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Charm - Day 5 - The yellow spinnaker



I'm sure some of you winced when I tempted fate last night by talking about nothing breaking. I probably won't do that again. I was just getting up this morning when I heard Kent calling Tim to help. I peeked upstairs and Tim said, "We need Joe." That's usually not good.

Poor Joe had just crawled into bed. He takes his regular shifts like the other 2 guys but also usually sleeps on the couch so he is available for any issues. He usually appears at least once during my shift and I assume he does the same for the others. He doesn't get much rest on passages like these.

So, Joe went out on deck and I followed him. Kent was dousing the spinnaker and it didn't seem to be going well. I jumped on top of the sail and helped him gather it and saw that the leech tape was caught up high. As we brought it in, I heard an awful ripping sound. Joe lowered the sail but the hem tape (not sure of the nautical name for it) on one side was trapped at the top so the sail was just tearing on its way down. Joe had to climb the mast to free the tape but by then, the damage was done.

This is the spinnaker that Joe''s friend generously lent us for this trip and that Kent brought over for us, along with a giant Yeti cooler that has been keeping us happy with cold beverages and 2 alternators (thanks Jon) that are keeping our batteries charged. Kent did not travel light.

Apparently the spinnaker is a bit temperamental and enjoys having special attention because Kent said he has seen it come apart 8-9 times before. Joe said he has destroyed it at least once before.

On our way to Cape Verdes, the exact same thing happened but on the other side of the sail. We had it repaired in Mindelo but did not have a sewing machine capable of sail repair on the boat. However, my brilliant husband did lay in a stock of sticky-backed sail repair cloth that we used to put on some tiny patches the other day.

It was a giant roll of material and it seemed a bit excessive for patching sails but we were now glad to have it. We have a rainbow spinnaker but it is only useful in lighter winds and Kent doesn't like it because it doesn't trim well for him.

So Joe flew the rainbow spinnaker while Tim, Kent and I had an "adult arts and crafts session," as Tim called it. We spent 3.5 hours taping the spinnaker back together. It is now tucked gently into its blue bag to rest. Hopefully we gave it enough attention that it won't need to throw a fit again any time soon. I might be anthropomorphizing a bit here because one of our children bears a strong resemblance to this spinnaker.

Like our child, this spinnaker can be a huge asset to the boat if it feels like it. It could make the difference between us getting to St. Lucia with fresh produce still being consumed or, if we can't fly it, canned goods . . .

I will start knocking on wood to avoid further problems. I would have thought Cobin knocking himself on the head would have counted double but I guess it wasn't enough.

I'm beginning to understand why sailors are so superstitious!

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