Boat Tour: Setup

Boat Tour: Setup of a Cruising Specification West Wight Potter 19

We begin by removing the tiedown straps that keep the boat on the trailer.
This one goes over the bow, and is there in the event the winch should fail whilst towing
The second strap is toward the stern of the vessel
Boarding the boat is made easy by use of the swim ladder
Once aboard, we can start preparing the mast for raising
At the bow, the mast is lashed to the pulpit when not in use
The shrouds are lashed to the mast for safe keeping
A wooden block is used to support the mast at the mid point
Here, the mainsheet is unlashed from the mast
Now remove the adjustable backstay, which is being used to hold down the mast at the stern of the boat
Next step is to remove the securing bolt from the mast tabernacle
Then loosen all halyards and the mast raising tackle
Now the mast is free and can be moved aft ready for raising
Attaching the mast to the tabernacle
Here we can see the “gin pole” laid out on the foredeck
This pole is used to help raise the mast
It’s a piece of galvanized steel pipe with two lines attached
The gin pole connects to the base of the mast, and the two lines clip to padeyes on the deck
Here’s a shot of the “block and tackle” used to raise the mast
The dark red line is the one to pull but not yet
The block and tackle is attached to the stem fitting at the bow
Returning aft we make sure that the shrouds are not twisted at the tangs
The mast is ready to be raised
The jib halyard, shown here on the left is kept attached to the pulpit
it provides an extra layer of security, as it also can be used to support the mast temporarily
The mast is fully raised now, so time to remove the block and tackle and the gin pole
The forestay is detached from the block and tackle and reattached to the stem fitting
The forestay is attached to the stem fitting with a quick release lever
The lever tensions the rig which then requires no further adjustment
Tape is added to ensure no possibility of the quick pins coming loose
Next, the bow dockline is flaked onto the deck
It will be used to help with the launching of the boat from the trailer
The adjustable backstay is brought into tension
And the mast crutch is removed
Shown here, is the 3d printed custom mastgate that keeps the sail slugs in place when the sail is being reefed
it’s necessary to remove this before fitting the boom and mainsail
The boom and mainsail are brought up from the cabin
and the aft end is attached to a wire lanyard connected to the backstay
the gooseneck is fitted into the slot on the mast
followed by the sail slugs
Next the mail halyard is attached
and the last of the sail slugs are inserted
the mastgate is replaced into the mast
some dry-lube is applied to keep things working smoothly
The mainsail has a downhaul for tensioning the luff
The control line is run through the block and cleat
Jonah does not have a topping lift, but instead has a boom kicker
The kicker attaches to the base of the mast via a boom bail
As does the boom vang
Next, the mainsheet is attached to the aft end of the boom
The tiller cover is removed
And the retractable keel is raised into the fully up position using the winch
She’s almost ready for launch now
Stashing the swim ladder… we won’t be needing that for a while now
The bow dockline is tied to the trailer with a slip knot, to stop the boat from floating away after launching
Driving to the launch ramp
No video of me launching, as i was too busy
There she is at the end of the dock, almost ready for adventures!
The keel bolts, used to support the keel when the boat is not in use are removed
Lowering the keel to the fully lowered position
The kick up rudder is dropped down
A figure 8 stop knot in the mainsheet
Lowering the outboard into the water
She’s ready to put to sea!