Adrianp

Good point. I used 32mm 8 braid Polyester on mine. A bit more difficult to splice but can't unwind. Mine also has a nice 22mm stainless swivel on the top but the swivel on the top of the chain does all the work.

People seem to love them unless you in a location with wind against tide and it makes it hit the side of the boat. I have one for my cat but the bridal is short so that the fergie can hit my hulls. Its really nice to pick up as the top of the fergie is just below the front beam.

I have the B&G V3100 which i assume is just the same. The extra transmission power is noticeable and well worth the extra $$$ over the 2.5w version.

There is a really interesting map on this page that shows where it has and hasn't been found. It must need updating as none of the new BOI locations are included. https://www.marinepests.nz/interactive-caulerpa-map Interesting that it is not in the popular anchorages put more in the high current areas. Also interesting that the top of Coromandel and bottom of great barrier have it everywhere. Seems like an easy spot for it to spread via currents to all of the gulf.

We couldn't use the Torbay Buoy this year as it was in the middle of the Oceanbridge Regatta Courses and that 17nm course is a bit long for the general fleet, so we come up with some different options this year. With the light winds forecast we chose a course using the Takapuna Buoy and finishing off the Viaduct. Frank racing actually beat the committee boat to the finish line, getting around the course in 46min and our slowest boat was 3hr 50min, coming in just before the 4hr cut off, so I guess we got it spot on. People seem to be understanding this event is a "festiva

Yep I m a happy owner of a pair of SD20's with about 3500 hours on each of them now. They seem very scary in concept but actually seem pretty bloody simple so long as you look after them (which isn't much). Only issue I've had in 30,000nm is from a fishing line around the prop that cut into the seal. The SD20 and 3YM30 seem like a bloody good combo.

We (NZ Multihull Yacht Club) were lucky enough to get a tour of their factory recently. They are the real deal and are building a very clever but simple boat. They are doing it the Kiwi way and are increadly knowledgable on what they are doing. They ended the night by letting us raid the Carbon scraps bin - best "Party Favour" ever for a bunch of DIYer multihullers!

Wow Jon, you really see the real estate of your deck in that photo. The OC tender looks tiny!

We have the Victron GX system that talks to the solar and BMS of our batteries. When I leave the boat, I set the max charge voltage to 13.4v which seems to keep the batteries at about 70%ish. With this system, you can remotely log in and change the settings, so a few days before we go away, I let it charge back to full to be balanced and ready to go when we get on the boat.

Now found at Rakino: https://www.mpi.govt.nz/dmsdocument/61840-Detection-of-Exotic-caulerpa-Rakino-Island-map/sitemap

We recently stayed there and they offer water to their guests at $5/100L

Keeping the alternator cool makes a huge difference for these small frame Balmar alternators. We have 2x 175a Balmar XTs and they very quickly overheat (our 614 is programed to not let them get hotter than 90c) and they very quickly reach that point, then cut their output to about half. To keep them running with a decent output, I have to have an bilge blower sucking the hot air right off the alternator. If that fan stops, the alternator will throttle itself back within a minute or two.

It such a busy calendar it hard to find a free day for our race. We tried really hard to avoid any clashes this year and we were the first event in the AYBA and YNZ calendar but looks like the Gulf Classic have had that date for a while and we just didn't know. We (NZ Multihull Yacht Club) want to work with the other clubs to grow this event into something huge, so please let us know your feedback and ideas.

I got the HDI Marine ones but only the elbows. They seem good but haven't actually pulled one apart yet so who really knows! We also make sure we run the engines a bit harder than we used too to stop any soot build up.

We have 600ah of Lithium on 12v with a 3000w Victron inverter, 1.2kw of solar & 175A Balmar alternator. We've been cooking on a cheap single benchtop induction hob for about 3 years now and also recently added an air fryer. We haven't turn the gas bottle on for about a year now and are about to rip it out as I'm expecting the insurance company to ask us to get it certified. Yes we sometimes pull 200+ amps out of the batteries but that's what they are designed for. 2 x 50mm2 cables for both positive and negative side of the inverter cables. Our setup gives us about 3 days

I have just booked a night in the Viaduct so I asked them about the visitors berth and this was their reply: "The visitor berth is available for a maximum of 2 hours at a time and is free to use. We don’t take bookings for this; you just need to radio VHF73 on your arrival to the marina and they can advise if it is vacant. Our visitor berth is located next to the tidal steps underneath the Wynyard Crossing lifting bridge on your right-hand side. You’re welcome to use it "

We at the NZ Multihull Yacht Club are monitoring the situation and are planning for an alternative start line near Narrow Neck if needed, but the PIC Coastal Classic will be going ahead on the 20th of October.

Great Video. The Racing is much closer than I expected for very precious 100yr old boats! Those gybes look slightly terrifying!

Can we please book in 20kts Southwester for Friday 20th October?

NRC are seeking contractors to trial suction dredging in Omakiwi Cove. This was on GETS today. At least they are trying to do something! Suction+Dredging+RFP+August+2023.pdf

And so the restrictions on our cruising begins. Rahui now in place for anchoring within 1nm of the Waiheke finding of Caulerpa. I think this is a good idea if they plan to get rid of it but I'm worried if it's just a wait and see approach. https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/auckland-top-stories/300957729/waiheke-iwi-declares-rhui-over-increasing-caulerpa-spread https://www.ngatipaoaiwi.co.nz/media-release-2.html This map is my guess at what that 1nm area covers.

That's definitely one for the Pool Room!

The NEWS tab is not where I tend to look for important navigation information. I think it just shows how useless the Biosecurity framework we have is.

MPI website is remarkably quiet on this issue. Nothing on the front page and I gave up looking after I was 7 pages deep into the Biosecurity part of the website. You wouldn't think there is any issue based on their website. https://www.mpi.govt.nz/

Jeez, there is always something new each year to make running this race a challenge! Last year is was Dolphins, Covid the year before..... Looks like the ban is just for fishing, diving and anchoring in these areas, so you can still sail through. If the anchoring ban spreads to Russell, we might need to organise the use of all the empty moorings in the bay. https://www.mpi.govt.nz/news/media-releases/biosecurity-rules-in-place-to-stop-northland-spread-of-invasive-seaweed/