Thursday & Friday, April 7-8
On the 7th Lucy installed Esmeralde's teak steps on the transom. Looks like
the bung holes still need to be filled, but it looks
really nice! You can just see the laid teak in the
cockpit sole, too, ordered specially for our Scotty,
Smart Alec, who has a tough time on hard fiberglass
surfaces.
Esmeralde is, we think, the
first and only Sabre with UNCOATED lifelines.
Since we plan to do a Bermuda race or two in our boat,
we looked closely at the ISAF regulations to make
certain she would comply, and one of those regs is
uncoated lifelines.
Uncoated lines can be
inspected, unlike coated lines, and we also think that
the coated lines degrade aesthetically very quickly,
showing rust streaks and yellowing within the first year
or so.
And no, they aren't
hard on your hands. If they develop meat hooks,
it's time to replace them anyway.
So if you see a Sabre
out there on the water with uncoated lifelines, that's
us!
One other
unusual feature on Esmeralde, also driven by the ISAF
regulations, are her three exhaust pipes out the transom
(see the photo above). The third pipe is an extra
bilge pump outlet to accommodate the required
below-decks bilge pump.
 Look
at those legs! Spring must be around the corner in
Maine!
Here's an awful lot of
stuff, and a bunch of guys, all trying to get things
done. They've probably just been told the owner is
showing up tomorrow (hence the vacuum cleaner)?
Actually, I don't think
these guys care about the owner showing up: they do
great work without that hanging over their heads, so
they don't have to worry about a thing when we show up
to have a look.
 This
is Aaron, hiding out in the sail locker. The thing
is big enough for two or three people to take a nap in,
so I don't feel too bad about him being tucked in there!
Thanks for the good work, Aaron.
On the
right, Al works on various trim projects, this one in
the head.
I've never seen so much
equipment and so many tools crammed into a little
38-foot boat! You're looking at Tim's back as he
works on wiring in the battery compartment, under the
settee.
 To
the left is the
galley, every bit the workshop at the moment, as is the
forward cabin, below, where Josh installs trim.
The keel,
left, ready to be installed.
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