Rigg Check in “Rabbit Mode”
On July 6, 2024, I set off for the marina in Rosignano in a planned early morning trip to meet up with my father-in-law Herbert (code name: Hase*), who had just recovered from a week's sailing. Having already had to turn a promised sailing vacation with his wife (my mother-in-law Christa) into a stressful working vacation on land and without his wife in 2023, I took a tactically smarter approach this year. In a cozy bay in May, I told him that it would be quite practical for him to extend his sailing vacation on Vaquita (this time with his wife and friends) immediately afterwards. Together, we would take it easy, with my trusted rigger Antonio, and lay the mast to check the rig. I got to know my trusted rigger during the aforementioned working vacation the year before on the hard (2023) and have found him to be reliable, friendly and competent in various short work assignments since then. After I explained our sailing plans to him, he recommended a comprehensive rig check. This rig check would probably be completed in 3 days. It was precisely with this Italian optimism that I passed on the invitation for the working vacation to Herbert, who - probably due to the pleasant surroundings of the anchorage - agreed to help me relatively quickly after consulting with Christa. Then the trap snapped shut again.
*Hase - German for rabbit - is Christa's nickname for Herbert. The name says it all - if you need something done QUICKLY, there's no one in the family who can keep up.
After a 9-hour drive, I finally meet my father-in-law Hase on the boat, exceptionally relaxed, as he was cleaning up the last traces of the previous trip. We had already compiled a good to-do list for the various trips in May in order to fill the time, in addition to the relaxed rig check. To give us a comfortable head start, we immediately started to fix a few little things. The solar charge controller no longer displayed anything, no problem, inspecting the diesel tank easy, replacing the broken water level sensor, big problem. After various struggles in pairs with different open-ended wrenches, we give up...at least for today. A quick swim and then the obligatory visit to Francesco's pizzeria. Afterwards, we take a quick look at Antonio's instructions for the meeting point at the port of Livorno. After we have covered the 11 nautical miles to the port of Livorno, we have to sail through the entire industrial port (another 3 nautical miles = 40 min sailing time), then we have to cross the bridge or several bridges? (the name actually gives it away: Ponti Calambrone) on channel 77 to announce our intention to pass through.
So far so good, that means waking up at 6 am and setting off at 6:30 am. The journey through the port of Livorno is exciting as we pass various large ships and under the bridges. At around 10:15 we arrive at the harbor without a stopover.
Only once are we unmotivatedly honked at, or rather down, by a large red tanker being towed through the harbor. Antonio is already waiting for us and gives us instructions on how to take down the sails. He then helps us with fixing the rigging to take down the mast and the various other jobs that are necessary to lay the mast. In the afternoon, the mast is in place and initial inspections suggest that - surprise! - there is more to do than expected. The attachment from boom to mast (gooseneck fitting) needs an overhaul, the forestay or the Profurl furling system needs a little love and when relaxing the shrouds it becomes apparent that the wire ropes, which are only 4 years old, should probably be replaced after all (most insurance companies require the wire ropes to be replaced every 10 years at the latest).
Together with the projects we have collected ourselves: new navigation light + cable, new anemometer + cable, installation of the radar reflector, repair of the railing, sealing of the anchor winch, replacement of the anchor chain and new sealing of the windshield - an impressive list that already gives us an idea that the leisurely work assignment will probably not happen this time either. At 9 p.m., we head along the main road through the industrial area of the port to the second-best pub in the area on the recommendation of the rigger Antonio. There, we experience the Italian industrial pub flair untouched by tourism. In the air-conditioned interior, we dine on house wine, salad, pizza and pasta. All at prices that have been spared from mass tourism. We spend the night on the boat next to the Cantiere.
The next day, when we go to work in the morning, we find out that we are not allowed to stay next to the Cantiere. So we make a new plan with Antonio. We do what we can on the mast and head back to Rosignano in time for the first opening of the bridges at 15:30 without a mast. Antonio takes care of getting the new shrouds (wire ropes) and other spare parts and we spend the next day in the marina in Rosignano working on the other projects. On Thursday we will meet again at the Cantiere Tecnomarina - albeit by car - to finalize the work on the mast, assuming all the parts arrive by then. On Friday, the mast will be set and the rig trimmed (i.e. the tension of the shrouds will be set correctly) and we will be able to return with most of the work completed. That was the plan.
After two of us beat the water level gauge with the giant Monkey wrench, we make our way back to the marina with our boat without a mast in time to celebrate the Austrian soccer team's victory against Turkey in the local pizzeria, or so we hope.
Of course our national team did not win that match. Consoled by the Italians in the pub (at least your team played well), who had previously been ingloriously eliminated by Switzerland, we make our way back to the marina.
Day 3 Wednesday: We repair the railing as planned to avoid further unwanted loss of crew. After all, with a maximum crew of 6, it is difficult to stay below the insignificance threshold of 10%. Next, we tackle the leaking anchor winch. This takes an unexpected amount of nerve and strength. After 3 hours of alternating shaking and levering with various wrenches, we manage to detach the completely seized shaft of the windlass from the engine. From a technical point of view at least, the sealing pattern we see looks suboptimal and explains the water ingress. We fix at least part of the leak, but have to postpone the rest as the day is drawing to a close.
Day 4 Thursday: We remove the windshield to reseal the glazing. The morning is almost over and we make our way to a small craft store to get the things we need. From there, we head straight to the cantiere to get the mast ready for installation. Antonio has good news: the wire ropes have arrived from Milan, as have the other essential parts. We eagerly clean all the cotter pins and bolts and reassemble everything on the masts. In the evening, we clear the provisions from the car that are due on the boat in September, swap the anchor chains and then take the things to take home from the garage to the car. After the rest of the meal and a nightcap, we go to bed as we have to leave for Livorno tomorrow morning with our mastless boat.
Day 5 Friday: We set off at 6:30 as planned, crossing the harbor for the third time in a much more relaxed manner, only to be slowed down by the bridges. There's a problem - we never find out which one - and we're late getting through. Antonio soon explains to us that the mast will be craned much later than planned and that we may not be able to get through the bridges (last passage 17:30). After I explain to him that Herbert has to be home by 3 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday) at the latest and that we therefore have to get through the bridges today, we decide to just set up the mast and trim it to the bare essentials so that we can still get through the bridge. After everything is finished in the morning, we devote ourselves to grouting the windshield. It's a horrible, messy job with Sikaflex (similar to silicone but black or white). After 3 hours of grouting in the blazing sun, Antonio is suddenly standing next to us and says we can put up the mast now. We clean our hands in a makeshift manner and get started. While the final steps are being taken to secure the mast - an extremely critical moment if the mast is to stand on its own again - the bridge keeper interrupts our work. This is the first time that Antonio, our thoroughly relaxed rigger, gets slightly grumpy. The bridge attendant announces that we have to go through the bridge earlier than usual today. So we get a move on and fix everything in record time to finish just in time. All just to ... wait even longer. Finally, after a long unexplained wait, we get through the bridge and back to Rosignano in good shape. There we go for a swim and get everything ready for our early morning departure on Saturday.
Day 6 Saturday: 3:00 a.m. We set off to go home with 75% of the planned work finished. We arrive safely back in Vienna in the early afternoon after a not-so-relaxing week of work. Anyways, 45 nautical miles and two dips in the Med 😊
