S/V Symphony

We made it out of Nassau harbor and began our turn south for the Exumas today when we discovered we could not get the mainsail out.  I pulled it in, out, in, out but could only move it about a foot.  I spent 45 minutes trying to muscle it in and out.  I climbed up onto the pitching cabin roof and hurled myself at the sail trying to get it to break free.  No luck.  Reluctantly, I headed back to the harbor to find a sail maker who could tell me what was wrong with my brand new mainsail.  When we got back to the dock one of the workers, Dudley, offered to take a shot at it.  Dudley was the former master of a hundred+ footer in Charleston, NC.  He muscled the sail, raised the boom and pulled down on it to no avail.  Then he looked at the furling line and said - oh we have a problem here.  The furling line had an override.  I should have looked myself having had a similar problem when the furling line was first installed.  The furling line was overriding because the sail maker had raise the boom when he measured the boat for our new sail.  With the end of the boom high the furling line didn't lead properly to the spool inside the mast.  Oh well.  We are too late to head back out today so either tomorrow - or Friday we will head back out.  Our meteorologist suggested Friday as our next weather window to the Exumas.

We have been given a few rules to follow by fellow boaters. One of them is "All plans are written in sand at low tide."  Another boater told us he has three rules:  1. Keep the water on the outside of the boat; 2.  Don't run into land; and 3.  Trust the boat.

So far -- so good.