iSail Annapolis

Perhaps there is nothing more essential in the care and feeding of your sailboat’s iron jib than changing the oil.  But what if you’re new to the intricacies of a diesel engine, and don’t know where to start?  My wife and I have sailed for 30 years, but it was always on less than 20 footers, and we sailed to and from the dock on those without burning a single dinosaur, thank you very much!

When we bought our “brand new” 1992 Catalina 28 MK II, the first thing I noted is how much fun it was to be able to move the boat when there wasn’t any wind.  Just turn on the engine and amazing enough the boat moved!  But with that freedom came the responsibility of the care and feeding of that beast!  And as the first season progressed, we found out that engines sometimes stop working for a whole host of reasons. Ours did with a smoky screaming gasp when we were just entering the South River.  We sailed back to the dock just like in our day sailor engine-less days, and pulled into the slip under sail with a little bit of heart in the mouth but without ramming the dock!  We were relieved to know that we still knew how to sail even without the aid of the iron jib.

The Singles on Sailboats organization will be hosting there annual event on March 17th.  You won’t want to miss there jam-packed schedule of seminars.  Information about those seminars is available at their site.  Here is what they have to say about it:

The 2012 Spring Training will be held March 17, 2012, at Broadneck High School in Annapolis, MD. There is no snow date. Many new selections are available along with new speakers on traditional topics. There are topics for experienced offshore sailors and veteran to new sailors.

By Ryck Lydecker

From Boat US Magazine, http://www.boatus.com/magazine/2012/february/copper.asp

More than two decades ago, the U.S. outlawed toxic tributyltin (TBT) in antifouling bottom paint, and copper-based substitutes took over to control marine growth on the hull. Last year, Washington became the first state to ban copper paint on environmental grounds. Now the California legislature is taking up similar restrictions.