Two Footitis
by Bill Norrie 8 May 2018 22:50 UTC
Two Footitis © Bill Norrie
Two footitis. Yes, a nasty condition, and we succumbed to it despite the spectacular performance of Terrwyn, our 37 Pacific Seacraft, throughout her circumnavigation.
Terrwyn had no major breakdowns, no waiting in any port for repairs or equipment to arrive. We all have life expectancies and eventually wear out; boats and crews alike, so we set out on our circumnavigation with new sails, new rigging, new Monitor Windvane, new batteries and kept moving. Teased by our contemporaries for missing 'wherever' as we kept moving onwards, we would reply "It's a quick 3 year survey sail."
Terrwyn has been sold and replaced by Pixie (Bristol Channel Cutter 28). Pixie's waterline length is 26 ft vs Terrwyn's 28 ft. Yes, two feet down, not up – two footitis. Both vessels are 37 ft LOA, but Pixie has a lower aspect, classic cutter rig vs Terrwyn's higher, yet true, cutter sail plan. No one owns a truly "classic" vessel, we are merely their custodians (but perhaps that is a discussion for another day!).
Why a smaller boat? We are a crew of two. Two co-skippers. Both crew over 60 years of age. Pixie is more similar than different from Terrwyn, yet more suited for our purpose. Simply put, being that much smaller, all distances, weights and forces are therefore reduced, but she has a longer keel and deeper bilges.
Both vessels have tillers, which bring the helmsman forward under the dodger and closer to his/her shipmate in fair and foul weather. Tiller communication is increased and hierarchy abolished. No need for a bimini or, heaven forbid, a "Florida room" (a canvas enclosed cockpit).
The steering is 99.9% by windvane; simple, direct, and robust. It never failed. A full keel facilitates a trim tab or servo-pendulum windvane. No autopilot electrical consumption and more responsive to sailing conditions, so that we actually need to sail her in balance and efficiently. "Monti" (our windvane) is the third crew member and the sail trim instructor, yet totally silent. Both boats are small enough to manage a tiller with no moving parts and no wheel to negotiate around. The exposed cockpit, aft, is reserved for anchorage parties.
Being under 14,000 lbs of displacement, Pixie's largest sail is 300 sq ft and that translates to a laundry bag. Her headsails are all with roller furling and her light air sail, a "Hasse Drifter," also on a roller furler, is so much smaller than either of Terrwyn's two spinnakers with ATN socks which took up nearly twice the turtle (sailbag) volume.
Under 14,000 lbs equates to a 35 lb bow anchor, which is manageable by hand or mechanical windlass if required to break out. No switches, no motors, no extra batteries or large cables for power and failure. Under 14,000 lbs with a 20 ft cockpit-to-bow distance equates to hand and spoken communications; no gadgets to speak through and generally no motor to be heard over, as she handles well cruising the anchorages under stay sail and double reefed main alone, quietly, looking to set the anchor. Dare I say, like a sailboat.
Seaworthy and sea-kindly: no water maker, no ice maker, no electric autohelm, no pressure water system, nor hot water. This means no wind generator and no Genset diesel generator. We have solar panels (140Watts) and a towable water generator for running lights, wind instruments and AIS while underway. No radar and minimal SSB Ham transmission. Under 14,000 lbs there is no room for guests. Pixie, at 28 ft on deck, feeds 6, sleeps four, and lives, shall we say, two. Two is company and three's a crowd.
The dinghy problem is solved with a hard rowing / sailing dinghy, no outboard engine, so, no gasoline, no crane, no noise. Rowing to shore provides an excellent time to admire your vessel. The slowest, quietest travel mode at sea to be followed up with the fastest, noisiest boat in a dream anchorage just does not make sense.
Classic beauty means a balanced vessel that heaves-to with ease, never pounds to weather and has motion in a seaway that is simply elegant. It's all about the motion and feel, not the size. Low freeboard balanced on her waterline length and a sweet sheer that will never get old. The wine glass bilge below and full keel allow for gentle motion and easy tracking – the mark of an offshore vessel. Diminished below-deck salon volume is simply seaworthy, not just cosy. The low freeboard and narrow beam are only deemed diminutive relative to today's "modern", voluminous charter fleet vessels. They maximize interior space (the floating condo with staterooms fore and aft for two couples) for the dollar appeal and at the expense of sea-kindly and seaworthiness. Similarly, living space at the expense of storage space. At risk large windows that do not open vs small portals that open.
Yes, two feet smaller as we are two years older and have several more oceans to cross.
We learned in our world cruise that the smaller quality and quantity of Terrwyn could only be improved with more, two feet more, of less – described above. This is especially appreciated on a dark and stormy night, when one is down below and on sunny days when we are both up on deck. How much deck does a couple need?
Terrwyn's deck was two feet more than we needed and so here comes Pixie, preparing for round two. We did not swallow the anchor on Terrwyn and have no intentions of doing so now with Pixie.
This article has been provided by the courtesy of Bluewater Cruising Association.