Choku geki sareru: Typhoon Muifa

Update August 6, 2011: s/v Intrepid survived completely unscathed and we're just waiting for the seas to calm down so we can get back out sailing!

s/v Intrepid is currently braced for a possible direct hit from Typhoon Muifa, currently forecasted as a category 4 tropical cyclone due to hit Okinawa mid-day on Thursday August 4, 2011. We're expecting sustained 100 + kt winds with gusts up to 140 kts. To prepare, sails and biminis are taken down and lines are tied to every cleat to put the boat in a spider web in the slip. Before the storm all is quiet at the marina... the calm before the storm...

Bracing For a Tsunami in Japan: a Cautionary Tale

Featured in Lattitudes and Attitudes magazine, July 2011 p. 78

Ginowan Marina

            You’ve heard the stories and seen all the pictures of the devastation in Japan in the aftermath of the big earthquake and tsunami off Sendai, Japan. This is a story of one American sailor’s experience in an area of Japan that missed the physical effects but is still reeling from the psychological effects of the big tsunami.

            In the afternoon of Friday March 11, 2011, I was sitting on my boat in Okinawa, Japan. I was supposed to go sailing this weekend with my friends Rick and Maggie who were stationed here with the U.S. Marines. We were supposed to meet at 5pm but I arrived an hour earlier to prepare. When I first drove into the parking lot of Ginowan Marina, on the west coast of Okinawa, I thought there seemed to be an odd commotion of people hanging around, but I really didn’t think anything of it and went down to the boat. As I walked down the docks I noticed a few people putting out extra lines and fenders on their boats and vaguely wondered, is there a storm coming? As I got the boat ready to sail for the weekend, I had some time so I went up by the marina office to get a can of coffee. As I walked up I met another expat friend, Clyde who said, “Hey did you hear there was an earthquake and we’re on alert for a tsunami?” He said it half with a snicker, like yeah we’ve been through this drill before. As Clyde warned me, it was then that I realized that there were fire trucks and police cars driving up and down the street, announcing to people that they must evacuate. People around the marina were also starting to shuffle around more purposefully and many were leaving.

            People in Japan know that this island country sits on a fault line and gets earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis regularly. They always seem to happen somewhere else though, and never do that much damage. Even so, the Japanese people are amazingly well prepared and even if there was any damage it would be repaired the next day. Just last year, in fact there was an earthquake somewhere in Japan and we had a tsunami warning in Okinawa. They closed the marina all day and told us we had to evacuate, which was a big inconvenience since I was in the middle of painting. Last year when the time came for the tsunami to hit, my curiosity got the best of me and I sneaked in past the guards and waited off by the seawall, with my camera to watch. When the time came when it was supposed to hit, there was not even a ripple on the water and I was quite disappointed, to be honest. I was sure the same thing would happen this time. Tsunami, big deal. I sort of hoped it would come, wouldn’t that be interesting! I got my camera ready again this time.

            Sometime after 5pm, when my friends were supposed to meet me to talk about our sailing trip and also about the time the tsunami was supposed to hit Okinawa, I was hanging out on my boat, looking at the water with camera in hand. It was oddly quiet on the docks, when my phone rang. It was a very bad connection on the phone, with the antenna bars showing full service, but we weren’t able to connect. Just to check my phone, I tried calling a few friends, but with no luck. I wondered, did I forgot to pay my cell phone bill? Later, I would learn that as a result of the disaster, cell phone service throughout all of Japan was disrupted. Finally quite awhile later, my friend Maggie was finally able to get through and told me frantically, “I’m so sorry Greg, we have to cancel. I don’t even know what’s going on but Rick just got called for duty this weekend. I guess this tsunami really is a big deal.” Rick, I would later learn would be part of the US military’s Operation Tomodachi humanitarian relief operations.

            Disappointed that my sailing trip was cancelled and a bit lonely being the only person at the marina, I left and then learned on TV with everyone else about what had just happened. One of the biggest natural disasters in our lifetimes had just occurred, with tens of thousands of lives ended and entire cities erased in a matter of minutes by Mother Nature’s unforgiving fury. Words can’t describe what we’ve all seen in the news by now. It’s shocking to see what an earthquake and tsunami like this can do to the one country in the world most prepared to deal with something like this. What I thought was almost as shocking was watching a YouTube video of Santa Cruz harbor in California, that saw the tsunami wave wreak havoc- several thousand miles away- destroying docks, sinking a few boats and damaging several others. I still don’t quite understand why Okinawa was spared, with the computer models showing that we should have experienced something at least comparable to California.

            Looking back on it, the emergency personnel ordering residents to evacuate weren’t just going through the motions. The people who left the marina weren’t just following orders. They were smart. I don’t mean this to sound insensitive, but I have to wonder how many of the 20,000 or so people who died from the tsunami, did so while standing on the seawall with their cameras? Because I know that with my prior attitude, I’m quite convinced that if I was in Sendai, I would not be alive today because I know I would’ve been the idiot to stay behind to watch and take pictures.

Diving in Okinawa

Sailing for the sake of sailing is fun but sometimes where you can go on a sailboat is what it's all about! One of the reasons we like electric power is because it is easier on the environment. Check out the premier video of Intrepid Seas Productions to get an idea about why we care about the environment!

ASA Japan Hosts 5th Annual Instructor Meeting and Conducts Safety at Sea Demonstration in Osaka

Featured in ASA Bearings Affiliates Newsletter, Spring 2011

           

Aoki Yacht School Crew

            Since founding in 1999, Aoki Yachts American Sailing Association affiliate sailing school has been actively promoting the sport of sailing throughout Japan. Over the weekend of February 5-6, 2011 Aoki Yachts hosted the 5th annual ASA Japan instructor meeting in Osaka. Yoh Aoki, President of ASA Japan met with his staff and network of ASA certified sailing instructors to discuss instructor techniques and how to best practice the ASA system of sailing instruction in Japan. Instructors and staff discussed techniques and the format in Japan for the Basic Keelboat 101 course and the Safe Boating and Docking endorsement and conducted instructor demonstration lessons. The group also became familiar with Aoki Yacht School’s new web-based student and instructor communication tools and devoted some time interpreting changes in Japanese safety equipment requirements, which differ slightly from the standards in the United States.

MOB Recovery

            Aoki-san also reviewed with his staff and instructors lessons learned from a Safety at Sea demonstration, which was also held in Osaka in August. This demonstration was similar to a Safety At Sea Seminar which many American sailors are familiar with, and was conducted by Aoki Yachts ASA instructors for the public. The demonstration topics included water survival and a practical evaluation of the different crew recovery techniques, in which a swimmer was rescued and hoisted aboard a yacht doing the Figure eight and quick stop methods of recovery. Aoki Yacht School’s Safety At Sea demonstration was featured prominently in the popular Kazi Japanese yachting magazine.

            Aoki Yacht Schools’ ASA instructors came to the annual instructor meeting in Osaka from all over Japan. The meeting was also an opportunity for the two new instructors who joined the team or participated in one of Aoki Sensei’s two IQCs in the past year to meet with the rest of the team. Yoh Aoki is also an ASA Instructor Evaluator and has conducted eleven IQCs in Japan, certifying 41 instructors since 1999. IQCs are held regularly in Osaka and Yokosuka in Japanese and in English for foreigners living or working in Japan.

Instructor's Meeting at Aoki Yacht School

            Aoki Yachts ASA Sailing school is the largest recreational sailing school in Japan and has issued over 2500 sailing certificates since it became an ASA affiliated sailing school in 1998. The complete range of ASA courses are regularly taught in Osaka, Tokyo, Yokohama and Okinawa in Japanese and English. Aoki Sensei has translated all ASA course materials into Japanese and even wrote the sailing textbooks, Inner Sailing 1, 2 and 3 as the Japanese version of ASA’s sailing textbooks. Sailing courses are taught on a variety of types of sailing craft, including the new Aoki- designed Zen 24 auxiliary electric sailboat. Aoki Yachts is also a Japanese government boat licensing school and full service boat brokerage.  

            As an island nation, Japanese culture has always been intimately tied to the sea. As a recreational activity, the sport of sailing has been steadily gaining in popularity in Japan in recent years. If you are looking for a truly unique and unforgettable sailing vacation or if your sailing cruise takes you in the direction of this part of the globe, please visit www.aoki.us and Yoh Aoki and his dedicated ASA instructors would be happy to go sailing with you and show you the beautiful sites of Japan.

Intrepid Seas Voyage Report: Okinawa, Japan

Sailing an electric powered boat around the world

Shisa dogs on Zamami jima

The voyage of Project Intrepid Seas begins on the beautiful subtropical Pacific island of Okinawa. Situated at 26 deg. 3o' N, 127 deg. 45' E, Okinawa is the southern-most prefecture of Japan. Okinawa, the main island in the Ryukyu Archipelago is most popularly known in America as the birthplace of Mr. Miyagi in the Karate Kid movies. But it is Okinawa's warm and unique culture, breathtaking natural wonders and it's dramatic history that really make Okinawa a place worth writing about.
For hundreds of years before the 17th century, Okinawa developed a unique culture that was influenced by trade with China and Japan. However, in 1609 the Shimazu clan from Kyushu (Southern Japan) invaded and began a new era of Japanese domination of the Ryukyu Kingdom. By the 1870s, Okinawa was formally annexed and made part of Japan. Because of Okinawa's strategic location, decades later Imperial Japan made the island an important military base in World War II. From April - June 1945, the last battle of the war and the largest land, air and sea battle ever in the history of the world was fought on this 80 mile long island. The Typhoon of Steel, as it is locally known resulted in about 13,000 U.S. casualties and over 300,000 Japanese deaths, mostly civilian. The horror of the Battle of Okinawa directly led to the U.S. decision to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki...

Shuri Castle

Sixty five years after the war, Okinawa seems to have recovered and is a regular part of Japan again after the prefecture was returned in 1972. However as part of the reversion agreement, the U.S. maintains it's largest overseas military presence on this small island, with over 50,000 U.S service members of all branches of service, along with their families and civilian support staff. The U.S. military presence on Okinawa remains controversial, with strong feelings on both sides of the issue. Local Okinawans remain conflicted between the burden of loud military aircraft flying over their houses and the benefits to the local economy that the American dollar brings...
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Among the 50,000 Americans living in Okinawa, as an idealistic former Navy ship driver- turned school teacher, I found myself at the U.S Air Force's Kadena Marina, sitting aboard an old sailboat with a broken engine. In 2007, I looked at this boat, s/v Intrepid, the Bristol 32 sailboat that I bought on the Internet in 2003 while still in the Navy, and lamented my fate. Of all the things that could go wrong on a boat, serious engine breakdown tops the list of concerns. While motoring into port one day, a small oil circulation pipe, hidden from view during routine inspections broke, causing the engine to sound the low oil pressure alarm while the boat was near the dock with the sails down. In order to approach the dock safely the engine had to be run in this dangerous condition, but this evidently resulted in serious overheating of the engine which now required a complete rebuild. Looking at the oily mess in the bilge and considering the cost and effort and the false sense of security that this engine provided, I was beginning to think that there had to be a better way.
After paying the expense of a diesel engine overhaul and reinstalling it with less than satisfactory results, I consulted with my friend Yoh Aoki, and together we realized that electric propulsion was the answer. Over the course of the next few years, I increasingly became convinced of the benefits of electric power and then made the decision to convert Intrepid to become Okinawa's first electric powered sailboat and one of only two Asmo Marine demonstration models in Japan. Once the conversion was completed in the summer of 2009 and the results proved to be more impressive than hoped, the rest of the story is the subject of this project.

Sailing an electric powered boat in Okinawa
Okinawa is an awesome place for sailing. However, I don't think I've ever read an article or cruising report about Okinawa in any of the popular sailing magazines. Among the locals, sailing seems to be gaining in popularity but in Okinawa most of the sailors still seem to be from mainland Japan, where sailing is more popular. Occasionally foreign cruisers pass through here, but Okinawa seems to be off the beaten cruising path and voyagers seem to have some other reason for sailing this way. You don't usually see many sailboats on the water here, but in a way that is what makes it special. I suppose as a sailing instructor my goal should be to change that, but I must admit I thoroughly enjoy sailing here and sometimes being on the only sailboat people see on the horizon as the sun sets over the beautiful East China Sea.

Ginowan Marina

Now sailing out of Ginowan Marina one afternoon, we depart the well built typhoon safe harbor and Okinawa's largest recreational marina which shelters maybe, a few hundred boats. We encounter five powerboats and one sailboat with their sails down as we pass the breakwater. Intrepid's sails are already up; since we're electric powered we sail as often as possible and usually raise the sails as soon as we clear the dock. I never would have imagined having the confidence to do that before, but now it is second nature. We're lucky today, the wind is on our beam as we leave the marina, but this means it will be right on our nose as we round up and head out the channel. Mike, who is at the helm turns us to windward and points us between the marina marker buoys, green on the right as we head out to sea, just like in the U.S. We're lucky again, since we're so close to shore the wind is from all directions and so it seems that it is still on our beam even though we just turned 30 degrees to starboard.

Mike at the helm

The channel out to sea from Ginowan Marina looks like wide open water, but it is deceiving. As we head out to sea, between us and the Okinawa Convention Center and the crowds of people on Tropical Beach, there is a shallow reef that extends miles out to sea. We have to sail a narrow path, maybe only a hundred yards wide, until we get out past the #3 buoy in order to clear the reefs. Today, as we get some distance from land, the winds are now clearly blowing directly down the channel, on our nose as we head out. Of course this means we have to tack our way out but with our competent crew aboard today, Mike, Pete and Sasha, this just adds to the fun.

s/v Intrepid cruising off the coast near Kadena AB

The key to making progress upwind is to tack effectively without losing momentum. The crew of Intrepid knows what they're doing and quickly pulls the 150% genoa across the bow and cranks in the jib sheet while the helmsman turns the boat just enough to keep us pointed upwind, as he shifts the traveler at the same time. Like a well tuned machine, Intrepid keeps climbing to windward and before we know it we're past the #3 buoy and clear of the last reef. Now we're free to bear off on a nice beam reach along the west coast of Okinawa and head out north towards Cape Zanpa. Hull speed, 6.5 knots... Intrepid is healed over almost 20 degrees and now we're dancing on the waves, joking, laughing and catching up on conversation and having a great time.

As we sail along the coast of Okinawa, our most comfortable point of sail today points us right down the flightline of Kadena Air Base. As we sail towards the land, we can look right down the runway as if we're coming in a for a landing, as well. Often times as we sail this heading, out of nowhere an Air Force F-15 fighter jet will fly within hundreds of feet from the top of our mast. Usually though it's a KC-135 tanker, C-130 cargo plane or a Navy P-3 patrol plane. All of this is unclassified, you can Google it... Speaking of Navy patrol planes, the Navy P-3 is called the Orion. Ah, Orion... that sounds good about now, so we need to get back to port. Orion (pronounced O-ree-ohn) is Okinawa's own locally brewed beer and it's specially made for this humid climate. Of course we never drink and sail, so it's a race back to the marina so we can watch the sunset at the dock along with some ice cold Orion. Pete has to get back early anyway. He's in the Navy and has to report for duty this evening and so he wont be able to stay for our sunset party. We have to make it back by 6pm so the challenge is on to sail back to the marina in time.

In the 3 hours since we've been out sailing, the winds have died just a bit. We're pushing 2, maybe 3 knots now with our full sails up in about 6- 8 knots of wind. We're not concerned about the time though; we're only still trying to sail in light winds because we did manage to get back to the #4 buoy in time. However, we know that if the winds completely died, within about 5 miles from the marina we could still easily push the boat up to hull speed with the electric motor. Since we raised our sails in the marina and started sailing right away, we used practically no battery "juice" on this excursion so far so we'll have plenty of electric power for our docking maneuvers and for motoring all the way through the channel and into the marina if necessary.

Docking with clean and quiet propulsion

Approaching the dock with the sails down under electric power, it seems like we're just gliding through the water. You can barely hear the whir of the electric motor and the swish of the propeller. It sounds sort of like a blender making banana smoothies. It doesn't quite smell the same, but at least there's no diesel fumes. You can definitely talk and give docking instructions to the crew in a soft tone of voice. I think the crew appreciates that, as they know their skipper is calm and in complete control, especially since docking is so much easier with an electric motor. As we approach the slip, we have to pivot and back in, since our shore power cable is too short to go the length to the cockpit if we went in bow first. No problem... as we glide past the slip with the motor in neutral, I turn the wheel hard to starboard to point the bow away from the slip momentarily, then quickly shift the rudder and go full astern to shove the stern into the slip and towards the dock. The motor responds immediately, with full power and without any hesitation. You can feel the boat lunge in the direction she needs to go. Once our momentum is set and we're drifting generally in the direction we need to go, I see that it would help if the bow were a little bit closer to the dock, so I shift the rudder again and go full ahead. Again, without hesitation the bow immediately moves where I want it and we find ourselves comfortably parked parallel and backwards in the dock... made much easier by the high torque and immediate response of the electric motor.

Okinawan sunset

With Intrepid tied up securely in her berth at Ginowan Marina, the little bit of electric power that was used today is being recharged by the "Riku Den" (Japanese for shore power). Until we can figure out why Intrepid's electric propulsion system wont regenerate under sail and until phase II of the electric conversion project is complete and solar panels are added to a bimini that is currently being made, we will just have to take comfort in the fact that a significant amount of Okinawa's power grid is powered by wind generators that are placed all around the island. We'll worry about that later, now it's time to enjoy a relaxing evening and another beautiful Okinawan sunset.

The Voyage

Voyage Route

Our journey begins on the sub-tropical Pacific island of Okinawa, Japan, where s/v Intrepid has been cruising the East China Sea for seven years. It was here, where our intrepid green sailing machine was converted to run with electric power and the initial sea trials were conducted under the banner of Aoki-Intrepid Seas sailing school and cruises. It is very tempting to stay in this beautiful part of the world forever, but the call of adventure is irresistible and so we must head to sea and discover what lies beyond the horizon.

On this page, we will document the progress of this attempted circumnavigation of an electric auxiliary powered sailing vessel. Along the way, reports will be posted to the main blog and indexed here on this page for reference. This index of voyage posts will serve as s/v Intrepid's online ship's log and a diary of our voyage. We will also try to document and report on anything else interesting that we discover along the way that might be of interest to other cruisers, world travelers and global citizens.

Voyage Reports:
Okinawa, Japan (October, 2010)
Yaeyama Islands, Japan... (2011)
Taiwan... (2011)
Philippines... (2011)
Thailand... (2011)

The Electric Powered Sailing Vessel Intrepid

Underway to Zamami jima

There are many electric powered boats afloat today. Among them is the sailing vessel, Intrepid. S/V Intrepid is a unique boat. This Bristol 32 sloop, built in 1967 was the third of about 300 Bristol 32s that were designed by Ted Hood and Dieter Empacher for Bristol Yachts in Rhode Island from the mid 1960s to the early 1980s. The Bristol 32 was designed as a modest production coastal cruiser, based on the old CCA racing rules design which featured exceptionally long overhangs, giving the boat a classic look. Bristol 32 number 3 was also the only Bristol 32 that was built with a fin keel, instead of a full keel or full keel and centerboard design, like the others.
S/V Intrepid was already unique but in 2009 Greg Martin decided to modernize this classic with a new auxiliary propulsion system. After removing the Yanmar 3GM30 diesel engine, the old engine was replaced with an Asmo Marine Thoosa 9000 electric propulsion system, powered by a 48 volt battery bank. The conversion project was done by the owner (an inexperienced amateur) in about 9 months, working part time and for the total expense of just over the resale value of the diesel engine.

Yanmar 3GM30 diesel engine 

The new electric auxiliary propulsion system uses a 9 kilowatt Lynch motor on a stainless steel mounting frame, which sits on the same motor mounts as the previous diesel engine. The propeller and shaft are also the same as with the previous diesel engine. The system consists of the motor, a motor controller box, a throttle control unit, a Xantrex Link 10 battery monitor and of course the batteries. The batteries that were chosen for this system were the best and cheapest that could be found in Japan at the time. They are lead-acid/ wet cell deep cycle forklift batteries. In Japan, the ratings for batteries are different than in the U.S. and elsewhere, but these Panasonic EB-160 batteries are the equivalent of 200 Amp-hr (C/20 rate) batteries that would be used for this application elsewhere.

Asmo Marine Thoosa 9000 with battery bank

Converting Intrepid to run on electric involved a major change in many aspects of the sailing experience. First, the removal of the diesel engine made the boat smell better. The USCG mandated oil placards were removed, since fuel and oil is no longer kept on board (except olive oil, for cooking) and the crew was now able to notice other smells, like mildew... which is easier to clean. The other big change was the change in the use of space on the boat. With the engine removed, the electric motor takes up much less space. The batteries now sit on the engine mount, which keeps the trim of the boat about the same but the battery box also makes a nice support for a teak ladder that was made in place of the engine compartment steps. In order to make room for the battery box, the old 1960s- style ice box had to be removed, which allowed for a small navigation station to be built in the corner. Also, in place of the fuel tank, an equal sized fresh water tank was installed, which doubled the fresh water capacity.

The removal of the engine and all of the associated systems actually made the boat a lot more simple. Now instead of an engine, with associated fuel, oil, coolant and 12 volt electrical systems, Intrepid just has one big 48 volt electrical system, with a simple 48 volt DC- 12 volt DC converter to power house loads.  The 12 volt distribution is handled with a simple panel and master breaker switch that isolates the house loads from the DC-DC converter. This takes the place of the battery selector and isolation switches in the conventional combustion engine system arrangement. Gone are the days of having to remember to isolate the starter battery or switch between different house batteries. When designing this system, it seemed that there was very little information and authoritative guidance available on how to reconfigure the overall electrical system when installing the electrical propulsion system. However, this amateur, jury- rigged design seems to be working perfectly so far. When the batteries aren't being used to run the motor, this giant house battery bank can also power any appliance you would ever want on a 32 ft boat. Once a new 48 volt inverter is added to the system, it will be interesting to see what other amazing improvements this new electrical system allows.

Intrepid crew

Since the electric conversion project was completed, s/v Intrepid has been back in service as an American Sailing Association (ASA) sail training vessel, taking sailing students on regular trips to the islands around Okinawa. Within limitations, the electric propulsion system has performed very well. The crew that embarks on these trips in open ocean conditions are always aware that s/v Intrepid is primarily a sailing vessel. The electric propulsion system has been totally reliable and works wonderfully for getting the boat in and out of the marina and maneuvering around the dock. The system can even drive the boat through occasional lulls in the wind on the open sea and can help generate apparent wind when there is no wind at all. With the system always on while sailing, if the crew accidentally tacks the electric motor is immediately available to help save the boat's momentum. One thing the electric motor system can not do however, is propel the boat great distances when the crew is too lazy to raise the sails. The crew of s/v Intrepid therefore, never fails to learn the importance of optimal sailing performance and always gains a full appreciation of the sailing abilities of a well designed sailing vessel.

Bristol 32 Electric Conversion Project

Bow heavy with engine removed

Since I've been sailing Intrepid and I started this blog, the biggest thing that has happened has been the project to convert the boat to run with an electric motor. This was a pretty big move that took some time to see through. When I acquired the boat, Intrepid came with a well functioning Yanmar 3GM30 diesel engine. The engine served us well for awhile but then one day there was an oil leak and the engine ran with low oil pressure long enough to cause some damage. The engine was taken out of the boat and after a long and inconvenient downtime period and at great expense, it was rebuilt and reinstalled in the boat. It was while the engine was out of the boat, that I first began to consider the alternatives and question the sense of having a diesel engine in a sailboat. When the newly rebuilt engine still gave me trouble, it was then that I made the commitment to make the switch. So one day I just hired a crane, pulled the engine out and went to work... Once the project was completed, enjoying the results and then hearing of world events such as the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, fully strengthened my resolve that converting to electric was absolutely the right move.





Before: Yanmar 3GM30 diesel engine


Converting s/v Intrepid into an electric boat, I have to say honestly, was a real pain in the #$^&. But in hindsight it was definitely worth it and it can be (and was) done by an inexperienced amateur. Working part time by myself, and making lots of mistakes, the project took me approximately 9 months to complete and cost roughly the resale value of a Yanmar 3GM30 diesel engine. Since the work was all consuming, I often forgot to take pictures and didn't take very good notes. What little I present here, is not meant to be instructive, but really just of interest especially to those who have sailed on Intrepid since and want to gain an appreciation for what all went into this green sailing wonder.

Since the marina charges a lot to be hauled out, I decided to do the entire project in the water at the normal slip. The engine was lifted out of the boat at the seawall and then we had to sail back into the slip. The winds were just right and we found that sailing around the dock is really no problem at all. What was interesting though was seeing the boat in the water with about 400 pounds taken out of the stern. S/V Intrepid would float front heavy, with her butt in the air, for the next several months.

Engine mess

One of the first things that had to be done was remove and de-tox the boat of all the diesel engine components and grime. All of the fuel, exhaust and cooling system components had to be removed of course. Removing the 25 gallon fuel tank opened up a large area under the cockpit. Also, the area where the conventional house and starter batteries used to be had to be removed. This opened up storage space in the cockpit lockers. Once all this area was cleaned and painted, a new 25 gallon water tank was able to fit in the same space where the fuel tank once sat. The area where the batteries used to sit on a shelf was cleaned and made into a dedicated dive gear storage space.

Removing and replacing the previous 12 volt DC system (batteries, cables, charger, monitor, etc.) was a big project. Of course re-doing the electrical system is really what this project was all about. As tedious as it was, it was actually very interesting at the same time to see how everything used to work (or really didn't!) and come up with a plan for how it really should work. I should've known my old system better, but the new system is so much simpler, actually. While re-doing the electrical system I was able to re-run the wiring the way it should be, neatly and was able to trace and inspect every wire. All of the supporting components, such as the new 48 volt battery charger, DC-DC converter, and eventually a 48 volt inverter and regulators for solar panels and wind generator are now all located in one convenient and protected area that is close to the motor controller and 12 volt distribution panel. All the electrical system components are now protected and easily accessible.

Motor and battery mount under construction

Another big project- actually the biggest and hardest, was the placement of the batteries. Ideally, you want the heavy batteries to be low and center in the boat and away from the motor, especially if they are wet cell, like on Intrepid since they can give off explosive hydrogen gas. Of course on Intrepid, there is absolutely no other place practical to put the batteries, except on the old engine mount- right next to the motor! The best place would be above the keel, but Intrepid has a very shallow bilge and this would  require cutting up the cabin sole and taking up already cramped living space. Another option would be under the settees, but again, the space is cramped and the hull is thinner there and I don't think I'd want to add that much weight to the side of the hull like that. The area where the engine sat is the most reinforced area of the hull and is the only place I really felt comfortable placing 400 pounds of weight. The idea then was to build a box for the batteries that would adequately separate the batteries from the motor and prevent gasses from being ignited by sparks.

Motor and battery mount complete

Once the engine mounts were laid bare, they were cut to shape and support an FRP reinforced heavy duty plywood box that was made to fit the four EB-160 batteries that were to be used with the system. Transverse supports were glassed into the engine mounts to make a (tic-tac-toe shaped) matrix to support the weight over the mounts. They were very carefully measured so the weight would be evenly distributed over that area. My biggest fear was hauling out one day and seeing a huge crack in the hull from the weight being improperly supported. I think it's overkill now though, as I laid several more layers of glass, and in some places epoxy layup (epoxy over FRP, not the other way around, as I learned- thanks Don Casey, my best friend through this whole process!) to support the box in a sturdy matrix over the engine mounts. The box was then bolted to the matrix with stainless steel brackets, in case I ever want to remove it, I can.

Asmo Marine Thoosa 9000 installed

The motor by the way, the rails that come with the Asmo Marine Thoosa 9000 system were too long to fit on the old engine mounts the way I have the battery box mounted, so I had to have custom made motor rails for my system. Luckily there is a very good machine shop in Okinawa and they know me very well over there now. The custom made, shorter rails are actually thicker and probably stronger. The motor, with the custom rails fits just right behind the battery box.

Battery box

Finishing the battery box, first a cover had to be made that would protect the batteries, contain/ properly ventilate explosive gasses and also look nice. So I chose to make a teak cover that fit over the top half of the box and supports a storage box that acts as a step for the companionway. This also required that a ladder be made. In my humble opinion it looks alot better and is more functional than before. As for ventilation... this is a tough subject. There is a removable wall that completes the separation of the motor from the batteries (and cabin). Really, the batteries are part of the cabin and any gasses would ventilate mostly into the cabin. Originally, I had cut a big hole in the back of the top of the battery box to lead a duct hose, connected to a blower fan to ventilate out to the cockpit. But I haven't gotten around to finishing the blower fan and so far, in 2 years of operating the boat, it hasn't blown up yet. I really think that the natural ventilation through the top of the battery box is probably good enough, but it is still something that I'm cautiously watching.

Completed system

One last design issue, regarding the battery box placement was what it did to the surrounding cabin space. Originally there was a large icebox next to the diesel engine that had alot of thick insulation that was old and probably didn't do much. The usable space in the icebox was actually small so it was really a waste of space. I always thought it would be nice to have a proper sit down navigation desk so... in order to fit the battery box under the companionway, I had to knock out the old icebox, which very conveniently allowed for the placement of a sit down nav desk. It is very small and cramped, but good enough and the desk is big enough to navigate with and I made it open up to fit my laptop computer. Everything I ever wanted!

There's a lot more, I'm sure to say about the conversion and the design considerations. This is really just a summary of 9 months of work. In a future post I'd like to share some things about the design considerations for the propeller and shaft.  Of course more posts later about performance and... even better- all the fun we're having aboard s/v Intrepid now!

Introducing Project Intrepid Seas

Hello everyone and welcome back! I started this blog about my experiences sailing Intrepid in Okinawa, about 5 or so years ago. I didn't do much with it and then put it aside and forgot about it when I created a new Intrepid-Seas website that I maintained for awhile. Now I see that blogging is really a better way to maintain a web presence, so I am taking the old Intrepid-Seas site down and just maintaining the IntrepidSeas blog now. This Blogger account will act as the official site for "Project Intrepid Seas," while the WordPress based "ElectricSeas" will serve as a platform for the nonprofit organization of the same name. Electric Seas and Project Intrepid Seas are separate entities, with the former being a platform to serve the entire electric boating community, while the latter is my own personal account of my adventures sailing the electric powered sailboat Intrepid around Japan and eventually, beyond!

Okinawa Pre-Electric Voyages on s/v Intrepid

Here, I will discuss pre-electric voyages on s/v Intrepid

Okinawa, a Diver's Paradise

Here, I will say a few things about diving in Okinawa

Traditional Okinawan Dancers

Traditional Okinawan dancers 

Shuri Castle

Shuri Castle, Okinawa 

Intrepid

About the boat... Intrepid is a Bristol 32 sloop, designed by Ted Hood and built in 1967, hull #3 of 330. As one of the first boats ever built out of fiberglass, Intrepid was made when builders didn't know much about the new material so they tended to over build them. In the years since, boat builders got smart and realized they could make hulls lighter and weaker. Intrepid's hull is like a battleship and I have no doubt she'll outlive boats 20 years younger. Designed according to the CCA (Cruising Club of America) design standards that were popular between the 1930's- 1960's, the Bristol 32 is a true classic. With the old CCA racing rules, boats were penalized for waterline length so designs tended to favor long over-hangs and short waterlines, resulting in (my humble opinion) very aesthetically appealing sheer and graceful lines. Boats of the CCA design were designed for stability and to heel over. At about a 15 degree heel, the Bristol 32's waterline length increases significantly and the boat reaches maximum hull speed. The relatively narrow beam and deep wine glass shaped hull also makes for an exceptionally stable boat in heavy seas.

Bristol 32s were designed with either a full keel or full keel/ centerboard combination. Intrepid was the only one that I know of, out of 330, that was built with a fin keel and skeg rudder. In the 1960's, a fin keel (what most modern sailboats today have) was more of a radical concept and I think maybe Ted Hood was experimenting with hull #3. Though I've never sailed a full keel or CB Bristol 32, I imagine Intrepid's fin keel probably allows her to point a little better to weather and makes her very manueverable (though harder to track, maybe?). Around the dock, I can turn on a Dime with no problem.

When I acquired Intrepid, she came pretty well equipped by the previous owner. In the two years I've had her, I've pretty much spent my life savings and devoted my life to upgrading and equipping her even more. A run down of Intrepid's features and equipment inventory is as follows:

Stats:
-Bristol 32 hull #3, 1967, Designer: Ted Hood, Bristol Rhode Island
-USCG No. 1134561
-LOA: 32.1 ft, LWL: 22 ft, beam: 9.5 ft, draft: 5 ft, displ.: 12,000 lbs
-Sail area: 491 sq ft. PHRF: 228
-Water capacity: 25 gal (fwd tank), 25 gal (cabin tanks) = 50 gallons total
-Fuel capacity: 25 gal (main tank), 20 gal (locker tanks) = 45 gallons total

Sails and rigging:
-North Sails cruising and racing main sails (new in 2000): (1) cruising main with 3 reefs, (1) cruising 150% genoa, (1) racing main, (1) racing 155% genoa and (1) 1.5 oz. spinnaker
-Shaefer roller furling headsail system
-ATN Gale Sail (storm jib)
-1/4 inch SS wire standing rigging

Engine, electronics and navigation:
-Yanmar 3GM30F 27 hp diesel engine, yr 1996
-Furuno 1721 mk II RADAR
-Sailomat self-steering windvane
-Raymarine Autohelm ST5000 autopilot
-Furuno GP 50 Navdata GPS system
-Anemometer, Standard Horizon depth, wind, knot instruments
-VHF radio
-12V electric system (2 Optima 55 AH house + 1 Optima 55 AH starter battery)
-Prosine inverter, 110VAC
-AmpAir wind/hydro electric generator (stowable), 2 UniSolar solar panels
-Whitlock wheel steering

Safety:
-Avon 4 person offshore liferaft
-ACR 406 mHz EPIRB
-Paratech sea anchor
-Offshore ditch kit w/ manual watermaker
-2 type V life jackets/harnesses w/ jacklines, 6 lifejackets
-3 fire extinguishers
-Orion flare gun kit

Habitability:
-Sleeping accomodations for 4 adults in cabin
-Galley: Origo alcohol stove, microwave oven, Alder Barbour refrigeration
-Head/plumbing: pressure freshwater, water heater (through diesel engine heat exchange), fully enclosed head, toilet macerator and holding tank

Introduction: Project Intrepid

I guess you could say Project Intrepid began when I was a young kid. Growing up in San Diego, California, I've always had a fascination with the sea and boats. I used to hang around Shelter Island and check out all the beautiful yachts and my imagination would run wild... As I grew older, my dream remained and I was lucky enough to pursue it. Sailing with my uncle John, first on Lasers, then on bigger daysailers and coastal cruisers at the Harbor Island Sailing Club, my passion for sailing really took off... This passion grew further in college, at the U.S. Naval Academy, where sailing is a mandatory subject and I had the time of my life sailing Navy 44s on the offshore sailing team and on a couple of extended training cruises up along the eastern seaboard... After college, you could say I was employed as a professional sailor, driving a U.S. Navy destroyer halfway around the world between San Diego and the Persian Gulf (then as a desk sailor in various ashore posts, but I digress...). World events and a changing view of the world as a result convinced me that my future was not in driving warships for Halliburton, the military industrial complex and the Bush Corporation, so while at my last duty assignment as a Naval Liaison officer with the Marines in Okinawa, I decided to get out of the Navy and pursue a new career as a teacher. All the while, my core values and dreams have remained constant and have become more clear...

While in Okinawa, I don't know... it just hit me one day soon after I first arrived, like one of those ingeniously idiotic, yet unexplainably compelling ideas: "Now is the time!" I just had to have the boat... Convinced that THE boat couldn't be just any boat, I searched all over the world on the Internet, for the "perfect" boat and found Intrepid in Long Island, USA. Then, after a few independent surveys and much more effort than anyone with half the common sense, I basically sold my soul to the bank, maxed out my credit cards, cashed in my life savings (not much!) and bought an old boat, sight unseen on the internet and had it shipped halfway around the world to me in a place right smack dab in the middle of "Typhoon Alley." ...Was it incredibly brave or unbelievably stupid??? Well, I guess that's the subject of this blog...

As for Intrepid... The boat couldn't have any name other than Intrepid. Intrepid: "Fearless and resolute in the face of danger" Intrepid was also the name of the first America's Cup contender built with a fin keel, which won in 1967 and 1971. Intrepid was finally defeated by Courageous, skippered by Ted Hood in 1974... Incidentally, Ted Hood was the designer of the Bristol 32 and in 1967 built my Intrepid, hull #3 of 300 something, as the only one with a fin keel, a radical concept back then. I like to think Bristol 32 hull #3 (Intrepid) is a true classic plastic.

As for the project... The boat was sold to me and arrived in January 2003 in good condition and came exceptionally well equiped. Though I've undertaken numerous "projects" to improve and maintain the boat, the subject of "Project Intrepid" is really about the purpose and the experience of the boat. You see, there really IS a method to my madness! I was not about to financially castrate myself in vain. In the words of the great Naval Officer John Paul Jones, "He who does not risk cannot win." Therefore... I admit to the world, besides my obsessive passion for sailing, I bought the boat for 2 reasons: 1.) to try my hand at chartering the boat and making side money doing sailing charters in Okinawa; at least pay for the boat or make a measurable amount of money at least for the business experience, doing sailing charters... and failing that, 2.) Live aboard!!! Yes, I've always had a fascination with the concept of living aboard a boat, ever since I was a little kid and I had a friend who lived aboard a 60 ft ketch with his parents and their dog. They took me sailing to Catalina one weekend and I just thought they had the perfect life. Their boat had all the ammenities of a house and the best part is that they could put all their "housing costs" into having the best boat possible and not have to leave their boat and go home at the end of the day. At the end of the day, they were already home. Plus, every night they got lulled to sleep by the ocean and the ambiance of it all. How cool is that!!! ...So it is, from the word go, I bought Intrepid to be a liveaboard.

Well, so I tried my hand at chartering. What a pain in the @$$! Though I've made a few dollars, it really proved to be more trouble than it was worth. Strangers coming aboard and trashing my boat just for a few bucks, which really didn't even out with the contract I had to work within at Kadena Marina. Plus, in Okinawa the weather is so unpredictable you never know until that day if it will be good for sailing, so I couldn't have any other life besides being on a short leash waiting for a charter... I still have my business plan and I guess if the right situation or offer came up I'd consider it again, but now that other life changes have occured, reason #2 (for buying the boat) has taken precedence. "Project Intrepid" is all about making it work... How to make the boat pay for itself, in a habitability sense and to create the most civilized liveaboard experience possible... In Japan... For a guy who has to make himself presentable, since I still have to work fulltime to pay for this. Making it work financially... Can owning and living aboard a boat make financial sense, compared to the alternatives of: buying a house (what about the market?) or renting (nothing to show for when your lease is up!)? There could be a whole huge philosophical debate about this (maybe in another post) but suffice to say, this is really what "Project Intrepid" is all about: Sailing Mojo- the art of practical and civilized living aboard a boat.

A New and Improved Soap Box

Call me Ishmael... Isn't that how a good sea story is supposed to start? Well, ever since my hard drive crashed and I lost my pirated (arrrgh!) copy of MS Frontpage, I haven't been able to update my old Intrepid-Seas.com website. So, if anyone's noticed, that's why it sucks and will be soon taken offline. Oh well... Now I found a better way to communicate with the world. Thanks Maria (A Fish in Japan)! From now on, all relevant public announcements regarding "Project Intrepid" will be made using this blog. Pretty nifty, huh? It's easy, anyone can start their own blog, just follow the links above. I'll try to make this as interesting and informative as possible. The purpose of this blog will be to document my experience on a boat. The boat, Intrepid, a 1967 Bristol 32 sloop is no ordinary boat. And the experience... well, judge for yourself but so far I think my time sailing in Okinawa, Japan has been anything but ordinary!