2016

SQUALLS

So it’s July2016, Thalia and I are heading south/east down the Pacific coast of Mexico. For some idiotic reason I’d elected to avoid typhoon season by going south instead of north into the Sea of Cortez. Still questioning that decision. Mexico has incredible food, a dynamic culture, interesting, friendly people, even given my limited Spanish and it’s a very inexpensive place to cruise.

While crossing the Gulf of Tuanepc headed for Chiapas to clear out, Tuanapecers don’t usually blow in the summer, it’s typified by light winds and spectacular squalls with impressive lightning displays, the weather forecast was for light winds. About 0200 I was awoken from a 30 min nap by the sound of the wind building. Sure enough it was a squall. I got a double reef in my 6 mth old main, but by the time I got to my 10 yr , almost 30,000 mi old genoa it was blowing 35 – 40 kts and of course it was all the way out. The headsail shredded along the leech while I ground in the furler. No help for it, I should’ve dropped the main immediately and worked on the genny instead of tying in the reef. But in reality I knew that headsail was on it’s last legs and my decision to try to get another year out of it was wishful thinking. I rigged the removable forestay and appropriate running back when the squall eased. We got into Chiapas with no further drama and I wound up in the marina there, while there is a good anchorage, Marina Chaiapas has a flat rate summer price of $250/mth and I knew I’d be there for a while during which Far East Sails built me a new genny, they’d done a spectacular job on the main. If you ever down that way go to marina Chiapas, they are walking away the most helpful, friendly folks I’ve ever done business with, they even drove me around to check in/out when on an earlier visit where I anchored out, so as not to incur the marina fees. So I knew the anchorage and knew I couldn’t comfortably survive the limited resources of the anchorage while I waited. I bit the bullet and popped for the special.

Six weeks later I headed out with a lovely new genny that had Thalia sailing upwind like a witch, granted an overloaded one. About 1230 that night I saw the characteristic lightning display that meant I was to be subjected to another squall and tucked in a double reef. Man, I should’ve made it a triple, the wind started building and in 20 min it was blowing 60 – 70 kts, the headsail was in and I was over canvassed. The 2 wind generators were making an ungodly noise, but it was too late to turn them off, I’d missed my chance turning off the alternator style wind generators, it’s now blowing too hard to try. One of the generators sheared it’s anti-vibration mounts and came down, destroying the blade set, but fortunately not the solar panels, it hung by its wires. It blew like that for almost an hour, which made it the longest, most intense squall I’ve ever experienced. I should’ve just dropped the main and lashed it to the boom, but I hadn’t rigged jack lines and there was no way I was going back up on deck, I was too busy in the cockpit apologizing to God. The headsail was down to a scrap and I was slowly making way toward the coast, still a long way out and in no danger, except from soiling myself. I’d always sort of prided myself at not getting past “concerned” in adverse conditions, I got well past that. That was the most wind I’d ever been in while not at anchor .

The squall lasted for more than 1 ½ hrs and the seas really didn’t have time to build. The main suffered no noticeable damage, although the tell tales look a bit ragged. All in all a completely humiliating experience, you’d think I’d know better by now. I mean I’ve spent years in the San Blas Islands and these squalls are not uncommon . Sometimes the learning curve gets steep again. The good news is that Thalia appears to have forgiven me, yet again. George and Thalia

If I’m lyin’…