Now that it is the end of November, Mazu has been hauled for the winter. Time has flown by since we took possession of her in August. We have made steady progress in checking out all of the systems onboard, some we have already serviced but we still have quite a long list of items that need to be addressed over the winter. We soon realized that our mainsail was not up to snuff, the luff tape was damaged as was the lower, flexible feeder section of the track. These are critical to the proper functioning of the in-boom furling system. Both have been repaired so we were able to get in some good sailing in October but we have ordered a new mainsail for next season.  Thankfully the headsails and the assymetric spinnaker are all in good shape.

We had quite a list of booths we wanted to seek out at the Annapolis Boat Show in early October, foremost of course were the sailmakers. We anchored Mazu in Spa Creek, a great location with easy access to the show which also seemed to be a gathering spot for about 5 other Hylas’s. With so many of our friends gathered, it seemed like an appropriate time to have the official MAZU naming ceremony.  Captain Ed was the master of ceremonies while Howard hopefully appeased Neptune and the wind Gods with sufficient bubbly to banish the former name and honor the new.  It was a good excuse for a party on a beautiful fall evening …. and we tested out the grill with good results.

Little by little we are appreciating the quality of Mazu’s systems and learning the intracies of operating, servicing and improving them in some cases. Some, most importantly the engine and generator, need professional servicing over the winter.  Hence our decision to haul her at Worton Creek Marina, not at Pepper’s, because that is where the mechanics are located.  We have almost completed winterizing her, have removed items for varnishing, and made templates for covers that need to be sewn over the winter. Now we just have to wrap her up well with tarps to keep snow and other elements off her.

We are undertaking all this work in prepartion for ARC Europe, which we still plan on entering, in May, 2018. This trip from Portsmouth, VA to Lagos, Portugal will take about 6 weeks, with stops in Bermuda and the Azores. We have two additional crew who are joining us for the passage. Mike, who has sailed with us before from the BVI to VA and has also completed a transatlantic passage following a similar route, and Greg, a new crew member, who also has considerable offshore experience.