Our old friend Beowulf recently competed in the San Diego-to-Puerta Vallarta race. Dave Wyman sent the photos below of a couple of "Jury Rig" repairs they made along the way.

We’ll start with the mizzen clew. Beowulf‘s mizzen is about 800 square feet, a substantial sail with enormous loads. The webbing holding the clew ring failed, probably from sun damage over the years. The sail cloth was still OK. Dave and crew fashioned this clamping device from a bit of aluminum plate and kept going in the race.

Beowulf has a pair of the same Electrodyne alternators we have used for years. These are very powerful – 150 amps output (28V) at 3500/4000 alternator RPM – and require up to ten horsepower to drive them at full load. There is a turnbuckle arrangement to keep the belts tight. The turnbuckle became a bit loose, and then failed from vibration on the return trip from Mexico to San Diego.

Dave put together a "Spanish windlass" to maintain tension on the belts. The stick on the left provides pressure on the alternator housing while the twisted rope is the tensioning device. The stick which keeps the rope tensioned can be seen to the right of the photo.

All of which goes to prove, you can almost always figure our a way to keep going, if the incentive is there (Mexican beer and a pack of sleds breathing down your neck, in the first example).

Our thanks to Dave Wyman for sharing this bit of seamanship with us.