Franco Pivoli’s tips for an easy (and happy) cruise / 4

Back by popular demand are the practical tips of Franco Pivoli (among the founders of the Caprera Sailing Center, he was an Olympian in Montreal 1976 in the Tornadoes): some little jobs to do on the boat to make it easy and comfortable to cruise. What better time than now, with the season just around the corner and wind and sun beginning to call us back to the water? You asked us to take a closer look at the practical implementation of some tips that struck you in the issue a few months ago, and here you are! The advice of Franco Pivoli, who, we recall, sails the length and breadth of the Mediterranean for at least four months of the year aboard a 1992 Grand Soleil 45, is “geek jobs”: where spending little gets ingenious results. Achievements that facilitate life on board in small crews and streamline maneuvering and consumption. In this fourth installment, we discuss engine…

ENGINE: AS SIMPLE AS POSSIBLE
The engine is one of those boat components that needs to be treated well; if its RPM is 2,400, it is better for its health to run it at 2,200 RPM, even if you lose a few speed points. One should not skimp on maintenance: from the battery to the sea socket, one must be sure that everything is in order; an engine that does not start or stops is an event that can cost the boat in some circumstances.

“Last year I replaced the boat’s original engine: twenty-two years is a long time, and then I had no idea what the previous owners had done. The choice fell on an equally powerful non-turbocharged engine that was as simple as possible.

I chose, also under the advice of the shipyard, an engine from Lombardini, I think it is as simple as it gets on the market, the spare parts are the same as the Fiat engines in the Ducato, and the service in the Mediterranean is very good.

I had an exhaust valve adjustment quit in Greece and they came right away, then back in Sicily they did an extraordinary maintenance checking that everything was in order. And all under warranty! If I can use Italian products, I don’t see why not.”

FIRST BET: COMFORTABLE GENNAKER
SECOND INSTALLMENT: UNCOMPLICATED MAINSAIL AND JIB
THIRD INSTALLMENT: TRINCHETTA AVVOLGIBILE