Gypsy launch
Well, in a frenzy of boatbuilding I got my Gypsy finished in time for
the family vacation on Cape Cod last week. I worked nearly around the
clock the last two days on all the little stuff you think won't take
any time at all -- attaching rudder and tiller, putting in flotation
and attaching decking, etc. I was applying a touch-up coat of paint
to the boat as it was up on the roof rack the morning of our
departure.
It's a great boat -- fast and beautiful, low to the water. I got
a lot of compliments, both on the road -- where it fairly dwarfed our
little car under it -- and at the beach in South Wellfleet, where it
stood out gloriously amid the usual array of powerboats and Sunfish.
In a heavy breeze and a 1-2-foot chop it's a pretty wet boat --
spray blasting you in the face, water racing by just an inch or two
below the lee gunwale. A bad gust or a wave would bring water over
the side and into the boat -- I had a few bailing episodes but no
capsizes -- and you quickly develop a whole new set of reflexes with
the sheet and the tiller. I'm thinking of adding a 2-3 inch coaming
around the cockpit to make all that less of an issue. But with a good
wind on a reach or a run you could feel the boat lift up and scoot
along. It was really exhilarating to be out on the water just
blasting around, then sail it right up onto the beach, rest a while,
admire the boat from various angles, and head back out again, and
again.
I was hoping it would be stable enough to take my pregnant wife
and my 2-year old daughter out for a picnic sail to a nearby island,
but only in the lightest breeze did it feel right to bring them out,
and mostly they didn't sail with me. I didn't want to frighten our
daughter with the coltishness of the boat nor run the risk of capsize
with them aboard -- so now I'm already thinking of the next boat of
course -- something a bit bigger and more stable. Maybe a
Singlehanded Schooner?
I'll have pictures to post once we get our film developed in a few
days. All in all, I'm ecstatic to have this boat now.
All best,
Garth
the family vacation on Cape Cod last week. I worked nearly around the
clock the last two days on all the little stuff you think won't take
any time at all -- attaching rudder and tiller, putting in flotation
and attaching decking, etc. I was applying a touch-up coat of paint
to the boat as it was up on the roof rack the morning of our
departure.
It's a great boat -- fast and beautiful, low to the water. I got
a lot of compliments, both on the road -- where it fairly dwarfed our
little car under it -- and at the beach in South Wellfleet, where it
stood out gloriously amid the usual array of powerboats and Sunfish.
In a heavy breeze and a 1-2-foot chop it's a pretty wet boat --
spray blasting you in the face, water racing by just an inch or two
below the lee gunwale. A bad gust or a wave would bring water over
the side and into the boat -- I had a few bailing episodes but no
capsizes -- and you quickly develop a whole new set of reflexes with
the sheet and the tiller. I'm thinking of adding a 2-3 inch coaming
around the cockpit to make all that less of an issue. But with a good
wind on a reach or a run you could feel the boat lift up and scoot
along. It was really exhilarating to be out on the water just
blasting around, then sail it right up onto the beach, rest a while,
admire the boat from various angles, and head back out again, and
again.
I was hoping it would be stable enough to take my pregnant wife
and my 2-year old daughter out for a picnic sail to a nearby island,
but only in the lightest breeze did it feel right to bring them out,
and mostly they didn't sail with me. I didn't want to frighten our
daughter with the coltishness of the boat nor run the risk of capsize
with them aboard -- so now I'm already thinking of the next boat of
course -- something a bit bigger and more stable. Maybe a
Singlehanded Schooner?
I'll have pictures to post once we get our film developed in a few
days. All in all, I'm ecstatic to have this boat now.
All best,
Garth