Zanzibar sailing with her new sails on Saturday afternoon
My pal Jim Van Den Bos and I spent Saturday afternoon near our homes at Bewl Water in Kent, England, trying out some new sails kindly sewn up by Jim’s mum for his canoe Zanzibar.
The little boat attracted a lot of attention from fellow small-boat sailors who kept Jim busy for quite a time while I swooped across the water.
We were both pleased with her looks and performance in the light-ish breeze, and very happy also with her stability. However, I was less happy than Jim with the balance of the boat – despite the size of that mizzen, I think the rudder is a little too large. Once that’s fixed with a well-aimed saw-cut, though, I’m pretty sure she’ll be fine.
If you’re curious about who is who in these shots, Jim is the good-looking bloke with the red bouyancy aid, while I’m the other geezer. As I designed Zanzibar, I hope you dear readers will be able to forgive my smug expression…
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For more on Zanzibar, see:
Jim Vandenbos builds a sailing canoe
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