First sail!

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After we signed the papers and handed over the check, it was time for a sail. But not so fast. There was work to do. The PO used her (when he did) more like a pontoon boat then a sailboat. He had outfitted her with a Bimini, moved the traveler to the cabintop, and lost the spin halyard. All these things needed to be sorted before we headed out. So first, up the mast I went.


Notice how far the beam of the boat goes aft. It makes the boat VERY stable downwind. The swim platform on the transom will be gone the next day, shedding BlueJ of the last of her 'cruiser gear'.

Next up is moving the mainsheet back to where God intended it, at the boom end. The PO had rigged a traveler over the cabintop to allow the bimini. It was a nice install but thats very ineffective and hard to use when racing. So I moved the sheet back to the factory mounting pin. The traveler (which was optional of the boat) would have to wait until next spring.


We ditched the bimini and headed out. The dual rudders are swell but make low speed turns a challenge because they have no effect if water is not moving over them. The 2 cylinder Volvo diesel is a joy, but a folding prop will have to be installed. The boat came with 2 brand new North asyms, and we are eager to give them a try before the light fades and the breeze shuts down. We got lots of pictures, but I'll let the video do the talking.




Still lots to sort out, but so far so good!






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