Tag Archives: sloop

Of tile and sailboats

Posted on October 15, 2008 | Comments Off on Of tile and sailboats

The money I got for the family sloop last month yesterday paid for new adobe-colored, porcelain ceramic tile for the rancho’s family room. It looks good. Photo to come. Coincidentally, minutes after we got all the furniture back in place, Colby, the sloop’s new owner and neophyte sailor called to chat about his latest experiences.

He’s been trying to sail with just the main hoisted, easing into learning the art, and was curious why he didn’t seem to be making any headway on a recent gusty day. He was trying to beat, or sail upwind, at least as close as he could get to the direction of the wind, but he seemed almost to be going backward. I told him he needed to hoist the jib to beat. Running and reaching work fine with just the main. To beat he needs the "slot" that the jib creates between it and the mainsail, which keeps the boat in balance and the bow pointed as high into the wind as it will go. At least he finally got the Mercury outboard going. Its fuel lines seemed to be clogged from disuse. Now it runs fine.

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Posted in Rancho Roly Poly, Sailing

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Sailboat sale

Posted on September 23, 2008 | Comments Off on Sailboat sale

Tom, OCS buddy and rare reader who cannot make the TypeKey comment system work, reminds me that I have not written much about sailing this year. The reason is I haven’t been doing much of it since April, for various reasons, mostly involving rancho chores, family travel and driving Mr. B. around to baseball, summer camp and, now, basketball and Cub Scouts.

In fact, the family sloop has been for sale for a few weeks and last Sunday I picked up two interested buyers. Am waiting on a local fellow to get his money together (he has to sell some stock, and this is not a good time for that, obviously), while the other one, from northeast Texas, says he is ready to buy it if the local one doesn’t. If Mr. B. enjoyed going sailing, I would have kept it, but, alas, he doesn’t. On one of our few outings, he pointed at a passing stinkpot (motorboat) and said: “Why don’t we buy one of those, Dad?” Sigh.

UPDATE: The sloop is sold. Feel a little bit sorry already, but that’s relieved by the young, local  buyer’s enthusiasm and excitement. It’s in good hands–younger and more energetic ones, too.

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Posted in Mr. Boy, Rancho Roly Poly, Sailing

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Bottom jobs

Posted on September 22, 2007 | Comments Off on Bottom jobs

Not exactly the Seablogger’s "Wheel of Karma," but his mention of needing a bottom job for his cabin cruiser in order to sell it reminds me I need to get one for the family sloop just to keep using it. It’s been almost seven years. Too long, even for fresh-water Lake Travis. It sets my teeth on edge when I notice the way the grunge is creeping above the water line on the transom. I used to get the specialized sanding and paintwork done every four years, but that was before the price topped $1,000. Nowadays it’s also harder to find a place on the lake to do it, as environmental laws harrass those who try to provide the service. I think Easy Street marina might still offer them. I need to call and find out.

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Posted in Sailing

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Happy Father’s Day

Posted on June 17, 2007 | Comments Off on Happy Father’s Day

I got the wish on the phone from Mr. B. who was preparing for a bath, after a hard day of picnicing, volleyball and chasing fireflies at his mother’s family reunion. Of course I had my day a week early, so I’ve had plenty of time to check out this pdf of the 1913 book "Training the Boy." (The author, William Arch McKeever, wrote "Training The Girl," in 1919) He encourages Boy Scout membership, and we’ve begun that with Cub Scouts. One piece of advice I can’t follow, however, is the recommendation that, if at all possible, you must be sure to get him a pony. Sorry, I’m not into horses. How about a sloop?

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Posted in Mr. Boy

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