Sampson Boat Co · video

What this video covers

Leo Goolden and Marat are sailing Tally Ho, a gaff-rigged cutter, south along Mexico's Pacific coast toward Costa Rica, with a hard deadline to meet a friend named Patrick in Costa Rica by Christmas.5:30 The broader plan runs from Panama through the Caribbean, across the North Atlantic in 2026, and back to the UK in time to prepare for the 2027 Fastnet Race — the centenary of Tally Ho's 1927 win.0:11 A Tehuantepec wind system is pinning them down in the Huatulco area, and light winds through Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua mean heavy motoring and multiple diesel stops.5:21 The route from Panama to Antigua poses a serious upwind problem: over 1,000 miles against strong trade winds in a gaff cutter that cannot point as high as a Bermudian rig.8:41 Onboard problems include a watermaker reading 500 ppm and climbing, hybrid regeneration that has never functioned, seized sheaves in the mainsheet and running backstay blocks, capstan deck switches flooding with seawater, a malfunctioning marine toilet, a broken freezer drawer, a leaking wood-burner deck plate, and a chain-locker jamming issue.20:37 Maintenance underway includes re-slushing the standing rigging with a turpentine, pine tar, and linseed oil mix, chafe protection on the gaff spars, and overdue winch servicing.31:02 Sailing to a fixed schedule, Leo notes, invites weather-related risk — the extra year built into the timeline exists precisely to avoid that trap.11:01

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