark side
Personalisation - Parking conspiracy??
Musterbating - I must have this kit and that kit... and that kit.
There are quite few of these. They are general but you get the point.

If you can spot yourself thinking in this way it can help you to bring anxiety under control The trick is to focus on making reasoned decisions not emotional ones.

I guess that one reason for the prep trip is to get the skipper into mental shape.

I didn't do a prep trip other than getting the boat from Colchester to Plymouth. I experienced more anxiety than I was expecting during JAC08, and had some difficulty bringing it under control - but then I'm pretty highly strung.

I suspect that one problem with the prep trip (for us beginners) is that there is a limited sense of commitment. During WWI, after a night of waiting for the attack in the morning. It must have been something of a relief to finally get going 'over the top.' Sustained anxiety (stress) is most unpleaseant.

So I'm with the guys that say 'go for it' as long as you are not lobbing off into a heavy wind / lee shore situation. You will know more when you get back!

Besides - If it was easy it wouldn't be worth doing!

Have Fun
Paul

 

[PacketRat]

Prep trip is go

I do take your point, Paul, and I'm pleased to report I haven't entirely lost my sense of humour.

The remainder of the series drogue kit is now on its way to me, so I've decided to install that, fit the wind generator and then continue with the prep trip.

I'll return to the forum again after my return and let you know the result.

Last year, I did all the work to make the boat inherently seaworthy and I've never had any reservations about it. Now that I've taken the decision to go ahead, I've alerted the family that if I'm there for christmas that's very bad news. If I'm at sea somewhere, then that's really rather good. Maybe I'll calm down a bit now.

This whole thing leaves me somewhat with the feeling that if you want to finish a JC it's probably a pretty good idea to do a thorough prep trip. But if you want to start a JC, it might perhaps be better not to bother.

Fun? I can't wait to find out.
Robin

 

[Noddy]

Robin,

Whether its fun or not you will definitely be glad when its over..... I mean when you have done it!

Let us know how you get on.

Paul

 

[PacketRat]

Prep Trip Complete

Here's how it all worked out. I set out from Liverpool at mid day on Thursday 17th December and "going for it" in the JC spirit within my limitations on my original plan to sail to Rockall. I completed about 165 miles in all by the time I got back. I had all the necessary equipment and stores - the Jordan Drogue, a month's supply of cigarettes.
I was anxious to get provisioned and leave as the long term forecast showed a Northerly gale on its way at the weekend (now). I didn't expect to be able to beat my way to, or through, the North Channel in a gale.
After clearing the Queens channel out of the Mersey and heading North in a fresh north westerly breeze under no 1 jib and reefed main, the shipping forecast started announcing gale warnings for the Irish Sea. The wind freshened as I set off on a reach towards the southern end of the Isle of Man, so as it became dark I reduced to storm jib and double reefed main which is my minimum sail area.
According to the Hilbre Island met station, the conditions during the night were mean wind speed of 20 to 25 knots peaking at 27.8 knots. Gusts were 25 to 30 knots peaking at over 30 knots for a time. At the same time, the temperature fell to -0.5 degrees by 8 a.m.
Unfortunately, the Hilbre anemometer broke at mid day on Friday.
When I was in sight of the Isle of Man, I decided to turn back on a reciprocal course under main only. My main reasons were that it was comfortable, if slow, progress and I could listen out for a change in the forecast. The gale warnings persisted, the wind direction was all wrong and it was rather cold. I had not yet been soaked and decided it would be a bad thing to try and beat northwards indefinitely, so I ran for home.
Back in the Mersey on Friday evening, I picked up an unused mooring until the following day when I discovered the marina lock gates were broken. But I got back to my berth today, Sunday, a few hours ago with a couple of handfuls of hail in the cockpit.
Lessons learned.
For this sailor, there were a number of firsts. First night sail. First time seasick. First time in such winds and temperatures. There is much for me to learn in the JC process, but some milestones have been covered on even this short trip.
I learned that I was confident in my boat. I discovered that I didn't oversleep my kitchen timer and felt in good shape after twenty four hours despite my fluid and food intake being negative. There were plenty of small lessons: my gloves weren't suitable and even after such a short time my fingertips were becoming cracked and painful; navigating was difficult as I need glasses to read and as soon as putting them on, they misted up. The safety harness fittings were good and I could wedge myself on the foredeck for sail changing. My clothing was effective enough for the occasional dunking.
I don't know what the conditions really were while I was out. I had hoped to compare my wind speed readings with Hilbre to make an informed judgement of what the conditions were like further offshore. Wave height was fairly modest, but wind strengths I'm not sure about. Did it reach gale conditions or not? I wish I knew.
If this had happened after I had passed through the North Channel and got some sea room into the Atlantic, I think I would have continued. The cold was the big problem. I thought I would become too exhausted to sail in the confines of the Irish Sea without, say, oversleeping and sailing up a beach somewhere.
All in all, it was a big experience in a small trip and I am not disappointed. My confidence is greater, my hopes survive, and my appreciation and respect for JCers at all levels of accomplishment has grown.

 

[JunkMing]

Good stuff. You set yourself a very, very tough first assignment and came through it well. Coldest spell of the year ( the wind chill must have been something else); virtually the longest nights of the year; in a very awkward patch of sea (I spent almost every weekend of my teenage school years on Hilbre, and well know what that neck of the woods is like in a cold northerly). That's pretty impressive for a maiden solo trial! Everything should be a damn sight easier from here on.

Roger

 

[NickiCrutchfield]

Very good work indeed packetrat. You must be stoked.

 

[Gargleblaster]

I learned that I was confident in my boat. I discovered that I didn't oversleep my kitchen timer and felt in good shape after twenty four hours despite my fluid and food intake being negative. There were plenty of small lessons: my gloves weren't suitable and even after such a short time my fingertips were becoming cracked and painful; navigating was difficult as I need glasses to read and as soon as putting them on, they misted up. The safety harness fittings were good and I could wedge myself on the foredeck for sail changing. My clothing was effective enough for the occasional dunking.

From my reading the most important thing you learned was the confidence in your boat. If you feel safe [but you are still allowed to be scared] you can probably come through most things. I was also impressed that you have confidence in your safety harness. That means that despite what ever is going wrong you can still crawl around the deck and fix things. I am a great believer in furling headsails however as it means you don't have to crawl forward in bad conditions to change a headsail. [I remember the old days with the bow going under and you with it, head under water at times, trying to change down when I had left it too late]. Of course with a furling headsial you still have to crawl forward to manually wind it in if your furling line breaks and that can take a bit longer than a headsail change.

I wouldn't worry too much about the gloves for the Jester Challenge, even if you chose the northern route on deck temperatures don't get too low unless you like icebergs like Roger Taylor. And if your clothing is suitable for winter sailing it is going to be fine for the Jester Challenge.

 

[bastonjock]

Packetrat

ive just read your post about Rockall,i went out there in "87" to do a bit of Scuba diving,there was not a lot of wind but the swell was something i had never seen before,it had a range of around 30ft,big slow long waves rising and dropping 30ft.I remember thinking at the time"whats it like in a gale?"

 

[PacketRat]

Made it!

I gave Rockall another shot, starting out in March with the customary gales and hail to see me off. But by the time I set out from Islay on the 300 mile final leg, the weather had turned out beautifully, and there was an added bonus because once I'd cleared the continental shelf the gulf stream running up the Rockall Trough pushed the sea temperature up fully two degrees. It was heavenly. I'm trying to attach a couple of pics - one of Rockall itself plus a mugshot of me and the rock.

The trip took me a full month as navigating from Liverpool through the confinements of the Irish Sea and North Channel with a mixture of calms and strong head winds caused me to take refuge in harbour from time to time. The 600 mile round trip to Rockall and back to Islay took one week.

It was a wonderful experience. It did tease out a few weaknesses, but nothing serious. Certainly none of those dreaded fears took hold - the toilet paper didn't get wet, and I never ran out of cigarettes.

Whilst I would dearly love to go on and start the JC10 next month, I'm afraid my circumstances don't allow me to do so without landing myself in extremely dire doodoo on my return.

 

[helixkimara]

Well done, excellent achievement. Cant make the JC2010 ! So see you at the start of the JAC2012

 

[ps02210]

Lee cloths:
I had what I thought to be a superb lee cloth on Golden Dragon (JAC08) and I was very comfortable until one night I got thrown into it by one of those 'Mother-in-law swells' that go in a different direction to all the others! I was very lucky to get away with a nasty rope burn across my lip/cheek and a very sore neck. Stuffing some cushions into the berth reduced the width and hence the distance that I would move in a repeat incident. If doing the challenge again, I would make the berth much tighter from the outset although I don't really like to be so constricted. The cushion scenario was probably the best compromise so that one could be a little more comfy when it was really warm but safe when bumpy. It's one of those things that one maybe does not consider important until you venture 'out there'!

Has anyone considered using, or actually used, a hammock?

 

[helixkimara]

I thought about a hammock one long rolly polly day jambed into my bunk on the way to the Azores but concluded that, in a small boat it would not be good. I was rolling from about about 15 deg. on one side to over 30 on the other in a short period of time. You would be like one of the dangly things in the middle of a big bell while being rung by a huge blue(grey) giant.

Also, the relative movement inside the boat is with you on a bunk, you don't realise how much your moving until you accidentally look out of the cabin to the sky (clouds / stars are flying around like a kid spinning a sparkler in the dark. UUrrrgggHHH.
I think the constant relative movement in a hammock would make you more dizzy.

I also think you would need to carry a large box of elastoplasts (and plaster casts) for the excellent fun that would be had while trying to climb in/out, during rough weather.

 

[BlackPig]

IN the book "Big bloke small boat" he pulled the cushion onto the floor and slept there. He thought that the floor was the place the boat moved the least. Sounds like a plan.

 

[helixkimara]

Just looked at your web page Graham, Excellent commitment to the 2012 JAC, I'll see you there with Salty. On your photos, I presume that you are the one "Washing up" You should really check with your parents. My eyes aren't as good as they were but does it say "To celebrate my 5th birthday" ? I presume that the older people on the boat are your parents. Always in the way, are they !
Malcome

 

[BlackPig]

The commitment plan is to shoot off my mouth about going well in advance. That way it becomes harder to back out as the start time approaches.

 

[Noddy]

The commitment plan is to shoot off my mouth about going well in advance. That way it becomes harder to back out as the start time approaches.

This is a well tried and tested method:

It was invented by Donald Crowhurst and I used it to get me through JAC08.

It is not, however, without its disadvantages: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Crowhurst

Paul

 

[BlackPig]

This is a well tried and tested method:

It was invented by Donald Crowhurst and I used it to get me through JAC08.

It is not, however, without its disadvantages: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Crowhurst

Paul

I'm sure the first cavemen (yes it would have been a man) grunted I'll get a Monmouth for dinner, or my names not Oooghhhhhhhh! probably grunted in the cave bar about 11:47pm (just before chucking out time).