Fun (fast) Sailing!

I recently returned from a long weekend in Madang. It was the best sailing I've had yet! Nice strong breezes in the afternoon with calm seas. It was fun! Here's a video. It's long, I know. Probably only fellow sailor/builders would be interested, and only a few at that. I found the camera angle interesting though because I can see a lot of things that are happening, things I did, or should have done. I edited in little comments through the video too in an attempt to make it a bit more interesting. Take it or leave it. This was a really fun 1h12min sail... cut down to 35 min.

Nebo app says my top speed was 14.8kn. That seems awfully fast and I'm not sure if I believe it, especially since there was a spot where there seems to be a glitch in the tracking. Lots of little places where it shows brief 10-15kn range of speed though. Otherwise, mostly in the 5-10kn range, which is overall a lot faster than I'm used to going. But the winds were really wonderful for it. Forecast wind was 7kn N. But I think it was more like 10-12, with >15 gusts. I've never been good at estimating wind speed. I think they say that 15kn winds will just start getting a few little white caps here and there.

Anyway, if you're an outrigger sailor you might find it interesting to watch the video! Enjoy!

And for those for whom 35 minutes is just too long... I don't blame you!... Here's a quick 2min bit for your viewing pleasure!

Sailing in Madang in 6-10 knot winds.

Shan Skailyn Video

I was finally able to upload a quick video with some clips from my latest adventures on Shan Skailyn.  One thing I'd love to get comments on is regarding the flexing of the mast. I've never noticed before, but watching this video (looking down the mast) you can see the mast (luff spar) flexing at the attachment point where it is hoisted up against the stub mast. Is that a normal amount of flex, or is it excessive. Keep in mind it's about 15-20 knot wind where it's flexing like that.

In this video, I show a timelapse of the boat assembly after getting out of storage, then a quick shot of how nice the new rollers on the trailer are working, before getting to the actual sailing. Oh, and you can see how the unfolding of the crossbeam/ama hinges works when putting it in the water. Back up on the trailer is the same in reverse.

Enjoy!


Sailin' Shan Skailyn II from geoff husa on Vimeo.

Good Sailing in Madang

We recently were able to get down to Madang and get Shan Skailyn out on the water for the first time in about 10 months! We really enjoyed being able to put him to good use every single day, both paddling (with the kiddos), and sailing. Most days, Shan Skailyn was in use from just after lunch (when the tide came in, allowing us to launch) right up until dusk where there would be just enough time to get it back on the trailer, back to the house, and rinsed off and ready for the next day.

Speaking of getting Shan Skailyn in and out of the water, you may remember I mentioned last time (10 months ago or so) that I ordered some hardware to put some rollers on the trailer to ease loading and unloading as well as reduce wear and tear to the bottom of the boat being caused by sliding it on and off mere carpet covered steel square stock. Having prepared the rollers ahead of time, I was ready to install immediately on arrival. And was I ever pleased with the results! Shan Skailyn now rolls off and back on to the trailer with such ease! In addition, when it was finally time to disassemble and pack it back up in storage, there was very little wear to the paint on the bottom. In the past I had always needed to put a few touch up coats of paint on the bottom every time we were packing it up. No more!

Now for the fun stuff… the sailing! The conditions were a little bit more windy than I've experienced in the past. I mean it's usually good, but a bit lacking in the thrill department. This time had a bit more excitement to speak of with stronger, gustier winds, and more rolling swells. I had the pleasure of having a new acquaintance who happens to be a sailor from New Zealand accompany me one day. He gave me a few insights about reading the wind. Not earth shattering stuff, but every little thing counts! Watching the water and waves for wind speed and direction. I definitely could stand to read up on that stuff more. Anyone got some good online resources for this? So the exciting stuff starts happening with winds about 20 knots. I guess that's when you start seeing little whitecaps. Most days weren't quite that, but maybe 10-15 knots. The last day though I went out in consistent 20 knots and it was A W E S O M E !!!!!! I've never handled Shan Skailyn on my own going that fast. The only time it may have been going faster was on day 6 of our maiden voyage when we got caught in some nasties out a bit further away from land.

But this time was just me and I ventured a bit further up the coast than I usually do. I had this little voice in my head reminding me, despite my nervousness, that this is the last day I won't get to take Shan Skailyn for a ride for 18+ months. (I'll get to the 18 months thing in a bit.) I wanted to push things beyond my comfort level today. Even in our little bay, still inside the shelter of the many little islands around us it was blowing pretty nice, guessing maybe 15 knots. Today's goal… I wanted to sail to a nearby resort, grab a brewsky at their little seaside restaurant, and sail back. Things were looking good so far. Now looking at my track below (sailed from circled area with goal to make it to starred area), I know that there might be the experienced sailors wondering why I'm not going out beyond the shelter of the islands. I know you lose the wind (or it gets unpredictable) behind the islands. But honestly, that's my favorite part, cruising over the shallow coral, seeing and talking to the people living on those islands. They almost always live on the sheltered side. I love that stuff. OK, ok ok… I'm a bit of a puss too. I still don't like feeling exposed out there. Plus there's no breakers to worry about. So back to my story… after I passed behind that first island there, that's where the wind was really nice and strong. I was able to maintain a fast port tack the whole way out NEARLY to the resort I'd hoped to get to (Jais Aben). This stretch was the fastest I have ever single handedly. Unfortunately I do not own a gps so cannot give you speeds. But suffice to say I was moving pretty good. I got some decent gopro video of it, which hopefully I'll be uploading soon!

I had a great time cruising by folks on their outriggers and even a number of people out swimming around the coral reef spear fishing or otherwise hunting their meals around their island homes.

As I made the last open stretch before reaching Jais Aben, the winds continued to get stronger, and at this point the waves were piling up and starting to take the form that looked like they'd start breaking soon. It made me pretty nervous about being out there. Also, I noticed the last approach, just before the protected bay of the resort, had a lot of big breakers. I just didn't see a clear way through it. Looking at going out around the outside of the last little island there didn't look too great either. Everything was getting rougher. I had two choices before me, it seemed. Either finish my trip to the resort, then hang out and hope things calmed down a bit, or tuck tail and head back. I chose not to brave going near those breakers. If there's one thing I've learned that scares me, it's that you may think you're steering clear of those things, but before you know it, you're right upon them. It's kind of scary how they sneak up on you. I suppose that's why it's probably safer to stay further away from the coast when sailing. So I wussed out and headed back. Yeah, I gotta live with that for the next 18+ months till I get another chance to get out there. But still, this was a fun ride!

Going back took me quite a bit longer than I'd expected. I pretty much followed the same route, albeit with many many more tacks as I was beating up wind especially on the first 1/4 of the return. At one point, I was having such a difficult time making progress (because the area between the island and the mainland I was trying to pass through was too narrow to effectivly tack, especially with how the wind was funneled through that channel) that I thought I was going to have to go out into the bigger waves out around the unprotected side of the island. I had an audience here too, watching this stupid white man in his sailboat struggling to get back where he came from! They'd seen me scream through the area, only to see me piddle my way back… almost unsuccessfully. Till a brief gust from another direction allowed me to point up, pick up speed and get just to the point where I could squeak out of there. Now I was good.

The rest of the way back was fairly easy going, and felt like I was riding a roller coaster going up and down on thsoe waves like that. When all was said and done, getting out (almost) to my destination took me about 25 minutes, and getting back took me almost an hour. What a fun ride though. It felt good, though kept me on my toes. Still wondering if I could have navigated the rest of the way to the resort. I'm sure I would have been fine. I'll have to try it again next time.

Speaking of next time, we're planning on returning to the US, to my home state of Arizona, for a year, starting in February. Once we return to Papua New Guinea in Feb of 2017, it'll be at least 6 months before we are able to get down to Madang again. Kind of sad about that. Hopefully I've cleaned up and stored Shan Skailyn well and it'll still be in great shape when we get back.

Meanwhile, hold on a bit and I'll work on getting a short video of my sailing adventures uploaded for your viewing pleasure.

Sailing in Madang

Shan Skailyn has been the source of immeasurable fun for our family over this last week. This is the first we've been able to really use the boat since its maiden voyage back in March. It was even more easy to use after the trailer was built. It's so much easier to get the boat into and out of the water now! We've gone out paddling with the kids just about every day, going out to one of the many little islands sprinkled around these clear blue waters. It's been fun for kids when we pull up to a small beach and play and swim for a bit. Our girls have made quick friends with the locals who are often out swimming and who gravitate to us when they see us pulling up.

I must retract my previous comment about Shan Skailyn not being a good paddling canoe at all. It certainly has its quirks, but with a little more experience after this week, I've found that it takes understanding the conditions that affect steerage under paddle power to get things to work right. Weight distribution is a big one. Too much fore or aft can make a big difference, as does the way the wind plays off the hull. Whichever end of the hull is sticking up more out of the water is going to get blown. And if the wind is strong enough, paddling with a brailed sail is nearly impossible as it constantly wants to turn the boat backwards. It's similar, though maybe not as bad with the sail just open and weathercocking.

In the past, I've always alternated between paddling and the steering oar, paddling and then using the oar to correct our direction. Not too bad, but seems clumsy. But yesterday I played with some slightly different paddling strokes that resulted in much easier maintenance of direction. I'd like to experiment with this more to see if it works in various conditions. I think I may have hit on something here that can reduce the need for the oar. The short of it though is that I'm encouraged about the paddle-ability of Shan Skailyn now.

I started leaving Shan Skailyn in the water, anchored in the little bay each day. That makes it easier to go out on a whim for whatever amount of time works for our family. On Friday alone I went out 3 times! Twice sailing and once paddling with the kids. Friday produced some excitement on the sailing front as it was the first time out totally on my own. I've been anxious to see how I can handle all that needs doing when there is nobody else to help. I certainly have to learn a few things and get a routine down to make it happen smoother.

For example, on Friday I went out in the afternoon in a stiff wind. Paddling out of our shallow little bay into the strong wind proved exhausting. This was before I learned I could improve my technique some. Once out, I really struggled getting the sail raised in that wind before the boat would get completely turned around and threaten overturning. I finally managed, though I was so tired afterward that I wondered if I had anything in me left to sail with. Perseverence paid off though because the wind was strong enough to get me cruising pretty good out there. Shan Skailyn was moving at the more exciting speeds and producing some spray off the bow of the ama and around the leeboard and rudder at times. It felt good to feel like things were under control as I captained all by myself.

I was feeling confident enough by the weekend to take my whole family (except our 17 mo old son, Ethan) out for their first time sailing. The wind was disappointingly mild, being just enough to get us moving a bit, but achingly slow. Still my wife, Shannon and our three girls enjoyed it quite a bit. And prior to taking the whole family out, I took my middle daughter out on her own. She had the thrill of seeing a school of fish jumping out of the water in large groups. She thought that was the greatest thing! Both of our oldest girls keep wanting to just jump in the water out in the middle of the sea there. It strikes me how brave they are as I was always scared to be in deep water like that when I was young. In fact, I still don't like it even though I realize my fears are mostly unreasonable.

After sailing with the whole family we pulled up to a nearby beach, anchored the boat just offshore and just swam around in the shallow water. I tried leaving the sail up and just let it weather cock under anchor. I saw that as the boat would sway back and forth, as it would swing starboard the wind would catch the sail and before the sail had a chance to really luff, the boat would begin moving forward. Then it would catch the anchor line again, whip back around and begin to swing to starboard again for another round. I'm trying to figure out the easiest ways to do things without all the extra work of brailing every time. The thing would lurch forward fast enough, moving 10-15 feet at a lurch, that I worried it would hit one of the kids in the head or something as they swam around. So probably not a good idea for the future. Brailing it will be.

Earlier in the week I took a couple of my friends out sailing (the only pictures I get of myself sailing). Again the conditions were pretty mild with just a few short lived breezes strong enough to get us up and going.

As time goes on I hope to seek more adventure and explore around the many coves and sheltered island beaches all around us. There are probably hundreds of little islands around here with 15 miles of us! It's beautiful and the local folks are usually friendly and happy to make friends and talk about boats and their life on the water.

I've got one more day before I have to start packing Shan Skailyn up here. I'll have some minor repairs (mostly painting) and small improvements I'd like to make before packing away. Due to logistics and the possibility of no available guesthousing out here in Madang for a while, it's looking like it could be another year before we can come back out and make use of our family canoe. The thought of packing it away is sad, but it does make the times we do get to come out here and use it all the more sweet.

By the way, isn't it nice to finally have some real pictures posted!