Skip Novak, Ullman Sails Brand Ambassador

When it comes to refits do less, not more

On the ‘Pelagic Australis’ we do an extensive annual refit that takes two to three months sandwiched in between a full-on charter season that takes us from Cape Town, South Africa down south to Patagonia, Antarctica and South Georgia; and back again.  Wear and tear is a given in these tough conditions and despite our simple systems and robust equipment, there is always a lot to do.

The tendency is to try and do everything that needs doing all at once.  This could be a mistake.  The simple reason is that usually everything needs attention to some degree.  What usually happens when you try to fix every little thing, or get led astray by a hungry shipyard, is you wind up in a complete muddle with the inevitable panic in the end.

Refits for cruising boats

Keep in mind we are talking cruising boats here, not racing machines that are built to much finer – and even marginal – tolerances with bare minimum specification equipment to do the job regatta by regatta. In the racing game all must be groomed with a very fine-tooth comb.

But if your boat is a real cruiser built for cruising, you can assume you have a much larger margin of safety in all things, which implies that a certain amount of wear and tear is acceptable.  The trick is to know how much wear your equipment can take before things become problematic – and that only comes with experience (i.e. seeing everything break at least once in your life).  If you can get a grip on your boat’s true margins for wear and tear you can plan accordingly and save yourself some heartache.

Service equipment annually

What we do on the ‘Pelagic Australis’ is service all the essential equipment annually.  This means a full service on the main engine, fixing anything that needs attention after a full rig check and an underwater check (whether you haul out or dive).  The steering system also must be included in the essentials list.  Sails are serviced off the boat at the loft by the experts.  Good sailmakers, like Ullman Sails, offer comprehensive sail maintenance inspections and sail service – so no excuse not to do those!  Most of what is left can be considered non-essentials for the next voyage.  And with some preparation buying materials and spare parts, many of those jobs can be done underway if necessary.  As for the paint job . . .  that’s the last thing on our list!