My little junk rigged Coromandel ‘Butterfly’ is a good and willing horse. Well sea-horse! (So the title isn‘t totally nuts)
After several weeks of nail-biting (shall I? shan't I?) the decision was made and Butterfly’s white sail went to my local sail-maker to be duplicated.
Now the word duplicated doesn’t do justice to the immaculate object that came home with the battens and the old white sail on Wednesday.
It spent a day laying in state in the front room still in its bag, as I doubted I could get it folded up neat enough to go back in.
Good sail-makers like mine make their bags big as owners never fold the sails as neat, but I still chickened.
So today, with light winds and a promise of sun without rain, I started to dress Butterfly. Some JR people lay the sail out on the floor, slide in the battens and lace them up, then take the complete bundle to the boat.
I don’t!
If I did this at home I’d never be able to lift the bundle onto the van roof-rack. At the marina all floors are mucky!
So from 10:00 until around 13:00 I laced the bits together. “I thought those Junk Rigs were simple! Said a fellow boater. “They are” I said leaving him a tad baffled.
At last it was done and we went sailing in a gentle F3. Now all sailors will tell you when they have spent (far too much) money on a new sail, how much better their pride and joy sails.
Well it’s true! As for the colour? Well my wife chose it to match the cream deck and be in harmony with the yellow hull.
Never argue colour with an artist, they know best! Anyhow, no good boat is a bad colour and I like it.
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