I went down to the boat last week to run the engine for a while and check out the jobs we are going to do when she comes out of the water in March. A quiet couple of hours messing about in a boat – is there anything better?

The engine started first go and settled into a friendly rhythm. The no.1 battery was low again but charged up ok.

We are going to tackle a whole range of jobs from reseating deck fittings to replacing the hatches on the stern lockers.

There’s a design problem with the stern lockers – water gets in far too easily. Having played with ideas of rubber seals on the hatches themselves and also around the opening, I’ve gone for the more expensive, but more robust and long-lasting grp option, on the lines of the ones in the image below.

I’m not over keen on the wooden embellishment, but the hatch lids are tight fitting, and, at the same time, can be accessed easily. They can be removed completely so I’m not banging my head or having to hold them open. They are permanently attached to the boat by a length of rope long enough to allow temporary stowage in the cockpit, or on the adjacent lid, or made fast to the pushpit. They can also be tied down in a sea.

The rigging needs some attention too. Contemplating the setup, and how she sailed during the summer, it struck me that there were one or two points I’d failed on. I am sure I can get her sailing better.

One of these is/are the boom outhaul/s, below, not currently rigged.

I would be interested to hear how other people set them up and manage them under sail. There seems to be plenty of room for adjustment – but in which direction?