It doesn't take much of a leak to make the crew unhappy. There are two potential and perennial sources of leaks on deck. One is where the mast goes through the deck. The other is where the chain plates go through the deck. Both are places where sailing the boat causes the components to work and flex. The seals between the mast and deck, or chainplates and deck can weaken, then crack or open, and the leaks begin.

On SUNFLOWER the mast is stepped on deck. No leaks. Any water that blows or rains in at the top of the mast, or at the halyard openings, will drain out through some small openings in the mast step on the deck.

In the initial design for SUNFLOWER, the chain plates were positioned inboard and went through the deck. We asked the designer (Robert Perry) to change them to the outside, which he did. It probably makes our profile a little chunkier looking. In fact, a few misguided souls have asked if we were ferro--how DARE they! Chunky looking or not, they are easy to inspect and do not pass through the deck. No leaks.

Our first boat BACCHUS was a 40-foot wooden ketch. It also had exterior chainplates. They did not leak. I remember where the back-up plates were on the interior and could easily notice a leak if there had been one. We did not have problems with them working the hull either.

The main mast was stepped on the keel and so passed through the deck. There was a collection of wooden wedges that chocked the mast in the hole. On deck we made a stout canvas mast boot to fit around the mast. As I recall, we tried various means of caulking and taping to keep it tight. I think we finally used a metal band around the top of the canvas--the mast was round and we had a "band-it" tool. We tacked the bottom of the canvas to the deck with copper tacks. I know that we painted the canvas to try to keep it waterproof which sort of worked. Archaic, wasn't it, but that was the norm for the times.

As for the mizzen mast...You know we lived on board that boat for 4 years and did a circumnavigation, and yet neither Al nor I can remember just where that mast was stepped or what we did for a mast boot!

Al did alot of racing in California. He remembers a time when the aluminum mast of the boat he was crewing, "LEGEND", was pulled for inspection before a TransPac Race. There was major corrosion and deterioration of the aluminum right where it passed through the wood of the deck. This was most likely a reaction between the wood, aluminum and salt that would have collected there. The mast had to be reinforced in that area before restepping, and probably some sort of insulation inserted between the wood and the mast.

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