Lolita becomes Cinnamon Girl

I am pleased to report that my little wooden boat, formerly called Lolita, has a new home in the San Francisco Bay area and a new name that I think fits perfectly. Her new owner, Mariellen Stern has given her fresh varnish and a bunch of other upgrades and shes now ready to race. Here are some photos from her days in Newport Beach:

Cinnamon Girl as she looked in 2007.

Cinnamon Girl sports traditional lines above the waterline combined with a fast bottom.

With her deep fin keel and spade rudder, Cinnamon Girl is deceptively quick.

I designed this boat way back in 1978 for a client that wanted a traditional looking boat for cold-molded construction. I could not bring myself to draw a full keel on it so we compromised with a shallow-ish fin keel and skeg-mounted rudder. Twenty years later I found her in a warehouse in Signal Hill in a sad state of disrepair and bought her on the spot. I brought her back to my shop and rebuilt her in my spare time. In doing so I deepened the keel and put a new spade rudder on her. A few years later my plans changed and I put her in storage while I focused on other projects and went cruising.

Fast forward to 2013, it was time to either refit her again or find a new home for her. Fortunately, last April Mariellen came into her life. She had known this boat many years ago and loves it as much as I have over the years. After several years in storage the varnish on the hull and cockpit was in rough shape, the bottom paint was gone and there were a few other issues that needed attention. I had always sailed the boat in southern California where the winds are relatively light and only raced it a few times so it was very simply rigged, but for sailing and racing in the San Francisco bay area, we thought some additions were necessary. These included a new 100% jib set on a roller furler, rigid vang and improved reefing system among others. Here are some photos of  the work in progress:

Lolita survived the road trip from Costa Mesa to Richmond, CA

Topsides are prepped for new finish .

Several coats of Interlux Perfection are applied. The hull is made of cold molded fir and mahogany.

Once the topsides were finished, fresh bottom paint was applied.

With work on the hull completed, the boat was relaunched. The next step was to refinish the cockpit.

It was no small job to refinish the cockpit. Notice the old style Barlow winches.

Mariellen stands proudly with her new Cinnamon Girl

Cinnamon Girl in her element.

Americas Cup Observations

Its clear that the AC/72 boats represent the most significant advances in yacht racing in a generation. While small boats like the Moth have been foiling for years and other large multihulls have been using foils that are adjustable for cant and rake, the 72s are arguably the first to combine foils, wing masts and sophisticated foil control systems in in a truly competitive package. It is also important to note that there were no significant gear failures during the regatta. That is a testament to the highly developed design, engineering and testing programs of both teams. I think this bodes well for the future of the Cup competition. Once again, I have to confess that before the event I was among those who felt that this event could very well be a dismal failure. After witnessing the spectacular racing I changed my mind in this regard.

I watched every minute of the racing on TV and think it was extremely well presented. Journeyman sports announcer Todd Harris did good job in spite of having no real yacht racing experience. Sure, he made a few goofy comments but he also frequently acknowledged his lack of experience in the sport and didnt try to come across as an expert. I thought that was a refreshing departure from previous AC announcers. NBC relied on a cast of true sailing experts to deliver insightful commentary and I thought they all combined to deliver a quality sporting product.

What about the crews? Without access to the inner workings of each team we can only speculate on what occurred within them as the regatta progressed, but the indications are that the American team had not spent nearly as many hours on the water, in the boat they would race in the finals, as the Kiwis did. This became glaringly apparent when a Team Oracle crewman fell overboard before the start of the first race. Another interesting facet of the American team was the body language of two key members of their afterguard, John Kostecki and Tom Slingsby. We dont know what that interpersonal relationship was like but it was obvious that things improved when Kostecki was replaced by Ben Ainsley. This is not to take anything away from Kostecki as he has had  a long and illustrious career as a professional sailor. But sometimes personalities dont mesh regardless of the skills and talents of the individuals and perhaps thats all there was to it. In any case, the shift from Kostecki to Ainsley made a significant difference and in my opinion was a key factor in Oracles eventual victory.

It was compelling personal drama to see the juxtaposition of confidence in the two crews as Oracle began racking up wins against the Kiwis who came within a few puffs of wind of winning the event when race 13 was abandoned with the ENZ ahead with less than a mile to the finish line. When that race was re-sailed later in the day, the Americans began their improbable march to 9 points and the Cup. As the Kiwis suffered loss after loss their confidence was replaced first by concern, then worry and finally desperation. At the end of the event the strain and despair were evident on the faces of the ENZ team, especially that of Dean Barker, whose helmsmanship could not be faulted except on the starting line where he was frequently bested by Spithill. The Kiwis made few tactical errors and only one glaring boathandling error when they nearly capsized.

It was also interesting to see how the Americans continued to improve daily while the Kiwis seemed to remain constant in terms of boatspeed. I can only attribute that to the fact that Oracle was the faster boat and it took several races for the Americans to learn how to sail it to its optimum potential, while the Kiwis had the slower boat and couldnt get much more out of her.

In the aftermath of the event, Team Oracle accepted the challenge from an Australian group for the next Americas Cup competition. We dont know what kind of boats that regatta will be sailed in, but given the spectacular racing we witnessed in AC XXXIV, Im looking forward to some incredible technological advances and exciting racing in the event to come.

Finisterra Update 11 15 13

Over the last couple of months Ive been busy with mostly non-sailing issues but have found time for a few projects aboard Finisterra. In early October I made the decision to rewire the 12 volt system from the batteries to the main DC panel.  The system worked OK as it was, but over the years the previous owner had added various extras to the boat and instead of routing them through the main DC panel or installing an auxiliary DC panel, he simply ran the leads directly to the batteries and used in-line fuses on an ad hoc basis. The result was battery terminals with multiple wires leading to individual components. To further complicate matters, the house bank had been connected to the starting battery in such a way that they could not be isolated from each other. In other words, we really only had one great big bank of batteries that included six 6V deep cycle AGM batteries and a single 12V AGM starting battery. Our solution was to bring in Peter Dugan of Pacific Marine Electric to sort it all out. Together we created a new wiring system from the batteries to the main switches and installed a new auxiliary DC panel. The result is a much cleaner wiring arrangement that enables us to isolate the starting battery and provides an auxiliary panel for all the extra equipment the previous owner and I have installed. In the process we got rid of about 50 pounds of heavy gauge battery cable and have a clean and understandable system, which makes me happy.  Once the wiring was complete I fabricated a cover for the batteries so I could access the raw water pump without sitting directly on top of the battery terminals.

Battery cover is elevated to clear the battery terminals. Its a good place to sit while changing the impeller on the raw water pump. Finisterra is equipped with six 6V deep cycle battery and a single 12V starting battery.

I also finished the installation of the solar panels. They are mounted on a stainless steel tube on the aft end of the bimini and secured in place with Magma barbecue mounting brackets. This way I can adjust them through a range of about 120 degrees to align them with the sun as needed. The Magma brackets make it easy to remove the panels if necessary.

Three 50 watt solar panels. Having the ability to adjust them to face the sun  as needed vastly improves their efficiency. Since all of our lighting is LED, the primary consumer of electricity is the refrigeration system.
To augment the solar array we also carry a Honda genset.  Notice the GAM single sideband antenna on the port backstay.

Juice from the solar panels is routed through a GoPower charge controller mounted on the aft bulkhead in the quarter cabin.

One of the key elements of a good passage is having a snug, warm and secure place to sleep when youre off watch. Unfortunately Finisterra was not built with any good sea berths so I improvised with a lee board in the quarter berth. Its made of African Mahogany and slips into anodized aluminum brackets. It converts the king size quarter berth into a nice, snug sea berth.

Nothing beats a good place to sleep when youre underway.

Security is always an issue here in the States as well as abroad. To help keep ourselves and our gear safe, I installed a security system that incorporates sensors, called Pulsors, bonded to the underside of the deck and hatches in strategic locations. The Pulsors can detect slight fluctuations in the deck, such as from the weight of a person stepping aboard, and trigger the alarm. Im not sure how well itll work against the bad guys but Ive scared myself a couple of times by not disarming it before climbing aboard.

Pulsors are about 3 inches long and can be mounted almost anywhere.

Another project was to build a seat for the companionway. This is a nice place to be when youre on the midnight watch, or when you have a cockpit full of guests. On the night watches it is the warmest part of the cockpit and provides excellent protection from the elements,  a good view forward and easy access to the sailing instruments. The autopilot remote and I-Pad are also within easy reach. Or we can turn around and face the cockpit, using a drop board for a back rest. Its made of teak and is secured in place with a couple of rigging pins.

The companionway sill on the B423 is high enough that its easy to bark your shins when going below. This little seat makes that a thing of the past. 

I set the height of it so that a standard square boat cushion works perfectly for it.

I pondered whether to install an AIS system on Finisterra for a long time. After all, Ive made many a long passage without it in the past, so do we really need it now? Well, yes we do. In some ways it beats radar for sorting out what other vessels are out there. It takes less power than a radar and we can display it wirelessly on our laptops, I-Pads, GPS and smart phones. I chose a Vesper XB8000, which includes a VHF receiver and transponder and dedicated GPS receiver. Installation was quick and easy, all I needed was to install the VHF and GPS antennas and provide 12V power to the unit. Because it works through its own WIFI network I was spared the expense and aggravation of wiring all our displays to it. I could have connected it to the masthead VHF antenna by installing an antenna splitter, but I like my systems to be stand-alone and autonomous from each other, so I mounted a separate antenna on the bimini.

Vesper XB8000 wifi enabled AIS. receiver/transponder. Very cool!

The latest addition to the fleet is our new Hobie Mirage i9S inflatable kayak. I love this thing! Weve tried several different types of kayaks in the past, both inflatable and rotomolded, and none really met our needs until we found the i9S. The average inflatable kayaks are slow, track poorly and are just no fun to paddle. The rotomolded unit we had for a while paddled fairly well and was certainly rugged enough, but it was a big, bulky thing. I really couldnt accept having such a thing strapped down on the foredeck or hanging from our lifelines, so I was thinking of not having a kayak at all, which wasnt a very good solution either. Then we found this little Hobie. Right from the start I liked the propulsion system better than a double bladed paddle. It uses leg power to drive a pair of fins so it sort of swims along, leaving your hands free to do more constructive things, such as fish, or sip a cocktail, or wave to admirers as you glide past them.

Pedal powered and quite civilized, the little Hobie has earned a place aboard Finisterra

The boat comes with a paddle for emergencies, or if you want to go really fast you can pedal and paddle at the same time. But I found it to be perfect for relaxing jaunts around Alamitos Bay and I look forward to cruising it in far off places as well. The propulsion system is easy to install and comes with its own storage bag. The hull weighs about 45 pounds and fits neatly in the starboard cockpit locker when its deflated.