[Rhodes22-list] FL Sailing Trip

Mon May 11 21:45:50 EDT 2009

Bob,

I really appreciate the good words on the BoomRoom, by phone last weekend, and here by email.  It probably sounds sappy, but it made my day to hear your cruise went so well and your BR so well used.  

What you describe, Mike, is how I have used my enclosure on Mary Jane, which is IMF.  A nice side of having a support tube assembly, like a second boom except fixed to the boat, is the ability to sail with a full rig, IMF or Conventional, or motor, and with a large bimini in  place full-time.  While quite a large shaded area results, it does not have the negative 'sail effect' of most biminis, which can fill like a parachute when the boat is heeled over.  This can really throw off the balance.  The BR top is designed with two flat surfaces, and on my test sailing on the Chesapeske, after the '07 Annapolis show, I found it would spill the wind instead of capturing it.  I didn't know just how nicely it worked until that sailing, very heavy wind and wave action.  Isn't it nice not to have to fight the tiller!  

The lighting.  I have supplied a remote control 'chandelier' (as Rex Henthorn's fleet skippers called it) which connects with ease to the bimini cover without having to have wires and hookups.  He will tell you it was handy finding his boat on it's mooring while everyone else was random motoring.  His story to me was a good laugh.  They named his BR the Ballroom.  I have found another good LED option fron B&D which can be either dim or quite bright, but unwired, so as to maintain simplicity.  Low amps also.  I hope someone uses the cockpit sleeping rig like the one from Stan, Overnight in the cockpit is sheer luxury versus the close cabin.  Stan's seating layout and adaptability is genius.  I may set mine up in Annapolis this October - cool as you want, warm as you wish.  Hot dogs on the house...

Hey, what it's about is using the full capability of this spectacular pocket cruiser!  Maybe even get the ladies excited too.

Chow,

Art

-----Original Message-----
>From: "Michael D. Weisner" <mweisner at ebsmed.com>
>Sent: May 11, 2009 2:41 PM
>To: The Rhodes 22 Email List <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] FL Sailing Trip
>
>Bob,
>
>Looks like a real nice trip.  Western FL in May is usually great weather. 
>Glad that you
>lucked out.
>
>I agree, the BR is a great addition.  I am budgeting for one.  Is there a 
>way to deploy the canopy so that it serves the place of a bimini (under the 
>boom)?  I would love to get rid of the bimini but I roast in the sun.
>
>I have been wondering what kind of lighting you have in the BR.  We use a 
>battery powered lantern which is nice, but not really bright enough.  I 
>would like to use LED rope lights along the BR frame.  Has anyone found a 
>good source of rope lights that will run off 12V (rather than use the 
>inefficient AC inverter power?)  Art, have you made a BR with an integral 
>lighting system?
>
>As far as the ice goes, I freeze water in half-gallon milk containers and 
>they last for days, probably due to less surface area than ice cubes.  If 
>the container fails, I just toss it in a recycling bin.  I try to find the 
>ones with screw on caps so that they do not leak into the fridge box since 
>mine is also cracked.  I doubt that it can be repaired, although you may be 
>able to place a membrane inside to stop the leaks from condensate.  We also 
>freeze Poland Spring half-liter bottles right out of the Costco packing. 
>They also last a pretty long time.  For box lunches, we just pack a frozen 
>bottle with the lunch to keep it cold and for drinking water at lunch (if it 
>is liquid.)
>
>Mike
>s/v Shanghai'd Summer ('81)
>Nissequogue River, NY
>
>From: "Bob Keller" Monday, May 11, 2009 1:55 PM
>
>Hello All,
>
>My wife and I just returned from a trailersailing trip to southwest Florida 
>last week and I wanted to share some findings and pictures with the group. 
>We drove from Richmond Hill, GA (near Savannah) to Punta Gorda, FL (100 
>miles south of Tampa) on Saturday and it took us 7.5 hours (420 miles).  Art 
>Czerwonky and Tom Simpson drove down to meet us at the municiple marina and 
>boat ramp called Laishley Park.  It is a great facility and the day we got 
>there they were having a redfish tournament with professionals and ESPN 
>coverage.  Other than tight parking, it did not impact us at all.  This was 
>our 6th trip there in the last 7 years, but the first time we went as late 
>as May and we were rewarded with perfect weather - highs in the mid 80's and 
>winds were 10-15 knots, mostly out of the south (compared with the typical 
>15-25 knots we usually get in April).  We spent 5 nights on the boat, which 
>we both agree is our limit.  Went to Tween Waters on Captiva, Cabbage Key 
>and Boca Grande which has an outstanding new (since the hurricane of '04) 
>marina that is first rate.  All the facilities we visited were rebuilt in 
>the past 5 years and were all in great condition.  The sailing was really 
>great on this trip because we were able to sail with the poptop up and the 
>sails all unfurled which is the first time we have ever been able to do that 
>in FL.  That said, let's get to our findings:
>
>
>
>
>This was the first trip we made with the Boom Room and it was the biggest 
>upgrade we have made to the trip.   It makes overnighting on the boat much 
>nicer for a number of reasons.  First is that it is modular in that you can 
>put up as much as you need and a little at a time.  This makes assembly 
>easier because you can do it gradually.  Very easy to take down and put up - 
>after my second time I was putting it up in 10-15 minutes - the top first 
>which is a great sunshade for the cockpit.  Then I would put up the bow 
>screens and add the other panels as the sun moved to keep the cockpit 
>comfortable.  The side panels are lightweight materials and are very easy to 
>work with, ie: you do not break a sweat putting this up.  The other nice 
>aspect is that when you wake up in the morning, the cockpit is not covered 
>with dew as it used to be.  Doesn't sound like a big deal, but a dry cockpit 
>also stays cleaner - after a week the boat was just as clean as when we 
>started.  Last but not least, the Boom Room is very easy to stow and store 
>and does not take up a lot of space.  The BR is a very nice addition and I 
>recommend it if anyone is going to be sleeping aboard for any amount of 
>time.
>Due to the above, I will be selling my Pop-Top enclosure if anyone is 
>interested.  Very good condition - all snaps & screens intact.
>I think I got the idea on this list to actually fill up the icebox 
>(ice-holder) for the fridge with water and freeze it before going on such a 
>trip.  I tried this and actually froze it for a week before the trip and it 
>works amazingly well.  The ice lasted for four days compared with 1 day for 
>ice cubes!  Amazing in that this would last almost the whole trip.  The only 
>problem was that my box cracked on the bottom, maybe due to it being frozen 
>or being old, so as the ice melted it got the carpet in the boat wet and 
>kept it that way.  Anyone else ever have that happen?  I am going to try and 
>fix it with silicone or maybe get a new one from Stan.  I just hope the new 
>one won't crack from freezing also...
>This was the first time I tried out my new 150 genoa (vs. the old 175) and 
>it was a huge improvement.  The boat pointed a lot better into the wind, 
>even when furled.  The new sail does not slip over the furling tube like the 
>old ones did and I think the new design is much better.  Just having a new 
>sail probably accounted for most of the improvement.  Time will tell but I 
>expect this new sail will be much better on the coast where I sail since I 
>almost always had to furl the 175.
>I have given up on a dinghy for the R22.  I had a Sea Eagle (6H) inflatable 
>and it was a PITA to carry (bulky) and then inflate once the anchor is down. 
>So I tried to tie it off to the stern rail and drag it behind me but it 
>really was a lot of drag and it slowed us down quite a lot (I would say by 1 
>knot).  Then I had patched a leak (on the seam of course) several years ago 
>and tested it out before we left and it was fine.  Naturally when I inflated 
>it on day 1 the patch was leaking.  Because of that I could not row it very 
>well against the wind at the anchorage.  Finally when we got to the marina I 
>gave it away to some unlucky person.  Glad to get that POS off the boat. 
>Not sure if anyone has the perfect inflatable for the R-22, but maybe a 
>two-person inflatable kayak?  It would have to be light, compact, easy to 
>inflate/deflate, durable and of course easy to row.
>
>
>That is pretty much it for this trip and these findings except that my wife 
>and I are realizing that one of the keys is to simplify and take less with 
>us rather than more.  We've been taking too much of everything: clothes, 
>food and other stuff that are not needed.  The simpler the better.  I now 
>have her convinced to keep doing this twice a year, so October is the next 
>one.
>
>
>
>If I come up with any more "findings" I will post them.
>
>Bob K
>
>
>
>
>
>
>_________________________________________________________________
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