On Sunday, October 2, ninety plus Dolphins enjoyed a great Annual Meeting/Party. The facility at Tampa Bay Watch, Tierra Verde, was fantastic. Happy hour was held on the porch overlooking the local waters and a delicious buffet with sumptuous dishes was prepared and enjoyed by our members. At the right time we had a perfect view of the setting sun. Please look at the many pictures depicting the good time by all.
The 2011 Frequent Boaters Award was given to 10 boats – see the page above for full details!
The highlight of the Dolphin’s annual meeting was the presentation of the WIFF Award. Jim Williams/ Penelope Mayer with their sailboat, Alizee are the third recipients of this coveted award! After ‘pouring’ through a number of submissions, the committee members (made up of past recipients of the award) unanimously chose Jim and Penelope for the award. The ceremonies began with John Lesniak briefly related the origin and history of the award and then last year’s recipient, John Lenhart, presented the award to Jim and Penelope. The following is a blow by blow description of their Inconvenient floundering folly!!
For Want of a Cotter Pin
Penelope and I sailed Alizee, our cutter rig Cabo Rico 36, from Daytona Beach via Key West to St. Pete in March this year. On our leg from Key West, we motor-sailed under the staysail and main over night, daybreak putting us about six hours from Fort Meyers Beach. Around 08:00 the wind picked up to perhaps 17 knots and shifted eastward, so I decided to roll out the Genoa.
As I sheeted in the Genoa, I heard “Crash!!” Suddenly the foot of the forestay swung away from the boat. The wind filling the Genoa pulled the forestay and furler drum up and over the bow pulpit in a deafening screech of metal on metal. Penelope, awakened by by the grinding and crashing, hurried on deck.
The forestay and Genoa were flying almost horizontal to the water off the port side, held primarily at the top by the Genoa halyard and forestay clevis pin. The roller furling line tenuously secured the foot, the line caught two-thirds of the way back on Alizee’s starboard rail by a stop knot in the aft most furling block. Penelope took the helm and had the foresight to turn us downwind so the main blocked the Genoa, while I went forward to get the sail and forestay under control and back on the boat.
I wrestled the forestay amidship with the furling line and succeeded getting it to one of the port shrouds, pulling a few wraps of the Genoa around the forestay, and tying it off with a couple of sail ties. Without the forestay, I knew the backstay was pulling hard on the mast, now held only by the staysail’s inner forestay, so before something else gave, we rushed to furl the staysail and drop the main.
With the other sails down, I managed to get the Genoa down and flaked and tied on deck. Penelope and I then manhandled the roller furler and forestay up to the bow and lodged it between the cross pieces on his pulpit. We motored the last miles to drop anchor in San Carlos, only a couple of hours off our original ETA. The next morning a local boatyard put us in their haul out slip, reattached the forestay with a replacement clevis pin, checked the integrity of the forestay and generally helped us sort out things. We were on our way within an hour and a half, heading north to Charlotte Harbor.
What had happened? The forestay toggle had separated from the chainplate when the cotter pin that secured the clevis pin through the forestay toggle and chainplate had failed. When I unfurled the Genoa, the clevis pin slipped out, releasing the foot of the forestay and furler. So, fellow Dolphins, check your rig’s cotter pins or you, too, may find yourself victim to an “inconvenient, floundering folly.” Or not, and then I can give you the WIFF award next year!
James Williams & Penelope Mayer
s/v Alizee
