Find the boat you want even if it is in Alameda California. Find a buyer for the boat causing the illness. Haul out your old boat for a survey and do new bottom paint with the new owner while out of the water. Haul out number 1.
Go to California for an inspection. If a serious offer is backed up with earnest money, you get a sea trial with the California broker. You do not get much more than an hour. Look around at boat yards for potential haul out for a survey. Haul out number 2. Haulouts are kinda spendy, but skipping this one was not on option. Schedule a survey and go back down to witness the haulout two weeks later.
Decided up front on having the boat hauled up the highway rather than running up the coast. The other two options are to sail it up the coast with a crew of your choosing, or hire a delivery skipper to bring it up. An hours sea trial did not seem enough experience with a new boat to sail it up the coast. A delivery skipper was not even investigated.
Even if you make a purchase decision on the spot the boat usually has to be put back into the water to pull the mast. Haul out number 3. In high season the yard was so busy there was more space in the water than on the hard deck, so we had to leave it floating while waiting for a boat hauler. Scheduling a trucker in high season is about as difficult as scheduling a surveyor, as you just have to wait your turn, and it just takes time.
When the boat arrived in Swantown, there was no sense in putting it in the water without new bottom paint. So time to roll up sleeves and get to prepping for painting. Haul out number 4. During the sea trial and further investigation I decided the Olson 34 was under propped as it was 2 1/2 knots shy of hull speed. The boat was bought for racing as well as cruising so it needed a low drag prop. The previous boat, a J-30, had a dome shaft with a Martec folding prop. Found a feathering Max prop and decided on self installation. Had to get a puller to get the old prop off, but installation was pretty smooth after cutting off about 1/2 inch length of the old shaft. That shaft alloy was tougher than six hacksaw blades. Installation was successful as PYI Inc. of Lynnwood seems to know how to size props and give good instructions on installation. We now make hull speed easily at cruising RPMs.
We are progressing up the learning curve racing Edgewalker. But it has been tons of fun from the very beginning since June.
Steve Jones, Edgewalker
Photo of Edgewalker by Dave Knowlton, August Wednesday Night Series.