Features
October—the first time in many years that Planesong had been
out under her own power. She handled really well; responsive to
the rudder and the throttle, she glided through the water with
ease. Her ride was gentle but solid. And while a large wake from
a ‘gin-palace’ on her stern quarter would make her corkscrew
like a rodeo bull, waves to the front were unceremoniously
punched through with the determination of a boat built for
circumnavigation. We had a few hiccups but then that is to be
expected.
Shortly after that the rig from ‘Hantu Laut’ became available and
after work from Mac from Dragon Marine and his team and from
Tom, the welder, Planesong was nearly complete. With a bowsprit
to lead, a tall 50-foot main mast with a 20-foot boom, and a
mizzenmast strapped to the rear of the wheel house, the boat had
almost completed her transformation. Later, we proposed to push
the rear deck out about four feet to give us better access to the
mizzen and an area for socialising—but that is phase two.
With the masts in place we took her out for her first sail on main
and genoa to see how she would respond. She sailed like a
dream! In a relatively light wind she managed 5 knots and an
almost imperceptible list! Very comfortable! We took her out for a
couple of sails and tried out the mizzen sail that added an extra
dimension. Ideally, the mizzenmast should have been in front of
the wheelhouse but there was no room.
come back but was told that they are in plague proportions this
year. Behind the bins was a mess.
A couple of days of ͍Ʌ