MacGregorSailors.com

Hello again,
I was out in Buzzards Bay on Father's Day weekend running the first sea trial on the Tsatzsue. Sounds official anyway!! The weather had picked up and I was in for a real test of my new boat...1977 V25. The wind picked up to +/-25 knots and the waves increased to 3-4 feet. Oh yeah, the visibilty was fading and the fog was coming in. Classic disaster setting. My friend had brought a portable Ray Marine chart plotter and thank God for that. It was scary at first and I wasn't sure what the boat could take. We were flying the jib but stowed it and went for the 150 genoa. We sailed all day and had a blast. Things really started picking up. Once we located our anchorage for the night we decided to go out for on last run accross the Bay. We were actually surfing the waves. If the chart plotter was right we got 8.5 knots on one good push!! Everytime we made a hard tack it the end of the boom would catch on the back stay. The block for the main sheet attaches on an eye bolted to the end of the boom. This really rotted and we had to point into the wind in order to pull it free. These boats are really light and it would take less than a second to lose all headway and control. I was worried about a knock down because we actually started to go backwards before we could get the boom released. This happened several times. The boom sheet set up appears to be factory. Has this happened to any one? I am looking at ways to correct the problem but wanted to check the forum first. I also ended up with a couple gallons of water in the strage under the seats.??

Has this happened to anyone?

Needless to say the cocktail flag was flying that night. I was really glad to have that day/ couple days. We really tested the boat and made it home safe. They can take a beating. I can't wait to do it again.

I can't speak for the boom problem....mine is homemade from a wrecked Flying Dutchman mast, although the length is right. It hasn't come close to snagging the backstay, so far. As far as the water goes, check your keel lock bolt hole. Mine leaks when sailing on anything but perfectly calm waters....no rubber washers on mine like there should be.

In response to your boom problem. With standard Venture rig on the stern corners, the boom will rise when coming about and will occasionally catch the backstay. There are a few remedies for this. 1. Keep boom vang slightly taut. 2. sheet in on tack and adjust afterwards. 3. and this is what we did. Go to mid boom mainsheet setup. This will pull the boom down in the center and keep it from rising as much. Also the stock mast came with a metal tang and not an eyebolt. Don't know if this i having any effect on your problem. Hope this helps. Fair winds and Full Sails...