I’m qualified! This past week I took off for my solo Mac
Race qualifier; sail a minimum of 24 hrs and a minimum of 100 miles on the boat
that I planned on racing. I barely made the 24 hrs, I had to sail outside of
Chicago to add time, but I sailed over 150 miles. I left Chicago under small
craft warnings with wind in the mid 20’s and gust higher, and steep monstrous waves
that sent green water running down the deck. The wind was coming from the NW
and I was heading north, so it was going to be wet and lumpy for at least half
of the trip.
In all of the sailing that I’ve done, never have I been hit
by a bat. About 5 hours out of Chicago, still in daylight, as I went forward to
do one of 14 headsail changes, I felt something hit me in the chest, this was
at about the same time that a wave came roaring down the deck. I changed the
headsail, went back to the cockpit and there laying the in cockpit was a small
black bat. I’m not sure if he flew into me or was carried by the wave, but he
was to become some happy fish snack.
Despite the waves and wind the trip north was uneventful,
until I was offshore of Milwaukee, WI when I was hit by a 52 MPH squall that
put Bootlegger on her side and had me testing the limits of my tether and
harness. I was caught with a #4 and a main with a 2nd reef, which
would appear to be not that much sail, but in these winds was way too much. I
tried to roll up the 4 only to have the lazy sheet wrap around the block and
sheet so that I couldn’t reduce sail, and the main refused to come down because
of the pressure on it. Then to make matters worse the main halyard wrapped
around the starboard upper spreader, another first. It took a while, but everything
was sorted out and the only damage was a tear in the leech of the main from the
flogging. Lots of lessons learned.
After the squall the wind shifted to the SW for a short
period of time and went very light, slowing my progress back to Chicago to 3kts
with very lumpy seas. The original wind returned and off we went to Chicago.
Since returning home I have talked with every accomplished
singlehanded sailor and sail maker that I could find and have sorted out and
confirmed what I need to change on Bootlegger to make her faster and easier to
sail. Don’t get me wrong, Bootlegger is a great boat, but she can always be
better. In the mean time I can’t wait to go out again.
Why do I like singlehanded sailing? Most people go about
their lives never having to take 100% responsibility for everything they do,
not so with singlehanded sailing. Something goes wrong or right and you have to
deal with it, it’s that simple. Singlehanded sailing also makes you a better
sailor because you’re helmsman, navigator, mechanic, weatherman, trimmer,
grinder, tactician, etc.
I really need to get a waterproof camera.
