Black Jack

Was that an Ohlson 29? https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/28/world/americas/coronavirus-argentina-sailor.html?referringSource=articleShare With Flights Banned, Son Sails Solo Across Atlantic to Reach Father, 90 An Argentine man stuck in Portugal because of the virus travels for 85 days the only way he could: in a small boat. read more at NYT

Bob - I am sure you know better on the J92. You have all my respect and do follow you with much interest too. It is always a pleasure to see you out there on the bay and when you provide good insight and wisdom. Although I never sailed to hawaii solo or even double handed I have sailed a bunch including doing several deliveries from Panama to Miami since I was a kid, have over 300 canal crossings, did a summer working under Sven Svenson at his yard and restored dozens of boats in a money losing hobby. Lately i have begun to think more about safety while sailing more than when I was in my 40s and especailly now since i dislocated my shoulder last year and being knocked unconsious while sailing bymyself off Berkeley in an epic equipment failure. a couple of years ago Hank Easom helped me come up with this layout below to make the old boat a more sensable short handed and faster vessel. It was a compromise when I increased the boom length when I fabricated the carbon fiber spar and took his proposed layout. The lines are all forward, the main centers exactly where I want it to be, I can tweak boom to point an even greater point and yet sheet out to go down wind. Chicken gybing is easer too. the main sheet block lets the line fall in to the cabin making for a clean cockpit; leaving the traveller sheets within easier safer reach when I move forward to adjust them.

Yeah ...I hate travellers on the back too .

the sheeting angle is not bad as you make it out to be and frankly does make it easier to make more finer adjustments center-lining the boom. You get get nearly all the twist you'd want and may find pointing is even more adjustable. As for going upwind - it is in the headsail often (a blade) and not the main that makes a boat point. I would love to see the differences in IRL as i beleive it would almost be neglectable. What ever one would lose in such very small amounts of pointing ability, they gain in stronger sheeting points along the boom and deck. cleaner points of view for the helm, a better cockpit and ultimately a lower risk of injury and overall safer boat. Sailing short handed vessels means making compromises for a safer, better platform for those actually are doing the sailing; not keeping a platform that requires more physicality not found in most (older) sailors. As we consider such important changes optimizing a boat built for multiple crew over to short handedness - it is important to clean up a cockpit full of lines, redresses a loaded traveller that bisects the cockpit, blocks solos operators ingress/egress fore and aft and physically obsures the visibility close to the helmsman. What is often really lost in these threads is who actually is sailing these short handed boats - most likely older codgers above 40, they may already have physical limitations i.e. knee problems, shoulder rotations limitations and the like and are not likely going to as flexible as a young 30 something bucks they wish they were. The high priced new racing daysailers already got rid of all this crap from the cockpit and nobody is arguing that they should put these things back to they way they are in the j92.

I love my "new" mull but damn the old Mull is really cool too with a wonderful strong hull. If i could have kept both I would have. In fact with the increased carbon fiber boom length over the other ones, added sail areas and no inboard - the old one might be actually faster, easier to plane weighing 600 lbs less and had more interior free space to make the boat more comfortable. As much as I am fighting it... the new owner, a really nice guy, who is interesting in racing will get the carbon kelvar dieball main and blade as the they do not fit the new boat. Now he will kick my butt under white sail racing. no doubt I have a bit of a preference in cockpit layout. I do not like travellers, blocks or lots of speghetti on the cockpit deck. The combination makes the boat cluttered and does sometimes cause proiblems. I am a bit clumsy and hate banging my feet, shoes, shins and kneews on anything that crosses the bench seats impeding the cockpit. also the bisection of the cockpit makes for a less comfortable sailing and dockside entertaining area. it is always directly in your face. With everything in the center - the lines just pile up making the whole shorthanded sailing thing an additional dance. since you asked... In regards to traveller set up on a lovely j92 - I am sure there are many others who like it the way it was delivered from the factory - it has a great track records nad why mess with success. But I am a tweaker of boats and would think hard about doing something like this starting with these two options. I have the first mod on the new mull but I interestingly did a combo of the two solutions below on the second and it is a dream to single and double hand fast and keep lines neatly laid while sailing.

I got the sister last month for less than 7. I could not be happier. I rate 150 but she will do better than that. Sails are good with a new set coming off the old boat that fit. I expect to take on express 27s and O30 boats for boat when we get around to racing. If the other crews do not sail competently and hard - i will get line honors. I sold the orignal hull 1 for 2200 dollars after doing 90 percent of the work to get her ready to do SSS and double handed racing. Without a doubt - the new owner got the best bang for buck boat on the bay. https://youtu.be/92QOj9N4gPA this one is on the hard on the east coast off Lake Champlain. the owner passed a couple years back and the boat waits.

I do think the boat is cool but that traveller is awkward and a tripping hazzard. The lines are a mess because of the additional filled cockpit. For that reason - I'd pass just on that alone.

I miss Svenson's. Berkeley would not be my first choice. They are not very friendly. The homeless and mentally ill have taken over the public restrooms turning them into locked marina appartments and the BMC office keeps the doors locked because of lack of staffing. there is no place to wash up. i can go on and on... How about we can keep pretending that it is ok?

I I am. Pretty Penny has always been ideal for me. My wife bought her for me because she want to sail with me. She wanted creature comforts like a head, a truly finished cabin and an inboard - all the things my boat did not have. She is excited to sail with me which makes my heart sing. To get her - I had one condition - i had to sell my planked framed Mull 30 - hull 1, Lively Lady. She was on Craigslist for only a couple day. The nice owner got a for a song. we closed the deal as soon as we took a sea trial today up and down the estuary. She sailed wonderfully. I have first dibs if he ever sells her. The new owner plans to sail her out of richmond. She has been a project of mine for 5 years. I will miss her very much. I have first right of refusal if they want to sell her which helped ease my heartache.

Mine -

The boats live and are more fun.

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wouldn't it be cheaper and cooler to charter these two twins out for all those events. They are for sale, inexpensive, fun, already set up and ready to go. Based on their PHRF could be a good balance and a test to see if this was a viable business.

This is great advice. I have been fighting it for a while. My head vs my heart. Rather than deal with this problem I have made a major decision to buy her sister with an inboard. I have such a heavy heart as she has been a wonderful boat which I have done so much to fix and touch. Time and life has gotten more limited. I am coming around to spending more time with my wife who has asked we get a boat that is more comfortable and easier to manage. It was cheaper than a repower. I am excited to pick her up over the weekend. My new to me boat. https://sailinganarchy.com/advert/gary-mull-30-half-tonner/

You hit the problem squarely. I do have to climb over the traveller and reach to raise and lower. The placement of the shroud on the centerline adds to the balancing act. it is nearly impossible to control the boat and raise/lower or operate the outboard at the same time when solo in a chop under sail. Since tearing out my shoulder doing it and losing months of paid work, i am hesitant in my way forward on the boat. The outboard when I have a crew is less a hassle and for turning in tight spaces a cinch. I can not hope to ever sail down the coast with this set up even if offset without some more configurations. Wife's solution is for me to buy another boat for less than a repower with lay days, back and forth and more prime time spent not using it.