THANKSGIVING DINNER IN ST. MARTIN
Long Ago and Far Away
copyright 2013 Edwin P. Cutler
How we broke our mast
After working at the NASA Bermuda tracking station for the entire year of 1986 our time with Bermuda customs would soon be up. So we requested a six month leave from our employer to sail down to the Caribbean Windward Islands. After all we were out here to explore. We planned to make a more permanent arrangement with customs when we came back.
Before we left we knew we should repair the leaky salt water pump that was spraying sea water all over the engine, so we ordered a new pump from England and wired money to the supplier to expedite the delivery.
But the expiration date with customs came up and the pump had not yet arrived. If we had asked customs for permission to delay our departure to install the new one when it was delivered we would not have lost the engine or broken the main mast.
Complying with the rules of official dome, we left with a leaky salt water pump. By the time we got to St. Martin we couldn't start the engine and sailed upwind when we should have been motoring and broke the mast.
To leave Bermude we sailed out of Georgetown harbor on the north side of Bermuda and headed east to clear the island before turning south for the Caribbean Islands. Things were going well until we noticed the boom jumping up and down at the mast. The bolt holding the boom had evidently not been tightened properly after we took the boom off to varnish it. Ed ran forward and on hands and knees felt around on the deck. He found the bolt sliding toward a toerail scupper and put it on the boom and tightened it firmly.
We were on a port tack when Wendy noticed the starboard main shroud supporting the main mast was not attached to the chain plate and was wagging around. It is a good thing we discovered that before we tacked to go south or we would have lost the whole rig.
Ed wondered why Wendy felt we were not ready to go and felt she was casting a spell on the venture. We had Mammy with us but she didn't seem to be much help.
The following are excerpts from the 1987 logbook. Sat 14 Nov 1987 10:40 We're off! odo 0855.9(0)
Sun 15 Nov 1987 07:00 72F 1028mb, NExN10, cloudy No stars at sunrise; Gibbs Hill light has finally gone over the horizon; no wind! all night calm. Drifted S. The last hour 10 knots of wind came up from the NE. Sailing SE. Speed 3.5 kts. 1000 miles to go at 84 mpd = 12 days Portsmouth weather: Large high building east from mid Atlantic. Winds NE 15-20 then E15-20 including Monday and Tuesday. Next front by Thursday. We are S. of Bermuda heading SExS. 09:30 odo 860.3(4.3); 74F; 1028.9 mb, 64% cloudy.
Mon 16 Nov 87 heading magnetic South 11:30 74F 1029mb, 70%, fair weather clouds, wind NExE 21, speed 6.6Kts. Seas 4ft.
The wind started blowing about 0200 and strengthened to 25g30 by 0730 By 1130 it has eased and steadied a bit.
We have big genoa, reefed main and full mizzen up. The block holding the genny sheet away from the boom wore a hole in the reefed main. Ed shortened the line to hold the block clear of the main.
22 Nov 1987: Inner forestay broke and Ed found it lying on the deck. Apparently need more text before the next picture.
25 November 1987 Main mast broke
While beating into Marigot Bay in St. Martin, Ed looked up the wooden mast of the Romarin, a twelve ton Hillyard ketch, and saw a two foot bend. "Ease the sheets," he shouted back to Wendy at the helm. But before she could react, there sounded a crack as if lightening had stuck their boat! But it wasn't lightening, it was the mast and the half of the mast above the spreaders came tumbling down.
The entire debris of mast top, mainsail, foresail, shrouds and triadic stay dropped down onto the deck and covered Wendy in the cockpit. Fortunately the cockpits in the Hillyards are deep and she ducked down unharmed, just terrified.
Ed, standing at the stub with only a scratch on the calf of his leg, remarked, "Few sailors live to tell a story like this."
But Wendy, pushing her head up through the folds of sails wailed, "Oh, Romarin, I broke you!"
We were towed into Marigot Harbor on the French side of St. Martin by the good ship Polar Transit. The crew was very helpful in getting us safely anchored.
What a mess. Thank goodness Wendy ducked when all the rigging landed on the deck.
We made a deal to pull the parts of the mast and the rigging onto the deck of the anchored freighter Teigland so we could scarf a splice in the mast.
Ed used to be a carpenter so went to work to splice the mast. He made a 17 to 1 mitre box and sawed the stubble ends of the mast. We bought part of and old box mast made of Oregon Spruce and mitred the planks until we had a perfect splice. Armoral glue and clamped and wait several days.
By Christmas we had the mast stepped and were ready to sail.
We had five more months to return to Bermuda as promised to Bill at the tracking station. So we headed south and sailed in and out of harbors all the way down to the Tobago Cays with no engine.
we started north again and on 1 May 1988 sailed into St. George's and checked in to Customs.
The man was in a hurry and asked, "Any guns?"
"No."
He cleared us in with four cases of rum and whiskey in the hold. It is nice of islands to have import duties, it makes smuggling profitable.
Our six month sail to the south was over and we were soon back to work.