WORST News Ever | S3: E20

[@jennyfraley6321]

Feel for you guys!! Cruising is sooooo not easy! But man you had me in tears during that monologue ending with "and my shorts don't fit because of too many tacos!"😂 This content deserves 1000000x the views! Can't wait to see the next one!

[@Potomac_Aerial_and_Marine]

I respect the fact that you guys are keeping it real and showing your audience the difficult sides of cruising as well as the joys. I think that adds tremendous value to your channel. I’m looking at buying my first sailboat for the 2025 season so I can start doing some cruising on the Chesapeake, and I really look up to sailors like yourselves that are out there living the dream. You all have put so many miles under the keel, and I’m confident that you’ll knock these maintenance issues out and sail on. Cheers. - Grey

[@gntsailing4389]

We appreciate you and your support - you’re going to love cruising the Chesapeake. My dad lived aboard on the bay for 18 years. It’s a jewel! We’re slowly headed that way…

[@Rainmaker60LM]

This is the video everyone who thinks they should buy a sailboat should see. The bikini and swimming channels never go into any of this stuff. Even here in the states there are very few yards/mechanics that are reliable. Just getting a phone call back is difficult most of the time. Ignorance is bliss, so many people are out there with problems much worse than yours and have no idea. You are right to fix it and not risk the mast coming down. The diesel is pretty easy to figure out. Lots of KZbin videos to help you.

[@gntsailing4389]

Aw thanks for the vote of confidence! We do try to keep it real.

[@rwsimonds]

My favorite therapy word Tim is, wait for it… ‘cardboardeux’

[@gntsailing4389]

We like that one, too! Miss you, pal…

[@greggreen5624]

LOL - Love you guys. I can relate to your shorts not fitting because of too many tacos. A few years ago while vacationing in PV my girlfriend and I took turns parasailing. I noticed that my girlfriend flew much higher than I did. I asked the fellow running the parasailing why I didn't fly as high as my girlfriend. He sarcastically told me that I ate too many tacos! I'm sure you guys got the boat sorted out and hope that you are now enjoying the cruising life!

[@gntsailing4389]

Hilarious! Thanks for sharing and for the laugh!

[@Noneya792]

Welcome to the real world

[@gntsailing4389]

Indeed.

[@marcusdell7420]

We bought a Catalina 42 hull 931 a year ago with a view to being in a position to do some live aboard cruising in a cpl years .. similar to yourselves we had limited experience with larger sailing yachts .. I had powerboats most my life and sailed a little as a young bloke, my wifes only experience being the powerboats weve had over last ten yrs so we had some shocks and learning lessons also. They are good boats but Catalinas archillies heal does seem to be the quality of their stainless .. weve had to replace the rear chainplate and front stem fitting which I dont think should have been needed on a 18yr old boat .. coupled with new rigging, sails, electrical upgrades and dozens of minor jobs weve thrown in a fair bit of money and time already into her and still have a rear tower, changing the flexi solars I thought id try with solids, replacement bimini and storm covers, deck hatches re leaks, head replacement pipework, running rigging, engine mounts, stuffing box and cutlass bearing work and a dozen or so smaller jobs to tick off the box .. ironically on a Catalina the surveyor said was the best hes seen hahaha but then then he was so skilled and thorough he didnt even pick up the boom was only hanging on by only three pop rivets and we were lucky to not end up in a big pickle bringing her the 200nm home. So I appreciate your frustrations better than most. As many yachties state .. everythings broken and will need fixing, you just dont know it yet. Thankfully for me we arnt living on the boat yet and ive been able to sort these things without the added complication and pain of my spouses emotional reactions to contend with .. that would have turned naturally painful things into an absolute nightmare and probably seen us fighting and acting like children ending in a for sale sign lol. Probably no big news to you but it seems to me following your exploits that the success or failure of your long terms plans will come down to how your able to make peace with the challenges of fixing things and the spanner they throw into your immediate plans .. youll have to forgive me for saying (with love) that you Gretchen handle that a lot better than Tim does. Each of the disasters youve had recently have IMO been blessings .. the issues with your engine, rigging and chainplates rather than seeing you tied to a dock could have seen you stranded out at sea with the fallout being much larger and that slightly different mindset of 'we were lucky' and appreciate dodging a bullet is invaluable. Youve had quite a few blessings there of people assisting with advice and help and theres much beauty in that .. fact is those gifts wouldnt have been possible without the challenges coming about in the first place. Its natural and unavoidable to feel gutted and frustrated when things go astray but life has taught me that things generally happen for our best interests in mind and life gives us what we need, rarely what we want and all are opportunities for growth or recipes for repeating self deprecating tendencies. Again with love a last thought .. for most men our greatest challenge comes in relation to not being able to control things .. not because of a god complex or wish to be king, it simply affects our self worth and identity directly .. if theres an issue we are wired to need to be able to fix it and when we cant it hurts us and as a consequence those around us lol. Some of this can be addressed by a slightly more balanced way of looking at things (growing if you like) .. other times it should be handled with a burn to learn more skills to assist us to be able to fix more things or at least provide us more confidence which I believe Tim needs .. investing as you have already in widening knowledge is not only important, its part of the journey. Our challenges can break us or make us shine .. only difference is how we choose to frame and view them. All the best, your be back out there with the wind filling your sails soon and the joy will return.

[@gntsailing4389]

Thanks for the heartfelt comment! Eyes toward the horizon...

[@scott.the.sailor]

You can also use a shaker siphon to transfer water from the jugs. Just make sure it's dedicated to potable water and not also used for transferring fuel 😂 The nice thing about the siphon is, you don't have to hold the jug

[@gntsailing4389]

Great idea!

[@seastarbutterfly]

Ungh. So frustrating. "Island Time" really is "warm weather / tropic time". Definitely have been there. Hang in there!

[@gntsailing4389]

Yep and the trades are busy… it’s just how it goes, but in the middle of it, it feels endless. Thanks for chiming in!

[@tartansailor]

Most engine problems are related to lack of fuel or lack of cooling water. The strainer may very well be the cause of the problem, many times the solution is simple. Hoping all is well by now. Cheers, Richard

[@gntsailing4389]

We’ve definitely narrowed it down to the cooling system in this case. Stay tuned!

[@PaulBKal]

You have my great sympathies. I live your frustration. Even here in Australia where there are heaps of tradesmen to fix things, any problem generally needs a three week solution: it takes a week to find someone who will come and look at it, another week for them to actually come, and then yet another week for them to actually come back with the necessary parts to fix it. Mexico? Who knows!

[@gntsailing4389]

No doubt. It was the same(ish) in San Diego when we refit there. Part of the fun!

[@Sv_SeaDuctress]

LOL this looks like a mild sailing domestic! I hope things work out for you, I think they did, not sure how long your episodes drag(just heard it was March, lol), but I am thinking you guys already crossed, bc John K is in the So Pacific (no?)

[@gntsailing4389]

We have those on the reg. lol! We’re actually still in Mexico. We layed up there and had the chain plates done over the summer. Headed back to the boat today to get moving again! Finally.

[@Figment078]

There will eventually come a day when there isn't a single component of the boat that you have not personally replaced or disassembled/serviced/reassembled at least twice, and there's nothing left to figure out, it's all just routine and it's BORING. That's when you sell the boat.

[@gntsailing4389]

We are so close! I won’t jinx things by listing the very few things we haven’t touched. Ha!

[@MISCIFMAKER]

Those gang plates are toast I could told you this , I've nvr sailed .

[@gntsailing4389]

Glad you are watching along with us!

[@greenebank]

Ah so goes life. In future unstep at least once every 18mo. If turnbuckles are in bad shape run your spinnaker halyard and tension then remove the turnbuckles and fix. Diesel engines need constant maintenance and should be rebuilt between seven and 9000 hours if you do the head every 6000 hours, then you should be trouble free. If you can’t afford this kind of maintenance, yeah sell your boat and charter when you feel the urge.

[@gntsailing4389]

Thanks for sharing your wisdom! Not only easy on the wallet, but to good bits make it worth it…

[@greenebank]

as Cornelius Vanderbilt said if you have to ask the price you can't afford it!

[@jasonmcintosh2632]

Rust dripping off of your chainplates is pretty bad. However, you can replace your own chainplates. That's very straightforward that doesn't need an experienced rigger, but you may need to cut some access ports and buy some tools. Sounds like your engine is overheating. The coolant system is very simple. Familiarize yourself with it and ask yourself what problems you'd experience if each part failed. Then figure out what test you could perform to test for each failure mechanism. Understand that your boat is female and you have a relationship with her. They're not "mass produced" like cars. They're born, they live, they need loving attention and care, and they get old and eventually die. Love your boat.

[@PaulBKal]

Spoken by someone who is a tradesman or has done the job before with an experienced person. It’s not that simple. It’s just not and saying it is absolutely doesn’t help. The anxiety of not knowing what you don’t know and consequently what you’ll do wrong that will cause an even bigger problem.

[@jasonmcintosh2632]

@@PaulBKal I encourage people to do whatever work they can, not just to save money, but sometimes you won't be where you can get help. So having the tools, knowledge, and confidence to be able to do something yourself is important. Replacing chainplates will likely be a PITA, but it's within reach of most people. It's not like going up the mast and changing the rigging. Remove and secure the shroud, remove the chain plate, get a new one (or have a replacement fabricated) and install it. You'll need a rigger to retune the shrouds, but that's easy for a rigger to do. As far as the diesel goes, I think everyone should have a basic understanding of how a diesel engine works, and the cooling system is pretty basic. Again, you should have the tools, knowledge, and confidence of being able to do some basic work on your own. Trouble shooting the cooling system is something you should be able to do on your own. Maybe you spend a whole freaking day removing one hose... well the next hose will come off faster and after you take a few things off and put them back on, you'll have some confidence that you can do the work. At least the simple stuff. You won't be adjusting the lifters your first day, but maybe one day you'll have the confidence to do it. If you just sit on your ass and cry, well...

[@gntsailing4389]

Thanks for the great advice! Love your perspective.

[@martinseverns8285]

Call the wambulance then get to work. Remember Mexico is sexico!

[@gntsailing4389]

Indeed! lol!