To a job well done!
We both woke with a strong dedication to finish the job-at-hand: the rebuild of S/V S.N. Tursiops. We were so close to splashing that sucker.
The gunwale-guard is a soft poly-fiber textile with a light-weight foam fender running through it. It attaches at ninety degree angles completely around the boat and takes whole lot of tiny epoxy bedded screws with finish washers to secure it to the gunwale. It’s a big job but well worth the effort.
We also installed four small fenders for a little extra buoyancy and topsides protection.
We flipped for it and guess who won?
Dena might have won the toss but she was cool about it and let me take a spin around the big boat just to confirm what I (James) already knew. Tursiops rows like a dream!
We then put the motor on her and went into town for provisions. The trip took less time than we were used to spending in the old dinghy, and we were dryer on arrival than we had been on any wind-vs-current trip since we’ve been here. It’s a really good sign, even though we plan to row as much as is feasible. Rowing is better for health and happiness, and it lets us get into shallower, more interesting waters.
It’s a good thing we installed the extra fenders…the dock was packed when we got back a couple hours later.
We made about five knots over the ground going back to Cetacea, with very little current pushing us and the wind alongside. Back at Cetacea, we left the fenders out just in case we got the wild wind-vs-current boat-clash in the middle of the night but there was no need. Tursiops silently tracked behind all night long.
Now we can’t wait to take her sailing!
