Bob invited Moe, Laura, and me for a day sail on the Bay. Sunny, cloudless day with light breezes sometimes from the south but mostly from the NW. We motored out of Galesville on Bob's Tartan 34-2 toward Thomas point Light. As we approached the light the wind went light so we hoisted the gennaker which added a knot. Broke out lunch as we turned around and slowly worked our was back to the slip.
Century Club: Hank Messick
Tuesday, April 8, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Prep flag for the spin fleet
Relaxed and ready for the finish
USN drone heading south on the race course
We jumped aboard the RC boat because the Skipper Steve was short on help. Breezy 15 knot NW winds and temps in the low 40s. It was chilly especially after sunset. Steve's electric outboard got us out and back with wattage to spare but it was slow going against the wind.
A first, USN drone was escorted by a power boat through our race course. Also we had a tug pushing a large barge southbound along with the usual water taxis and dinner boats.
Sunday, March 30, 2025 to Monday, March 31, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
What, me worry?
Steady 12 to 15 knots southerly breeze with opposing current, a 1.5' chop when Paul, Colin, Dave, Sara, me made an afternoon sail. Beating back to the slip, our 1st reef outhaul broke so it was difficult to point and no one aboard had ever taken in the second reef before. So we nurse the malformed mainsail to the marina channel and dropped it with no apparent damage.
Less commercial traffic compared to yesterday.
Saturday, March 29, 2025 to Monday, March 31, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Brendon, Josh and me going up river; Dave is flying the kite
New buoy by 9G
Brendan, Dave, Josh, myself went out for some spin practice. Main multiple jibes upriver to check out new buoyage resulting from the 28 January plane/helo crash. A new buoy was placed about 30 feet west of government green 9. Harbor Patrol place d some smaller buoys north and west of #9 to create a "restricted area" (no water craft allowed). Lots of commercial traffic stuffed with sightseers on this warm weather day.
Sunday, March 23, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Brendan and I went out for few hours. Breeze mostly from the NE. Georgetown and Fordham were racing in the lagoon, SCOW Flying Scots set up a race course in outside the river channel between marker 4 and 5. Commercial traffic increased almost to the point of annoyance! A couple of commercial boats, "dead rises" were ignoring the new "no wake" that was established following the February crash.
Sunday, March 16, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Beer and laughter!
Dave, Paul, Brandon, Josh, and me went out today to practise spin hoists/douses. Cloudy, southerly breeze blowing 5 to 10 knots. First two efforts were failures however, and more importantly, the foredeck fellas improve with repetition.
Sunday, March 9, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
The three amigos!
Dave, Paul, and me took Arcas out for a sporting sail on the Potomac. Wind blowing 8 to 10 from the WNW and sometimes from the SW depending on our location. Saw a couple of water taxis but no other boats. New buoy by government mark 7, probably installed as part of the plane/helo collision a few weeks ago. Beautiful day, sunny and warm (high 50s).
Having an issue with the raw water intake---it isn't! Think there is blockage on the sail drive.
Sunday, February 23, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
First time on the water since our 1 January fiasco! Dave, Josh, Jake and me onboard for a lazy sail south of the Wilson bridge. Sunny and warm (mid-50s) and a light breeze but enough to go against the current. No commercial traffic and only one or two boats fishing.
Wednesday, January 1, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Grounded and awaiting a tow
Howell & crew commence towing
The WNW wind was gusting over 30 knots when Arcas and Sabrina set out for the race course for the DISC annual New Years Day Regatta. Sabrina got to the start line but Arcas grounded in the channel even though water levels were higher than normal. According to my crew, we didn't simply ground on the muddy bottom but hit something and we're stuck hard.
Sabrina graciously responded to Arcas’ radio transmission for assistance. She returned to their slip where Howell, Doug, and Carey jumped into a powerboat. and returned to Arcas. Tossed us a tow line as the tide was falling,
Arcas refused to budge when attempting to pull her directly to deeper water so Howell and crew got creative. They spun the boat in the direction of the wind toward the public docks and momentarily freed her “L-bulb keel”for about 15 seconds. Then we grounded again. Howell then spun Arcas in the opposite direction and successfully towed/dragged Arcas (with her diesel running), pass #13 and into deeper water toward the slips.
A disappointing News Years Day.
Thursday, December 19, 2024 to Tuesday, December 24, 2024
Number of days:
5 days
Herewith a listing of my boat projects for the year. As usual, these tasks take me longer than I expect them to, e.g., removing old NEMA 0183 wires goes quickly but pulling NEMA 2000 cables thru the came conduit with their much larger connectors required a greater level of effort and ingenuity. Other projects like priming and painting a saildrive takes days because of the time required for curing before addtional coats are applied. Weather isn't always cooperative either. "Boatyard" time much like "Island Time" but less relaxing.
Maintenance:
Engine and Transmission oil change plus fuell filters
Prime and paint Volvo Penta sail drive
Install removable sail drive anode kit; change anodes
Rigging:
Upgraded to a "single line" reefing system
Installed new backstay cascade and made soft shackles for attachment
Electronics
Install new Garmin log transducer
Installed Triton II Display