SAIL.SailMagazine

The first time I saw a spinnaker I was only a few years old. It was flying on the bow of a 35ft foot cruiser off the coast of Maine. A few years later, my father agreed to set the kite on our 50ft Hinckley, a rare concession.

Loïck Peyron is sitting on the windward hull, tiller in one hand, a cigarette of undetermined brand in the other. Though I can’t see what he’s looking at through his dark and closely raked sunglasses, it’s obvious he’s studying something very closely.

Like all owners of older boats who like to do their own work, I’m extremely familiar with epoxy resin. I reckon I’ve used a good few gallons of it, for both major projects and little jobs where only small amounts are needed.

Paul Calder is a blogger on SAILfeed, where he has been sharing the progress of refitting his boat, living in New Orleans and getting a wee bit of guidance from dear ol' dad, Nigel Calder, an author and expert on boat systems. Read on to learn about Paul's hands-on process.

During the summer sailing season I had kept Radiant Beam close to my favorite cruising grounds near Pamlico Sound in North Carolina. As November approached, however, it was time to bring the boat back to her homeport in Wilmington.