Upset by Hurricane Beryl
Turned up on a beach in the Grenadines, the trimaran Sailing Scout was in a bad way. On the island, there are no means of launching the 3.5-ton trimaran back into the water. The only companies capable of carrying out this operation are on a neighboring island, and offer prohibitively high rates.
True to form, Jake decided to use System D and rack his brains. He began by lifting the trimaran with a forklift truck, which had just enough capacity to support part of the trimaran over a height of 1.50 m.
After shoring her up with stumps and large oil drums, Jake has a better view of the deck, which cracked in several places during the grounding. This operation also enables him to find the mast, which was buried in the sand and broken into two pieces during the capsize.
A delicate operation with limited financial resources
After much thought, Jake set himself a plan of action. The aim is to slide the upturned trimaran metre by metre back into the water upside down. With both floats intact, they will provide the necessary buoyancy to keep the trimaran afloat upside down.
After this first stage, the trimaran will be towed upside down to the middle of the bay, where it will come alongside a huge crane installed on a barge. This more affordable crane can then easily lift the trimaran upright.
A smooth plan
Jake then decided to attach large cleats to the deck, perpendicular to the centerline of the hull. Their purpose is to prevent further damage when the multihull slides across the sand.
With another cart of slightly greater capacity, Jake gently pushes Sailing Scout the few metres to shore. Despite the cleats, the trimaran creaks and suffers a little during the manoeuvre. But there's no other way.
After reaching a depth of 1m, the trimaran floats upside down and stays within its lines. With the help of two dinghies, each moored to a float, the trimaran, still upside down, sets course for the barge chartered to help the many boats stranded in the bay.
After passing a sturdy strap through the forearm, the machine easily righted the little trimaran. It was an emotional moment for Jake, who discovered his upright multihull for the first time.
A bilge pump removes the water from the central hull, which doesn't make water. The inboard motor having been dismantled by Jake, this strange convoy returns to the anchorage, this time in the right direction.
The genoa and mainsail were found under a thick layer of sand. All had suffered a little during the hurricane, but were rinsed directly into the sea for repair.
The rest of the work will now be taken up with restoring the deck, which has suffered a little, but that's not much for a multihull that's been through a hurricane.
