Hello All -
Caribbean 1500 report follows -
We drove to Norfolk, from CT, to meet the boat, a Mason 44 sloop. The owner, a recently retired anesthesiologist, had already sailed her there from CT. There were 5 people on board - the owner, his 26 year old son, 2 lawyers, & myself. All were experienced blue water sailors, but for one of the lawers, as this would be his first offshore trip. Upon arriving in Norfolk, we saw the 55 boat fleet & met many owners & crew. I invited myself aboard several boats that had mechanical problems, & offered my diesel services pro bono to the owners. As the fleet was leaving in 2 days, & I had no tools, the work interludes were, of necessity, brief.
What surprized me was the general condition of 2 boats that I went aboard. They were, in my estimation, not seaworthy, due to non functioning c-cocks, & a general lack of engine maintenance.
The fleet was diverse, with the smallest boat being a Baba 30, & one of the largest was a brand spankin' new Cherubini 48 schooner - a beautiful vessel. There were several custom one off boats in aluminum. The outstanding boat was " Beuwolf " a custom aluminum ketch with 77 feet of waterline! The owner had an open house one evening - the engine room was most impressive! I could easily live in there. Below, in the living quarters, the finish was of a very high yacht quality. Even the sole was gloss varnished. He was the first to finish the "race", & arrived in Virgin Gorda a day before the next boat, & several days before the bulk of the fleet.
The Monday [ 11/8/00 ] start found us close hauled, with 25K of breeze as we rounded Cape Henry. All our crew took anti - sea sickness drugs but me, as I prefer to go "au natural". [ nobody got sick aboard our boat for the entire cruise ] We made for the spot in the Gulf Stream where Jennifer Clark said it was a mere 25 miles wide - she was correct, & we had an easy crossing, with 10 ' rollers, interspersed with occational breaking waves. We were broad reaching & making excellent time, with the boat displaying her sea-going abilities. It was a very comfortable & dry ride, that Mason is a great sea boat. The sailing was oustanding!
Our next waypoint was 190 nm south of Bermuda, where we would hopefully gybe, pickup the easterly trade winds, & follow the 65 degree west longitude line south to Virgin Gorda. Our SSB was unreliable, so we missed out on the twice a day gossip net.
The weather continued to be perfect, with no rain, & just the right amount of wind from the beam, to keep us moving at hull speed under all plain sail. The stars & planets made for an unforgetable show every night. When I would come on watch, my watchmate & I would look at each other & just be stunned at how perfect the weather was, yet again! It was truly an amazing strech of perfect sailing weather. I wore my oilskins a total of only 8 hours. There was lots of time to read & relax in the cockpit when off watch.   I even made French Toast for breakfast - twice!
We powered a total of 52 hours during this 10 day trip, as 4 days from Virgin Gorda, the breeze died. We overtook a 40' yacht [ one of only 2 we saw offshore ] at dawn, as he was under sail only. We contacted him via VHF, & the Captain said he had run out of fuel! Somehow he had gone through 120 gallons of diesel, while powering a total of 24 hours! He checked the fuel tank, then the bilges, no fuel was found. I suspect it disappeard through the tank vent, due to boat motion. [It's just a guess, as I didn't examine the boat.] The owner insisted he personally filled the tank in Norfolk, & found the tank dry while offshore, after the engine died. [ he may have had a tank leak, & the bilge pump did the rest, though the crew never smelled raw fuel ] When questioned about the situation in Virgin Gorda, the owner said - "I still don't know where all that fuel went." Guess it's another mystery of the sea.
At the change of watch, I suggested we shut down the engine for a lube oil check & a general look - see, since we had been powering for 12 hours. After engine shut down, I heard water running. There was a 6" gyser of water coming from the raw water pump. It had gone unnoticed since the bilge pump promptly discharged it overboard. Lesson learned - have an indicator light or hour meter wired to the electric bilge pump, to detect excessive operation. This was fixed, along with draining the Racor of a cup of water, & we were underway in an hour.
The owner's son worked hard to catch fish while underway. We did catch a 4' marlin, that we promptly released. All other fish strikes resulted in the lure gone & line being stripped from the reel. Amusing & frustrating at the same time.
We made landfall before dawn when the lights of Anegada appeared. We convinced the owner to wait the hour 'til dawn before attempting to enter the marina. When Virgin Gorda was abeam, the Captain started the engine, only to have it overheat immediatly. We made the anchorage under sail, & called for a tow.
The parties began, along with hearty congratulations all around. I caught up on my drinking, had a rest, & began the repair list. The RW inpeller was faulty, & some RW hoses were leaking, causing the overheat problem. The next 3 days I spent getting parts & fixing various mechanical problems.
The owner had a previous problem with starting the engine - it wouldn't turn over 50% of the time. A "mechanic" replaced the key switch months ago, & the problem remained. The owner's solution was to wire a pistol grip switch   test switch ] directly to the starter. He would open the cabinet under the sink, locate the switch that he had placed inside a rubber glove, & crank the engine that way. Inventive, but not recommended as a permanent fix. I removed that mess, & fixed the cranking problem, to the owner's amazement. He didn't know one can fix something by removing parts!
Virgin Gorda was great. I took a cab to the Baths [ natural caves that are formed at the water's edge by massive boulders ] & hiked the trails & enjoyed the water & sunshine. What a place to decompress from the rat race! Bring $ if you go, 1/2 gallon of US orange juice is $4.50. Rum is very cheap, the mixers are exspensive.
One boat had an [interesting?] story - a crew member kinda went crazy south of Bermuda & was removed from the boat by the US Navy. As the Navy Officer was aboard the yacht filling in paperwork, several waves caused the boat to roll unexpectedly. He picked himself up off the sole [ for the third time ] & remarked to the boat owner - "Great hobby you have here sir."
I got a bit restless after sitting in the marina after a few days, & got aboard a new Pacific Seacraft 37 that was touring the Virgins. We sailed to Beef Island airport to discharge crew, then had dinner at a beachside resturant. I slept in the cockpit all night, until a shower at dawn woke me. [ we had 5 guys aboard at this point, & 4 bunks ] That morning I volunteered to inspect the masthead, as the owner had broken 2 main halyards while sailing south. Evidently, the nicropress swage for the top'n lift was cutting the halyard.
We then sailed to Dead Chest Island, tacked, & headed to an anchorage by the Moorings Charter Co, in Road Harbour. The owner contracted with The Moorings to fix his roller furler, as it was dropping screws from the foil sections, & was ripping the genoa. It was installed in the States without Locktite on the screws. I made a short trip into town [ Road Town was booming, & it was just the start of the tourist season ] for my rum ration, & returned to the boat in time to catch a cab to the airport.
It was fun, & I met some wonderful people. I'll be back in mid January, as crew aboard a 44' sloop leaving Bermuda.

  Joe DeMers