At a glance

So we have the Hale'iwa parked outside of my friend's house.  He seemed eager to offer up his driveway as well as lend a hand in performing any repair work and upgrades.  How could I pass up an offer like that?  I guess after we have completed the work I teach him how to sail on his own.

In the meantime, we appear to have enough room to get started.  The driveway looks to be about 36 feet long (11 meters) and should provide ample room in which to prop up the boat.

There are also trees on each side of the driveway, which will help shade us from the unforgiving temperatures the South Texas summer sun.  The only issue I did note with the driveway was the angle at which the boat sits.  Because there is no aft lean, water can become trapped in the cockpit.  This was evident after a torrential downpour from the previous day, which left a good 4" (10 cm) of water close to the bottom of the companion way.  Thank goodness the water did not go high enough to spill over into the cabin.  I will have to remedy this lean soon by propping the trailer's wheel jack on to a brick, or replacing it all together.

After removing the mast totally from the boat, I was able to take a close look inside the cabin to survey the damage reported by the insurance adjuster to the claims representative.  I was not able to find any "pre-existing damage" around the keel wench or trunk, but I will have to get in under the head area to take a closer look at the fiberglass.

I pulled up the carpet and inspected all of the crevices, looking for any indication of rot that might have occurred over the previous couple of months.  There was none to be found, just a dirty cabin that needs some scrubbing.

Also, while removing the mast from the boat I noticed that a couple of the turn buckles are bent.

I will have to price some out and see what kind of deal I can get.  Maybe if the price is right I will replace them all.  That would be nice!

I had noticed that the standing rigging was quite loose the last time I was out at the lake.  I had posted a couple of questions on the Clipper Marine forum about this issue and got quite a few helpful responses.  I definitely need to check the bulkhead and mast support post within the cabin.  I will also be looking at the length of the stays as compared to the length listed in the owner's manual.  The last thing I am looking at would be the chain plates on the boat itself.

These really shouldnt be an issue, as the holes arent worn, and even with the turnbuckles tightened all the way, the forestay, backstay and the port side upper did not have any tension to them.

At any rate, I hope to start working on her next weekend.  More to come....