From the Captain
By Dale Mack, Crocus, #8244

I will be pulling Crocus from the water this month.  While that event will mark the end of my 2006 C22 sailing season, it also starts the clock running on my winter maintenance and upgrade activities.  One of those winter projects will be the conversion to all line internal halyards from the wire halyards I have now.  Since the project will involve installing a PVC pipe in the mast to protect the electrical wires, I'm going to rewire the mast.  I purchased the Catalina Direct kit to reseal my leaking windows, so that project is going to go on the list.

Sailing in September sure was nice.  Great temperatures, nice winds, and a slower river current.  I continued to practice my single-handed technique.  I managed to get the boat sailing wing-and-wing in light air on my own.  I'm a long way from wanting to fly the spinnaker on my own, but I'm moving in that direction. 

I've been having problems with my 5 hp Honda outboard stalling.  The priming bulb just never seemed to want to get stiff.  I eventually discovered that the o-ring in the quick release fuel line connector near the fuel tank was no longer making a good seal.  In hindsight hints of the pending  problem where showing up throughout the season when the fuel line was attached to the tank and some fuel would initially leak out.  If fuel could get out, air could get in, thus the system was loosing its prime and causing the engine to die.

New Members

I been remiss in recognizing new members to Fleet 20, so please join me in welcoming:

Scott Ferre & Yu-Chia "Cate" Huang of Lake Oswego, Oregon

C22, Windrider, 1985 model swing keel

Scott and Yu-Chia are interested in cruising and racing.

Phil and Taffy Rabb of Salem, Oregon

C22 MK II, Mini Coot, #15362

Phil and Taffy are interested in cruising.

Peter & Susan Gierga of Bend, Oregon

C22, <no name yet>, #1679

The Gierga's are interested in cruising and racing.

Membership  is FREE in 2006 & 2007.  The Fleet 20 Membership Application is available online at  www.c22pdx.org/docs.  Simply print it off, fill it out, and sending it in.  You can also email it to:  catalina22fleet20@comcast.net

Keep the Letters Coming

The fleet's website and newsletter brings me a steady flow of email from fellow C22 enthusiasts.  Folks share their adventures or seek advice.  The photos to the right are one such example.  Avid Brickman and I hooked up after he purchased #4945 (now named Jus Fine).  Although not a project boat in the traditional sense, Jus Fine hadn't been sailed in a while, and it had all the typical problems associated with a thirty year old boat.  Avid and I have stayed in touch as he recommissioned the boat and enjoyed a  summer of sailing.  One of Avid's milestones was getting the cruising spinnaker up for the first time in September.  Way to go Avid.

Phil & Taffy Rabb sail a Catalina 22 MKII (Mini Coot, #15362) which they purchased after downsizing from a Catalina 34.  Be sure to read about their sailing adventure on Mini Coot this past summer in the Gulf Islands and the San Juans later in the newsletter.

I'd love to publish more stories from NW Catalina 22 sailors, so please send them along with pictures.  I've got a broadband  Internet connection so don't worry about sending high resolution photos.  You can send your stories or boating projects to:

celtic-myst@comcast.net

2006 Technical Manual

On the topic of boating projects, please consider joining the Catalina 22 National Sailing Association so you can get access to the soon to be released 2006 C22 Technical Manual.  The manual contains over 300 pages and more than eighty new articles where added to the 2006 edition.

For the third time in a row (1996, 2001, and 2006) I had the privilege of serving as the editor for the Technical Manual.  Because the manual is now supplied on a CD-ROM, I took advantage of the format to enlarge the existing diagrams and photos, and add many more photos.

Even if you have an earlier edition of the manual I think you'll find the current edition worth having.  All the technical articles published in the C22NSA's magazine "MainBrace" since 2001 through September 2006 have been incorporated into the manual.

Sail for the Cure

The 2006 Sail for the Cure held on September 23rd was a great success.  More than fifty sailboats participated, and nine of those were Catalina's.  One of those boats was Sunrise (#10868) skippered by Karen Maynard.  Folks may remember Karen in that she, along with Tim Taylor and Diane Stanford-Clark, crewed for me in the SYSCO Summer Series.

Laura and I had a great time sailing.  The conditions could not have been more  perfect.  Several of the Catalina crews we ran into during the shore side activity after sail were in high spirits.  You should put this event on your calendar for next year.

Catalina Meeting

Anyone interested in getting together to socialize?  We have an opportunity to do just that and hear an interesting presentation on October 25th at the Mar's Meadow Chinese Restaurant.  The Columbia River All Catalina Association extends a warm welcome to all Catalina enthusiasts to come to the October meeting (don't worry you won't be pressured to join CRACA).

Canada's Northern Gulf Islands
San Juan Islands to Nanaimo—Summer 2006
By Phil & Taffy Rabb, Mini Coot, #15362

Echo Bay on Sucia Island View of Southern Gulf Islands from Pender Island Dinghy Dock Pub Boats following through Dodd Narrows Friday Harbor race start Dog paddle

This summer we sailed from Blaine, Washington to Canada’s Nanaimo Harbor via the San Juan and northern Gulf Islands during early August in our Catalina 22. Our report is for your enjoyment and information.

The water around Puget Sound is our favorite part of the world, but last year we sold our Catalina 34 to simplify life. Would a smaller boat work for extended cruising? We attended Dale Mack’s mast-raising workshop and talked with many 22 sailors. Their enthusiasm and helpful attitude was encouraging. We found a wing-keel Mark II, took her to the San Juan Islands for a week in spring, and were convinced she would work fine for us.

We prepared for the trip using Dale’s checklists from the website.  Launching at the ramp in Blaine Harbor on a Friday in August, the sail to Echo Bay on Sucia Island was wonderful—moderate winds and blue skies with an awesome view of Mount Baker and the islands. The trip took 5 hours. Nearly every day that followed was also beautiful. The winds seemed unusually good for the summer.

We spent Saturday hiking the trails on Sucia. On Sunday, we motor-sailed to Bedwell Harbor on Pender Island for Canadian customs. The trip took 4 hours. Hiking from the marine park is great. The view from the mountain is worth the effort.

Monday’s trip to Montague Harbor was fun sailing the whole way. The trip took 4 hours. Ice cream is a short walk to the marina from the park.

On Tuesday, we sailed to Newcastle Island at Nanaimo Harbor. This was a 7- hour trip, and we bypassed several good anchorages to match the currents in Dodd Narrows. It is important—sometimes even critical—to time your passage to miss the swift currents and turbulence in many passes along Vancouver Island. These are described well in the Waggoner Cruising Guide. Direction, speed, and time for currents are given in Canada’s Current Atlas with help from Washburne’s Tables.

Newcastle Island is an outstanding park to explore and enjoy. It is popular, but there are so many places to go that it does not seem crowded. We needed more time. Dinner at the Dingy Dock Pub was an experience with good food and fun atmosphere. We’ll be back.

Early Thursday morning we docked at Nanaimo’s public wharf to shop—too early. Stores are convenient but don’t open until 8:00. The coffee shops do open early, however, and there is a 3-hour grace period at the dock, so we were still able to enjoy coffee, replenish provisions, and make the tide change for our passage back south through Dodd Narrows. The wind had changed, giving us a 9-hour downwind sail back to Montague Harbor. We noticed an increased presence of the Canadian Air Force and Navy patrols due to the threats against English-American shipping, but we had not seen newspapers or heard radio news for a week, so we did not understand the reasons behind the activity. Cruising is wonderful.

On Friday, we motored to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island to clear U.S. customs. It was an 8- hour trip that we did not expect. I overlooked the adverse currents by the islands along the route, so we made 2-3 knots for much of the trip. The combined seas from intersecting currents, large powerboats, and wind made the stretch from Stuart Island to San Juan Island very uncomfortable— another learning experience! We were through customs quickly, however, while there was a 30-boat wait at the Roche Harbor facility. This was a fair trade. It was a (typically?) busy weekend in Friday Harbor. Large yachts rafted for shore power, and all slips were full or reserved. But our small 22 was snugly tucked into a great spot near shore— another advantage for being smaller.

Saturday morning we left just as a local race started from the harbor. Quite a pretty sight. With different wind and currents, the area which had been so turbulent on Friday was quite pleasant sailing. We had good wind for a while and then motored the last half of the trip to Echo Bay. Total time 5 hours. And Sunday was 4 hours back to the ramp at Blaine and the 7-hour drive back to Salem.

This was a wonderful trip for us (and our dog, but that is another story). The boat served well. The weather was superb. Nights were pleasant at anchor, on a park mooring buoy, or at a dock. There are options to empty the portable head at all the parks. And the northwest is still our favorite place to be.

I've owned both a new-style (1987) and an old-style (1978) Catalina 22, an in both cases the factory traveler was rigged so that to make an adjustment I had to move to the stern and focus my attention aft instead of keeping weight out of the stern and my attention focused out in front of the boat.  This article will examine how a functioning traveler can help you sail the boat more comfortably, we'll look at a variety of C22 travelers, and we'll end with a tour of the traveler upgrade I installed on Crocus (#8244).

Why Use A Traveler?

To be quite honest I sailed for years ignoring the position of the traveler other to make sure it was located in the center.  As my experience grew and I sailed aboard boats with functioning travelers I started to think about how I could experiment on my own boat to see if I'd notice a difference.  Today I'm a complete convert and not just because of the traveler's positive effect on the boat's performance during racing.  Your traveler can help you sail your boat more comfortably and will more control as the following example will illustrate.

Lets assume you are sailing to windward in light air when suddenly a gust hits and the wind starts blowing consistently above 10 knots.  The boat heels over, the rudder's weather helm increases, and the overall effect is that the boat slows down.  The steps you want to take include:

1. Tension the backstay slightly, because the sail is probably too full for this amount of wind.
2. The top batten is probably now cocked to leeward, so you need to trim the mainsail slightly to bring the top batten in parallel with the boom.  Trim with the mainsheet first and then with the boom vang if needed to adjust the position of the top batten.
3. If you feel significant weather helm, drop the traveler a few inches to relieve it.
4. If the draft in the main has moved back slightly (common when the wind picks up), then tension the cunningham to pull the draft back forward to 45 to 50% aft from the mast.

Traveler Styles

Catalina 22's have had a variety of factory traveler arrangements.  Here's a quick look at some stock installations, and some upgrades.

Old-style (1970-1985) standard factory adjustable wing nut slides.	Old-style with the standard shackle and wing nut slides for the mainsheet.
The factory eventually started shipping old-style C22's with an adjustable traveler car.  Tabs were mounted to the base of the traveler bar to secure the line to.	The "New-style" (1985-1995) saw the introduction of the "X" cross-section traveler bar and a new car.  The factory also lead the lines outboard to cam cleats.
The "Mark II" (1995-present).	The "Sport" (2004-present)
An "Old-style" upgraded to a Harken traveler bar and car.	Control lines lead forward to rotating cam cleats.

Traveler Upgrade on Crocus

As my sense for how various sail controls affect the performance of the boat has increased, I've become accustom to using a traveler a lot on my Catalina 30 and on other boats.  For the 2006 racing season I decided I wanted to upgrade Crocus from its factory original shackle and wing nut slide configuration.  For the cost of shipping I found a C22 owner on the east coast who shipped me his old traveler car with broken sheaves (the pulley wheels) after he installed a new one on his boat.  During the winter of 2005 I rebuilt the old car with sheaves I made from Delrin and shaped on my wood lathe.

Early in the Spring of 2006, I set about installing a line adjustable traveler system.  After viewing various alternatives on the Internet, I decided to go with an approach that didn't require me to face aft to operate.  How far to place the forward cheek block and cam cleat is a matter of taste.  If the crew will be operating the traveler then a foot or more forward of my position will work better.  If the skipper will be operating the traveler, then I've found near the forward end of the tiller works well.

Harken #338 Cam Cleat with a #424 Fairlead.

Harken #092 Cheek Blocks.

I've been real happy with the results.  Getting the traveler into the proper position is so easy now, that its become a natural element of tacking the boat.

Would I do anything different?  I think raising the outboard cheek blocks might reduce some fiction, but to be honest I haven't detected much fiction.  Another option is to eliminate the outboard blocks altogether.  Pete Harper's Hummingbird (#1110) of Texas demonstrates a setup with the outboard blocks gone and the forward blocks and cam cleats mount where the crew can more easily get to them.

Checkout these links to Northwest Catalina newsletters and local racing:

Columbia River All Catalina Association (CRACA) www.ColumbiaRiverCatalina.org Sail Portland www.sailpdx.com Oregon Women's Sailing Association www.owsa.net

Catalina Assoc. of Tacoma and South Sound home.earthlink.net/~catss/CATSS Web Page.htm Catalina Association of Puget Sound www.capsfleet1.com/News Letters.htm Small Yacht Sailing club of Oregon (SYSCO) www.sailpdx.com/sysco.htm

 

Upcoming Events

October

• Meeting: 25, General Meeting Mars Meadows Restaurant, 6:30 pm
• Cruise: 21 - 22, Bartlett Landing, Government Island - East Dock

November

• Party:  11, OCSA Party at PYC (open to all sailors)

See the calendar

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The Fleet 20 newsletter is published online once a month.  Articles are the opinions of the
authors and don't necessarily represent the consensus of Fleet 20.