With COI Date Pushed back into October ?th, Volunteers Concentrate on Deckhand Skills and Crew Drills

 In our previous episode-er week, Spirit of South Carolina saw more sailing time in three days than  she had experienced in three years!  With our COI exam now postponed-Mostly due to insurance underwriters busy administrating new stuff as prerequisites,  our volunteer crew and officers have been devoting the extra time to  building up a strong bench of deckhand skills

Bryan Oliver walking volunteers
thru a rigging nomenclature scavenger hunt.

Alex Alya coaxes his new
pet rope into a bowline

A new rule by our underwriter's requires documentation of training, particularly emergency drill training for each crew member signed on. Volunteers always had a system for documenting training, now we had impetus to focus on it, volunteer by volunteer. That checklist, by the way can be viewed and downloaded from this blog. 

And so, three times this past week, especially, on Wednesday, and again Saturday, Volunteers who mustered aboard, shifted away from maintenance to focus on practicing, and checking off demonstrating competence in a number of skills. 

Mark Held with Dave Brennan coaching,
makes a perfect toss of a heaving line

 Where possible, groups of volunteers broke into round-robin groups where more experienced volunteers, acted as instructors. Many thanks to David Brennan, Nate Mack, and Todd Cole for stepping into those shoes on Saturday.  Unfortunately, this past week, we were somewhat frustrated from practicing actual emergency drill that required the schooner to be underway. Another insurance requirement for this period required presences of three licenses, not just the two  by USCG standards.

Bryan Oliver demonstrating bilge checks
 to Logan Day and Doug Hartley

  Subsequently, Spirit of South Carolina remained on the dock.  Nevertheless, all hands conducted a walk-thru rehearsal of the drills for Fire Fighting, Man-overboard, and Prepare-to Abandon Ship. 

Today, Monday, saw our first opportunity to cast off again and go sailing.  With eight volunteers and two crew members from Capt Hackett's company aboard we left the dock at 0945, for the harbor.  This day, with mostly new volunteers, they were immediately challenged with some on-the-job skills training in dock line handling, heaving lines, sail-raising and trim evolutions-- and then the actual scenarios of Man-Overboard, and Fire fighting.  Capt Hackett directed the drills, each time creating a real scenario that required actual action.  Each time, following a drill, Capt Hackett pointed out the things done right, and the things that needed work.  Then we repeated the drill, and got better.  Another critical review, and we repeated the drill again. and we got better still.  

We hoisted the Foresail and Jib, in light airs and tacking/gybing between the channels down to Ft Sumter and back, all volunteers took ample opportunity to trim sail, man halyards, launch and retrieve the tender, toss heaving lines, make huge bowlines, and lots of other really neat stuff.  just ask em. 

By 1600 we had docked again at the Maritime Center.  It was a highly productive, and physical day, fortified by a welcome  Chili Lunch, laid out by Capt Davis in the Saloon.  And lots of checked and initialed blocks on everyone's deckhand skill checklist. 

A Long Week of Three Back -to-Back Sailing Days as The Schooner, Captain, and Crew go thru Sea Trials.

 Today is a Sunday; I have to remind myself, having lost track of days over this past week of heightened activity and urgency.  Things changed last weekend on Sunday afternoon with a phone call from Capt Hackett that on Monday the schooner should be ready to cast off for a sea trial to exercise crew and new Captain in docking/undocking operations and basic on-off dock piloting. On Tuesday the Coast Guard Inspectors would be coming on board for their anticipated Courtesy Walk-Thru.  Finally, we should be prepared for sea-trials in the harbor the rest of the week. The operating tempo of the schooner's march toward gaining her COI accelerated.

 And so, on that short notice, Volunteer Coordinator, Bryan Oliver phoned his short list of standby volunteers with most experience, to fill out a minimal crew for Monday. Dave Brennan, Nate Mack and Ken Fonville responded.  

Monday:  Combining with a  contingent of three  "Captains Choice"  hands from Capt Hackett's company, a  minimum crew of 8 mustered aboard at 0800 for casting off and even setting a headsail or two.  Also coming aboard later was Capt Andy Hudak, an experienced Tall Ship-Schooner Captain, who had previously help deliver Spirit of South Carolina from shipyard in Savannah back to Charleston. Capt Andy had been invited to return for a  four days as a coach/consultant.   

Tuesday: Early the next morning, Tuesday, the three-man Coast Guard Inspection Team led by John Doughton boarded for a courtesy pre-COI visit. Doughton knew the vessel well, having led previous year's inspections aboard, and was enthusiastic about seeing the schooner in operation again. His team spent a little over an hour aboard in collaboration with Capt Heath and Capt Davis, answering questions, offering advise, to ensure we would be well-prepared for the actual Certificate of Inspection Visit. It was also agreed that due to Insurance administrative process still bring completed, the Visit would be delayed a week, or more.   After the Coasties departed, The three Captains, and crew readied the schooner to cast-off.  While the three Captain's, Davis and Hackett, exercised practice at piloting the vessel, Bryan exercised the rest of the crew in line-handling, and docking operations.  Later in the day, the crew raised the foresail, jumbo, and jib.  Initially planned for about four hours, the cruise finally docked around 1700; 7 hours on the water.   Immediately after docking and securing the vessel Bryan was immediately online to drum up additional volunteers for the rest of the week. 

Crew spent rest of the day resolving issues raised during the previous day's sea trial, and prepping for Wednesday. Bryan working his contact list to build a pick-up volunteer crew for Thursday.  

Wednesday: Wednesday was spent at the dock. The Volunteer contingent dropped to zero, as real-life priorities that had been set aside for two days stacked up.  Bryan went aboard for the afternoon, primarily to prioritize following day training tasks,, and confirm the next days volunteers.

Thursday:  Thursday was expected to be a crunch day, to get in as much practice and drills as possible before Capt Hudak had to leave the next morning.  This time the Volunteer crew came thru, largest thanks going to our star Volunteer Recruiter Danny Johnson, and daughter Laura, who cajoled a total five new volunteers to come aboard with them Thursday morning. Also coming aboard was Jody Smith. Combined with the Captains Choice contingent our station bill of deckhands had grown to thirteen!

This being our third harbor sea-trial the steep learning curve of our volunteer and novice Captains Choice crew was becoming evident.  Cast off drills were running smoothly;  line handling was increasingly efficient and disciplined;  Consequently, Capt Hudak announced he would like to raise, All Sail,, including the Main sail, which would first require that the luff be lashed onto the hoops, and the shallow reef set.  That issue  would require us to loiter somewhere.. and drop anchor.  The three Captains consensed on taking her to the "Middle Ground" in the harbor, the commercial anchorage area between the north and south passages into the harbor.  Bryan walked the crew thru the drill of "catting the anchor", then dropping it,  measuring chain and setting the rode. Then they set up to do it for real.

All hand's took stations:

• the Burton hook was passed to raise the anchor flukes off the caprail and lower the anchor down until it was suspended only by a "Cat line" under the cathead.
• The Windless brake was eased off, 
• On the Windlass, the Wildcat pawls were cleared from the teeth, 
• The stopper chain hook snubbing the anchor chain to the windlass was taken off the anchor chain 
• On Bryan's command, "Drop Anchor", volunteer Calvin Milam threw off the catline from it's single turn on the Norman hook, and the 500-pound anchor immediately splashed, pulling with it about 120 feet of chain until  Bryan screwed tight the windlass brake, and set the anchor chain snubber.  

piece of' cake.

Now the crew divided into two tasks. Bryan started with walking the crew through the steps of pulling out all the shallow reef nettles, passing them under the mainsail foot for tying on the port side with slippery reef knots (all 24 of them). Three volunteers separated off with Bryan for a demonstration in lashing the mainsail luff grommets to the mast hoops.  

Once all reef nettles were checked, and the the hoop lashings inspected, Capt Hudak sent all hands forward to raise the anchor. Basically the lowering drill was reversed with the added physical effort of pumping the windless with four strong backs, to haul back on board the anchor, and it's 120 feet of chain.

Now untethered from the harbor bottom, Capt Davis started engines situate her headed into the wind for raising sail.  Starting at the Mainsail, the crew methodically moved forward raising each sail in sequence until Spirit of South Carolina was under full press.. all sail set for the first time since 2019! Capt Davis pointed her on a south easterly course thru the jetties and out to sea.  just far enough to feel the Atlantic Ocean rollers pushing under the hull. 

Having just tacked at Buoy 16, now Homeword bound
 for Charleston Harbor

Since our  Coast Guard mandated limit was 1 mile offshore, we tacked around and stood for the harbor on a broad reach. For most volunteers aboard it was first time raising sail, and truly sailing her, no engines.  

Passing Shute's Folly (Castle Pinkney), Capt Davis turned into the wind started the engines and  directed for taking in all sail.   Bryan directed all hand's to the head rig to strike the jib, then jumbo- then Foresail and Main, flaking them down and securing with gaskets.  By now, even the newer volunteers were easing into the drills, setting up dock lines and heaving lines, throwing over and lining up ball fenders, lowering away the tender as a push boat and ferrying ashore  hands to take the dock lines. 

Capt Andy Hudak, Volunteer Scott Depung, Bryan Oliver,
and recoiling heaving lines for stowing in the line locker.

By 1600, Spirit of South Carolina was resting comfortably at her berth, and volunteers were clearing away and stowing gear, coiling up and hanging lines, adjusting sail furl,  and squaring away the deck.

Volunteers who Came aboard over this week, and left me contact info were:

Dave Brennan

Reg Brown

Scott Depung

John Gaag

Mark Held

Andy

Jesse

Danny Johnson

Laura Johnson

Nate Mack

Calvin Milam

Jody Smith

Harold Wilkin

Volunteers Reg Brown, John Gaag, and Harold Wilkin,
 ready to muster off after a great day for sailing.

Saturday- Doug Hartley Recognized for 100 Volunteer Hours; The Mainsail finally comes aboard The tempo is accelerating.

 Best news of Thursday was the visual sight from a distance that the Main mast boom lifts had been installed, removing the single remaining obstacle for finishing up-rigging the Mainmast, sail and all. Thursday was almost a washout but for the appearance of Walter Barton and Jody Smith who saved the afternoon.  Bryan Oliver gathered the team around the Foremast for a demonstration in lashing the foresail luff grommets to a mast hoop. After a few do-over's Walter and Jody made eight successful lashings of the 15 mast hoops.  The remainder would be finished on Saturday. Meanwhile Bryan started marling-hitching the foot of the foresail onto the fore sail boom. The completion of that task would have to wait for Saturday and additional hands to stretch the foot out. 

Saturday morning saw a grand sight with  8 volunteers mustering midships. Today was always the stated goal post for having all the sails bent on, and the ship ready to cast off.  The mainsail still lay in a roll on the dock-her rigging likewise. Of equal priority, the tender's outboard Yamaha had been sent ashore for servicing, and was to arrive this morning to be lifted up and be reinstalled/tested.  

Oh, almost forgot,, the rigid inflatable tender had been sitting in the water tied to the dock for several days now needing her bottom brushed down.  

Dave Brennon forcing the bow
of the tender over onto the dock
 prior to cleaning off the bottom.

So, naturally,, Volunteers broke down into three groups to tackle projects simultaneously.  Bryan and Alex gathered up tackles to rig up a hoisting gear on the deck pylon, to enable the lifting of the heavy outboard engine over and into the tender.  Dave Brennon and Nate with some help from Walter Barton and Jody Smith pulled the tender up onto the dock sufficiently to get to the bottom with a broom brush. 

Nate and Walter on a test run of the tender.

Nate Mack departed with help to retrieve the outboard engine from Capt Davis's truck, and cart it back to the dock where the tender waited and the hoist was rigged. 

Doug Hartley working a lifting  bridle
 around the mainsail for hoisting and swinging aboard

Doug Hartley had finished installing the brackets for the man overboard life ring and flag pendant. He and Ken Fonville shifted to the huge mainsail rolled upon the dock. As volunteer help arrived on scene, together they laid out the huge sail on the dock, reflaking it to expose the corners then rolled it, cigar-like and rigged a strop across the center. Then, using the mainsail throat halyard tackle, they raised up the huge limp roll, and swung it out over the dock and onto the deck where they arranged the roll of sail lengthwise on the aft cabin top under the main sail boom.

As more volunteers completed their projects, they converged on the mainsail roll, laid it out and identified the head, lifting it up to the gaff where Bryan Oliver started a marling hitch from the gaff throat aft to the peak. As volunteers completed marlinghitching of the mainsail head onto the gaff, lunch arrived, a most welcome spread of pulled pork sandwiches and sodas, laid out by Capt Davis on the saloon hatch.

Lunch time, complete, a few minutes of free time for texting, etc, and hydration, then the climax project of the afternoon, the marling hitching of the mainsail to the boom.  all fifty feet of her. Volunteers lined up along the boom to lift and stretch the fifty-foot ."foot of the mainsail along the top of the boom while Bryan started the hitching from the throat end. 

Bryan stretching the mainsail boom
lacing hitch by hitch aft towards the clew.

Other volunteers fill in afterwards continuing the hitch all way to the cockpit when time runs out, as well as space to work. 

As the projects slow to a strategic pause, Bryan calls one last muster under the foresail awning and brings Doug Hartley front and center to recognize his achievement of over 100 Volunteer hours. 

Doug Hartley, flanked by Bryan Oliver
 and Capt Davis, recognized on Saturday
for 100 Volunteer hours, that milestone
was passed in April, actually,
 he's closing in on 200 hours.

Capt Davis awarded Doug his "Foremast Volunteer" Pin, and card. Doug actually passed the 100 hour mark in April, and is well on his way towards 200 hours already.  Special thanks to Doug on his workmanship in restoring the life ring and pendant pole brackets mounted on the starboard bulwark which was rotting away. 

Coxwain Nate Mack taking the tender
 on a test run around the harbor before
 bringing her up to the schooner for hipping.

Alex Lya, Bow lookout and
Painter handler aboard the tender

Only Two Thursdays and Two Saturdays remaining before September 20.

Labor Day Weekend is tough competition when an organization based on volunteers is trying to advance a project.  Add to that, the pressure of only a few remaining volunteer sessions remaining to get ready for the COI exam.

So it was great relief to see eight volunteers come down the gangway this past Saturday. It would be a full day. Thankfully, with passage of Idalia, the temperature stayed moderate, and  a light breeze made the day on deck tolerable. 

The immediate priority was to lift off the recalcitrant outboard engine from the tender, docked inside the marina, load it onto a cart and deliver it to Capt Davis' truck for drop off at a mechanic.  While Nate Mack, and Walter Barton dropped into the tender, and passed tools back and forth to detach the outboard from the tender's transom, Bryan Oliver, Jody Smith,  and Alex Lya, brought out a handy-billy tackle and rigged a hoist high up a floating dock pylon. 

Rigging up our hoisting tackle
 to get the outboard ashore.

Meanwhile, Doug Hartley and Dave started another project on deck, reinstalling a life ring marker buoy bracket he had fabricated. 

Once the tender was repositioned so that her transom was backed against the floating dock, directly under the rigged tackle, the crew rigged a bridle around the engine and carefully hoisted it off the transom, and onto a waiting dock cart. 

While Capt Davis, Dave Brennen and Nate others loaded the outboard into the back of Capt Davis' truck, the rest of the volunteers secured the tender than walked  back down the dock and mustered around the foresail, still rolled up on the deck from last volunteer session. 

Bryan explained the project that would take up the rest of the day, with all hands... bending on the Fore Sail to the fore mast gaff and boom with marling hitches.  

Bryan emerges from the lazarette
having just heaved two forty-lb spools
 of rope onto the deck.

Bryan opened the deck hatch in the cockpit, disappeared into the Lazarette and handed up two spools of 1/2'inch three strand rope. -and  measured out, cut and whipped. The rest of the volunteer crew unrolled the massive foresail on the deck, searched for and pulled up the four corners of the sail, sufficiently close to where they would be shackled or laced on. the peak, and throat on the gaff, and the tack and clew on the fore boom. 

Head of the foresail slowly being lashed
 up to the gaff, with crew lifting
and feeding it as each grommet
 takes a hitch. 

First, the sail was loosely suspended from the gaff by shackling on the throat, at the gaff jaws, and the peak lashed to the "peak of the gaff. Next, Bryan buntline-hitched one end of the measured-out lacing line, then gave a quick demonstration of how volunteers would line up on both sides of the sail and pass the line thru the  10 grommets along the head of the gaff, using marling hitches;

Bryan Oliver takes a turn with

 the foresail peak lashing to stretch it aft. 

finally tying off where the sail's peak was lashed to the end of the gaff. 

While Bryan headed off to Harris Teeter to provision for lunch the rest of the crew dug the massive pile of stiff canvas to locate the bottom, of "foot" of the sail with it's fourteen grommet openings, stretched it out and positioned it to be lashed on at the Tack and Clew irons on the Fore Sail Boom.

Following a cold-cut sandwich lunch on deck under the awning, the crew lined up with Bryan to start the more cumbersome task of marling hitching the entire foot of the foresail onto the boom. 

That done, and the afternoon waning, the last task would be furling the foresail.  It entailed pulling the entire mass of canvas over the boom to the port side, where all eight of us lined up to start stretching out and laying flakes down into the "skin created by the top five feet of the sail. We soon realized some problems. 

Bryan gives an impromptu Master Class
 in flat-braiding 6 feet of three-strand
 into a passible Sail Gasket.

Bryan, Jody, and Steve
 searching our sagging furl job for the missing flakes.

We were woefully short of gaskets, the long flat-braided sail ties used to keep the furled sail together  between the gaff and boom.  Worse, our lazy-jacks, the vertical lines suspended from the boom lifts to the  boom keeping the mass of sail from spilling onto the deck, had not been properly adjusted, causing one do-over, and a less than beautiful harbor-furl. In spite, the crew was able to form a semblance of a furl, in time for most of the volunteers to depart for their planned family Labor Day festivities. 

As Volunteer Days go, this one was exceptionally productive. 
With only two more Saturdays, and Thursdays until the COI exam, we will have to maintain that high level, maybe surpass it, if we're to be ready. 

That's not a lot of time considering the milestones that must be achieved before the 20th of September, and the onboarding of a Coast Guard Inspection Team:

• Fore Sail, lace the luff to the mast hoops- set up the lazy jacks
• Fore Mast, Linseed oil the mast;  Slush the Mast (Vaseline)
• Main Mast, Uprig the Boom lifts
• Main Sail, swing over onto the deck and bend on the main sail; set up the lazy jacks, furl the sail
• Get the Trash pump pumping properly
• Get the tender outboard working properly
• Dockside, Train in the three drills= Man Overboard, Fire, Prep to Abandon Ship
• Dockside, Train to manage docklines for casting off and docking; raising and dousing sail,
• Cast off and and train the above tasks while motoring and under sail.

Each of these require from four-to ten volunteers to complete.   Hopefully Volunteers can sustain, even increase attendance to make those milestones.