Truckin’ south east at eight plus knots with the four lowers pulling at their reins.  Paul C.W.P.U.M.S. Bracken, the Chief Mate and principle schooner stud fresh out of Maine Maritime Academy spent his off watch time with me up the foremast tightening a mast band with a pipe wrench and socket on a breaker bar.  The rig new almost out of the box (forest?) so no one is surprised by the constant loosening of fittings.  
 

We also re-lead the peak halyard to jigger to stop some chafe on the cross tree…all told over an hour aloft. Then Paul’s inspection (no point in saying ‘his own time’ since as Chief Mate he has no time) produced yet another issue to sort immediately before the chafe gremlin won. Hannah’s turn, Paul off for quick kip, and off we go again after a short delay while the Skipper makes a satphone call. The antenna for same is in the ‘space’ where we are about to work, so as neither of us need our brains boiled in electrons we wait. An hour later we’ve sorted the forward peak block which is too small for the job but will hold with our reinforcement.  Hannah’s amazing, not over fond of heights but it never slows her down, she finds time to talk me through a seizing technique while we hang out in the breeze at the top of the main mast. Not many women look good in Vibrams, she manages somehow. Between us, we have two working hands and two sets of teeth to do the work, with the rest, we just hang on and try not to ice skate on the Vaseline that seems to be everywhere*.

*EDITORS NOTE:  Technical vaseline is used  traditionally to "slush" the wooden masts to preserve it and ensure smooth gliding of the sail hoops and gaff throats - in theory it should be ONLY on the masts, but many a sailor will swear that vaseline in fact can actively find it's way all over the rigging.

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