Safety Updates 2017

I prioritised the following safety updates for Grace in 2016

Purchased, registered and fitted an EPIRB. This went on the boat before returning to the UK.

Danbouy and Kim MOB Sling

• Installed a KIM man overboard sling.
• Installed an inflatable Danbouy.
• Located a knife and holder permanently in the cockpit.
• Purchased and stored a suitable set of bolt cutters (Grace has 10mm rigging) 
• Replaced the JackStays (UV compromised)

Purchased and fitted out a Grab Bag with the following contents:

• Knife

  

  Grab Bag

• Spare GPS and batts
• Epirb
• Hand Held VHF DSC Distress call and GPS
• Spare VHF batts
• Water
• Flares
• First aid kit
• Torch 
• Reading Glasses
• Thermal blanket
• Sea sick tabs
• Whistle

Std Horizon Portable VHF with GPS

GME MT403 Epirb

Finally the current rigging refit now has the spinnaker halyard remade longer to allow it to be brought back to the electric primary winch for man overboard recovery from the middle of the boat. This is made from 12mm cruising dyneema so will be fine for loading. 

New Sails in 2017

Grace was purchased with the original UK Sailmakers tri-radials.

Original Mildew Stained UK sails

I think these were a laminated design and it was clear that the laminates were separating. Water had got in-between the layers and then dark mildew stains had formed in places. This was particularly noticeable on the genoa.

The basic sail shape was pretty blown out with both the main and genoa hooking on the leech.

We had the sails laundered and basic repairs done in preparation for the sail back to the UK from France but it was clear that these were going to be changed as a matter of course once the bank balance had recovered.

Towards the end of the 2016 season we looked at comparative quotes from North Sails and Rolly Tasker as examples of providers at either end of the price spectrum. The Rolly Tasker deal was keen and looked favourable to us.

Peter Sanders at Sanders Sails Loft, Lymington

In the end... and on local recommendation I visited Sanders Sails in Lymington and have a good chat to Peter Sanders. Prices looked to be between Tasker and North. Why would I not want a local UK manufacturing sail loft to make these for me? I went local.










With much sail cloth research and advice from Peter I went with Hydra Net Radial from Dimension Polyant. This is not a laminate but the sail cloth has spectra woven in to give the stiffness associated with modern designs. For the main and genoa we kept with the tri-radial configuration.

Hard Wind Jib hanked onto inner solent stay

I also had Sanders make a hard wind crosscut "blade jib" with reduced sail area for upwind 25 Knot + wind
speeds. This would lead us to the addition of a solent stay which is made from dyneema. The solent stay is tensioned on a 2:1 purchase dyneema control line lead back to the primary winch in a similar way (and on the opposite side) to the genny furling line.

Grace has the standard 42Msq genoa and with the hard wind jib reducing foresail area to 18Msq. Not quite a storm jib which would be more like 10Msq.


Finally some video clips of the new sails going upwind