When we bought Madrone back in 2012, her sails were in pretty good condition.
The genoa and staysail were both from the original commissioning back in 1996, but they were in decent shape because the boat had been sailed very little. The genoa was a bit weathered from living outside on the furler in the damp Pacific Northwest weather, but the staysail lived in a sailbag inside the boat and looked like it had never even been hoisted.
The mainsail had been replaced when the previous owners upgraded to an in-boom furling system. With its limited use, the main was in very good shape.
Since then, Madrone has sailed a few miles and the sails have started to show their age. We tore the luff of the main while en route to Easter Island from the Galapagos, and we took some damage to both the genoa and the staysail from a near-knockdown in LeMaire Strait.
Overall, the sails probably still have a few more years of life left, but their shape is not as good as it once was. The loss of sail shape is not such a big deal when we’re sailing downwind, but it’s very important when we are trying to make distance to windward.
So, we decided that Madrone deserves an upgrade to her wardrobe. After a bit of research, the best combination of reputation for quality, knowledge of the requirements of an offshore cruising boat, and of course price led us to Mack Sails.
While Mack is located in Florida, they have representatives in Norfolk, Virginia, that were able to take measurements of the boat and get the order started. Lead time is a few months, but we’re excited for the upgrade!
