After moving onto my boat, I continue to discover this new life.
Knowing how to sail and knowing how to maintain your boat: two worlds
It was clear to me that I knew how to sail. I still had a lot to learn, of course, but I was confident with the knowledge I'd already acquired when I bought La Ceci, and I knew that the rest would come as I sailed.
On the other hand, the more mechanical, electrical and maintenance part was part of a totally unknown world for me. Really, totally unknown. I was, of course, aware that I had to remedy this, or at least start to remedy it as soon as possible. This autonomy was essential for my travels, so that I could take care of myself in case of problems. I also quickly realized that when I set off, more or less far away, this autonomy was also directly linked to my (lack of) self-confidence in relation to the sea, to Ceci, and to myself on the sea. It was a feeling, a fear, that I'd never experienced on anyone else's boat.
As a result, until I had acquired this knowledge, I realized that being at sea was very stressful for me. So I had to get to grips with my engine as quickly as possible.
First oil change : "But it couldn't be simpler"
There's nothing simpler for you, sir...
The first time I approached my engine with the intention of getting to know it, of familiarizing myself with its workings, it was like entering a territory where the spoken language is totally unknown to us, where the codes are different and where there is, therefore, everything to learn. So, when we tell you that "It couldn't be simpler" ... well, that depends.
My first engine experience was to change the oil and fuel filters. "Simple". "30 minutes maximum".
2h30 later, we were still there. In the end, nothing had gone according to plan: I've since learned that this is a common occurrence when carrying out any kind of task on a boat. I didn't understand everything that was going on, but I observed and helped in whatever way I could.
After hours of effort changing oil and filters, my engine was ready for service. I'd got my hands dirty. I was happy, a first step had been taken. I wouldn't have been able to do it myself, but at least I'd begun to speak the language of the engine, and some terms were no longer foreign to me.
When the person who had helped me left, I took as many notes as possible on what she had told me. It was difficult, because I didn't really understand the logic of what had been done. I also realized that there was still a long list of things to learn in this field.
Autonomy was needed in several areas
Following this experience, I obviously read up on the subject and tried to better understand how this engine worked. I did what I was told to do to maintain it as well as possible, and as I should, but I felt that to go further, I needed more knowledge to acquire a certain autonomy. It was going to be a long road, but one that excited me.
Indeed, I had in mind to leave the following summer, along the Spanish coast. A lot of preparation was still needed, both technical and mechanical. I wanted La Ceci to be safe and for me to be able to sail as independently as possible.
And then came COVID...
