Dirty_Eric

Been wanting to get a kayak to help burn some calories and have fun with chasing mermaids. It's an Ocean Kayak Rider model, comfortable adjustable seat, two water tight compartments, very stable and has 4 built in rod holders, could be fun chasing `mahi `mahi! Comes in very handy on charters too, a nice addition to the SUP we have on board. :)

What happens when a rudder meets a concrete step. The backstory: A 47' Bareboat charter was just a little too over confident in their abilities and tried to take the boat places it obviously didn't belong, such as the shallow small boat channel. After several boat owners scolded them in several languages, they quickly realized their mistake. They then decided that instead of reversing and turning out to port into the wind and open marina channel, that a starboard turn with the wind would give them access to the swim platform of an Azimut 68 in the concrete lift basin, and would be a great place to stop, for drinks I reckon? Much to the chagrin of the Azimut's crew, who also joined the chorus of protestations. So between the 18kt crosswind, a very unprepared crew, some bad decision making, some extra heat from owners and professional crew, the frying pan was too hot and the skipper panicked instead of stopping and reassessing the situation. I had never seen the stern a boat climb out of the water going forward before. Luckily the damage was not worse.

Another dual prop cleaning job. 12 Meter boat has been sitting idle since November and the twin D6-435 engines will get some some upkeep so need to make sure they are not cavitating. Tuna Season is coming in soon.

It has been a couple weeks with sketchy wind coupled with a 3rd lockdown to flatten the mythical curve. The itch was too strong and Windy claimed 10kts from the SE. Started that way and they shifted E and down. Still better than stuck in some office. The repairs to the mainsail are super but think I need to inspect the outhual.

Removing the hard growth from the drive train and untreated sensors on a lovely 20 meter Fairlane. The near continuous lockdown/curfew situation here has prevented her from strutting her stuff. The Seajet antifouling is working like a champ, the algae just wipes away like dust.

Owner reported loss of power/engine performance which is usually caused by fouled propellors. Typical issue of cavitation with counter rotating propellors. My camera angle blows as I bumped the camera early on the dive and didn't realize it. I didn't expect the amount of hard scale so took more effort and time than expected. I always feel good when I have a happy owner afterwards.

Short clip from a 2 hour surface supplied dive on a CR40 prior to homeport change and a needed hual out. Water Temp 18C, Air Temp 14C, partly cloudy with scattered showers.

No expectation to sail today, at 0900 winds jumped from 5kts to 25kts and just as quickly about 1530 the wind dropped down to 15kts. Of course the weather apps all said 10-13kts all day today, while the weather fax said guess again, mid 20's and dust from Syria. Who to believe.

Had good breeze on Saturday so had to enjoy the weather. As with many things in life, a price needs to be paid for something good, so the sail had an argument with the mast and wouldn't raise the last 15cm.

The afternoon winds were a bit lazy in making their appearance but they did finally show. Silly sparrows decided to make a home in the boom and fouled the outhaul so that was fun. Was still a lovely day on the sea with only the kids out training on the lasers and windsurfers.

Was to be a calm day of 10 kts winds so perfect for Gennacker practice. But as usual the Mediterranean had other ideas. No wind for 2 hours and then, after retrieving waste plastic from the sea near a group turtles, the Sailing gods provided us with gusts to 25 kts.

A bad case of Galvanic Corrosion. This is what happens when the stern drives are not properly protected. Always make sure your sacrificial anodes are up to par and serviceable.

Another glorious day in the Eastern Mediterranean. Someone is missing but at least I can go Sailing. Audio is rubbish still, works great ashore but not afloat, camera must be allergic to the sea.

Another lovely afternoon, 18C and 10kts max wind, sail before some expected seasonal weather arrives. The audio is messed up as I was testing a device to reduce the wind noise which it did quite well at times, almost too well but it wasn't protecting the rear mic which was a problem.

After a wee hiatus, mixed signals on whats allowed vs not, it was high time to get back on the water. Westerly 7-12kts and 18C, what a wonderful day.

A quick climb up a mast to remove an anemometer that needs the bearing replaced. Of course after I remove the two mounting screws I see that there is a quick disconnect.

Friends gather for a last minute Sail before another nation wide lockdown. Wind was awesome, gusting to 20kts; seas a little choppy. The J80's ruled as we expected.

After a cramped morning inside a Bavaria chain locker extracting a 25kg blob of what use to be chain it was time to get our mind right. I love a cruiser, specially a blue water boat but a J80 never fails to put a huge smile on ones face. :)

Taking advantage of the continued great weather, the never ending 'must flatten the curve' restrictions and of course the first Sail of the year.

A lovely day in the Eastern Mediterranean. Our weather this month has been outstanding and the best way to celebrate is with friends and the Sea.

Decide to build my solo confidence a bit in stronger wins than I am use to. In the marina we were clocking 12 to 16 kts from the east. Of course I forget to clear the memory card so din't get much footage as the winds did go up a bit more to 20 kts. So much to learn and I had a blast.

Not allowed to be with my girlfriend so I will go out with my other princess.

Beautiful weather today (19 Dec 20) in the Eastern Mediterranean. Mostly clear blue skies, temp 21C, winds 5-12kts 9 average, deep blue sea at 22C. Time for a lazy relaxing sail.