Capetown SA Jan 2022

Arrival In Capetown Dec 2,2021

     With Omicron a new threat to the world, friends asked why we were traveling to SA where the new variant was discovered, but like the Spanish flu of 1918 to 1921, Covid is getting more infectious and less lethal. We were the first non stop flight from New York to Capetown since Ramaphosa closed down his country,March of 2020 and we were the last flight out of Capetown the day before Capetown was shut down that same month. Waiting to return to Icebear,we were wondering how she fared at the Victoria and Alfred Marina for 20 months. We were ecstatic. Every week Joshio, the Marina Manager, started the engine and generator, checked the batteries, and made the sure the lines and fenders protected Icebear from the famous Capetown wind, a katabatic swoop from Table Mountain.

Of course, it's a boat and there was a lot more to check, mainly our 20 year old mast, which had new standing rigging in 2020,but Mark, from Associated Rigging, detected a crack right under the first spreader. Well,almost 3 months later, we are still in Capetown! Not a bad spot to wait for a carbon mast rebuild. 

Carbon Fiber Mast

Carbon fiber is basically laminated carbon sheaths, applied in layers and epoxied together with resin and heat and chemical hardeners, in this case to form a hollow mast. This mast needed "doublers" or extra laminated inserts inside the mast at the level of the spreaders. The pic below shows the gooseneck being reinforced with carbon laminates. The middle will be cut out to fit the boom. This is a typical area of cracking where the boom joins the mast, especially, after 2 years of downwind sailing, where the boom rocks up and down, despite the boom vang trying to stabilize the boom. 

 Here’s pics of the new and improved carbon fiber mast.

The crack you see is on a gusset or the diagonal protrusions from the mast. These need to be a lot stronger then when they come from the manufacturer if you plan to sail around the world, especially if they are carbon. Even the holes have to be a perfect fit, with bushings added to stop any play between the boom and the mast. 

The "GGR22" is the Golden Globe Round the World Solo 2022 'Retro' Race coming up this year. It's "retro",in that, the sailors have to use celestial navigation, can only use HF radio, and must sail a production boat built before 1988. You can bet that all these boats are reinforcing their masts, booms, and vangs. Some are shortening their masts and doubling the size of their standing rigging. We met Kirsten, the only woman entrant, on MINNEHAHA, who is parked near us. Checkout the GGR2022 on YOUTUBE.

Capetown New Year

New Year View

Thank you to our lovely World Arc friends for the New Year's Eve Bash in their penthouse right above Icebear's berth.  Clement now heads up all of DHL for South Africa.  Speaking many languages and having lived in Asia, France,Vietnam and Africa, Natalie and Clement and their 2 boys are truly citizens of the world.