The continuing adventures of Thirst…
Hello from a very warm and breezy Fort Lauderdale. I love the warmth after a cold spring in Boston, but I forgot about the bugs! THIRST is “in the slings” overnight (Monday) with full provisions & water, chores down, and ready for an 8:30 AM launching, preflight systems check, fuel dock and departure from the “Just Catamarans” yard in Dania, Florida.
We are looking at a NE breeze in the high teens against a 2 to 4 know Gulf Stream, which is just perfect if you are a fan of sharp seas and a bumpy ride. (BTW, I am not a big fan of such conditions, and I have taken my favorite drug Meclizine to overcome my slovenly habits during the pandemic).
We will most likely hug the beach for headed north or just west of north for 100 miles and until the breeze clocks more to the East. That will be the time to get back into the stream and shoot NE towards Charleston and Myrtle Beach, before adding some more east to get around Hatteras.
Fortunately, tonight’s www.Windy.com models shows the wind will clock even more on Thursday. Of course we will be checking in with our weather reports from Commander Weather and Routing from Bill Biewenga as we go. Averaging 10 knots over the bottom delivers 240 miles a day, which is a realistic goal with consistent good breeze and no upwind work (after tomorrow).
The current over/under is Sunday Midnight, but any light breezes will put a damper on the boat speed. And remember, tis is a delivery, not a race. Like everyday on the water for me, Nobody gets hurt, We don’t break anything big, We learn something new, We have a lot of fun, and if we are fast, so much the better.
The first of the three pictures attached is of the boat in the slings. No keel at all. Centerboards are up. Note how small the rudders are. That’s because they are in the retracted position which allows for some sailing in very skinny water, as seen in the next picture. We can lift the rudders at a moments notice and support them with a short pole. The final picture is of the all of the 2 hydraulic 3-speed winches, halyards, sheets, reef lines, Cunningham and two sets of furler lines. Not for the faint of heart. Thirst Tracker.
Anarchist Firewood.
