Telstar 28 to Bahamas

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Telstar 28 to Bahamas

Post by trashpad »

Boy,

Everyone is reading it but no one wants to talk about it. I will break the ice. This guy is lucky to have been able to write about his trip! It should have been one of the lesson learned articles in Sailing. You know, where at the end they list what they did right and what they did wrong.

It does prove that the Telstar is one tuff boat
Dan

Telstar 28 to Bahamas

Post by Dan »

The problems they had were mostly the fault of the owner of the Jo Sea Maria as I see it.

First, they say the wind was out of the Northeast. Any one with any sea sense KNOWS not to try and cross the Gulf Stream with any kind of wind out of the northerly directions. That puts wind against current and makes for really hellish conditions. Generally, as a rule, you shouldn't even attempt a Gulf Stream crossing if the winds have been out of the north in the last 24 hours. Yet, in spite of small craft advisory conditions with winds trending to the north, he still decides to head out.

Second, IMHO it was irresponsible of him to lie to his son and to continue when his son was so ill. If there had been a third sailor aboard, it might have made sense to do so, but with only the two of them aboard, having one person be so ill on a passage like a Gulf Stream crossing, in less than ideal conditions is really quite irresponsible.

Third, he failed to inspect the starboard ama after the impact with the USCG RIB. It looks like the RIB hit the ama pretty hard, since the fracture occurred right at the ama/aka join by the looks of the photo. I am willing to bet that the initial impact was far smaller than what is shown in the photo, and that not repairing it immediately allowed it to tear further. That is a fairly high stress area of the ama/aka structure.

When going on a longer cruise, it would certainly make some sense to carry some basic tools and repair materials. This was clearly not the case for the Jo Sea Maria. It would also make basic sense to inspect the boat after any incident that MAY have caused damage. You won't know if there is damage unless you LOOK FOR IT.

If he had inspected the ama, and he had been carrying some sort of epoxy putty that can cure underwater, like MarineTex or some of the products from Progressive Epoxy Polymers, he could have easily affected repairs. If he had some fiberglass cloth with him, along with the epoxy putty, he could have easily affected rather permanent repairs. I know the amas are pretty tough, based on experience with my boat and a couple others.

Fourth, the shroud issue is one that should have been caught much earlier. I seriously doubt that there were not some warning signs for a significant period of time before 18 of the 19 wires in the shroud failed.

It may have been possibly due to them not understanding how to treat the rigging when lowering and raising the mast. However, given that this is a trailerable boat, there is little excuse for not checking the rigging regularly. On a boat where, you have to go aloft to inspect the rigging, I can understand some laxity in doing a thorough inspection, but that isn't the case with a Telstar 28. Carrying a spare shroud on a longer trip is also a good idea—even if it is just a length of the proper wire rope and the mechanical fittings required to fit the piece—so you can cut it to length if needed.

Fifth, not having proper foul weather gear for a trip like this is just ridiculous...Not having foul weather gear for a bluewater passage, even one as short as the Bahamas hop is, is just stupid. Thunderstorms, even in the tropics, usually have very cold temperature rain falling from them.

Even for trips to the tropics, I pack at least one set of "warm clothing". On my last Bahamas to Massachusetts delivery, I had two polar fleece long-sleeve shirts and a set of thermal underwear, along with a light foul weather jacket and an ocean-grade Musto MPX one. I also had foul weather bibs along. As captain, he should have made sure that his son was properly equipped for the trip. Foul weather gear is as much a safety item as a good PFD or harness and tether. It also sounds as if he didn't have jacklines rigged for the trip, which is a mistake IMHO. I have jacklines rigged on my boat, and use them regularly.

Finally, from the text of the story, it sounds like he did this trip without a chartplotter. With a chartplotter, the return trip, with the limited visibility, would have been a bit easier, certainly less nerve wracking. While I'm a big fan of the Mark I eyeball as my primary navigation tool, a chartplotter can be damn useful in conditions where the Mark I eyeball fails miserably.
Ron
Posts: 1136
Joined: Mon Nov 24, 2008 6:15 pm
Location: SW Florida
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Telstar 28 to Bahamas

Post by Ron »

Dan wrote:The problems they had were mostly the fault of the owner of the Jo Sea Maria as I see it.
Dan -

That's an understatement. I've made that trip in much larger boats and, under those conditions, he should not have even left the dock. It's one thing to get caught out there in this stuff, but to leave port in a small trimaran is almost absurd. On days like that there's always a bunch of cruisers waiting for a weather window to make the jump. And his general comments in the article were almost scary. He's lucky that they are both still alive.
Ron Marcuse
Telstar 28 #359 "Tri-Power"
trashpad

Telstar 28 to Bahamas

Post by trashpad »

Well I am happy to see I am not the only one. The story does show that the Telstar is one tough boat and will take care of it's owner even if the owner will not take care of him self. It does answer a question we all have had about how she will handle a flooded ama. To be able to make it across the stream like that is a testament to Tony's design.
Dan

Telstar 28 to Bahamas

Post by Dan »

Welcome to the ITOA forums. It is good to hear your side of the story, however, I do still have some more questions and comments for you.
jmcfarlane wrote:I appreciate the comments. Some of the criticism is valid, some is not. The boarding party from the US Coast Guard Cutter Cormorant approached the Jo Sea Maria from the stern. I was under their direction at all times while maneuvering. They accepted responsibility for the incident and paid close to $3,000 to have the damage repaired. I did have a jackline rigged as well as safety harnesses and sea anchor.
From the text in the story, it didn't sound like you had jacklines rigged.
“Stay where you are,” I admonished, as James tried to help by filling the main gas tank with one of our auxiliary gas containers but he was so unsteady he was in danger of falling overboard.
If your son was wearing a harness and clipped in to jacklines, the likelihood of him going overboard when refueling the boat is pretty minimal.
I had and used a chart plotter. I also brought basis tools.
If you had a chartplotter, why did you come so close to shore you were worried about getting caught in surf?
I pressed as hard as I could for the shore---any closer and we risked running aground in the violent surf---James constantly asked for a depth reading. Apprehension flooded my brain as I struggled to sight land. We finally started seeing (barely) the outline of condominium buildings along the Florida coast. After four hours of intense misery we spotted the lighthouse at Hillsboro Inlet.
Was there any real reason to do so? From the text in the story, it does not seem that it was a wise decision to do that.
I did inspect the Jo Sea Maria for damage and spent a considerable amount of time in the Bahamas repairing the gunwale guard that had torn loose on both amas. Unfortunately, I missed the fracture on the inboard side of the starboard ama.
So, you're saying there was additional damage to the rubrail/hull-deck join that was not shown in the photos? Why would you only inspect one side of the ama?
I inspected the rigging before stepping the mast in Pompano Beach prior to the start of the trip.
So, you're saying you went from a perfectly sound shroud to one that had 18 of the 19 wires broken during the course of this voyage?? I find that difficult to believe.
As for "lying to my son", in fact, we were 7 nautical miles from the half way point---my son knew exactly where we were. He agreed to continue and is gratified that he persevered.


That certainly isn't how it came across in the article.
Actually, I told a small fib---we were only about twenty-five nautical miles into our planned sail trip from Pompano Beach, Florida to West End, Bahamas, a distance of 65 nautical miles.
BTW, 25/65 is only 38% of the way there, not halfway...and under those conditions, with him essentially incapacitated by his seasickness, I'd have to question the decision to continue—especially knowing the conditions were likely to get worse before they got better.
Certainly, the decision to leave under less than ideal weather circumstances can be questioned however at no time did we encounter swells in excess of six to eight feet. I also had previous blue water experience with the Jo Sea Maria having sailed from Key West to the Dry Tortuguas in 2009.
While six to eight feet swells are not too significant, the period between them is quite important. If the six to eight foot swells have a period of 10 seconds, it is one thing, if the period is five seconds, it is a totally different story.
From an equipment perspective the most remarkable part of the trip was the fact that the entire journey was completed on the Honda 20 HP Motor. I would welcome any additional comments from owners who have experience crossing the Gulf Stream on a Telstar.

Jim McFarlane
Captain, Jo Sea Maria
I don't find this all that remarkable. The Honda 20 HP is a very reliable engine in my experience. The outboard bucket/sled design on the Telstar allows the outboard to sit quite low to the water and reduces the chances of the engine ventilating or coming up out of the water to a minimum. I've never had the engine either ventilate or come up out of the water.

I'd also point out that Performance Cruising has not been responsible for the Telstar line since September of 2009. The Telstar line was spun off to a company called Performance Sailing at that time. If you had posted to the ITOA forums, it would likely have gotten you better results than calling upon a company that was still undergoing issues with the change in management regarding the shroud. Will Hershfeld and Neal Smith, the two key contact people for Telstar owners have not been with either company in some time. Neal left a while before PCI was sold and Will basically left when the two boat lines split AFAICT.
Tony and Sue Smith are very pleased to announce the sale of Performance Cruising Inc. to a management group led by their daughter, Laura Smith Hershfeld. Laura Smith Hershfeld has been appointed as President of Performance Cruising Inc. and will continue to manage the company where she has worked for the last 16 years.

Performance Cruising Inc. is the oldest, largest and most successful catamaran builder in the US and has built more than 1,000 of the highly successful Gemini 34 model over the last 20 years. In what has been a true family business since it's founding by Tony and Sue Smith in 1980, PCI now goes forward into the future under the management of the next generation of the Smith family.

Tony and Sue will be heading south to Florida and the Bahamas in the fall aboard their own Gemini 105 upon the completion of the transition period. "Sue and I are very happy to have handed over the management of our family business to our daughter, Laura. She has inherited an excellent team of craftsmen, many of whom have been with us for more than a decade and are personally attached to both the product and the reputation that they have helped us create and build over the years.

Laura Smith Hershfeld stated that "this is the culmination of a life's work for my parents and I am looking forward to continuing the legacy and the product that they have built."

Tony Smith is also pleased to announce that a longterm management contract has been signed with The Annapolis Catamaran Center (ACC), a division of The Catamaran Company. ACC will be operating the marina and docks to provide dockage for their current catamaran clients, and to offer dockage to those catamarans for sale on the market. The Catamaran Company currently offers this service at their Ft Lauderdale, FL and Tortola, BVI locations to their local clients, and they are very pleased to be able to now offer this same service to their Mid-Atlantic customers.

For more information please contact Laura Smith Hershfeld at laura@performancecruising.com
Ron wrote:Had a long talk with Tony at the Annapolis show. Spoke to Laura as well. Following is what has or will happen with Performance Cruising, but there still could be some minor changes -

Performance Cruising will continue to build the Gemini. Laura Smith Hershfeld is the President of the company, and The Catamaran Company seems to be involved as well. They will operate the marina and docks behind PC's property - but seem to have some interest in PC and the Gemini now too.

Tony is starting a new company, called Performance Sailing, to continute to develop and build the Telstar in the new assembly building. He won't be happy until he finishes developing the boat to his perfection. Knowing Tony, this job will probably never end. He has some good ideas for the future, including some weight reduction for the boat and trailer. Anyone who thinks they might want to wait to get the improved model - note that every boat he builds is one.

Will Hershfeld is starting to separate himself from Performance Cruising, and will get more into computers and web-design. I think this was his first love anyway. I don't think they' have anyone yet to handle what WIll was doing, but they have some new employees who will get more involved. He will be hard to replace.
trashpad

Telstar 28 to Bahamas

Post by trashpad »

Hey Jim,

I can see how the story could get pulled around by the time it gets to print. I must admit I would have been happier to read about a story of sunny days, 15 kt wind, and flat seas but I know they are not always there. So hitch the trailer back up and get back out there and get me another story. I would love to hear about the first trip you took.

Kurt
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