Lady C revival

In February 2013, I left Houston for an assignment in Angola. Bringing Lady C with us was not an option. She stayed under the care of a friend at the HYC.
In February 2016, while I was transferring to a new assignment in Athens Greece, I received a message from my friend in Houston. We needed to bring back Lady C, as he was leaving Houston.
The dimensions of a 40ft container are:

Dimensions:	Length	Width
Overall	40' = 12192 mm	8' = 2438 mm
Internal	39' 5.25"= 12022 mm	7' 5.625" = 2352 mm
Door Opening		7' 8.25" = 2343 mm

Lady C width is 8ft, 2.44 m...! She is too wide to enter a container.

We found a shipper who accepted to take Lady C in a 40ft container. Here is how she looks departing Houston:

I thought of importing Lady C in Greece. But it proved to be a great challenge and it was impossible to bring in US flagged home made sail boat in Greece! While the container was transiting through the ocean, I decided to re-route her to France. She would stay in our house there. And we bought another boat for our stay in Greece anyway!

Here is what Lady C looks like when arriving in Le Havre.

Yes, she seats on the trailer and the trailer seats against the wall! I would never thought that she would be fitted like that! But she was fine! Off course, it took some skills to take her out of the container.

Then she was trucked to our house where she stayed in the shade for three years. Having another boat in Greece, we took all our time off there and sailed the Cyclades. No real need to spend time in France and sail around Molene!

Meet our amazing 1999 Catana 401 "Vite & Reves". What a dream boat! 

This year, I was assigning to Rio, Brazil and had to leave Greece. Vite & Reves was sold quickly...

And now, I will have a bit more time to look after Lady C and get her back on the water!

My first goal this year is to remove the ballast and the daggerboard and install the keel. I had planned to do this, but could never find the time. The trunk was closed and sealed and the keel fin opening shaped for duty. For that, we had to pull Lady C on her side again!

With the keel in place, the trailer support had to be extended to leave enough room for the bulb. I also moved forward the trailer wheel axis to better balance the load. The buld is much forward than the ballast and daggerboard weight, especially when this one is up on the trailer!

And then, I build a lifting jig to pull the keel fin up and down. I used the same kind of winch than the daggerboard one. It is quite efficient and works perfectly.

Lady C has been neglected for a few years and needs a refit. The high quality Joubert plywood has perfectly resisted to the weather. However, I used basic pine wood for the hardwood (not for the keel though!) and this one are showing some signs of damage.

The chain plates had some play and water had dripped and the pine wood inside was rotten. needed to be rebuilt. I reinforced both sides with additional epoxy inside and stainless steel backing plates. This looks super strong now!

Next, the canopy needs a big sanding and new fiber and epoxy protection layer.

And I need to register Lady C in France! I look forward to see her sail in the Molene archipel!