The breeze at last returned (20 knots) with big rolling seas, blue skies and blazing sun. This was my day of challenging repairs.

* The main clew slug pulled out of the boom and I sewed a larger fitting back on using the original webbing.

* A loud bang while going downwind and subsequent difficulties in dropping the spinnaker suggested a broken spinnaker halyard sheave. We carefully hoisted the kite for the second time (it took two people to jump at the mast) conscious that the halyard was most likely running over the bare mast exit. In between, the races I went up the mast to check out the situation and ran a new halyard into the starboard sheave allowing us to race the rest of the week. It later turned out that the screws holding the sheave cage to the mast were an inch too short and the shim weld had broken.

* A loud bang at the bottom of the mast proved to be the mast chock (made of spartite) which had not been made deep enough (2 inches instead of 4). A line tied around the mast at vang height and led forward to the block (attached to the forestay tack fitting) then back through the jib sheet cars to the primary winch. We were therefore able to crank the mast forward hammer the chock back in and then sikaflex it in place putting a hose clamp in position directly above the chock (this should have originally been done like this however, the owner had not used sikaflex and the hose clamp was not tight enough to stop it coming out).

* We had to sail into the berth as the engine had an air lock in the fuel system due to lack of baffles in the fuel tanks (a problem in all J105’s). I bled the system through to the injectors using the starter motor and compressors.

 We had problems pointing n the heavier wind and speed problems as a result we cranked a few more turns on the caps and V1’s. The navigator being discouraged with our inability to stay with the fleet took some flyers out to the right on the beat, which proved to not be successful. The left hand side of the course is very much favoured as there is a lift on port tack when sailing towards Diamond Head especially close in. The current is also slower inshore as it is predominantly wind driven.