Tom Döhler
After 16 days of around the clock work and the last minute scare over not having mixed the bloody epoxy primer, today Bini finally went back into the water!
We got up early and I headed over to the marina whilst Camilla stayed to check out of the hotel. For some reason I had a serious case of pre-launch nerves. All day I was conjuring all sorts of horror scenarios in my head; the most realistic was of water coming pouring in through my newly installed engine seacock.
It took most of the day to put the boat back together as after a few weeks of working she resembled a mix of a car repair shop and a homeless den. Just before launch (at around 3pm) Camilla cycled off quickly to make use of the facilities. As she was en-route the yard manager informed me that they’d only release the boat if we paid our bill (fair enough). I gave Camilla a ring so into the office she went, only to find a queue of other anxious yotties desperate to pay and get back in the water before the weekend. By now Bini was in the cradle, and after 45m minutes of waiting in the queue Camilla finally gets to pay, and then her card gets declined, thanks Sabadell. I frantically cycled over to the office, paid and together we raced back and just made it in time to see Bini splash.
We hopped on board and thankfully the engine seacock held – phew! Without 10cm of barnacles clinging onto the bottom she absolutely zooms along so we were back in our slip in record time.
Camilla’s parents arrive this evening for the weekend, so we’re about to show, change and head into the town to meet them.
