Relaunch
Ile Jeudi
Bob and Lin Griffiths
Thu 19 May 2011 15:30
|
Thursday 19 May 2011
(1630)
We were collected for launching about 3pm. They lift the whole
cradle on to a trolley and transport the boat by tractor to the launch
area:-
 The travel lift (a crane with straps) is brought over the boat and the
straps passed underneath and attached. A 30 ton travel lift would be
regarded as quite large. Today they used their larger lift on us
- the 330 ton one which will carry small ships and
ferries! Our 15 ton yacht is somewhat dwarfed.
 They then lift the boat in the slings and take the cradle away which allows
antifouling to be painted on to the patches then exposed. This shot
was taken 5 minutes before I ruined a perfectly good pair of shorts by
holding the wet paint tin against them.
 The boat being lowered into the water about 4.30 pm - the keel is about to
touch the oggin.
 No leaks this year but.... the engine wouldn't
start. The start battery was dead. With help from Demir staff we
jump-started the engine using the domestic batteries and motored to our
berth.
We were looking forward to being able to use the
toilet again now we were back in the water but later found that the toilet
wouldn't pump. The Y-valve which diverts waste either to the sea or to the
Holding Tank was changed by Demir Marine over the winter and we think
the new one was connected incorrectly. This means that we have to revert
to a bucket as we must when the boat is on the hard
for emergencies (the marina toilets are all a long distance
away!) |