I thought I would share some joy I felt yesterday with this group who would understand better than anyone. I have 1987 Island Packet 31 that I have owned since its birth. It was damaged in the hurricane of 1991(Massachusetts) and was Awlgripped back then. Since then the port side hull has held up pretty well although some fading has taken place but the starboard side has been chipping at the points of original damage. Due to life and retirement intervening I have let some maintenance slip over the years but have recently been doing some restoring. A number of little things but some major items as well. I replaced the aluminum windows with stainless steel ports and it has made a huge difference. But the real difference came this fall when I had the hull repainted with new Awlgrip. I saw the almost-completed work yesterday and I was stunned. It looked gorgeous and almost majestic. (ok maybe a little hyperboly). I stood there overwhelmed with these guys waiting for me to tell them how wide I wanted the cove strip and I couldn’t speak. It was 1987 all over again and I felt just as I did when I took original possession.
Sometimes you wonder how much to spend on an older boat as you know it will not be a good investment, But sometimes an investment returns more than just money. I was telling my wife about the experience and she said she was going to hide the checkbook because there was no telling how much I would spend. She understood.
The work was done by Kingman Yacht Center in Cataumet Ma. When I asked them if they could restore me to 1987 I don’t think they thought I was serious. But they did it.
Thank you for letting me share, and I hope in this crappy year you all have a joyous moment like mine.
Mal D. 10-2020