Indian Ocean: Finally Leaving Sydney

I am finally leaving Sydney after the mechanics and rigger have finished with their work. I will head towards the Whitsunday Islands and visit my good friend Walt Nielsen on Airlie Beach.

I have added four (4) new pieces of equipment to make my sailing safer, more secure, and faster for the second half of my 'Around-the-World' voyage.

1) A new style of spinnaker with built-in paraglider called a "Parasailor" from the German Sailmaker ISTEC.

2) A new electronic ship proximity warning devise called 'AIS' Automatic-Identification-System from RayMarine.

3) A forward-looking sonar from 'Interphase' to warn me of approaching shallows and reefs.

4) A new diesel fuel filter system for all of my fuel tanks. After getting poor quality fuel at both Jamaica and the Marquesa Islands, I ruined my fuel injector pump on the Yanmar. I now have the "Fuel-Boss" dual diesel filter cleaning system for the main tank and the "Filter-Boss" fuel filter and polishing system for the 80 gallon reserve fuel tank transfer pump.
And...a new, faster black bottom paint after repairs to the boat after hitting the reef on the Karoina Atoll.


Here is my review of the PARASAILOR spinnaker. Reviews of my other equpment additions will follow.


While crossing the entire South Pacific Ocean from East to West the route is mostly downwind. I was using my two head sails, one polled out to windward (wing-on-wing) and keeping a steady but safe 8.5 – 9 knots. I had my 5 year old asymmetrical spinnaker up for a few weeks, but I blew her out, ripping the head of the sail from the halyard. I have had the sail repaired in Sydney but I also have a brand new type of downwind spinnaker that is supposed to make my downwind sailing faster and safer but especially easier to set. This new spinnaker sail is a German built ‘Istec PARASAILOR’ and she looks beautiful against the Sydney sky line with the Opera House in the background. Left: Parasailor on ‘WanderLust 3’ before the Sydney Skyline.


The Parasailor is an invention of a German champion sailor who is also an experienced Paraglider. It is said that this patented technology shifts the center of pressure on the sail and the lift gained from the wing keeps the bow from rolling, yawing, pitching and broaching.

This new type of spinnaker allows sailing at a greater wind angle, from 70 degrees to 180 degrees, and the opening in the sail for the wing can expand enabling wind gusts and stronger winds to simply spill out, allowing usage in stronger winds than normally used with a standard spinnaker.

The wing performs two critical functions while sailing. 1) The wing lifts the sail and bow of the boat up and out forward increasing speed. 2) The air-filled wing gives considerable lateral and horizontal stability to the edges of the sail and the sides are prevented from collapsing. This is all good for a guy single-handing his boat across oceans in downwind conditions. I am VERY happy to have this addition to my Hunter 49 to help me in my Around-the World voyage.


Jimmy Cornell writes in his “Cruising World Magazine” article:

"Once up, the Parasailor seems to act just like a normal spinnaker but this is just an illusion as the ‘slot’ helps the Parasailor to stay full even in light winds. We used it in as little as 5 knots of true wind and everytime it looked like collapsing, the back pressure exerted by the slot filled it again. But it is in strong winds that the Parasailor really comes into its own. Normally I drop the spinnaker in winds above 17 knots, but on this trip, when I saw a squall approaching, I decided to leave the Parasailor up and see what happened. From 15 knots the wind went up and up and peaked at 26 knots. ‘Aventura’ took it all in stride, accelerated to nine, then ten knots and over.
Meanwhile, the Parasailor was behaving as normally as before , but now its slot was wide open, the ‘flap’ streaming ahead, the large mouth acting as a relief valve and almost visibly spilling the excess wind. Wonderful!"

For more information on the ‘Parasailor’: http://www.istec.ag/ or info@istec.ag

Mike Harker