Topics > Boat Design/Selection > "Morgan's Cloud" > A Video Deck Tour of “Morgan’s Cloud”

A Video Deck Tour of “Morgan’s Cloud”

Published Sep 22, 2015 8 comments
Morgan's Cloud, Deck Tour

There are few things more interesting and useful to me than a tour of another experienced offshore voyager’s boat—there’s always something to learn.

So, in that spirit, here’s a video deck tour of our own Morgan’s Cloud.

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full-screenThis is a high resolution video and so you will see more detail if you click the full screen box icon (like the one to the right) that appears in the bottom right corner when you hover over the video after it starts playing.

Questions and Comments

We have deliberately kept the commentary—and therefore the video—short on the theory that you will only be able to stand seven minutes of me prattling on. So if you see something that interests you that I did not explain, please leave a comment on this post, not YouTube.

Links to Articles Discussed

During the video I mention several articles that explain some of the gear I cover. Here are links to those articles:

We have also replaced the Northstar GPS that I mention with a B&G plotter to backup the computer-based navigation system.

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Meet the Author

John

John was born and brought up in Bermuda and started sailing as a child, racing locally and offshore before turning to cruising. He has sailed over 100,000 miles, most of it on his McCurdy & Rhodes 56, Morgan's Cloud, including eight ocean races to Bermuda, culminating in winning his class twice in the Newport Bermuda Race. He has skippered a series of voyages in the North Atlantic, the majority of which have been to the high latitudes. John has been helping others go voyaging by sharing his experience for twenty years, first in yachting magazines and, for the last 12 years, as co-editor/publisher of AAC.

8 comments… add one
  • John Owens Sep 23, 2015, 7:29 am

    Hi John, Nice video. You have a few upgrades that I will definitely be using. I like the double anchor roller and the chain break for starters. I have an ongoing project boat in my back yard which is a 50 ft one-off aluminum Cutter rigged French sloop. All paint has been stripped and I kind of like it that way with all the horror stories about paint on aluminum issues. Your deck is impressive and well organized and will be scrutinized to the fullest. I haven’t decided on what anti-skid deck surface to use as yet. Is yours Treadmasters? Also, just for the record, what type of deck paint are you applying, and what preparation was taken to achieve good adherence?
    Great Website. Very informative and well researched.
    Worth very penny.
    John

    • John Sep 23, 2015, 8:18 am

      Hi John,

      Thanks for the kind comments. To answer your questions:

      By the way, I agree, don’t paint the boat.

      Good luck with the project.

  • Eric Klem Sep 23, 2015, 9:23 pm

    Hi John,

    I am jealous, it looks like a very good setup.

    Out of curiosity, what line are you using for your running backstays? Also, how do you tie them forward when off the wind so that they don’t swing around?

    Eric

    • John Sep 24, 2015, 7:43 am

      Hi Eric,

      Thanks for the kind words. It is indeed a good setup, but then we started off with a great McCurdy layout and have been tweaking stuff for 24 years, so it would be sad if it wasn’t pretty good by now!

      The runners are one of the high tech high modulus lines, but I have to confess that I don’t remember which. I do know that they are not Spectra, because of the creep issue. I tend to just trust our excellent rigger on these things. If its important I can check with him and find out.

      And for tying them forward we just use some heavy shock cord attached to a pad eye with a plastic clip to attach to the runner. From time to time I think of something more complex that would let us pull them forward from the cockpit, but then my preference for clean decks kicks in, so it never happens.

  • Dave DeWolfe Sep 25, 2015, 8:19 pm

    John:
    Nice!

  • Patrick Genovese May 2, 2016, 12:05 pm

    Hi,

    I am thinking of upgrading my clutches. Any opinions on the Lewmar D1 / D2 series of clutches ? Originally i was thinking of just putting spinlocks in but the Domino Rings feature of the D1/D2 series sounds very attractive from the point of view of being kind to the lines.

    Regards
    Patrick

    • John May 2, 2016, 2:01 pm

      Hi Patrick,

      We have both Lewmars and Spinlocks. Both work well, but I guess I would give the nod to the Lewmars by a nose. Having said that, neither seem to chew the line much.

      • Patrick Genovese May 2, 2016, 6:29 pm

        Hi John,

        Tnx for the feedback.

        Regards
        Patrick

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