Wednesday, July 29, 2015

The 'Interim Period' - Lucey Blue New Radial Sail Upgrade

Lucey Blue survived the 'Interim Period' incredibly well. However, there was always an endless things to do to keep her shipshape and in good condition.


One of the most important and expensive jobs was replacing our old dacron cross cut main and self tacking jib. Our old sails had helped Lucey Blue sail over 24,000 nautical miles safely since 2005 - a circumnavigation of the Earth via a rather circuitous route from the US to the Caribbean then to Norway and eventually Australia.


Given the distance the sails had traved they were in good condition, but the head of the main had patches of signficant UV damage. The mainsail bag was also looking decidedly green after a particularly wet Sydney winter so we bit the bullet in late 2014 and purchased new sails from a local sailmaker - Scott Sails.



We opted for a full radial cut on both the mainsail and jib beacause this is probably the only time in our lives we will buy new sails. The extra cost was not insignificinat, but Nick had always wanted 'racy sails' even though we never race and tend to sail at whatever is the most confortable speed for the sea condtions. Ben Gemmell - a long time friend of Nick - designed and handmade both sails while emoployed by Scott Sails. He also made new trampolines and a bimini for Lucey Blue as the old ones had seen better days.




Ben's attention detail and Bret Scott's support resulted in amazing end products that should power Lucey Blue to exciting destinations for another decade or prehaps more!

Thanks guys...

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