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LOA = 40' LWL = ' Beam = " Draft = " Moter Max Speed knots Cruising Speed 7 - 10 knots
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May 25 - June 5, 2001The Mariah Wind, a Florida based Beneteau 402 center cockpit sloop built in South Carolina was crewed by the Scotts and Mighettos prior to the close of the 2001 British Virgin Island boating season. The Scotts are from the Bella Donna out of Crockett, California; the Mighettos run the Murrelet out of Seattle, Washington. The streaming media to the left documents the adventures of the Mariah Wind near Tortola. The pictures can also be viewed by clicking here or on hot spots on the chart below. The Mariah Wind's sister vessel from France, Ti Moon, raced with her. Two additional Beneteau 402s joined the siblings in an 11 boat Anegada flotilla on May 30.
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In addition to Tortola and Anegada, Mariah Wind visited Virgin Gorda, Cooper, Peter, Norman, George Dog, Sandy Cay, Indians and other Sir Francis Drake Chain Islands and anchored at Jost Van Dyke during a torrential squall.
Winds were
moderate to
light with the best speed over ground measured at 10 MPH by GPS. The
maximum wind encountered was 24 MPH. We estimate that the
Mariah Wind's hull speed is 9 MPH. On this trip she carried 818 sq. ft of
sail on furling mechanisms (both main and jib.)
The draft of the Beneteau Oceanis 402 CC sloops is 5 Ft. 7 inches. While the siblings did not ground, one of the Anegada flotilla 402s (the first one reaching harbor) did. Hence, the Mariah Wind was first in her class to anchor successfully and benefited from not being first to harbor that day.
In general, crew agreed that Mariah Wind is faster than Ti Moon, though
Ti Moon did best her in an exciting last day close-finish race back to
Road Town on
Tortola island by possibly using her red canoe as an additional air foil
:>)
Both
vessels required rewatering every 2 or 3 days. This possibly owing to the
use of fresh water for dish cleaning. However, the ability to shower on
board
was far surpassed by the experience of unlimited showering ashore. Hence,
both vessels moored dockside when possible. After the squall at Jost Van
Dyke, the
dockside mooring and $20.00 mooring balls seemed a bargan.
A quick room charge comparison on Peter Island showed that rooms cost $850.00 to $1,100.00 so our onboard accomodations were ranked high during the debreefing, even though the vessel's Lewmar port lights leaked badly. With daily and liberal rum doses each day, there was little to complain about and much to marvel. We returned with a pirate flag.
Significant events:
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