I’ve mananged to maintain a pretty good sailing schedule this year, despite my work schedule. Almost every weekend! But after the whole spring and summer, I’m tired and ready for a break. This is the time of year I take care of all the maintenance items that have been building up.

I like boat work, because it makes me feel empowered to learn new things, figure it out, design it the way I want, and see how well I can make it work. Just tinkering around on all the little things is fun.

So far my list includes changing the engine oil and filters, moving the fuel filter and re-routing the fuel lines, interior cleaning and maint., wood repair, epoxy work, plumbing work, caulking, the packing gland, new traveller hardware and who-knows-what-else. Oh, and the full-on-haulout bottom-painting with seacock replacements.

Popey and I sailed from Richmond to the Cityfront in mild winds (picked up to about ~15 knots at the slot, then mellowed out again). We saw the finish of the Star Championships off Alcatraz, then sailed toward Tiburon and stopped for lunch at Sam’s. The food was pretty good, and the weekday crowd was so much smaller and less annoying than the weekend glut.

Then we motorsailed back. Our docking was somewhat amazingly flawless. My neighbor Bob had just come in and we compared notes. Early in our sail we had passed him near the end of the jetty.

Then the usual cleanup…