63 Survey and Sea Trial - Days 256 to 257 - Seattle, WA

The survey of the Outer Reef 63 started promptly at 9:00 AM on Tuesday with the arrival of Matt Harris of Marine Consultants and continued until 5:00 PM.  While Matt did his thing, Darrel and I examined every nook and cranny.  We focused on systems access and the ability to determine what hoses go where.  We were impressed.  The 63 is set up to permit maintenance to be easily done.  Literally every system is accessible.  We also focused on livability and storage.  The 63 got high marks on every issue.

Darrel was particularly helpful as he and his wife, Sue, own an 50 Ocean Alexander trawler with similar system.  Darrel's engineering background came in handy as he helped me understand the boat's many systems.

During the process either we or the surveyor operated every system on the boat and in the process identified problems (deficiencies) that needed correction.  The most interesting discovery was that the Sirius Satellite Weather system listed on the boat's inventory was missing.  No problem.  Outer Reef will simply get it installed.

Tuesday night's dinner turned out to be quite unique.  Here's the story.  Mike Schlichtig, the broker, told us about his unique experience at an Italian restaurant called Pasta Freska just a few blocks from the boat.  So, we decided to try it. 

Mike Horri, who turned out to be the owner, seated us and then asked if we were allergic to anything.  There was no menu (and no prices).  Mike said he would bring us a series of dishes.  He also asked me what I'd like to drink and I replied that a Napa Valley Cabernet would be just fine.  He then brought a bottle of Sterling 2007 to the table, opened it and poured me a glass.

Then the fun began.  We had an eight course dinner (nine if you count the wine) that was absolutely spectacular.  Courses: Eggplant parmesan; Ceaser salad, king prawns, warm cheese bread, pasta and meat sauce, two types of chicken, Marsala and Picatta, two types of fish, salmon and mahi mahi and finally desert; chocolate cake, lemon cake and spumoni.  The courses were essentially tapas size.  The entire meal took over two hours.  The bill: $84.00. 

Wednesday again started at 9:00 AM as Matt continued his inspections.  Then, at 10:30, we departed Outer Reef's docks and proceeded across Lake Union to Yachtfish Marina where the boat would be hauled.  It was just under 60 degrees as we proceeded 1/2 mile across the lake.  The weather person was calling for a 60% chance of rain, which never came.

Darrel Peters and Mike Schlichtig

The first challenge was getting the boat into the travel lift bay.  As you can see it was a VERY close fit.  Dick Sproul handled the controls and did a masterful job of pulling the boat in with literally three feet of clearance on the starboard side.  Good thing that there was barely any wind.


Approaching the lift bay



It was VERY close

Another view of VERY tight

At 11:00 AM, they lifted the boat.  It barely fit on the travel lift.  Then they proceed to power wash the hull.  In 20 minutes it looked brand new.

The 63 comes out of the water

Matt proceeded with his out-of-the-water inspection.  The boat's running gear and hull was in perfect condition.


Shiny (well sort of) new props

At 1:30 PM we were joined by the Caterpillar tech, "Bear," who would perform the engine survey and after carefully backing the boat out of the slip proceed to Lake Washington for the sea trial.  The trial involved operating a various speeds, operating the navigation equipment (all of which required calibration) and testing the boats stability by turning into the boat's rather large full speed wake.  The boat handles beautifully.  She's smooth as silk even with big waves coming at us on the beam.

At 4:00 PM we returned to the Outer Reef's dock where we reviewed the finding of the two surveyors.  The boat and its engines turned out to be in exceptionally good condition.  A total of 27 deficiencies were identified, which according to Matt was a low number for a boat of this size.

After dinner , Darrel and I returned to the boat to check the lighting system as dark fell.  We spent another hour operating the different lighting systems.  Again, the 63 exceeded expectations with it ability to tailor lighting to the mood desired.

All in all, a very productive two days.  The 63 clearly exceeded my expectations.

63 Outer Reef

Tomorrow its back to Annapolis for Friday's survey and sea trial of the 48.

Written by Les.