Winter this year saw the boat home and back under it big green tent – working off a lovely block floor rather than slabs and heart this year.

The mast suffered some damage this year. Some self-inflicted with the peak halyard shackle the wrong way round, which, during a deep reef, rubbed hard against the mast, and the shroud band started to slip down the mast, indicating there was some issue either with the fixing or perhaps rot underneath.

It was dropped off with https://www.drascombe.uk/, who looked after it, stripped it clean, and refurbished it. Seems it was just a snapped screw and no manky wood!

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The bowsprit was stripped along with the gunwales and inner combing of all varnish, and Deks D1 was applied instead. Nancy valiantly battled the leaky lockers under the seats with new sealant, sealing strips and padding foam. The lockers are recessed and flat, so any standing water seeps in.

The spars were stripped, varnished, the wood floor oiled, and the covers reproofed. The trailer was cleaned and wheels painted, and the antifouling reapplied.

Some items that are now firmly boat fixtures, like the paddles, emergency box and a boat hook, are finding forever homes with straps to hold them in place. The new item for this year is a sapele crutch for the boom to enable the mid boom lazy jacks to be swept back and a tarp cast over the full boom.