Tuesday, January 29, 2013

The Final Step_Surveying Outrageous




The last step in our decision whether to buy Outrageous was to have her examined by a marine surveyor. In the event, this turned out to be Gale Browning of Hartoft Marine Survey. Gale has a fantastic history: she's sailed to nearly all points of the globe, raced a 22 foot boat across the Atlantic singlehanded, sailed her 65 foot schooner up the East Coast with her three children as crew, surviving a brush with a hurricane,  and took part in a cross country motorcycle tour undaunted by a broken foot when she "laid her bike down" on it.


We board the boat where she rests in her slip in Grover's backyard, and Gale starts by going over every inch of her deck with a mallet and moisture meter, looking for areas where the water might have permeated the hull.


















Gale insists on removing some cabinetry so she could get a better look at the engine




















Our broker, Richard Kahn, stands ready to guide the bow as we leave Grover's slip to head for the boatyard for the rest of the survey.



 Grover takes the helm as we head down the Severn River toward Annapolis.















Outrageous waits at the yard before backing into the hoist for to have her bottom inspected.



Grover and Jim look at the prop and prop shaft.

A few days after the survey was completed Gale sent us her report, a 40 some page document detailing everything that she had inspected. She gave the boat a good report, pronouncing it fully capable of coastal and bluewater (open ocean) sailing. She did, however, also give us a rather long list of things that we should give some attention to--ranging from a cracked faucet to sticky seacock valves, to the need for a ground fault interrupter in the AC wiring.  Almost everything on the list was minor and could be easily corrected.  A few things, like the need to replace the liferaft, would involve considerable expense. After a little renegotiation with Grover, we sent in the required paperwork (and the final payment). Outrageous became our boat and our future home!

4 comments:

  1. Jim & Angie —

    WOW! THIS IS GREAT!!
    Congrats on becoming the Outrageous' new owners. Nicely done!

    Your fascinating saga continues, with many more grabber episodes to come, I'll wager. Your tale is a perfect vehicle for a dude who's intrigued & mesmerized by stories The Sea — but who's scared to death of water and would never set foot on a sailboat.

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  2. So, what exactly do you mean by "our future home"? How much time do you plan on spending on Outrageous? And come to think of it, when will you be off the coast of Florida so we can hit you up for a day trip?
    --Kim and Dave

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  3. This comment shows how adventuresome I am not: When you are living at sea, how will you get your mail?

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