Blog Archive

Tuesday, 12 June 2018

The Launch

The launch

With no clear idea of when we would be launched we were in no particular hurry to get up early on Monday morning. But an army of workmen arrived at 7am and started taking away our chocks and ladders. The digger arrived and began to nudge us along the rails. Ever so slowly the boat jolted it's way forwards to the cross rail where we were were winched and pushed sideways to the main descent track. With gravity assisting we sped down the line until the keel was fully submerged where it stuck fast. The track was blocking our descent so a 25hp work boat began to push with no effect. Then a tug's tender joined in and we were soon afloat but still in the cradle.

The crew checked the bilges whilst I started the engine. The bilges were dry but the engine raced at 2000rpm in idle. Too fast to go into gear. So the tug's tender took us along side the tug where we were soon safely tied up.

Engine diagnostics were delayed until after the bacon butty and fresh pot of coffee so that diagnostic skills could be on top form! After a fair bit of head scratching and false trails we resolved the matter with a few turns of a screw driver. The extreme cold of the winter had contracted the throttle cable by 6mm and in doing so had moved the cable clamp on the engine block thus resetting the idle speed to 2000 rpm (cruising speed).

On a lovely sunny afternoon we bent on the sails, took a couple of trips to the supermarket and fired up the fridge and freezer. Joe took a trip to the top of the mast to inspect the rigging (all good) and to record the occasion on his GoPro.

Our tug crew neighbours were delightful and were engaged in a survey by an expensively flown out Norwegian surveyor. They were all keeping their fingers crossed. I know the feeling!

The hours ticked by very quickly and by the time we had finished it was evening and a feast beckoned so we chose not to sail. A good decision as it turned out as the fog then rolled in.