February 16, 2023

Towards the end of last summer I noticed a very subtle vibration in the wheel. It was almost unnoticeable. I checked inside the boat and didn't find anything unusual. But I knew we needed to drop the rudder just to make sure there was no structural issues. As it turned out, there was a fairly serious crack in the rudder, hidden by the skeg, that could have caused a catastrophic failure. Perhaps it could have been repaired, but no use taking a chance. We would always be thinking about it. The rudder post was also pitted. It will take 4-6 weeks and will be one more major issue, we no longer have to worry about.