Special thanks to Adrian at www.advancedosmosis.co.uk. He’s been kind enough to supply me with an emergency hull repair kit, for making repairs under water. It’s a very kind gesture, but honestly, I hope I never, ever have to use it. Thanks Adrian!

Also a big thanks to Sven Helemann of www.id13.net for making repairs to my site for IE6. I met Sven after a brief stint at Dropping Knowledge in Berlin, earlier this year.

I’ve been busy working on the boat since my last post - On the boat, at the pub, and in London. The weather has been horrific for boat work, but my prep for painting is coming along nicely. I was hoping to rebuild the rudder last weekend, but my teak source has been having trouble finding something to my required dimensions. I’m in London today on work, but hopefully tomorrow I’ll find out more, and if I can’t get any at mates rates (a few beers) then I will have to make the plunge and purchase retail like everybody else.

A friend at the boatyard helped me drill out a transom skin fitting for my drain improvisation, which was a horrible experience. There is something just not right about putting holes in your boat… We’ve done it properly, with brass fittings and a good quality valve switch, and I’ll plumb the cockpit fittings when I can afford to.

I’ve also been making plans to build a completely waterproof cockpit door, so you can basically lock yourself in an entirely watertight cabin. Door boards are nice, but they are troublesome to shut up quickly, and while they will keep water out 95% of the time I think with my intentions I need something robust. I’ve also purchased two big stainless lifeline points to place in and around the boat which I can lock onto - One is for the cabin, and I’ve not yet decided where the second will go - I have jackstays, but maybe I’ll wait until I’ve done some sailing before commiting to the drill for the second anchor point.

Some photos:

I’ve since finished sanding - But as you can see, I’ve been prop polishing too!

This is my view most mornings - Wet; the tarpoline heavy with water

Better photos coming, now that my Flickr account is alive again.

nick.

It’s been a very busy past few weeks, getting used to the live-aboard life, working on Constellation, and starting my new job at the pub. It’s nice to have some money finally, although I still live week by week, having spent the last pay packet on tools so I could actually start work.

I’ve scored a tin of cheap black antifoul, and decided to paint the topsides while she’s out of the water, and I have some time. The colour scheme is dark red on top, with a black hull and no water line. I’ll also varnish the toe-rails and maybe do the deck after the launch. Right now, all my focus is on repairing anything that cannot be done in the water, which includes my newly found problem of the week: A rotten rudder. I have some regular pub-patrons on the hunt for large slabs of teak for me, which I will (with the help of a friend in the yard) replace the existing ply slabs with, and varnish. If there is no teak to be found, I’ll put marine ply back and fibre glass & paint as per the original. The pintle closest to the prop is also worn, meaning I need to have a local stainless workshop lathe a new one for me… It’s amazing being in one of the biggest sailing regions in the world, because anything can be found, and there are loads of people to lend a hand or offer advice. I’ll post another time on the great help I’ve been getting.

Other jobs include the issue of the cockpit draining into the bilge, which I am going fix with a skin fitting on the transom, and run tubing into two more holes 5inches off of the floor in the cockpit. The theory is, there will only ever been 5inches of water which cannot drain, although if the boat is heeling the majority of it should exit through one of the opposing holes. I’ll then re-route the existing floor drains into a ’switch’ on the bilge pump, so when there is a lot of water flying in, I can switch out the bilge pump and drain the cockpit. I think it’s better than raising the floor at this stage; that’s the theory.

In other news, I really need the help of someone on this website - I have a potential sponsor trying to view the site, but they’re locked into a corporate network running Internet Explorer 6, and as I am on a Mac without the ability to test such things, I’m in trouble because this site is apparently completely broken. So, if there is anyone around who might be able to spare an hour or so tweaking my CSS to run with IE6, I’d be incredibly appreciative - Let me know if I can do something in return.

The launch date is locked in for the 5th of June, and I have a mud berth lined up till August. The launch date is slightly late, but what can I say, I’m doing my best. I have a lot to do still, and painting takes good weather, so I really hope between now and then I get some weather to work in.

Outside of my pub job, I’ve also been assisting on a Fastnet 34 refit, sanding, varnishing and finishing off things around the boat - I’m getting paid about the same as the pub job, and it’s nice to be getting paid for something boat-related.

Apologies on this rather dry post, but I’ve also have a somewhat tumultuous personal life going on in the background, so apologies - I just thought I’d give a quick update on how things going.

I can’t wait to get in the water!

nick.

I’m beginning to find my battle with water to be utterly amusing. I mean really, I should be steaming mad about it, but I think it’s only a small show of what’s yet to come. This evening after a dinner of rolls and mayonnaise tuna, I set about wondering what I could amuse myself with when the sun went down (I have no electricity). So there I was sitting in the dark eating my roll, and I had a cracking idea: Audio Books! I set about getting ready for bed, to lie down with Bertrand Russel’s ‘Religion and Science’ crackling through my headphones. I was sure it would set the mood for the possibility of complex dreaming, and if not, maybe the enigma of two opposing systems of thought could be unleashed in the forward cabin of my Contessa 26.

I moved into the forward cabin the night before, after finding a few small leaks dripping on my feet from the cockpit seats. Clearly the screws holding the teak down on the seats need a new lease of life, and are letting drips through. So I moved into the forward ‘cabin’ thinking it was dry and cosy up the front. When I say cabin, it sounds a little glamorous - It’s more like one of those Japanese motels that are like decompression chambers. You couldn’t sit up if you tried - You’d be lucky to get your head four inches off the pillow before meeting the ‘ceiling’. It seemed like a good idea from a damp point of view, but alas, the other issue aside from space was that my feet were ever so slightly above my head, due to a minor incline towards the forepeak. I swear I could feel my heart pumping a tiny bit harder to circulate the blood. So here I am lying in a tiny bed with my feet higher than my head, practically breathing in the gel coat above me, thinking how wonderful all this boating business is. I miracuously slept through, and even quite enjoyed having the hatch just above my head, so as to to look at the rigging when I woke up.

But back to unravelling the mystery of Religion and Science - There I was (and I’m not embellishing this for literary reasons) climbing into bed on my second sojourn in the front cabin with Bertrand Russell playing over my headphones, only to find my sleeping bag completely and utterly wet through. As I had a torch in my mouth, I quickly moved around to see what the heck was going on, only to have it hit the ultra low roof, nearly knocking my teeth out and breaking the bulb. I had one leg in the wet sleeping bag, a broken torch in my mouth, and this rather poncy Cambridge voiceover babbling on about absolute and logical truths. I was just about to get angry, but then I couldn’t help but laugh at the entire situation, because I really think its only the nano-tip of the iceberg. I mean really, by the time this escapade is over, nothing will ever suprise or annoy me, ever again.

Luckily for me though, I have a second sleeping bag from when I first came down to see Constellation, back in August. It’s too thin for these British spring evenings, so the sailing pants I bought for the failed Sotogrande delivery have finally come in use - They were my pillow, but now they’re keeping my legs warm, and maybe even dry if it rains again. Needless to say, I’m back to the bed where I started.

I’ve decided from now on, the only thing going in the front cabin ever again, will be my pet sea otter, Albert - I’ll let him roam about up front, building dams.

nick.

Firstly, an enormous thankyou to Marty for his generous donation at a very tough time. Thanks again Marty, I really appreciate it.

As you well know, I flew over succesfully, however my trick of strapping the mainsail to my backpack and claiming it was only one bag was unsuccesful the second time around. British easyJet staff let it through, but the Germans wouldn’t have it. So, for an additional 15euros I got it onboard, and managed to only be 1kg over the baggage limit which was overlooked. I arrived in at Gatwick and took the train in to see a friend I hadn’t seen for a year, and as we’re as poor as each other, he’d already made dinner and we sat near Victoria Station for quiche and salad (thanks Matt!). I stayed for two nights in Harrow, London with the company I work for - I was put up with good food and drink for two nights, and even a lift down to Constellation on the Friday (thanks Simon!).

Constellation was full up with water again, but I’ve been through that already… I pumped it out and luckily Friday was one of the last sunny days since, and she dried fairly well. Saturday & Sunday were a right-off, I just walked around a bit and bought food for the week. Wondering what on earth I was going to do about my dwindling money situation, I looked into a pub job and suprisingly started on Sunday evening. My first night was utterly nerve wracking, not knowing the first thing about working behind a bar. The locals have named me ‘Ned’ (after Ned Kelly) and I was flamed thoroughly for not knowing the Sunday night quiz question of ‘what is the name of a dry bed in Australia that fills with water’ - It’s a Billabong in case you’re wondering - I slapped myself with a wet tea towel after finding out the answer.

The remainder of the week has been hopeless for boat work. Incredibly wet and windy, and no sign of a break. I’ve worked more hours than intended this week, but since I haven’t yet got an office or nice weather to work, I guess it doesn’t really matter.

I’m still really pushing for a May launch - However finances are incredibly tight at the moment. The past year has been really quite amazing in regards to last minute donations or help from people. On around 5 distinct occasions I’ve been utterly devasated financially, with bills looming and banks chasing minimum payments, only to have money literally appear from nowhere. Last night was an excellent example: I had 2pounds left in my pocket to last till Thursday, and I was wondering how I was going to make it - And then, a large table came in at the pub and left a 14pound tip, of which the manager gave me 10pounds. Thursday is payday, so now I’ll make it quite easily. Matt, my friend living in London boasts a 3pound a day budget, but I must say I’ve completely smashed his efforts, living on roughly a pound a day. Tesco’s is your friend.

While living finances are non-existant, I have managed to more or less pay off the boatyard - I now just need to come up with 90pounds for the launch fee. Finding a marina who will allow me to pay pro-rata on the yearly mooring fee is however posing to be difficult. The yard I’m currently in is reluctant to give me a berth on such terms, because they’d rather an annual customer. Other yards have quoted me ‘visitor rates’ at 21pounds a night, which is laughable at best. I’ll anchor in the Solent and swim in to shore for sandwiches before I part with that kind of money…

So, problems abound, but I’m doing my best. I’m able to get Internet access at the pub instead of having to go through my 5 mile walk to the local Library which is nice, so fingers crossed for everything else working out. I do miss Berlin dearly, as it’s been my home for over a year and I loved the life I was living there. My apartment is still there intact however, which the Germans call a ‘Koffer in Berlin’ (translation: ‘Suitcase in Berlin’) - It’s definitely a city you can’t leave easily, and must always have a toe in. I’m here now though, still completely focused as I have been for the past 9 months on this project - This new effort is merely another step closer to making it happen.

nick.