Working down your to-do list

The coronavirus pandemic has touched us all, but in these challenging times comes opportunity. When kept off the water, Ron Weiss shares how he used the time:

Over 40 years of racing at all levels (inshore, offshore, beercan, etc.) has reinforced for me the importance of preparation in racing results. The same is also true with cruising, albeit with the measurement of success being fun and relaxation in lieu of a “pickle dish”.

With so much of the Long Island Sound racing season on hold, I have turned my attention to our 50,000# cruising yacht; which is akin to trying to race an island. Or a cement mixer with a rig in it.

So what have I been doing with my newfound “free” time? I have been attending to all of the little details that we never seem to have time to get to. Some are cosmetic, some are preventative maintenance, some are safety-related, and some are repairs of unimportant (but convenient) systems.

When the pandemic began, but before our boat was commissioned, my wife and I spent a whole lot of time cleaning and polishing all the little chrome bits inside the cabin. Over the years, tarnish had accumulated on the latches and hatch frames, door and cabinet hinges, etc., and we had become habituated to it.

After cleaning and polishing almost 100 miscellaneous chrome and stainless parts, we were amazed at the difference in the appearance. Was it important that we do this? No, but it was one of those things that we never had the time to do, and the result was worth it.

I’ve completely torn down and rebuilt all of my winches (10 of them). That took me about 15 hours in total. I replaced the engine room blower which had been squeaking for the last few years as it had neared the end of its useful life. I replaced all of the incandescent lamps with LEDs. I adjusted the tension on the lifelines and re-did all of the rigging tape.

I inspected all of our cotter pins, lubed the deck blocks and genoa cars, inspected all of our running rigging, rebuilt the sea chest (an awful 50 hour job I had been putting off for a couple of years). I replaced a failing freezer door gasket, and a crumbling and partially-clogged galley sink hose.

All of these PITA (pain in the aft-section) projects had been put off, and COVID-19 provided the perfect opportunity to work down the list toward lower-priority items.

We also de-junked all the sailing-related gear in our garage; the out-of-date liferaft that could no longer be certified? Gone! Crusty and frayed, stiff-as-a-board cordage? Gone! Various dried out cans of paint and varnish? Properly disposed of! (One side note – I could not bear to part with several old sails as I’m emotionally attached to them.)

What’s next? Let’s see: lube the rudder bearings, lube the windlass, lube the steering gear and cable, tighten all of the set screws in the stanchion bases, re-caulk around all of the hatches, address a couple of minor leaks in the fresh water system. Re-varnish the bow seat. Contact cement a couple of loose pieces of interior veneer.

The list goes on and on. Most of the above took more time than money and time is now something we have never had more of.

My mother used to have a circular piece of paper taped to our refrigerator with the word TUIT on it. The idea was that anytime someone was asked to do something and responded “When I get around to it”, Mom would hand them the “round TUIT”. Make yourself a round TUIT and starting working down your to-do list. I know that doing all this boatwork has been a great outlet for me, and it will pay great dividends down the line.

Scuttlebutt has enjoyed sharing stories for how people have turned the challenges relating to COVID-19 into opportunities. If you have something unique to share, send it to editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com.