Whether you will be packing your faithful RS800 away after the HISC Tide Ride, getting ready for Winter Sailing or upgrading to a new, or new-to-you boat, this time of year is a great time to check everything over and give your boat some TLC. Tom Morris has come up with a helpful Boat prep checklist that will make your life easier, help keep you dry and perhaps even improve your results. All the bits and bobs can be found via The RS Sailing Store, official chandlery partner of the National Championships.
Tom’s Boat Prep List:
1) New trapeze elastics! Nothing adds the bounce back in to sailing life like the fresh spring of new trapeze elastics. Say goodbye to flappy trapeze lines and whilst you’re at it consider fresh take up elastics too! We’ve always found 4mm to give the correct amount of stretch and the dyneema covered variety lasts a very long time! Buy Dyneema here
2) New rack grip. Old peeling grip tape looks tatty and loses sticking power over time. Your head will be in a better place with immaculately taped racks, and your feet will stay planted too! Buy Pro Grip here
3) Lubricate the mast track, not only does it make hoisting and dropping a breeze, but the downhaul becomes far more effective and willingly eases after the windward mark – joy! Buy Lube here
4) Check your blocks for sheave wear or play and replaced anything suspect – consider oversizing the spinnaker blocks for extra holding power! Buy 60mm Pro Ratchet Block here
5) Wet and dry your foils. Fill any larger scrapes with marine filler or gelcoat then work through the grades from 200-800, if you’re feeling keen push on through to 1500 grit! Whatever you do, do NOT polish your centreboard or it becomes very difficult in a capsize. Buy RS Gelcoat here
6) Righting lines are very helpful for a sea venue – standing on a dagger board in lumpy seas is quite difficult and righting lines really help. The boat is also much less likely to turn turtle with someone stable on the board ASAP.
7) The class moved to allow split caps – reducing wear on the mast and shrouds. It’s a relatively simple job as well, but you will need some extra blocks and cleats. Buy 20mm high load thimble here
Easy to use RS800 parts list here with helpful diagrams for anything you don’t know the name/spec for.
