terça-feira, 9 de fevereiro de 2010

Hatching III

Due to the heat, I've been working at home. I'm putting the hatch together. Good way not to stop completely. I just drove out briefly on Sunday, to check whether the glued hatch was fitting all right. I was there in the early morning - the heat was already stunning... I drove back home with a clean conscience.

The hatch will be painted white on top. Leaving only the sides varnished over the epoxi.

Tall ships II

The visit to the Tallships was great fun. Despite the copious heat.

We were lucky to visit the festival on a day with not too many visitors. so we could go aboard all of the 8 big ships. A unique opportunity.
I've ben locked out from internet these last few days...

domingo, 7 de fevereiro de 2010

Tall Ships in Rio




sexta-feira, 5 de fevereiro de 2010

Carnival Beauty contest

Carnival is the time of beauty contests. Queen Paola Oliveira has been elected the most beautiful "Rainha da Bateria". Any objections?

quinta-feira, 4 de fevereiro de 2010

Sunrise to another hot day in Rio

Here comes the sun, to greet another hot day in Rio, of 40+ degrees. This picture was taken yesterday. It ain't fresher today, and it won't be tomorrow. Nor Saturday, nor Sunday...

quarta-feira, 3 de fevereiro de 2010

Tall ships in Rio - Vela-Sudamerica

Rio is hosting the tall ship regatta "Velas Sudamerica 2010". Nine tall ships, form different nations, arrived last Sunday. They will stay for a week, and leave on the 07th February. A regatta will be staged on the occasion of their departure. They are open to visitation from the public.

I've dicovered the ships by chance, last Sunday, while walking in the forest, up in the hills. I saw them parading in the distance, all along the beaches of Rio. A great sight. I had time enough to drive down, into the heat, and see them motor-sailing in very weak winds. They are now moored on Pier Mauá. I can enjoy their sight every early morning, on my way to work.
And tomorrow I took a day off. Actually to spend a quality day with my mother. But I'll find the time to attend to this rare spectacle also.

Look carefully at the picture, click on it if you like, and you'll see 4 big ships...

domingo, 31 de janeiro de 2010

Every coin has two sides

Yes, night swimming on friday was brilliant. But sleeping at 3pm is not beneficiary to boatbuilding. And the balmy temperatures of 28 degrees C. at 3pm, quickly transform to a very hot, baking hot, cenario of 35+ degrees on the following shiny day.

Result; I couldn't focus propperly on real building. Seeking self-punishment, and decided not to go back home without any activity, I decided to clean the interior of the boat. What a stupid idea. But it just came, took posession of me and before I knew, I had the vacuum cleaner in hand, ear protection and mask on, and ventured into the most remote compartments of my boat.

Does that sound too dramatic, considering I'm talking about a mere 30ft. boat? Not at 38+ degrees, crawling in a fairly tight space. Having the vacuum cleaner inside the boat exhausting a hot air-stream didn't help either. After sweating some 4 liters, in around 2 hours, but before serious overheating and dehidratation stuck, I had cleaned a good portion. Redeemed, I think I did something good. However, I certainly didn't regret my nightswimming.

sábado, 30 de janeiro de 2010

Night swimming

Taking advantage of the full moon of the friday night, balmy temperatures and most pleasant water conditions, we went to the Aproador Rock, Arpex, for a night swimming session. Very adequate to celebrate the milestones that the Arpex projetc has passed so far. It was brilliant.
Catching crocodiles all thrugh the night, in transparent, jade coloured water was just phantastic. I even made my jump from the rock. Even if not from the point break, which wouldn't have been prudent.
At night Arpoador beach is illuminated by strong floodlights, so the water is lit up, like a swimmingpool with underwater illumination. School of silvery fish entertained us, by jumping up subsequently, in large flocks, flickering in the light.
We stayed on the beach until 2am. Along the beach other small groups of people were also joyfully savoring the night. "Night beaching" is becomming faishonable, here in Rio.

quinta-feira, 28 de janeiro de 2010

50'000 visits approaching

Along the last 2 years, this blog has accumulated almost 50'000 visits. By tomorrow we will, most likely, see a big fifty with zeros on the counter. I'm often surprised, when I think about that. And, amusingly, others tell me that they are too. So, at least I'm not alone.

The blog's second aniversary, which was in November 2009, has slipped from my attention. So, I'll take this opportunity to thank you all for joining now and then. Knowing that people are around, checking out on the progress of the boat, or just seeking some sort of entertainment, is a great incentive which goes much beyond this blog. It also keeps me going in terms of my boatbuilding. Funny, isn't it? Anyway; I enjoy the exchange and interaction. Your comments are often helpfull and stimulating. Thanks for all that.

And, in case you have wondered; Yes, carnival is approaching again. Those of you who have followed this blog for a while might have noted, that I do enjoy the various aflorations and expressions of this cultural happening. However, this year, I'm afraid, I'm going to be a distant spectator only. I'll concentrate, and focus on my boatbuilding. I'll better do that.

Atlantic Crossing



Captain Gustavo Pacheco has returned from another crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. Together with two other crew, he made a safe trip from France to Brazil. Neptune gave them a good taste of different aspects of what the sea can offer you.

This beautiful video gives a great picture of the look and feel of an ocean crossing. Great images from suprising angles. The black and white suits it very well! The vid is nicely edited, and comes with a great soundtrack and narration too. It is worth looking at.

terça-feira, 26 de janeiro de 2010

Hatching continued

Quite surprisng how long it takes to produce a decent hatch! Or, maybe, let's say simply... a hatch. Let's later see, whether it will be called a "decent hatch".
For now, though, it seems to come out all right. To me it looks good too. From the outside and from the inside.
It takes so long because lots of alignment and verification is needed. I'm screwing things together before I glue them on. Because once glued,... there is no way back.
Again the router was my main tool.

Proa "Des Jours Meilleurs"

Here is a great video showing historic images of a proa, which is, maybe, the most sucessful modern proa of our days. It is the French "Des Jours Meilleurs", conceived and built by the Guillard family. They have sailed some serious mileage on their 62 ft. boat, including Atlantic crossings. The proa is pretty quick too. She has clocked 23 knots already. My compliments to Famille Guillard.

quarta-feira, 20 de janeiro de 2010

Ama Trip

São Sebastião offered me a lovely day for my ama trip. I went to visit Miguel Pomar, who is building the ama hull. Miguel has been building simple and inventive boats for his lifetime. Now he is dedicating his attention to catamarans - and other multihulls, like mine. He invited me for a tasty lunch in his house, so that I could see and understand the mould from which he will build the ama hull. Drawings are nice, but actually seeing and touching the ama, to understand its' shape and volume is much better.

During the drive, up into to 1000 meters altitude, I had nice views onto the mountains, covered by dense forest and could benefit from the more tempered climate. On the way back, I took the opportunity and took a shower in a waterfall. There are plenty of rivers with clean and fresh water around.
I was very happy with what I saw when I got to Miguel's. Miguel is a nice guy, with tons of experience. His boats are pragmatic and cater for the brazilian market, which can not afford the outrageously expensive imported boats.
The main dymensions of the hull-to-be are good. However, the ama shape is not exactly as drawn in the original plans, neither exactly like I would wish it to be. But many of the differences are improvements, and will make my life much easyier. Therefore, the overall result of the deal is positive.
Building the hulls for multihulls are often the most complicated part of the construction. Miguel has a mould which can be adapted according to many wishes. I think amateur boatbuilders who dream of building something according to their own ideas have a good opportunity here. Building from Miguel's moulds, and then developing whatever sort of cabin, deck, and what not, from there... That makes life much easyier.

terça-feira, 19 de janeiro de 2010

São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro

Tomorrow is a holiday in the city of Rio de Janeiro. It is the day of the saint-patron of our town, "São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro", also nicked as "Rio".

The name was given according to the day of "discovery" by the Portuguese, 20th. January 1504. Giving names of the saints of the day, or of birthdays of the current or past royalty, was a common practice among portuguese and spanish discoverers. I mean, sure! if you discover unknown land every day, your creativity to bring up new names for it will run out, one day or the other. So you better have a logic schemed out to produce new names. And if you can please your sponsor while doing it, even the better.
So, this is why I'm free tomorrow. The day off will be used for a trip to the nearby town of Petrópolis. Miguel Pomar will be building my ama over there, and I want to see the mould and how he works. Miguel invited me for lunch, and I'm looking forward to it.
It takes an hours drive to Petrópolis. It is about 70km, up in the mountains. Due to the altitude, tempreatures are more moderate, than in our baking Rio. I'm looking forward to that too...

domingo, 17 de janeiro de 2010

Wharram creaming along

Wharram cats are interesting boats. I wonder why some don't like them. Easy to build, following detailed plans, and simple in the inventiveness of the proposed solutions, they make lots of sense to the amateur boatbuilder. And some semi-professional boatbuilders also do a good job in building them on comission. They seem to fit our tropical South Atlantic waters very well.

This is a nice video showing that they cream along nicely in a breeze.

Classic launching sequence

We dont have many amateur boatbuilders here in Brazil, but we do have some people launching boats they have built themselves. I enjoyed this classic launching sequence, with a fine song to go along with...

sábado, 16 de janeiro de 2010

Hatching

Today's time was mostly dedicated to get some order into my box. That's a small space, where I keep tools and material. It is very hard to keep it shipshape. Therefore, I don't even try. Miraculously, it seems that my hand finds all tools it needs, without much thinking from my side. But too much is too much, the mess was getting the overhand, and I needed to make a ballance of the wood and ply, I've got left to work with. The area around the boat was also cleaned. It is incredible how detritus accumulates.

Else than that, I have done some shaping, aligning and mocking up of my main hatch. I have already found out that the hatch is wonderful to squeeze fingers. Found it out the hard way. The solution for it I have also already schemed out. I'll glue a "fingerguard" under the critical area. If you're curious to know which area it is,... it is right in the middle of the picture above.

Else than that, I think the hatch will work just fine. Jonas'es router is coming in handy these days. Hear that, Jonas?

Sailing


Nothing is more satisfying and thrilling than to see the morning breaking, after a night sailing on a reach through a tropical night. There is no tiredness nor strain from the lack of sleep. No worries blowing over with the night breeze. Only the spiced scent of a new glorious day, carried by the caressing land wind.

If you let your thoughts glide over the swell, feel the wind and see the clouds. Let your eyes and mind wander over the gear, then conforting relaxation settles in. Enjoy the antecipation of the perfume of a cup of coffee. The rising sun will soon chase away the slight chill of the night, and instead bring the day's heat.

... Which brings me down to here and now again... Yesterday's rain has abated the heat, that was baking carioca brains in the last few weeks. Therefore, there is no good excuse not to go boatbuilding! ... got to get ready...



And here comes the coffee, brought by crewmate, Mr. Mauricio Crespo Neto. His dad, Dr. Mauricio Crespo Junior is sleeping away the best of the day in his bunk. He deserved the rest. He had to steer a couple of hours under engine, during the calm patches at the start of the nightsail, a crossing from Rio to Buzios, in 2007. Dr. Mauricio is a formidable crew.

My younger nephews, sons and daughters of my brothers and sister, are approaching the age of becomming valuable crew. I really look forward to sailing with all of them.