Blog Break

Spindrift
David Hersey
Tue 8 Dec 2009 00:03
35:44.378S  174:20.320E

This position is in Docklands 5 where the boat was hauled  out in Whangarei.  She went back in the water on Sunday with  new cutlass bearing, a new shaft seal, an obsolete transducer removed from the hull and made good and the Copper Coat antifouling  spruced up.

We logged a total of 7297 miles since leaving Auckland last Spring.

Demetri and I have had a few days in Auckland prior to flying back to the UK tonight. We had great views of the city from our 29th floor digs.

We did a few touristy things like  going to the top of The Sky Tower--220 meters up and watching others jump on a wire to a red bulls eye below.
They even paid money to do it.  We went to a very large aquarium with a transparent walk through. You could see sharks and rays swimming overhead.
They even had an antarctic experience with about 80 penguins living is artificial snow..they make 3 tons a day.  

The Wellington artist make a second Bull out of Corn beef tons which I was surprised to run into at the art gallery. 

Yesterday we went out for a couple of hours on Team New Zealand, an old America's cup boat.  80 foot long, weighing 24 tons, 20 of which is in the keel.
SPINDRIFT is 64 feet long, weighing 42 tons, 10 or so is in the keel.  
We had 20 knots plus wind so there were two reefs in the main and a fairly small jib. Even so we shot up to nearly 15 knots almost immediately.

SPINDRifT could have done at least 10 knots in the conditions which were great because there was wind but no sea.
And we wouldn't have heeled the nearly 40 degrees the racer did.  Plus we could have had a cappuccino.  So I don't feel so bad.

So the boat will be shipped to Florida at the beginning of February.  We will probably tootle up the eastern cost before crossing the pond in May.  I will restart the blog in April when I get back to the boat.




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