Arwen's meanderings

HMS Pickle...........a little boat

2012-02-26T19:22:00.000Z

I’ve just been reading a lovely article in this issue of ‘Watercraft’ (which I recommend to all small boat fans – if you want to get a flavour go to http://watercraft-magazine.com/ ).

In it is an article about a ‘Selway Fisher’ designed boat which the builder called ‘Pickle’ after HMS Pickle. The boat built was a Tideway 14 but that wasn’t what interested me. What chewed away in the back of my mind was “‘HMS Pickle’....I’m sure I’ve seen a replica of her in South west waters somewhere and I have a dim memory that she was at Trafalgar........wasn’t she”?

Curiosity aroused......time for a little investigative work.

Yes HMS Pickle was at Trafalgar but she was too small to do much fighting.....what she did do though is bring news back to Britain of Nelson’s death. But I’m rushing ahead........

copyright go to

http://www.frickers.co.uk/marine-art/urgent_dispatches.html

HMS Pickle was a topsail schooner of the Royal Navy. Now I had to confess I had to look up what a topsail schooner was.....forgive me ignorance dear reader! According to Wikipedia...................(and here I feel I do need to do my teachers bit which goes like this.....

1. wiki, contrary to popular belief, IS NOT the fountain of all knowledge;

2. Wiki is an open contribution site so please check for inaccuracies, opinion, bias, assumption and propaganda;

3. Do try to verify what you read on wiki with other sources;

4. Check who wrote the article on wiki – do they have a reputable academic background etc etc etc!

5. If you are tempted to copy and paste and then hit the print button and submit a seven page essay to me from wiki – then I will shred it and make you do it again.

This last point was a public service announcement on behalf of the teaching profession here in the UK!)

'urgent dispatches'

copyright as picture above

George Frickess and website mentioned above

Where was I? Oh yes – what is a schooner..........apparently it is a sailing vessel which had fore and aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts. First used by the Dutch and later popularised by the Americans, two masted schooners were the most common and were used in trades that required speed, windward ability and an ability to outrun officialdom........slaving, privateering, blockade running, traditional offshore fishing, smuggling etc. You can find out more here at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topsail_schooner

Now HMS Pickle started life as a civilian vessel of six guns called ‘Sting’ and she was used as an armed tender on the Jamaica station (“Jamaica? No she went of her own accord”! – You’d have to be British and a fan of the ‘Goons’ show to be up on that one). Anyway Pickle did see action when she captured a french privateer (serves them right!) in 1807. Poor old Pickle was wrecked without loss of life in 1808.

So her beginnings then were interesting. In 1800 Vice Admiral Lord Hugh Seymour, Commander-in-Chief at Jamaica informed the Navy board that he wished to purchase a new schooner to act as tender to his flagship HMS Sans Pareil; to which the Navy Board replied ‘No!!’. However it would seem that Lord Hugh was son of the Marquis of Hertford, grandson of the Duke of Conway, son-in-law to the Marquis of Waldegrave and the Duchess of Gloucester, friend of the Prince of Wales, MP for Portsmouth and a former Lord Commissioner of the Admiralty. Consequently it was probably likely that he didn’t like taking “NO!!” as an answer from anyone.............so he went ahead anyway and purchased ‘Sting’, informing the Navy Board only after the purchase had taken place.

‘Sting’ measured some 73 ft. overall, by 20 ft 7 in breadth and 9ft 6in depth, weighing in at 127 tons. With six carronades and a complement of 35 to 40, she was commanded by one Lieutenant Thomas Thrush and her first year of service in the Caribbean was as squadron despatch vessel, carrying despatches, orders, stores and personnel to the station's outlying ships and establishments.

copyright Western Horizon

Lord Hugh Seymour died of yellow fever in 1801and so the STING carried the Admiral’s body home to England. Between January and March 1802, she refitted for Channel Service at Plymouth, and in February the Navy Board renamed her HM Schooner PICKLE. Her first employment was in coastal patrols in the English Channel between the Solent and Land's End – chasing smugglers. In May 1802 Lt Thrush was relieved by the PICKLE's new commander, Lt John Richards Lapenotiere. Thrush was promoted to Commander, and eventually in 1809 to Post Captain.

I don’t think life aboard HMS Pickle under Lapenotiere’s command was good. In 1803 she lost a man overboard and he was never recovered. There may have been doubts about Lapenotiere’s seamanship. Pickle was not built for blockade work, which is what she was delegated to do, and many described her as a ‘wet ship’.

I read somewhere that during Lapenotiere's 41 months in command HMS Pickle lost or sprung her bowsprit or jib boom seven times, along with several other spars including her main boom three times. On occasions he had to heave the schooner's guns overboard to save the ship. 20 men deserted her every year under his command. He flogged people relentlessly; and the Bosun’s mate even deserted her at one point with several other men. He was caught and accused of mutiny and conspiring to take over the vessel but the charges were dismissed and he got away with a flogging around the fleet! In 1804, one John Boucher got a dozen lashes for ‘drunkenness, and throwing his clothes overboard’.

copyright gradotti.co.uk

Stern detail on the replica of HMS Pickle

It has been said, that with fairness to Lapenotiere, part of the malcontent was because Pickle spent 70% of her time at sea. Blockade work would have been very boring; scuttling around the fleet as a messenger boy – somewhat insulting I should think. There were occasions of excitement – being sent in to Brest harbour to count the French fleet for example. She rarely took any prizes so there was little prize money to distribute amongst the crew. I could see why a crew might get bored and resentful.

During the battle of Trafalgar, she was ordered to keep out of the way of the large line of battle ships and to act as rescue boat. In the later stages of the battle, Pickle, Entreprenante, and the boats of Prince George and Swiftsure went to the rescue of the crew of the French ship, Achille, which caught fire and subsequently exploded. In all she saved 160 french sailors and one woman. The prisoners in Pickle outnumbered her crew three to one and were heard plotting to take her over to take her into Cadiz. Nothing happened though Pickle's crew kept a particularly sharp watch over the prisoners. Anyway, after discharging her prisoners to larger ships, Lt Lapenotiere was summoned on board HMS Euryalus, Admiral Collingwood's temporary flagship, on the 26th, to be given the prize job of taking news of the victory - and of Nelson's death - home to the Admiralty.

carrying the urgent dispatches

copyright George Frickess - see above for website details

Someone wrote that this was, for Lapenotiere, ‘the career defining moment’ of his life. At 35 years old he had a command, but it was merely a schooner...which probably said more about his lack of seamanship and lack of contacts than anything else. He was at that age unlikely to get further promotion. However, whoever carried this news home about Nelson’s death and the details of the victory at Trafalgar – well they were sure to get promotion to Commander and a sloop to command; a sizeable cash reward - £500 was the going rate for bringing news of a victory; and of course some fame. Whilst this task would have gone to a frigate Captain, poor Collingwood was concerned about a breakout by the combined fleet of France and so required every ship to stay on station with him. Consequently Pickle was the only ship he could spare.

Lapenotiere: I'm sorry but I can't find where this image came from although I suspect it may be from the Greenwich Museum

At noon on the 26th, with ‘fresh breezes and a heavy swell’ from the West South West HMS Pickle shaped her course for England. On the 4th November, she arrived in Falmouth and the rest as they say is history. Lapenotiere hired a coach to take him to London...a brave deed since it would have been half his annual salary to hire four horses and a coach! He knew the urgency of the dispatches he carried. It took 20 changes of horses and 37 hours to reach the Admiralty, an astonishing achievement. Lapenotiere arrived at the Admiralty at 1am on 6 November. He was shown through to the First Secretary of the Admiralty, Mr Marsden. Lord Barham, First Lord of the Admiralty was raised from his sleep to receive the news. The Prime Minister, William Pitt received the news at 3am and King George III and Queen Charlotte heard at 7am when Lapenotiere explained to King George the movements of the opposing fleets and how the battle was won. As the news was being broadcast across the city with saluting guns from the Tower of London, the news was also received by one Lady Emma Hamilton.

Lapenotiere was promoted to Commander and did receive a sword worth 100 guineas from the Patriotic Fund plus his share of the prize money from the battle, and eventually, but only after three petitioning letters, the £500 customary for the bearer of news of a victory. He also had his expenses chit honoured and was eventually promoted to Post Captain in 1811

After the excitement of the battle, the vessel returned to normal service and on 3rd January 1807, she captured a French privateer of 18 guns off the Lizard. Eighteen months later, on 28th July 1808, the Pickle was grounded on a shoal as she entered Cadiz harbour, carrying Lieutenant Moses Cannadey who was bearing dispatches from England to Admiral Lord Collingwood. Lookouts had reported broken water at midnight and it was clear that Lt Cannadey had misjudged his surroundings. Daylight revealed that her bottom was completely stoved in and she was unsalvageable. His court martial in August commented on his ‘unaccountable error in reckoning and the distance travelled’. Cannadey was reprimanded.

copyright 'old salt blog'

But this isn’t the end of the story about HMS Pickle. The journey of HMS Pickle and the bearing of the news from Trafalgar is commemorated by Warrant Officers of the Royal Navy on November 5th, known as Pickle Night, in a similar celebration to that of Trafalgar Night celebrated by Commissioned Officers.

As to the replica of HMS Pickle – well I’m not sure. She did end up in Conwy harbour, a place I know well for I lived there for 6 years. But where she is now I am not so sure. She was put up for sale and if you are interested, these two sites give some further illumination.

http://www.holyheadmarine.co.uk/hms-pickle-visits-holyhead/

http://www.western-horizon.co.uk/boat_details.php?boat_id=168

This is some You tube footage of the replica entering Ilfracombe harbour.
Steve

a fun video clip

2012-02-25T20:24:00.000Z

Just found this on YouTube. Awesome. Not possible on Arwen of course!

Steve

Dave's refurbishment of 'Sea Minor' is complete

2012-02-25T19:25:00.000Z

Dave has taken his navigator out and about already. You can read about his progress here at
http://davesnavigator.blogspot.com/

Steve

getting ready........at last and fitting lazy jacks

2012-02-25T18:32:00.000Z

The weather is better. It's been a warm week with temps of 18C down here in the south west. No rain and that allowed me to get Arwen's sails onto the drive.

First job, sorting out the slab reefing system and tidying up ropes. There are some frayed edges and I will whip these next weekend. The 6 Nations rugby is on, England vs Wales and well.......I needed to get things done in a fixed amount of time. I mean you can't miss a potential Triple Crown match can you? Not that it's going that well. England, the underdog's are in the lead and it pains me to have to say they have played some really good 'fast break' rugby for 'underdogs'! The Twickenham curse is working again!

Some of those holes need urgent filling

After sorting the slab reefing stuff, it was on to lazy jacks. I've put two blocks either side of the mast just above the main halyard sheave. I've been torn between two different versions of lazy jacks so what I've done for now is to tie the lazy jack rope onto one block on the port side; down the port side of mainsail, through a fairlead under the sprit boom pretty far aft; then back up the starboard side of the mainsail and through the starboard mast top block.

I also took the opportunity to add two fairleads to the upper yard. One is where the main halyard sheet goes through and I the do a clove hitch to secure it. The other is for a small rope strop that I will tie around the mast to keep the yard close to the mast. the rope will have a snap link on it. It was a tip passed onto me by Wayne (cheers Wayne)

From here the rope runs down the side of the mast where I've placed a new small cleat on the mast side just above deck level. It should all being well act as a lazy jack AND a topping lift. In addition, I'm rather hoping that the rope running down the starboard mast side will act as a 'restrictor' helping hold the forward end of the top yard against the mast.

Talking of masts, it is time for the mast to have some TLC. There are some nasty dings, dents and scuffs. The burgess coating has faded and worn off in places. I think I will wait for the first available warm sunny day and then get the mast out, sanded and soaked in burgess hydrosol. Two or three coatings should do it as well.
There are also various holes to fill with wood filler where I have moved fairleads around.

This is the little sticker I mentioned a couple of posts ago

It's 12-6 to England. This is a disaster in the making. Everyone across the nation predicted a Welsh win.......underdogs........ha! And we have one in the sin bin too so we are down to 14 men! On the other hand we have kept possession and tied up England and just got a penalty kick. Not bad for 14 men!

Sorry, got sidetracked. Another thing which needs sorting are the trailer hubs and wheel rims. It doesn't matter what I do, they get immersed and they start to rust even though I religiously hose them down after every dunking! Not sure what to do about these so will need to give some thought. If any readers have some tips, I'm keen to hear them.

The weather is improving. The temperatures are rising. The lighter evenings are beginning. I think the first trip out for 2012 is fast approaching. It's been a long wait!!

Steve

PS if anyone is looking for a new saw for boat building, I found one in a Vienna art gallery last week. It displays under the name of 'modern art'!

Postscript 2

I have suffered multiple heart attacks in the last 12 minutes - Dear Lord - what a game. 78 minutes to go and we are now 12 - 12; then a welsh player does a fantastic little kick through a gap, chases it 20 yards and touches down. 2 minutes to go and we are now in the lead and then in the 80th minute with seconds to go England dive across the line. The ref has no clear view - it goes to a TV judge ref. Minutes pass by. Heart in mouth - if they give this try its a draw.........the whole of Wales is yelling at the TV.......and the judgement comes back........no touch down, no try.....and so we get the triple crown at Tickenham AND our Grand Slam ambitions just carry rolling on........I'm exhausted!! Mentally frazzled! I need a lie down!

quick 'Stacey' update

2012-02-18T21:32:00.000Z

Jacques came to the rescue with the wiring. So I managed to do a few jobs this afternoon, as follows:

the throttle cable has been threaded through the U section of the vespa body and inserted into the carb
the footbrake was dropped from the floor and the circular rubber protector fitted; the spring was also fitted and the assembly reattached. The footbrake now depresses and returns to its correct position rapidly.
fitted the felt gasket; I removed the carb and it slid over the manifold as everyone said it would
reattached the regulator and then put the wires back into it in the sequence described to me by Jacques on the small frames vespa forum.

All in all, a good couple of hours work.
Where was number one son I hear you all ask?

Playing SkyRim on his xbox. Com'on...play fair.....he'd been separated from it for four days while the Missus and I were away in Vienna....so withdrawal symptoms were setting in!

Steve

help us figure out 'Stacey's' wiring....please!!!!!!!!

2012-02-11T15:28:00.000Z

Someone with knowledge of vespa wiring save us please!!

We have a loom made up for us by Beedspeed which is a great piece of work but the colours - well they don't match up to other bits and pieces and we are confused.
This is the wiring diagram that Beedspeed sent us. Big version and up close version!!

We have managed to wire up the rear light despite it also having different colours loom to light. Obviously we haven't tested this yet!! So we won't say 'correctly wired up'. That would be tempting fate!

Below is a picture of our regulator, the original one which came off the bike. It seems in good condition but we would have no idea how to check it. We are slightly confused by the letters in the black plastic and the colour sticker colours. Stupidly, this is the only part where we didn't take a photo before taking it off the scooter...the ONLY time we didn't do a photo. Unbelievable!

Anyway, we had a set of wires coming out of the stator plate and using the original photos, we put the end of these back into the blue electric coil box(?) as they were originally.

Is this wired up correctly as there are two slots for a green wire?

There were two other wires coming from the stator plate which were blue and black and we wired these up to the blue and black wires on the wiring loom, via a junction box. We are slightly confused here as on the plan it only shows a blue wire from the stator and we definitely had a blue one and a black one!! So, do we have this right?

Anyway, when we look down into the inside of the scooter frame where the carb is - this is now what we have.

All the cables are coming from the left hand side bar the two mentioned above which have come up through a hole in the floor panel just out of sight under the carb.

These two shots are of the top part of the wires you can see coming up from the bottom of the floor area in the photograph above:

so from left to right we have

a black single wire with connector; a double green wire with one connector on it; and another single wire with connector.

Exactly where do each of these wires go?

in the photo below we have on the other set of wires........

a single blue wire with connector; a single grey wire with connector; a black wire with a) a single connector and then another off shot wire with a circular tag at end which looks like it should slip over a bolt somewhere but I have no idea where

so.........where should these wires be going?

so the $64 million question..............................where on earth do each of these wires go? Which connect to the regulator and then were do any left overs go? I have three tabs on the regulator and six spade connectors...confused? You have no idea....so someone please save us!!

Steve

PS and this is what it is all looking like underneath - have we got this bit right?

bits and bobs

2012-02-11T14:07:00.000Z

It's the first day of half term and its's a 'bits and bobs' day. Been for a walk along the Plym estuary down the side of Saltram House. Chilly!

The little beach off the lower Saltram estate with a little jetty wall. I keep meaning to find out why it was built here and what boats used to come up the Plym channel to moor here

I suspect there was far less silt here some 120 years ago!

Came back and checked under Arwen's covers. No Mould! Yippee! I've left the covers on loosely this winter after some tips from forum members last year and it seems to have worked. I put the sails back in ready, just in case a nice crisp winter sunny day arrived at a weekend. Sadly no luck yet!

Fitted Arwen's new compass, a Silva 70 UN sighting compass onto the back of the centre case. It seemed the best place to put it where I wouldn't catch it with my knee. It's a tad close to the cleat where I put the jib sheet when single handing but I think it will be OK. It doesn't seem to be affected by anything metallic as far as I can see. It's in a high visibility area and also easily accessible to extract for handholding.

I stuck on the new vinyl 'badge' on Arwen's port quarter sheer plank area. I got it from 'Creeksailor' - see the blog roll list on the side here for his website. It says

"Small boat sailors do it in mud, sand and shoal waters"

It's circular, about 7 cm in diameter and has a creamy buff background colour and darkish brown exterior edge. In the centre is a nice little watercolour of a small boat with a little cuddy/cabin and a tan gaff sail and tan jib. hanging off the starboard side, over the hull, from the shroud is a little pair of green wellies. I like it and it is stuck on Arwen to remind me that this year a sailing ambition is to a) sail all the way up the Tamar to Calstock with my Dad, God Bless him, and b) to sail up the Lynher and into the muddy saltings creeks around St Germans where I shall beach Arwen and do an overnight camp in splendid marsh salting surroundings with oystercatchers, curlews and egrets for company.

Took 'Stacey' off her crate and saw the underside of the floor panels for the first time in months. That horrible arch cut away just stares at us. we have come to the conclusion that number 1 son will ride 'Stacey' for a few years. She will get scratches, dents, dings. Then we will sell her. At that point we will then fix a new plate over this cut away piece which is missing. It seems silly to put a piece in now and ruin the candy apple paint job. Our friend down the road who is a scooter MOT tester says it will pass no problems and he's had a good poke around. He's happy with the footbrake pedal and plate arrangement too. So we will put black duct tape over the hole for now. It will be hidden by the mudguard. That will stop gunk off the road going down the inside of the U section. Must replace those brake plate bolts with smaller ones whilst I think about it!

I can feel Spring is just around the corner.........sailing trips.......not long now!

Steve

removing mainsail battens.................a dumb question!

2012-02-09T21:52:00.000Z

So here I was musing “what would happen if I removed the battens from Arwen’s mainsail?”

Dear Lord have mercy: wot is this man trying to do to that mainsail?

Well not being the most technically alert sailor, I honestly had no idea. I know the mainsail can be a pain to drop and stow without the battens having a life of their own....but exactly how crucial are they?
Well, only one bunch of guys to ask really.......and so over to the JW forum I went.

“I would try it and see. Your biggest problem might be the leach will fall off and you will lose power as your effective sail area is reduced”

Had to remind myself which part of the sail the leech was (pitiful isn’t it – sorry guys!)

“Theoretically better performance in light air; less control. Shouldn't be hard to try out...”

(Unless you are an idiot like me – then it can be easily complicated).

“Steve, there has been an update in the rig plan for Navigator, the top battens have been shortened at the forward end to make the sail easier to stow, take 120mm off forward end of the top one, and 200mm off the next one down. You should be able to hand stitch the ends of the batten pockets to do that, and it’s not a problem to shorten the batten itself with a hacksaw and file”.

Wow! Hack at the battens........I’m a tea totaller but that sounds like seriously straying into ‘have a double scotch before embarking on that course of action to stiffen the spine’ kind of territory! However........it did come from JW himself....so that’s OK with me. But hang on.....a vague memory is appearing. I'm sure Chris jeckells decided to do that unilaterally when he mad eup the sails............I think!

Don't bother asking: it didn't work...hardly surprising really!

The word 'shambolic' is the politest I can use here

“I tried removing them all once just to see what would happen. Didn't work. The sail folds and flops over along a line from head to clew”.

Hang on – head and clew, where is my ‘dinghy sailing for dummies’ book?

“I think the reason your sail only bulges a bit when stowed is because your batten pockets are set at more of a vertical angle than mine. Mine are set more horizontally. Consequently, I have to pull my battens about half way out of the pockets every time I furl, which I want to avoid. Otherwise they're in my face or at a risk of snapping in half. Longer battens are generally better for sail shape, so since yours is working I'd be hesitant to mess with it too”.

Ha, a good observation!

“Next time I'm out I plan on trying John's shortened batten suggestion, and experiment with other lengths, and I'll report back with the results. Looking over my Navigator photo collection, I'm encouraged to see many mainsails without any full length battens at all, and they have beautiful sail shapes too”.

Generous offer – thank you!

“My goal is to "have my cake and eat it too". I want to keep that beautiful sail shape but also be able to drop the main right into my lazyjacks without having to touch the battens or anything else on the sail and without leaving my seat”.

Now see – here is someone who understands me completely – that is exactly what I want and can’t seem to get!

“My full length battens do bulge a bit when stowed on the boom, and I'll consider shortening as John has suggested, but I just want to say how pleased I am with my Duckworks sails, and how much pleasure that main sail has given me, both in performance and appearance. My youngest son often says (as he lays back in the cockpit looking upwards) that the shape of the main reminds him of the shape of Spitfire fighter wing. And the battens as originally designed give beautiful sail shape whatever wind there is (or not). So I hesitate to change a thing”

Now this is a person who knows a thing or two about design and how to sail – so I’m supposed to be getting a spitfire wing shape to the mainsail.........ah........now that is something to aim for!

“I think it was Kevin (navigator Slipjig) who had the clever idea of tensioning the yard luff with a short line though a cleat at the yard peak. When the sail is dropped the tension can be removed and the battens can lie more easily. It is a two-step process though so would not suit you”

Yeah – I think that’s a great idea but is probably, in all truth, beyond my technical ability, patience or understanding. It's spooky how well these guys know me!

stupid fixed grin says it all really

Not the brightest card in the pack!

Robin, Rob, Hajo, Joel, Alan and JW........thank you and sorry for asking such a dumb question in the first place! On the other hand, as I always say to my students...there is never anything like a dumb question.......if you don’t know, you don’t know and that’s the fun in learning....finding it out!

Steve

Does the name you give your boat embue it with a 'soul'?

2012-02-08T17:13:00.000Z

Here is an update from Rob.

“Well, I've named my Navigator "Islander," after the 37-foot yawl Harry Pidgeon, until then a non-sailor, built only a stone's throw away from my launch site in LA Harbor almost 100 years ago and then sailed solo around the world - twice. He was the second person to do so, the first being Joshua Slocum. Another reason for the name is my principal sailing destination across the San Pedro Channel - Catalina Island”.

Rob says he had picked out the name a long time ago, but the rest of the family objected thinking it too "boring" a name.

Well, I think it’s a great name Rob and very apt. For what it is worth, none of my lot liked ‘Arwen’ as a name but.....well she is 'Arwen'......a goddess of the sea and I just cannot think of her being named anything else. I look at her and I see her soul......she is and always will be 'Arwen' to me. Sometimes people just don’t understand the sentiments behind a name do they?

Wecome to the 'Welsford Navigator' family 'Islander'

Steve

Two welsford navigators in one week..................

2012-02-07T21:22:00.000Z

And another navigator is launched and on its way. Hey two in one week. Wonderful. Rob launched his navigator but in September and sailed it out in Maine where it had been built by an extraordinary craftsman Ray Frechette. Rob launched it for the first time back in sunny California. As Joel observed....is this the first navigator to be sailed in both the pacific and the Atlantic? I think so but hey I wait to be corrected. That is pretty cool isn’t it – both in Atlantic and Pacific.

I think this Ray at the helm....hope I got that right Rob!!

Rob had mid 70’s temps (which in my language I think works out at around 20C or thereabouts with westerly breezes of 5 – 8 knots. He was worried about towing the boat up the ramp with only a front wheel drive vehicle but everything was fine (he has no idea about two wheel, front wheel drive. I damn near lost the car, trailer and Arwen last year at low tide when the wheels spun continuously on the algae and we didn’t advance anywhere as a huge spring tide came rushing in and up the exhaust!)

Rob took an hour to rig his boat (it does get quicker as you remember where things go and you develop short cut strategies. I’m down to around 25 mins from completely disassembled to ready to go). Of course, he was hindered in a very nice way by all the people who stopped to say hello and admire the boat. Navigators do seem to do that. Whenever Arwen gets launched there will be a few who stop by to admire the lines, cringe at the gouges in the rub rails and suggest useful (or on occasions not so useful) tips and short cuts in rigging.

I admire Rob – he sails off the dock under Jib and Mizzen. I have never done that. I always motor out using the excuse that my exit from pontoon is along a 3m wide causeway between moored boats either side, invariably at a head to wind position. I’m not even sure I can control Jib and mizzen sufficiently yet to get alongside a free floating, un-crowded pontoon!

Once launched, he headed out in to the LA harbour basin moving under jib and mizzen in only a 5 kt breeze. Does that sound pretty good sailing to anyone else, because it sure does to me! LA harbour, I’m sort of assuming he means Los Angeles harbour...that sounds soooo cool!

From jib and mizzen, he set the main and shot off in a 9 kts breeze bringing smiles to the faces of his accompanying children. Ah what it is to have your offspring actually want to go out in a boat with you. My sailing buddy (my daughter) is away at University and I miss her. My son doesn’t do boats...scooters, gliders, planes yes......boats never! Lucky man, he had an opportunity to teach the family how to tack as a team and later allowed children to do the helming AND tacking.

As Rob concludes:

“To top off our luck, we ran into a small pod of Bottlenose Dolphin in the middle of our sail. Nicholas is a huge fan of all sea life, and to see dolphins up close and for several minutes was a real treat for him. He took lots of pictures and video. Next, I told him, we will look for Gray Whales, which are currently migrating up the CA coast from their breeding grounds in Mexico to their feeding grounds above the Arctic Circle. They will pass by LA Harbour for the next 3 months only a mile or so offshore”.

Now if I had the possibility of Whales moving up our coastline, well I’d be out every day! I am desperate to see a basking shark off our headland in the summer. I used to see loads when I was fishing along the coast. They hung like huge shadows in the upper surface waters...amazing creatures, drifting in the currents. We have had news that Orcas have been spotted off Trevose head in Cornwall and that is a pretty impressive sighting for our coastline.

Rob clearly had a lovely sail but he went on to conclude his feedback to JW forum members by making some observations about his navigator. He found that the Navigator has enough pointing ability to claw back up wind but that it probably takes a few extra tacks compared to a modern hull and sail plan; which is exactly what I have found.

At the end of his day out Rob said

“With wind less than 5 knots, we tacked right into the launch area, released all sheets, drifted toward the floating dock and at the last moment turned into wind to put the boat alongside. A perfect landing, as far as I was concerned. No splintered bow sprit or rub rail”

Wow, I just know I do not yet have the ability to pull off that manoeuvre!

Rob has posted a link to his Picasa web page where you will find some photographs of his lovely looking navigator (nice colour hull and beautiful tan sail combination)
https://picasaweb.google.com/117126495892679023925/Boat
Rob. Congratulations, what a lovely looking boat. A lovely yarn about the first sail in California waters too. May you look forward and have many more special days like this one. Welcome to the navigator family.

Steve

fitting a bilge pump....

2012-02-05T17:00:00.000Z

I'm leaning towards doing it. I'm looking at the Whaler urchin model which attaches to a bulkhead. It pumps 9 gallons or 37 lts per minute if you do 45 strokes of the handle. I think if the boat was swamped and I was using a 3 gallon bucket and under panic, I would shift far more! So the pump is to get that rainwater out or the water that builds up during the day punching to windward. I have bungs at the back which are unscrewed at the end of each trip so the water can drain out whilst on the slip ramp but some water always remains in.

The Whaler Urchin

copyright seapost.co.uk

Locating the pump will be the issue so that it has a firm bedding. Ideally I want it close to the helm position but not in the rear aft footwell since little water ever seems to gather there. So what about mounting it on a block and then mounting the block onto the front port bulkhead in front of the centre thwart? With a detatchable handle on a lanyard so it won't get in the way, that position would be accessible enough. People sitting with the legs forward of that position shouldn't find it too intrusive but I'll check first. I think that then when I hove to to pump out water that has collected, this place will be easy to get to and easy to move in. But will it fit? Will the pipe stick up too much?

what I don't want happening; the pump in the way, sticking up and the pipe being all over the place

An alternative would be to mount it on a block along one of the hull planks but it really isn't that accessible there is it? The inlet pipe could go straight down to the floor. I want to resist using a large strum suction box because I'll tread on it or trip on it. The outlet pipe will have to gently curve up the side of the hull and then exit somewhere along Arwen's nice Burgundy sheer plank. I'll need to fit a good outlet ring of some form and make sure it is well bedded in sitaflex.

The dimensions needed for installation

Ugh! Drilling holes in Arwen's nice planks - just doesn't sound fun does it.....do I really need a bilge pump. Normally what I do is let the water build up and then just use the hand bailer or hand pump. The hand pump has a shorter pipe though which never reaches over the hull side. So would it be better just to add a large pipe length to that and save myself some hassle?

the kind of pump I use now but the pipe doesn't reach up over the side deck!!

AArgh! Decisions, decisions. I hate making decisions!
Someone give me advice - what would they do? Because so far, all I have found is this nice piece from Dick Everitt which I assume has come from an old PBO magazine (at least that is who I'm attributing copyright to so sorry if I got it wrong!). I wonder if Joel, Steve, Rob and others have installed one in their navigators and pathfinders? Time to call in the cavalry!

Steve

Silva 70UN compass, Lazy Jacks and thoughts of summer

2012-02-04T18:24:00.000Z

I think I have finally sorted out in my head my lazy jack arrangement, which when the weather improves, will the first thing I do to get Arwen ship shape and ready and for this coming season. I’m going to put a shackle on the port shroud tang high up on the mast from which a rope will run down the port side of the mainsail to the aft end of the sprit boom and under the loose sail foot. It will run through a fairlead on the bottom of the sprit boom and then back for’ard up the starboard side of the mainsail to a block on the starboard shroud tang, before running down the mast side to a cleat which I will mount on the mast side. Now I can splice in a line either side of the main sail off these mainlines which will run down under the boom and back up the other side. And hey presto...or at least I think so! What I’m secretly looking for are lazy jacks that work like these!! But I doubt it!

http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/11/howto/lazyjacks/index.htm

I have also bought a Silva 70UN sighting compass. I’ve been using my hand held compass up to now and this will be a good addition for those long passages Arwen and I do during the summer months. I expect I will mount it either along the top of the centre board case top or at the aft end of the centre case on a block which I will attach upright in the aft cockpit. I’ll need to check where the steel bolts and screws are......compass deviation would be somewhat embarrassing.

I have also been giving some thought to stowing the sails on the sprit boom when they are dropped. I use sail tie tapes which are fine but take time to sort out. I quite like this little trick from Harry Gordon and I just have to work out whether it could work or not on Arwen.

Now I have to wait for a spell of dry weather. Here it is raining and bitterly cold. Europe is in the middle of a deep freeze and more snow is forecast....where oh where are those lovely summer days?
Steve

a new boat is launched..........

2012-02-02T21:17:00.000Z

Now you all know I like to try and keep tabs on navigator owners around the world and what they are up to. I think they are an amazing bunch of people with a diverse range of skills, talents and interests. Well, here is one more to add to our growing JW navigator family. Jim has just launched his boat ‘Judy Ann’. Jim says “She is named for my mum who taught me the patience I needed to make it through the 4 ½ year build! She is my first real wood working project and has been the most rewarding and satisfying project I have ever undertaken”

This is Judy Ann on Lake Wallace, near Edenhope, Victoria, Australia.

I know how he feels, I remember those feelings well. Jim went on to say how he at times despaired at his slow progress and saw visions of a ½ built boat funeral pyre in the paddock. Yep, that feeling is familiar. There were many a time when I seriously gave thought to knocking away the chocks and letting a half built Arwen roll down the drive into the path of the on-coming trash collection lorry!

“The simple satisfaction of taking a hand plane to a plank or running some sand paper over the bowsprit always got me back. I look back at the build with great fondness and am very keen to see JWs plans that are on his drawing board. It does not seem right that there is no boat ½ built in the shed any more!” Jim

He says she was launched in December 2011 and that he has been out a few times locally and once on an overnighter, sleeping on board and sailing the waters of the Coorong, where the Murray River meets the Southern Ocean. Those names are just so evocative, giving me a sense of adventure, of long lost distance lands.

This photo shows Judy Ann beached at the camp at dawn on the Coorong trip.

Isn't this a well crafted, stunning photo

Jim goes on to say

“My next plan is to take the kids out on a few more sails, do some camp cruising and plan a proper big expedition for when my long service leave is due…. Lake Argyle in Western Australia perhaps, or maybe Cape York peninsula in Queensland. The possibilities seem endless with such a lovely boat”.

Endless possibilities. Yes there are and I have been thinking about those myself. How about sailing all the southern ports in Cornwall and Devon? My friend Dave and I have been thinking about towing our boats down to Fowey; sailing around that area; perhaps across to Mevagissy. Or perhaps down to the Fal and around Helford and Falmouth. Endless possibilities....yes I like that....a nice phrase.

Well Jim, Judy Ann looks magnificent and is a welcome addition to the JW navigator family. May you have many happy sails in her......and congratulations on such a fine looking boat.
Steve

securing anchors

2012-02-01T17:35:00.002Z

When I asked people on the forums what they did with their anchors, some interesting replies emerged. Robin, for example, thought the idea of an anchor on a roller was sound but that it shouldn’t be as far forward as I was suggesting. This is because too much weight right at the front of the boat will make it ‘bounce’ and dig into waves. He suggested maybe I could mount the roller alongside the bowsprit further back where it meets the stem. I could but then I would need to build a laminated arch of wood over it so that the jib sheet wouldn’t catch on (a point made by Richard). This is something Wayne has done on his navigator to very good effect. Both tips are really sensible.

Dave described his set up on his mirror dinghy. He has a 10lb fisherman anchor and a danforth on the deck. The anchors sit on ‘V’ shaped blocks (one on top of the other) and are lashed in place. A wooden dowel through the block serves as a cleat for tying them down. Occasionally he keeps the fisherman catted over the bow so that he can drop it easily in sheltered waters. Dave also drew attention to the way he lays out a transom stern anchor – starting it from the bow he lowers it and then runs the warp down the outside of the boat and cleats it off. The warp remains along the side of the boat out of the way avoiding chaos within tripping over it!

So...........secure anchor on deck but not far forward; build an arch to stop it catching the jib. Got that! Now how do I secure the rode and chain in the anchor locker so it doesn’t fall out in event of a capsize?

Thanks guys for the advice, appreciated as always.

Steve

2012-01-29T17:46:00.000Z

I’ve been thinking about sailing again. Up until this weekend all my thoughts have been about A level geography and the need to make sure that my students are fully prepared for their exam on Thursday. It is an issues paper in which they have to ‘unwrap’ a planning issue, in this case the Twin Bridges redevelopment of Poole. It takes so much time to prepare and research....but now the end is in sight............I hope!

Lots of things have been exercising my mind. Where to store my anchor so it is safer, more out of the way and easily accessible! How to better secure the ballast bags I sail with so in the event of a capsize, they remain secured to the floors and in Arwen! Whether I should be installing a bilge pump after the episode last August when it rained on the Fowey trip and I ended up with 6” of water sloshing around Arwen’s floors. I need to do a capsize test this year but finding somewhere sheltered, easily accessible and out of the way is a nightmare around Plymouth Sound. I am wondering about Cellars beach in the Yealm. And then there is the issue of lazy Jacks because I’m still not happy with the current arrangement; then on top of that there issue of reefing.

Um, someone told me that one of the joys of small boat sailing was thinking about the modifications you could make to make life easier................well I’m not so sure!

Anyway reefing! I don’t tend to sail in much over force four but that isn’t the point. I need to have a simple reefing system which I have practised at so that in an emergency I am familiar with it. I think I read somewhere, probably on Duckworks that a design Jim Michalak notes that if the wind doubles from 5 – 10 knots, the force on the sail will increase by four times.

So I need something that is quick, simple to do, reliable and definitely reduces the force operating on the sails so that sailing is safe and achievable. It has to allow me to still point into the wind and keep the boat balanced at all times. And of course, I have to be able to reef it whilst under way, well during a heave to! I know that you have to be more aware of the need to reef when heading up wind.

So how do I reef in Arwen? Well, in my head it goes like this. Up until now I have heaved to, lowered the mainsail slightly, let out the mainsheet and then slackened off the downhaul. Then I have transferred the downhaul to the first reef eye closest to the luff of the sail and then pulled the first reefing line at the aft end of the sprit boom. I have a sort of slab reefing system so the sail is pulled downwards and against the aft end of the sprit boom. Then I have brailed up the loose sail and tied it off with the reefing ropes so that it is neatly bundled below the sprit boom. Finally I then re-hoist the mainsail, tie off the halyard and tension the downhaul again.

But is this the right way? Should I actually leave the mainsail slightly lower down the mast? I have also wondered whether it might be easier to just heave to under jib/mizzen and completely drop the mains sail into the boat and reef it in there and then re-hoist the whole lot again.

And another thing.......with a yawl configuration, should I give consideration to what order I should shorten sail in? Somewhere, I think on Duckworth’s again, I read that I might consider shortening sail in this order..................full sail down to a single reefed main; from there I guess it is either a second reef or furl the jib. After that.....well I’m guessing here but I’d go jib and mizzen only – drop the main. If it is really blowy – drop the jib and mizzen and use a reefed main only. If I’m down to this I’m running downwind and for nearest cover I’m thinking!

well there we are....................

2012-01-25T19:53:00.000Z

My little outboard which had some problems has been fixed and is now residing at a local chandler and I have a credit note for £150........which I can spend piecemeal.....there is no time limit on it. So now it's thinking about what things to get.......creating a shopping list.....wow!

So..................on the list is

a fixed compass somewhere in the boat
a manual bilge pump....yes? no? not sure?
new flares cos the others are now out of date, yes? no? maybe? not sure? um!
a waterproof VHF?
a new set of oars (would rather make them frankly....but then there is a VESPA STUCK IN MY GARAGE STILL)
a little wind anemometer hand held thing?
a strobe laser torch instead of flares? Um not sure!
new life jackets - the others are 7 yrs old?
new cleats for the jib sheets - I want ones that mount on the inside of the boat and are easier to put the sheets in and out of
replacing my trailer rollers from the hard plastic to nice rubber ones - kinder on Arwen's hull?
paint for dings
canoe paddle blades for Angharad, Arwen's tender
anchor chocks - could I fit the Anchor to the foredeck without it snagging the jib sheet?
a clutch for the main halyard instead of my current cleat - would that be simpler and quicker to use or is it too new fangled?
hand held rechargeable spotlight?
new hatches because two have warped over the years and are leaking

I know I'm very lucky. What I was offered in cash was far less than the offer on the credit note. I've never had this some of money before to spend on Arwen.........so it has come as a surprise and sort of 'bonus'. Truthfully, we didn't expect the outboard after 11 years faithful service to be resurrected but there we go...a talented outboard engineer did some magic when others just said it was knackered. I knew that if someone could resurrect it, they'd get a good deal. I had it serviced annually; stored it tank dry during winter; flushed it with freshwater after every trip.......stored it upright etc, etc, etc.

I'll take my time deciding what to get; I won't spend it all at once. I'm conscious that the household budget is under pressure. This credit note can just sit here I think....it will cushion Arwen if there is an emergency - gear failure, accidental damage etc. A priority is a pair of paddles for Angharad and I can get a cheap pair for £15 at the store which is all I need.

I'm lucky, times are hard. I'll think it over a while..........just so long as the chandler remains in business!

Steve

but just out of interest, if people came into a little money to spend on their small boat what would they consider getting and why? I'd be interested to know.

2012-01-19T16:33:00.000Z

"Hi Steve, Phil here again, This is 1 area where I disagree with the RNLI. They maintain that other people will spot your flares and know your in trouble. Great, it doesn't mean they will react, and you don't know what's going on rescue wise. you are purely passive. After the VHF I think a mobile phone is best at the distance offshore that you sail you will almost certainly get a signal, and best of all you know that help is on it's way. Very important in the psychology of survival/rescue. Don't get me wrong I think the RNLI are fantastic, but they have to think that all people are incapable and do everything for them. Personally, I think self rescue is by far the best option. Good discussion point though. Phil"

There has been some good discussion in the comments below and also on the open boat forum. It does make me sit up and think and the comment from Phil above has really made me think. What if I capsize, can I actually right the boat? I can without all the sails onboard but have never tried it with sails in place. If I capsize its likely to be in gusty winds. The boat floats quite high so she is going to be drifting fairly quickly I suspect. I've got to free mizzen, main and jib sheets; retrieve the centreboard and then somehow turn the bow into the wind. Then I have to haul myself up onto the centreboard and using jib sheet try and get the boat upright. An open boat with a big cockpit there will be a fair amount of water in her - a bucket and bale like hell job. Things will be floating about although they are all tied onto the hull. The anchor in the bucket, I hope, will have stayed in it secured by the bungee across the top but, honestly, I'm not sure about that.

So worst case scenario, I'm in the water holding onto a drifting boat and trying to use VHF; if VHF is out I do have mobile phone and as Phil says 4 miles out transmission signal should be fine. Closer in, well my experience is patchy. Within 500m of a cliffy shoreline - it's zero!

So I think in the worst case scenario when VHF and phone have failed I'll see what is around; if there are boats within visibility and its that life threatening; or impossible to right the boat - an orange floating smoke to attract attention and get help. If they don't seem to be coming then activate the SPOT and then another orsange smoke (which of course makes the assumption that you have been able to retrieve them from the boat within a grab bag). If boats arrive then I can use their VHF to alert coastguard of the situation so when they get the SPOT message they know not to react. In fact I wonder if there is someway I can cancel an emergency button on the SPOT? Must check that.

So is this a safe plan, what do people think? Has anyone actually worked out scenarios for what they do in such eventualities? If you have I'd love to hear from you about your 'plans'.

Phil thanks for your comments. They've started an important train of thought which hopefully will lead to me being safer on the water. Appreciated.

Steve

Flares on small open boats?

2012-01-16T22:25:00.000Z

“Hello! For those of you who carry flares, what do you recommend. Arwen's handheld flares have expired and I want to get new ones. Does anyone have any views on types, makes etc which would be most useful for someone like me who coastal dinghy cruises up to about four or five miles off shore along the coast anywhere ranging from Falmouth along to Torquay? (but mainly based around Plymouth). Any thoughts or recommendations?”

An innocent enough question I thought, posed to one of the forums I subscribe to! And what a flurry of opinions and comments it led to, all of which were quite illuminating (I’m sure there is a pun in there somewhere....flares......illuminating? Never mind!)

copyright mailspeed.com

Some commented that they don’t carry flares because they are dangerous, scary and prone to the odd misfire or two, as experienced by an RYA Yachtmaster instructor during a class demonstration a year or two ago, when it malfunctioned, exploding backwards into him! Some people have experienced them melting under intense heat and so the message is – wear a really thick leather glove when you let them off. Now let me think, I’m sinking, sending off a mayday and will I remember the glove? Um! Some commented that it relied on people seeing it, recognising it and, if at sea taking accurate bearings and reporting its position accurately to coastguard. Some dryly observed ‘if they were listening’ – a reference to our HM Coastguard cuts we are experiencing here in the UK.

Inevitably many commented about the problem of disposal of them. What do you do with expired ones if you haven’t let them off on November 5th or 31st December? I can never get a clear answer from anyone about what to do with my old flares. I’ve offered them to our local mountain rescue group for training purposes and am awaiting a reply! Well I thought this was a good idea. I did mountain leadership training and if flares are not too out of date they could be useful in training sessions?
Many people were in favour of waterproof VHF handheld radios as the primary safety gear. If you couldn’t reach coastguard, a mayday relay to another boat probably would. Laser lights were mentioned but I think the jury is out at the moment on their effectiveness. Someone from Orkney commented that the coastguard and helicopter teams had tested one up there and that while they were good as a signalling device, it was felt they were not as effective as a flare. Many mentioned carrying EPIRBS or smaller personal locator beacons. I carry a SPOT PLB.

And what about the situation in which you find yourself needing to set off a flare? Someone drily commented that you are likely to be capsized and the flares under water.......there is an issue about where exactly you keep them to hand on the boat isn’t there? Near the tiller? In an emergency grab bag that floats? Actually, where do people keep their flares when onboard?

Some people are, like me, carrying a pack of mini flares. I carry them in a buoyancy aid pocket. If I go in, they go in with me! I like these. I’m familiar with them having used them in mountain rescue situations before.

A few people did comment that they carried orange handheld smoke flares and that these were more visible in daylight and the smoke lingered for a good 15 minutes. I like orange smokes as well. I carry an orange ‘smoke can’ which you can throw in the water as well.

copyright: safety-marine.co.uk

I have to say that that kind of flare does pinpoint and last a long time!

So where does this leave me?

1. I am the paranoid type. I think if it is electronic, waterproof or not, it is likely to fail just when you need it. Worst case scenario – both VHF and PLB go down at the same time

2. Planning for that highly unlikely but just my luck scenario.....I need to carry something else!

3. Something else is one pack of miniflares on my person; and a set of orange handheld smokes easy to hand. Perhaps two orange smoke cans as well.

4. Very hot red fiery flares...um.......not so sure and since I don’t do night sailing....but then what if I get caught out on a long passage and end up capsizing at dusk? Well it could happen!

5. Anti collision white flares.........lesson is don’t put self in situation where likely to collide with something if you can help it! Keep a good eye out?

In saying all this, a few people pointed out that you need to let flares off in two and a good combination is 1 minute red flare to attract attention followed by 1 orange flare to keep location in sight. Makes sense. Someone observed that flares are damn good for starting fires of driftwood should you have to swim to shore, wet, cold and exhausted. It’s a fair point!

So.......if I’m sailing normally maximum of four miles offshore and normally along a coastline.........what should I go for? Anyone got any more thoughts before I make a decision?

My thanks to all those who kindly replied on the openboat forum. Their advice and thoughts, as always, well considered and thoughtful, based on practical experiences. Ladies and gents – thanks!

Steve

Up and running and functioning well.........

2012-01-14T15:42:00.001Z

one tohatsu outboard 3.5 hp standard shaft. Been serviced, worn parts replaced and ticking over sweetly.

or can see it here at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofNrGtY3I0k

a wonderful surprise................

2012-01-11T16:56:00.000Z

My family got together last week with the family of my close friend. We (the adults) are teachers; the children are the same ages and we have known each other for nearly twenty one years! We get on well and enjoy each others company. My friend is my sailing partner - he got me into boat building when he handed over a partially completed 'Highlander' which needed fitting out and painting. That was my first boat 'Pugwash'. I loved that boat and we pottered around Plymouth Sound. It was my fishing boat - I never bothered to build the mast, centreboard case etc. I just used it as a fishing dinghy with my old tohatsu 3.5 hp engine hanging off the side. It was taking life in your hands at times. It only had a 14" high freeboard; and out in a swell - life got interesting if you stood up. On one occasion I caught a bass and nearly joined it in the briny when trying to lift it out of the water with a net.

Anyway I'm digressing. My friend - my sailing buddy, sailing mentor and sailing instructor (he's very experienced, owned several small boats and handles Arwen far better than me!!) surprised me last week by presenting me with a new red hard backed log book for Arwen. I'm really chuffed! Up to now I record voyages on the blog in general details and I briefly summarise the voyage in an RYA logbook which is getting tatty.

Now this new log book - well - what can I say - it has everything! there are pages for waypoint lists, serial numbers of my equipment (outboard to VHF radio); a visitors page and an very useful page on buoyage because I keep forgetting which side of cardinal buoy points to go on!

The actual log pages are very detailed. There are sections of tides and weather forecast updates (nicely arranged into sea areas, wind now, wind later, weather, sea state and visibility). The main page is columns (time, course steered, log reading (haven't got one of them on Arwen), wind speed (need one of those hand held windy things - anemometers), latitude, longitude, barometer (nope missing one of them too); tide adjustments and then a wide column at the end for log narrative). Each page has plenty of space to write on.

It was a really nice kind gesture and now I'm faced with a dilemma - should I back date it i.e. fill in all my entries from the old RYA paper log book (which are thin on detail) or should I just start the new red log book from 2012?

Umm! decisions, decisions! How much time do I have; what's the point of copying it all out again (although it makes nice reading); can I just elastic band in the old book to the inside cover of the new one?

i think I'm leaning to finding a way of inserting the old log book by gluing it to the back inside cover. The trailer tickets which I get each time I visit QAB I also keep in an envelope and I could glue those into the inside front cover. in this way everything including my dinghy certificates are all inside the new red book - a perfect solution!

Did I say Arwen and I are really chuffed to have a new shiny red log book from our good friend?

Steve

new splashproof Aquabourne windup radio for Arwen

2012-01-04T17:24:00.000Z

I also had another really useful Christmas present from my sister in law and her husband......a lovely Aquabourne wind up/solar 2 band am/fm radio....which is splash proof.

Now I have for sometime been getting rather frustrated and confused in the boat. Occasionally I like to listen to the radio especially on my longer passages and up until now I have had to use my mobile phone. This is fine but it requires me using headphones and so I then can’t hear any radio messages properly from my handheld VHF. Apart from which, don’t you find that constant mini earphones in your ears start to make them burn after a time – or maybe it is just me frying my brains! And worse still....sometimes I can’t quite work out whether the voice I’m hearing is from the radio or from the VHF which makes listening to dramas on the radio ....a confusing experience .......because they are interlaced with weather reports, people doing CH16 voice checks and on occasions the inane twittering conversations of idiots conversing on CH16 instead of some other one.
There are some huge advantages to this new radio addition to Arwen’s inventory!

• It never needs batteries, having an integrated solar charging panel, compact folding winding handle and the ability to charge it by USB (cable supplied)

• Apparently it is energy efficient and thus will work for a long time on low amounts of energy (highly environmentally friendly and cost effective)

• Thanks to a 14 inch extendable and adjustable aerial it has fantastic reception – I am genuinely really impressed with it

• It has a 3 high power LED torch built in and an alarm clock.

• You can charge up iPods, phones etc using the crank handle

• It’s a nice compact design and lightweight

• After 1 hour of charging in sunlight radio will work for 20 – 30 minutes; works for 7 – 9 hours when fully charged.

• It has a robust, tough feel to it – the build quality seems good and it has a rubber coating which feels grippy

It does take a little winding I must say. The old wrist starts to give up after a while especially if you crank it at the recommended three turns per second. However, it is a minor niggle. I’m well chuffed with this little gadget and can’t wait to road test it on Arwen’s next trip

Steve

marine conservation zones....and a little help if you have the time

2012-01-02T17:41:00.000Z

Regular readers will know that my daughter is studying wildlife conservation at university here in the UK and she's in her second year. One of her small research assignments is to create a questionnaire on an environmental/wildlife issue of her choice and she's chosen to do it on marine conservation zones. Readers will know that I have expressed my own personal views about MCZ's in posts early last year (which elicited some interesting comments for and against from bloggers on both sides of the arguments). Anyway, the UK government is looking to set up 27 MCZ's around our inshore waters and consultation with interested stakeholders is about to begin. My daughter is interested in 'how informed or aware of the proposed MCZ's are the British public?'

If you live in the UK and read this blog; and if you can spare three minutes to visit this website below to complete her questionnaire, my daughter would be exceedingly grateful. I don't think it is breaking any blogging rules. She is aiming to get a random sample size of 50 people. Her questionnaire/survey is here and it is completely anonymous.

http://www.kwiksurveys.com/?s=OCMIKO_b344c7e3

I am still reading up on the proposed MCZ's and will when I have digested the various proposals try and give a summary about their location, structure and the proposed consultation mechanism here on the blog. At the moment my daughter and I can see arguments both for and against them. I expected her to be very pro conservation but actually she is closer to my stance than I realised. My current stance without too much reading is that I welcome anything that helps conserve or develop our declining inshore marine biodiversity AS LONG AS it does not lead to increasing economic hardship for those who depend on the sea for a living. If the latter group of people were able to gain from the establishment of MCZ's then all the better.
That is my initial viewpoint. I'm sure it will become better informed as I read more about the proposals, consultation process and the pro's and con's of the MCZ's.

Anyway, if you could help my daughter complete her questionnaire, both of us would be very grateful to you. In the meantime a happy new year to you and I hope you had a good Christmas and new year festivities.

Steve

PS a head's up - plans for the new year - or perhaps new year's resolutions
1. get out sailing at least once per month
2. when the lighter longer evenings arrive - go sailing in the evening (heresy! I'm a teacher - we work every evening....what am I saying?)
3. fix that spare wheel to the trailer
4. make and fix an outboard bracket onto the trailer
5. sort out those lazy jacks once and for all
6. re varnish the mast
7. touch up dents and dings
8. sail up the dart or sail down the dart from Totnes; overnight in the estuary and sail back up again
9. take Dad sail camping up the Tamar for a couple of days
10. tow the boat down to Falmouth and sail a few days around the various rivers in the area
11. actually join the dinghy cruising association on one of their jaunts
12. think about whether Arwen is 'good enough' to enter the 'watercraft amateur boat building awards' at Beale park because for the first time ever, half term falls on the four days of the festival...........may be this is overambitious here.........the standards at Beale are SO HIGH!!
13. do a longer coastal expedition - Plymouth - Salcombe - Dartmouth - Torquay....sounds an interesting adventure!
14. stop being lazy and learn to sail onto and off a mooring properly without using the outboard!!
15. build a new set of oars for Arwen

Overboard Waterproof Rucsack 30 Lt

2011-12-30T23:24:00.000Z

I had a lovely Christmas present from Mum and Dad. It was an ‘Overboard 30 Lt waterproof rucksack'. I’d been looking at one for some time umming and arring whether to get one or not. I have another over the shoulder overboard roll top waterproof bag and it has been excellent.

Mine is identical to this one except it is all one colour - black.

The rucksack is 100% waterproof and suitable for quick submersion but not for a prolonged underwater experience! It is one main compartment with a small zipped pocket inside for keys etc. The back panel is padded at shoulders and lumber area and there are padded shoulder straps, a chest strap and a waist belt. The back panel has an air flow design.

It has a roll top which clips in one of two ways – either together or down the sides of the sac. Apparently the sac will float if dropped into the water and protects everything within from sand, dirt, water and dust. With a large elasticated mesh outer pocket for water bottle or sun-cream, a top carrying handle and reflective patches so it can be easily seen in torch light, its construction seems robust with welded seals.

So that’s a brief description but what about first impressions?

Well. I’m impressed with the build quality and toughness of the material. All seams are fully welded. It has an excellent array of adjustable straps and is comfortable to wear although I’ve yet to try it fully packed. The bungee drawstrings across the front of the sac are very good for holding waterproofs; the elasticated pocket holds my sigg water bottle and the internal pocket is big enough for keys, mobile phone etc.
Sealing the pack up was easy; the normal way we all know across the top and then a way of fastening using side clips illustrated in the diagrams below from the overboard website.

One side buckle is non moveable; the other is adjustable and I found this a little fiddly at first. Another slight bugbear is one I have with all one compartment sacs. It’s a nightmare rummaging around to find anything in the main compartment, especially small things!

I intend using it as a daypack to hold packed lunches, flasks, spare hat, gloves and sunnies and sun creams etc, etc. On camping trips – it will hold spare clothes, sleeping bag, bivvy bag etc. I think it will be an amazing piece of kit and when I have given it a road test or two I’ll report back further. In the meantime, Mum, Dad, a wonderful present – which will remind me of you both each time I’m on Arwen. Thank you! I love it – a brilliant present.

Steve

PS

One of my sisters gave me a musto sailing baseball cap as well which has a clip that attaches it to your collar. My wife bought me a sealskinz bush hat as well. Again really thoughtful presents. I am a lucky man to have family who think about my needs

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T21:06:00.000Z

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone. May you have a wonderful day with all your family and friends and may you all have many exciting but safe adventures on the water in 2012

Steve and Arwen

The last Christmas Tree ship of the Great lakes!

2011-12-20T17:33:00.000Z

The Sailing of the Rouse Simmons

“Sight of the little schooner brought joy and gladness to the hearts of hundreds and thousands. The arrival of the ship at Chicago, with its trees lashed to its masts, was a happy traditional occasion, marking the start of the Yule season… The owner of the Christmas Tree Ship was as much loved by his crew as he was by the thousands of children he made happy at about this time of year.”

Manitowoc Herald

November 24, 1962

While it was nothing but a weary old lumber schooner, the “Christmas Tree Ship” was a Chicago institution. To area families, its arrival signified the beginning of the Christmas Season. Each year just after Thanksgiving, the ship would make its journey from the Far North piled high with wreaths and freshly-cut pines—delivering its precious cargo to eager turn-of-the-century Chicagoans at a dock near the Clark Street bridge.

In approximately 1885 August and his brother Herman Schuenemann moved to Chicago to seek out their fortune. Chicago’s Harbor was one of the busiest in the world at this time with over 20,000 vessels entering and leaving annually. As competition was fierce, the brothers became excellent businessmen as well as sailors. Although they made a relatively good living, two-thirds of their annual income was generated between Thanksgiving and Christmas with the sale of trees

The Captain in the centre with fellow sailors

On August 15, 1868, the Milwaukee Sentinel announced the launching of a new sailing vessel built in one of the city’s local shipyards. The schooner, christened Rouse Simmons, launched from the shipyard of Allan, McClelland & Company had a length overall of 127 feet; a beam, 27 feet 6 inches; and a depth 8 feet 1 inch. She weighed around about 220 tons. Described as having a sharp entrance and beautiful run and built of the finest timbers ever, her cost when fully completed and ready for sea was $17,000. She carried three masts, was fore-and-aft rigged, with a square sail on the foremast.

The Rouse Simmons

Copyright: Charles Vickery.com

Her owners were Royal B. Tousley and Captain Akerman, of Kenosha, the latter of whom commanded her. She was designed for the lumber trade and plied between Manistee and Chicago. However, she also had capacity for 16,000 bushels of grain. She was then one of the largest boats on the Great Lakes and was the pride of its builder. Later, as larger and faster boats were built, the Rouse Simmons was used for the transportation of iron and copper ores, lumber, piling and rough stock of all descriptions.
Although the majority of the ship’s life was spent hauling lumber, the vessel became tragically remembered for its last cargo - Christmas trees. On December 6, 1912, the Milwaukee Sentinel reported that the schooner had gone missing in “the vicinity of Twin River Point” – an area that had “long been considered one of the most dangerous portions of the lake, having earned through its many wrecks and wild waters the name of ‘the graveyard of the lake". On November 23, 1912, Captain Herman Schuenemann had been transporting a Yuletide cargo of evergreens with the Simmons when the ship was caught in a ferocious storm and subsequently sunk.

Copyright: Wisconsin archives.org

The Schuenemann family were famous in the area. They were one of the first merchants, as well as one of the last to carry Christmas trees. Their involvement in the Christmas tree industry lasted nearly a half century.
For more than twenty-five years Captain Schuenemann had operated boats in the tree trade on the lake… the average load for the schooner was between three hundred and four hundred tons of trees. The big trees were loaded on deck while the wreath material and small trees were put into the hold.

Elise, the Captn's daughter at the helm of the Rouse Simmons

The Simmons was a symbol of a more peaceful, innocent time before World War I when the horse and the sailing vessel gave their slow, gentle imprint to the tempo of life. Crowds came aboard to pick over the trees. The sounds of excitement and laughter mingled with the clop-clop of horses across the bridge and the pleasant smell of evergreens. It was a pleasant way to end the shipping season – surrounded by happy families a short ride from the Schuenemann home…It was the children that made it so joyous. They loved the Christmas Tree Ship as much as the Schuenemanns loved having them aboard. Yes, it was a good end for a hard summer on the lake.

Despite the warm glow of Yuletide feelings, life for the Schuenemann brothers was for the most part hard work and danger. But hard work and danger were things sailors had been used to since they first put to sea. Besides, it was their life. The brothers would buy old lumber schooners for a song and wring the last bit of life out of them, nosing into every port along the lake, seeking cargo. It was a chancy business made even chancier by the tempestuous nature of the lake, where storms were universally feared. No one knew better than Herman Schuenemann how dangerous late-season voyages on Lake Michigan could be…Had the Rouse Simmons been anything other than the Christmas Tree Ship, her loss probably would never have been remembered. Half a dozen other ships were missing after the same storm that claimed the Simmons, and none of their names are remembered. But because the Simmons was something special to the people of Chicago, the Christmas Tree Ship earned her place in legend and history. For the sentimental, there is the thought that men were willing to risk – and lose – their lives to make Christmas brighter. To historians, the Christmas Tree Ship symbolizes the end of an era – the death of commercial sailing on the Great Lakes. World War I was about to begin, and steam alone could keep pace with the demands of a nation preparing for war…Perhaps it was best that Captain Schuenemann, his crew, and the Rouse Simmons died the way they did. In a few short years the world would know that there were worse ways for men and ships to die…

…The world was changing. Although schooners had dominated the waters for a time, that time had passed. By 1912 few remained, and those that did were looked upon as insignificant ships hauling insignificant cargos. One of the cargos hauled by the last schooners afloat on the waters were Christmas trees - a cargo that couldn’t be damaged if hauled in a leaking, old vessel.

Steve

The information provided above is a partial excerpt from the book THE HISTORIC CHRISTMAS TREE SHIP: A True Story of Faith, Hope and Love by Rochelle Pennington.

Progress on 'Stacey' the 1971 motovespa super 125

2011-12-20T17:20:00.001Z

Number one son, well he's my only son actually, managed to get some work done on 'Stacey' his 1971 motovespa today. He's installed the horn and its new rubber gasket.

The speedo has been fixed and the front steering column assembled. The front wheel has been added and the front mudguard attached. The Number plates have been added and finally he drilled some holes and added the prestigious vespa logo.

Now he has a lot of revision to do over the next few days for exams immediately after Christmas but maybe he and I can steal a morning dropping the engine to install the carb and the choke levers etc. After that it is just the headset. Wow! The end is in sight and at last I might get my garage back so I can re varnish the mast; make a set of double blade paddles for Angharad; and possibly even roll Arwen over and squeeze her in for a new paint job!

Steve

Christmas at Sea

2011-12-19T19:47:00.000Z

"CHRISTMAS AT SEA"

The sheets were frozen hard, and they cut the naked hand;

The decks were like a slide, where a seamen scarce could stand;

The wind was a nor'wester, blowing squally off the sea;

And cliffs and spouting breakers were the only things a-lee.

They heard the surf a-roaring before the break of day;

But 'twas only with the peep of light we saw how ill we lay.

We tumbled every hand on deck instanter, with a shout,

And we gave her the maintops'l, and stood by to go about.

All day we tacked and tacked between the South Head and the North;

All day we hauled the frozen sheets, and got no further forth;

All day as cold as charity, in bitter pain and dread,

For very life and nature we tacked from head to head.

We gave the South a wider berth, for there the tide-race roared;

But every tack we made we brought the North Head close aboard:

So's we saw the cliffs and houses, and the breakers running high,

And the coastguard in his garden, with his glass against his eye.

The frost was on the village roofs as white as ocean foam;

The good red fires were burning bright in every 'long-shore home;

The windows sparkled clear, and the chimneys volleyed out;

And I vow we sniffed the victuals as the vessel went about.

The bells upon the church were rung with a mighty jovial cheer;

For it's just that I should tell you how (of all days in the year)

This day of our adversity was blessed Christmas morn,

And the house above the coastguard's was the house where I was born.

O well I saw the pleasant room, the pleasant faces there,

My mother's silver spectacles, my father's silver hair;

And well I saw the firelight, like a flight of homely elves,

Go dancing round the china-plates that stand upon the shelves.

And well I knew the talk they had, the talk that was of me,

Of the shadow on the household and the son that went to sea;

And O the wicked fool I seemed, in every kind of way,

To be here and hauling frozen ropes on blessed Christmas Day.

They lit the high sea-light, and the dark began to fall.

"All hands to loose topgallant sails," I heard the captain call.

"By the Lord, she'll never stand it," our first mate Jackson, cried.

..."It's the one way or the other, Mr. Jackson," he replied.

She staggered to her bearings, but the sails were new and good,

And the ship smelt up to windward just as though she understood.

As the winter's day was ending, in the entry of the night,

We cleared the weary headland, and passed below the light.

And they heaved a mighty breath, every soul on board but me,

As they saw her nose again pointing handsome out to sea;

But all that I could think of, in the darkness and the cold,

Was just that I was leaving home and my folks were growing old.

By Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-94).

a new blog

2011-12-19T17:37:00.002Z

Another navigator blog has appeared. If you own a navigator, feel for Dave! He has bought one with sections missing. You can visit his blog at http://davesnavigator.blogspot.com/

Steve

'Stacey' update

2011-12-17T17:52:00.000Z

The steering column is slowly being assembled. The front brakes have been fitted; the oil seals and roller bearing cages put in and the shock absorber fitted.

We have re-tapped the stripped stud on the wheel hub and threaded the cables down through the steering column. All that remains is attaching the speedo and brake cables; adding on the wheel hub and tyre and installing the bottom steering races.

I think we are getting there at long last.

Steve

Mind you we still have the carb, regulator and wiring to do; the headset with throttle and gear cables and headlight.....mmm .......maybe a little bit more than we thought

an outboard mounting bracket on a trailer??

2011-12-15T19:28:00.000Z

Is there any reason why this idea shouldn't be done because it seems to me to be such a simple, elegant solution to an age old problem for small boat trailer sailors, that I cannot believe people haven't done it before! Am I missing something obviously wrong with this idea? Go to http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/12/chest/jan/index.html
and scroll down to trailer outboard mount section.

If you think of reasons why it shouldn't be done drop me a comment please. I have to say that it irritates me immensely having to put the outboard in the car each time and trying to keep it upright wedged behind the drivers seat. I could put an outboard mount on my trailer with no problem and I have to do a spare wheel mount on it over the winter so this is not that much extra work.

So what am I missing....why haven't small boat trailer sailors done this before....or have they and I'm only just catching up with them? Conundrums, conundrums...........

And here is another conundrum.......why is it that when I am desperate to go sailing, the weather is really fine and perfect but I'm stuck in school; and when I get to a holiday, the weather immediately changes and becomes howling gales? Is there some 'Interrelationship Law' of metaphysics/meteorology/employment that I am unaware of?

It would be nice to get one more sail in before 2011 ends......but time is running out!

Steve

anchors for small boats

2011-12-12T17:21:00.000Z

The John Welsford forum has been discussing anchors and anchor rodes. Someone was wondering how much anchor weight, chain and rode is needed for a navigator.

Everyone has their pet theory/idea. I carry two anchors on Arwen. One is a plough CQR type anchor and weighs in at 15lbs. It has 8m of chain on it and then some 50m of rode. My second anchor is a 10 lb danforth, again with 6m of chain and 40m of rode. I use this one as a stern anchor. Both are moused i.e. the shackles are wired so they don’t come loose.

the main anchor is stored in that upright bin on the right hand side of the for'ard cockpit - not the best idea is it!

Storing the anchors is my problem. The main anchor doesn’t fit in the anchor well and so I store it in an old kitchen waste bin which is bungee strapped into the front cockpit well (starboard side). The anchor rode is stored in the anchor well. I am very conscious that this is not a sound arrangement. In the event of a capsize, that anchor is going to fall out with disastrous consequences and so this winter I must find some way of strapping it securely to the deck or the inside of the cockpit so it doesn’t fall out! However, I then need to get a system which avoids the jib sheet getting fouled on the anchor. Ho hum!

the main anchor is so big it doesn't fit inside the anchor well

The stern anchor is stored with its rode in a plastic tray on the cockpit floor, port side for’ard cockpit. It is bungee corded securely in place and the whole lot just doesn’t shift at all without release of all the bungee cords. I am far happier about that arrangement!

I also carry the set up for my pulley anchor system using floating rope although Joel has made some good points about the dangers of floating rope. Where I’d use it I want it highly visible and floating so people could see it!

I know I need to get some more anchor rode – I could do with another 50m which I could store in one of the lockers but tie on as and when to the main anchor rode. However, I rarely anchor in anything over 15m....so what I have should be ample even during spring tides.

In the meantime, here is a nice video clip – from 1943 – from little Dunkirk ships to the rescue of an RAF pilot who ditched in the sea. The port where the boats are built looks awfully like Falmouth area to me but I could be wrong! I had problems hearing the sound because my laptop is on the blink. Anyway, enjoy it at http://vimeo.com/21410102

Steve

some quick news on lazy jacks and other things

2011-12-07T16:50:00.000Z

'Stacey' has been given a clean bill of health by Grahame from the Troglodytes! Just in case you think that is a rather harsh thing to call someone from Cornwall, i should point out that they are a scooter club! Grahame very kindly offered to take a look at 'Stacey's' engine as he is only 40 minute run from us. He poked and prodded and twisted things and declared that
a) the wheel would spin freely around the brake shoes....IF I had it in neutral in the first place!
b) IF it had been put in neutral, then the clutch would work fine!!
c) the gears seemed to be selecting OK when the wheel was spun and the gear selector arm moved.

Boy do I feel stupid! Grahame was a real gent....friendly, good humoured and patient. He calmly explained everything so I better understood in THAT voice. You know the one.....the one teachers use when they are trying to help a very slow student get an understanding of something.......!
Grahame - you were a star man and we are deeply grateful for your time and expertise - thank you. Grahame is about to start a new spare parts Internet business for scooters and when he does - we will make sure we are his first customers

With regard to lazy jacks, well progress is being made here as well. Robin who lives in St Kitt's and Nevis (is that really the paradise I like to think it is? Cos if it is....he's one lucky man because it's barely above freezing here!). Anyway, Robin posted some photos and a sketch of his arrangement on his pathfinder which I show below. Now I just have to get my dim head around them and then apply the same principles to Arwen...one of which is adding another halyard which runs to the lower forward end of the upper yard so that the whole yard can be controlled in a descent using two halyards not one!

Steve

the instructions

port side arrangement

starboard side arrangements

an elegant and orderly drop into the boat - huh! I'm jealous

what organisation should look like!

photographs copyright - Robin C

I will post more and comment on them at a later date but thanks Rob for being so generous with time and advice - much appreciated

lazy jacks on small boats and some advice

2011-11-27T18:49:00.000Z

My friend who owns a post boat has had something to say about the Lazy Jacks on Arwen. And he should know because he has sailed her often enough. He made some good points actually. He summed it up like this

“the problem on ARWEN when you drop the gaff is that the balance of the gaff on one halyard is to the rear, hence the peak (outward end) falls first, and because it now has no other restraint on it as the sail has ballooned, it swings out or any where it wants”.

That’s about the best summing up I’ve heard of the problem!

He went on to suggest that maybe looking at his boat might help. It has two halyards. One is at the peak; the other at the throat next to the mast. Using the two halyards to control the fall of the yard, you force the descent of the throat first. This has the effect of ‘brailing’ (furling the sail towards the mast). He points out that this is often seen on big gaff rigged boats such as Humber Yawls, Norfolk Wherries and Thames Barges. Once the power is out of the sail and the throat starts to descend, the peak halyard can be released in a controlled fashion as the leverage on the gaff has moved forward due to throat and sail falling. All being well, the result should be that the whole lot should fall between the lazy jacks. He does finish by saying “Well that’s the theory anyway”.

So....option one – get another halyard running......which is interesting because I’ve just discovered something on the plans which I never noticed or checked before. My mast builder put in one sheave in the mast top. On John’s plans, there are two! Oops!

Osbert has never found the lack of topping lifts to be an issue on his Walkabout balanced lug main. He always use the mizzen (and/or sea anchor) to keep her head to wind while lowering the sail and then lashes the sail, yard and boom together with the tail end of the downhaul. The thought of more lines to get tangled up in fills him with horror! Horror? Osbert my friend, you have no idea what ‘lazy jack horror’ is until you’ve been with me on Arwen!

Hajo had this to say:

“Balanced lug sails have the same issue. I used the following lazy jacks’ setup on my mixer2 (That's a 12 ft boat). It handled it fine; so it shouldn't be an issue on Arwen”.

He suggested I look at this link which took me to this image below:

> http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/06/howto/junkrig/lazyjacks.htm

copyright duckworks and original author

Quite a nice simple arrangement actually.

Robin suggested this arrangement:

“What I ended up doing was putting a double block at the mast head; I then fed a line which acted as a topping lift for the sprit and as a lazy jack for the topping lift side. So the line went from 1/3rd of the way back from the boom end (anchor hitch) up to one side of the double block and back down to the sprit with another anchor hitch1/3 rd aft of the mast. You now have a triangular looking line that holds the sprit up when you drop the main and prevents the sail and gaff from spilling over the port side ( I have my sprit on the port side of the mast). I then put another line through the other side of the double block starboard side of the gaff and sail down under the foot of the sail and then up on the port side of the sail to the sprit and then tied off to the same points as the port side topping lift. This provides two lines to catch the sail when it is dropped at the foot. When you lower the main, it is caught by the two lazy jack lines and is constrained by the two lazy jacks to starboard and the topping lift to port. The gaff likewise will come down within these lines. Tighten the main to stop it all swinging around and then when you are ready you can sort the sail up and tie it up properly”.

Yet again, my friend, and forum members come to the rescue of an amateur in all sense of the word. Thanks guys. Ho hum!! We live and learn.......and I’m a great advocator of ‘life-long learning’. I just wish, sometimes, I could learn a little less, a lot faster, with less pain and humiliation!

Steve

PS I will get around to thanking you all in person via email..when I've waded through lesson planning and 'A' level marking. I just posted this quickly as a break to save my sanity. Thanks guys.

A 'Stacey' motovespa update

2011-11-26T18:22:00.000Z

‘So where are you with ‘Stacey’’ someone asked recently. A good question I thought. Progress on ‘Stacey’ has stalled slightly after some of the big setbacks already reported in the blog. Let’s think.....

1. A motor scooter specialist MOT guy has confirmed that the floor welding is solid and secure and he’d pass it MOT no problem.

2. Our welder/fabricator reckons he can cut a piece of aluminium the shape of the missing leg shield section and weld it without Damaging the existing paint work.

3. Our sprayers have some of the original spray left and are happy to spray a small section and match it in as best they can.......good job it will be hidden by front mudguard

We have enough spare paint to gently touch up the odd scratch and although we will see instantly where we have done so, anyone not knowing would have to get within a foot of the scoot and know where to look before noticing any touch ups....so that’s good news.

So what about the engine I hear people ask?

Ah. That could be a different issue altogether! You see we have several little issues here and the problem is our lack of experience doesn’t give us any prior knowledge to operate from. Basically we don’t know what things should be like. So, issues from the top are

1. When the rear wheel hub is off the brake arm moves and the brakes expand no problem. When the rear wheel and hub are put back on that arm will not budge a mm. Everyone said we had the wrong brake pads sent to us by Beedspeed. Al at Beedspeed says they are the right ones. We ordered a new set from Allstyles – and same problem! So that needs looking at

2. Gear selector movement seems to be stuck to two positions only – so that needs checking

3. The clutch arm has some play in it and then reaches the end of the play when it becomes completely solid. I don’t know whether we should feel pressure as it depresses the clutch plates or not – so that needs checking

4. The exhaust fitting to the main engine arm is an odd one and if used leaves barely 5mm gap between fixing and front wall of tyre – too close if you accept tyres expand when warm. So we are using a car exhaust U clamp which holds it really securely and gives greater clearance but doesn’t really look pretty

And then there is the slight shock a friend of ours has given us and this is where we’d like some views or comment please! He saw the letters PK on the flywheel and wonders whether or not we have a PK engine in a motovespa? Now being green as grass we wouldn’t know the difference.....so from the photographs below – can anyone tell us whether it is a PK engine or not? Or can you fit a PK flywheel to this kind of engine? The engine number matches what you’d expect for a motovespa of this age....so? Any views – we need all the help we can get.

In the meantime, a real nice gent from one of the vespa forums who lives not far away in Cornwall has offered to take a look at the engine if we pop down and see him one Saturday. A generous offer and we’ll be taking him up on it. There really are some great, kind people out there aren’t there.

Steve
Below are some photographs of the engine in original condition, stripped and reassembled

restored but have we done it right?

the old flywheel has PK and a number on it - so is this a PK engine?

The new exhaust with a problematic engine arm fitting bracket

the gear shift arms which seem to have only two positions

inside after we had stripped it all apart and water blasted it clean

we followed an outstanding tutorial given to us on how to put these back together correctly - we followed it precisely

all seals replaced with new ones

all bearings replaced

new clutch plates soaked in oil and later inserted correctly

someone did a malossi conversion of some form

the casings split, stripped and cleaned up

before we split the casings

our first look inside

when it first came out of the frame

lazy jacks on small boats with standing lugsail arrangements

2011-11-24T21:22:00.000Z

Lazy jacks......they are occupying too much of my mind at the moment. When you have limited brain cells and a short term memory problem, then this is not a healthy use of the tiny cells. Especially with A Level marking and module preparation lurking in the wings! Then there is the continuing saga of ‘Stacey’ our motovespa restoration (just don’t get me started on that one).

Arwen’s lazy jacks don’t seem to be working as I’d planned. No surprises there really. Nothing I plan ever actually works in reality! When out sailing last week the forward end of the upper yard managed to go the wrong side of a lazy jack (I’m still trying to work out the physics momentum that allowed it to happen) with some serious consequences; namely the mainsail didn’t fully lower. In fact it got jammed half way down the mast and involved some jumping up and down and severe arm stretching to ‘bounce’ the yard back down the mast. Fine when you have a very competent sailor guest on board who can steer Arwen into the wind. A complete nightmare if I had been single handed! I also noticed that after tacking the top yard had managed on several occasions to move from its normal starboard side of the mast to end up on the port side of it....so it had managed to ‘dip’ itself as well!

I really am a lousy sailor/sail trimmer aren’t I! I have this unique ability to overcomplicate the simple!

The original intent behind the lazy jacks was to help ‘catch the sail’ as it was lowered. I found that when lowering the sail – the upper part of the yard would come down first, rapidly, and with the slightest puff of wind, end up in the water alongside the boat. Extremely irritating! Or it would clonk me on the head...even more irritating and a test of my knowledge of welsh depletives!

Of course with the sail configuration I have it hasn’t passed my small brain that maybe my sail just isn’t designed for lazy jacks. I have this standing lug rig type sail that when you haul up the mainsail, the top yard is down in the boat and all of a sudden hauls near vertically upright – short mast tall sail type arrangement. When you lower it there is a sudden point when the top most part of the yard suddenly rushes down into the boat whilst the forward end which was facing downwards suddenly looks upwards! So maybe lazy jacks just wouldn’t work with this system anyway!

So what does my current system look like? Difficult to describe in words but I’ll give it a go. Imagine the mainsail is up.........a rope is tied off on one side of the sprit boom towards aft end near clew of sail attachment point. This rope runs up the port side of the sail, through a block attached to the mast band and down the other starboard side where it runs through a pulley block and out towards the forward end of the boom (let’s call this rope end A). Now half way down the starboard lazy jack rope is another pulley which has been tied into it using an overhand knot. Rope end A now goes upward and through this block and then down vertically to the sprit boom (at a point about two thirds of the way along towards the mast). During sailing rope end A is coiled and tied off and hangs on a cleat attached to the boom. If I pull on rope end A it acts as a topping lift and the aft end of the boom rises upwards. If I leave it alone coiled and hanging off the cleat then the system acts as a lazy jack and in theory the main sail should fold down between the port and starboard side lines. On occasions it has worked brilliantly....and then on some occasions.......it hasn’t! I can’t remember where I saw the system but I think it may have been on a postboat somewhere.
Now I could simplify the system. I could have what I call the traditional lazy jacks which seem to have a sort of ‘triangle of rope’ affair at their base which go under the boom. Each rope either side of the sail could ‘clip’ into a mast head attachment with simple carabineer clips. However, I’m sure that this system is going to foul the bottom of the sail which goes below a sprit boom...so I’d need to get around that. Also I wouldn’t be able to use it as a topping lift. So maybe I need a system where the line runs up to a block at masthead and then down the mast to a cleat. I think it would look similar to the Harken system illustrated below.

I read somewhere of another method which is similar. Start from a cleat on the port side of the mast at the step and run a line up to just above the highest point where the lower end of the top yard will rest against the mast when the sail is raised, and at that point, fix a hanging block. The rope goes through the block and back down, aft, to the end of the main boom and under the boom through a fairlead under the boom to keep the line in place. From there it runs back up to the starboard side of the mast, to a block on the opposite side of the first one, and then back down to another cleat on the mast at the foot. Now, from these main lines, splice in however many lines are needed, running straight down and under the boom and straight back up again. Ah splicing! A dark art and something else to think about!
Of course if I had any sense, I’d just ask the forum members...I wonder what other navigator owners do...and do they have the same problem of the falling sail blowing outboard? I’ll let you know their sound advice on this matter.

Steve

Words fail me on the coastguard cuts!

2011-11-22T20:17:00.000Z

Shipping minister Mike Penning has confirmed today that coastguard co-ordination centres will be closed at Clyde and Forth; Swansea; Portland in Dorset; Liverpool; Great Yarmouth; Brixham in Devon; and Walton on the Naze in Essex; with a total loss of 159 jobs.

Did this man and his government listen to a word that was said in consultation?

Copyright photo: The Daily Mail

He told our MPs there would be ‘round-the-clock’ co-ordination centres at Shetland; Aberdeen; Stornoway; Milford Haven and Holyhead in Wales; Bangor in Northern Ireland; and at both the Humber and Falmouth in England. I think there is to be another one somewhere in Hampshire as well.

Will these still be around.....I am assuming so

Copyright: Thisisdevon

Mr Penning said:
"I understand, of course, that the closure of some existing co-ordination centres and the loss of some coastguard jobs will come as a disappointment to those directly affected. However, the decisions I have announced today will deliver the modernised, nationally networked, fully resilient coastguard service we require for the future while reducing costs."

Brixham coordinates rescues from Fowey to Exmouth including my home waters of Plymouth. I do hope they will be able to hear me on my handheld 5Watt radio down in Falmouth should I ever have the misfortune to fall over board or capsize! And I sincerely hope, what I openly acknowledge, are the outstanding coastguards at Falmouth, will have instant access to the detailed local knowledge that will help find me washed up in one of the tiny coves around my local coastline!

HM Coastguard R.I.P?

Completely and utterly daft idea....plain stupid. Enough said on the matter. Words fail me!

Well not quite. Last year the Brixham station dealt with 1,300 incidents and co-ordinated the rescue of 300 people. To all the Brixham coastguards, I know you are not yet quite gone but I want to say thank you for all you have done for us and watching out over me on my adventures in Arwen. I know your colleagues in Falmouth will do the same.....only it doesn’t quite feel the same to me or to anyone else who have been looked after by HM Coastguard Brixham.

Now it's 'nuff said'!

Steve

lazy jacks...haven't got the right at all

2011-11-19T17:59:00.000Z

Arwen is a great boat to sail and my guest today thought so too. He's thinking of building a Navigator and I think he left with very favourable impressions although I think he will definitely opt for a different rig to mine. I have to say I really enjoyed the day. Arwen's guest was great company and an 'instinctive' sailor who was clearly very experienced. He was able to pinch her close to the wind when close hauled and she sailed really well under his helmanship through lumpy swells rolling in through the western breakwater entrance. The winds were on occasions SSE and it was an outgoing tide - so some rollers were pretty steep. He was, I think, very impressed with the way Arwen when gently over the top of them and down the other side with barely a drop of spray coming inside the boat.

We spent the day chatting. He was able to ask questions and we discussed what went well and not so well - like the bottom bow planks and that infernal compound bend which splits planks!! I suggested he do a simple canoe or kayak first to get used to epoxy, painting etc. I know it helped me enormously with basic skills. We discussed navigators that we admired.....Barrett's Yuko, Joel's lovely teak deaks, the lovely work on Wayne's 'good enough'; the mast arrangement on Rob's Annie...and many more. I managed to find some very rare photographs of the kayak I built in practice for doing Arwen. I built it from chesapeake light craft plans. I think it turned out OK. I sold it to some guy up north who wanted to go along the canal network.

the one I did before Arwen...to get a feel for woodworking skills and using epoxy

this is the boat which had my good lady ill with laughter

she still claims it is one of the funniest moments she's ever had with me when I discovered I'd made two identifical left hand sides and so couldn't stitch them together!

as always I burned with a soldering iron some designs into the wood

I never found the website again, where I saw this picture and I've never been able to acknowledge teh artist, but it was a lovely drawing and it took me hours to copy and adapt it for buring in to a deck

if anyone knows who the artist was let me know

another pencil sketch which took ages to work out and burn in

I loved this kayak....but I never was a kayak fan

We sailed across to Cawsand bay in 35 minutes (which must have given us about an average speed of 4.5 kts or so in 14kt winds. The extra ballast in the form of said guest made all the difference and we didn't need to reef. Arwen behaved well and shot along nicely. From Cawsand it was back across to Jennycliffe and then around the front of Drakes island and up through the bridges. That was an interesting experience because the wind was SE and so we were pinching relly close to go through the bridges and avoid the dreaded dragons teeth (the WW2 antisub traps). Our guest cleared the pillars with about 2' to spare on the port side - it was outstanding seamanship in difficult conditions. Very impressive sailing I must say. I learned a lot today, not least of which is I still need to learn about what 'line/angles' to take ; and how to take a line/angle accounting for leeway. Our guest did it instinctively and brilliantly.

I found it really refreshing to be able to stand up, hand over the helm and potter about Arwen. I like it when my friend who owns a postboat comes with me too. He's another experienced sailor with a great instinctive feel for Arwen. She sails really well under 'experienced hands'.

We sailed for just about three hours - the tide was near a spring and dropping fast and past experience says leave plenty of time to haul her out or else you run out of ramp or hit the slime on the very end of the ramp and its spinning tyres and no grip! We did try to go up the Plym but all that tide rushing out, well it was 'in hope of' rather than likelihood it could happen. The tide was in full swing outwards and so we abandoned the idea.

QAB allowed us to use the northern ramp on the return because another gent was trying to haul out his Corribee. If I'd known that we could have the north ramp I'd stayed out a little longer but there you go.

After our guest had departed I helped the gent out with his Corribee - a lovely lined twin fin keel boat. The tide was falling fast and he couldn't get it to sit correctly on the trailer so it was straight into thigh deep wading to help him. The water, for November, was actually much warmer than I was expecting! During the retrieval of this boat I learned how to use a rope on the tow hitch to stop your tyres going in the water....hum....wish I'd known this technique much earlier! I also started to appreciate how light and easily moved Arwen and her trailer are!

So, grey skies, lumpy rolling seas, fresh breezes, good company, probably an average of 4.8 kts ish (although I'm never good at estimating speeds) and about 5 miles sailing.

So what about these lazy jacks then? My problem is that when I drop the main sail she belly out as she comes down.. The aft part of the top yard drops almost instantly and the forward part of the yard points skywards. A breeze will blow the sail out so that the aft end of the yard goes outside the boat and gets a dunking. I've tried lazy jacks before and they have helped control the sail as she comes down - she falls between them. However, today, the forward end of the top yard somehow went around a lazy jack and so the sail wouldn't drop properly. with two in the boat it was easy to sort out....but it would have been tense and tricky if I'd been single handed. Which now leads to a question I need to ask John....with the sail I have - would I be able to put a gaff jaw and parrel bead arrangement on the forward end of the top yard?

In the meantime with regard to reefing a standing lug sail...in my last post I wondered how Wayne did it....and bless him he came back pretty quickly.....read his comments in the post below

To our guest for the day, I know he reads the blog...Arwen and I had a great day with you and please come and join us again any time you are down our way. You are most welcome, thank you for such a great day out.....we really enjoyed your company and expertise.

Steve

PS I am sorry there are no photographs in posts at the moment. I have no camera..both have died and I know that photos paint a thousand words but please bear with me until I can save up to get a new camera next year. My phone camera just isn't up to the job.

reefing a sprit boom yawl rig....how should it be done?

2011-11-18T20:42:00.001Z

INSHORE FORECAST FOR 19TH NOVEMBER 2011
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/sw/sw_forecast_weather.html

Lands End to St Davids Head including the Bristol Channel

Strong winds are forecast

For coastal areas up to 12 miles offshore from 1800 UTC Fri 18 Nov until 1800 UTC Sat 19 Nov

24 hour forecast:

Wind South 5 or 6, backing southeast 4 or 5.Sea State Moderate or rough, but very rough at times in far west.Weather Mainly fair.Visibility Moderate or good.

copyright: passageweather.com

Plymouth is down on the south west peninsula

I must be mad! I'm taking Arwen out in a force five tomorrow..........and that's a new one for us both! We are having a guest on board though. Someone who is thinking of building a navigator and wants to see one, sail one and get a feel for a yawl rig.

Well tomorrow should certainly give that!
It's high tide at 11 am a 4.7 metre. Low tide is 5pm ish with a tidal height of around 2m. We are setting off at 10.00am and will probably be out on the water for four hours arriving back at pontoons in QAB at around 2.30 ish. This should give sufficient water underneath to get Arwen out of the briny although the tide will be falling fast.

Secretly I'm looking forward to it although I am nervous. I haven't sailed in winds like this before. I'm a tad worried about the reefing system too. I saw how Wayne had reefed his sail below and I don't do it that way which has thrown me into a bit of a quandary.............................am I reefing it correctly?

copyright Wayne

He looks to have lowered the mainsail at the mast top; and rolled up the sail from the bottom. he doesn't seem to have reefing ropes through the sails like I do

truthfully, it looks far quicker; far simpler and less up top than the way I do it

I have a sneaky feeling I've got it wrong........again!

I have a sort of slab reefing system in which I lower the main slightly and unhook the tack down haul; which I then reattach at one of the higher reefing points. I pull the reefing line and it pulls the sail down in to some loose folds along the sprit boom. I then braille up the loose folds and tie them using the reef ties on the sail. Then I re haul the main up and tension the down haul. Now the sail doesn't really fall lower than the sprit boom - the Brailled up bit sort of lies alongside it.......so am I doing this right? I will have to ask my guest. He is an experienced sailor so he hopefully will have some thoughts on this. But....looking at what Wayne does.....I have a sneaky feeling I've got it wrong again....if any readers can enlighten me as to the way I should be reefing the sail I would really appreciate it.

But what will our guest think of Arwen? What about those dents and dings I haven't got around to touching up; and what about that slip up where I scarfed the two rub strakes together and they split whilst setting without me realising - shambolic joint that one! She is rather rough and ready and I do love her so......but she isn't what I'd call craftsmanship like you see on Rob's, Kevin's, Joel's or Wayne's boats. They are craftsmen. Me....I sort of manage to glue it together in some semblance of a boat shape. I do hope I do John's design some justice!

But secretly, I'm really looking forward to getting out on the water. It has been tough at work, too many 65+ hour weeks. I need the break and Arwen needs the sea. She gets depressed sitting on the trailer on the driveway.....her skin turns mouldy!

Steve

PS Wayne I do hope you don't mind me poaching your photo to illustrate my dilemma.

a funny old world

2011-11-06T18:32:00.000Z

Joel has posted about his anchor pulley system as well on the same weekend. You can ready about it hear - if you remember I did say in a previous post how much I liked his method. The one draw back, or not, I don't really know, is this business of whether the wind and tide would be coming across at right angles to the boat in which case, as a good friend pointed out at dinner last night, it would place an awful amount of strain on the boat and lines....so perhaps the painter method which my friend told me might be a better solution?
I guess it depends where you anchor and what kind of conditions you experience at the time. Read about Joel's ideas at http://navigatorjoel.blogspot.com/2011/11/clothesline-anchoring-revisited.html

He explains it far better than I do!

Steve

pulley anchor system diagrams

2011-11-06T13:27:00.000Z

As promised, I've tried to put the two alternative methods into diagram form. The posts about the anchor pulley system appear below on the blog or can be accessed from the side menu. One was posted in October; the other in November.

pulley system using ropes attached to bow and transom

pulley system where bow painter is attached to one side of the rope pulley loop

Being new to this, I have no idea if this is true visualisation of what various people have tried to describe to me. Comments, as always, are appreciated.

Steve

2011-11-05T16:53:00.000Z

There are some days when you wonder whether it is worth getting out of bed or not!

‘Stacey’, my son’s 1971 motovespa 125 super restoration is giving me such feelings! Those of you following the blog will be aware of the tragedy and sense of complete loss and bewilderment experienced by me and number 1 son when we discovered that a piece was missing from the front legshield. The story is described in this post at http://arwensmeanderings.blogspot.com/2011/10/things-can-only-get-better.html

There is an update on that story which I will share later at the end of this post but in the mean time we’ve now run into other problems and once again we must prevail on the patience of the vespa smallframes forum and hope the guys can come to our rescue AGAIN!

Conundrum one: when the rear brake hub and wheel is fixed back over the rear brake plate – the brake arm to which the rear brake cable fits, won’t budge. It won’t shift one iota. Take the wheel off and the brake arm can be pulled forward and the brakes expand as they should. You can see it happen in this short video.......

that little lever on the bottom right with the hole in it moves forwards (to the left) no problem without the hub cover on so why won't it do it when the brake drum is put back on?

So WHY is it that the brake arm cannot be moved at all when the rear hub front with wheel is placed back on? WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM?

Conundrum two: the kick start, clutch lever and gear shift arm problem.

Now neither number 1 son nor I know what should be happening but this is what we have at the moment. The kickstart won’t depress......but this could be because we haven’t got it in neutral?

the gear shifter arm....seems to have two positions and then completely stuck!

Next, as you can see on the video below, put the gear shift arm into one position and the axle rotates freely; pull the clutch lever forward and the gear shift arm moves forward and the axle doesn’t rotate.
Pull the clutch lever forward again and the gear shift arm will not move into any other positions whatsoever other than the two mentioned above – nothing – won’t budge!
Now is this normal? How do we know that things are working correctly?
(The clutch arm moves forward about 2 cm, is that correct?)

We don’t want to reopen the clutch and engine again unless we know things are definitely wrong...so vespa smallframe members...please come to our rescue again.....what should we see/experience at this point of engine rebuild? Do the video movements look right? Should we be able to move the gear shift selector all the way through several positions when pulling the clutch lever forward?

having put it all together and into the frame just to have to drop it back out again is tiresome to say the least!

It’s a real problem when you don’t know what it is you should be seeing because you have no experience to base it on!

Steve

(PS: the update on the story about the missing piece of the legshield. Well our next door neighbour owns his own gardening business and he knows lots of people and so when he heard the story he said ‘leave it with me’. A few nights later we get a ‘leather clad’ biker turning up at the door who has ‘come to inspect the scooter’. He declares it safe and road worthy. He checks the welding; he checks the brake pedal assembly plate; he checks everything. It turns out he has his own motorbike and scooter repair centre in our own fair town. He does all the MOT’s as well; ....and wait for this......he lives eight doors down the road from us! The same road, same side of the street! Whenever he passed and our garage door was opened at night he had assumed I was building another boat so he never bothered to call in......small world isn’t it!! So why don’t we ask him about the engine? Well he’s more a motorbike guy and the vespa small frame guys – well they are brill, passionate about vespas, and between them know just about everything there is to know about vespas. I’d rather check with them first. Our guy down the road, is as he says, 'there for mega-emergencies!' Let's hope now isn't one of them!).

the pulley anchor system

2011-11-05T12:49:00.000Z

Well I managed to get an hour working on Arwen today. There have been so many family commitments recently that I’ve barely had any time to think about poor old Arwen. And school work? Ugh, it’s been several 70+ hr weeks in a row and it isn’t about to get any easier either....but that is beside the point.

I did manage in an hour this morning to finish putting the remaining 2 Lt soft drink plastic bottles into the side, centre and forward lockers. Regular readers will remember that having read about Robin’s story of his hatches popping off when he hit a reef, I decided to take some precautions, namely filling some storage spaces with these large bottles which won’t float out of any damaged planks or through hatch holes if water rushed in from an outside puncture and the hatches popped off due to the pressure.

I also managed to put on some old blocks I had lying around to each anchor chain so that I can set up a pulley system for anchoring off the beach. It is a simple mechanism. One end of the floating rope which will have a stainless steel clip attached to it next week, is attached to the bow ring. The rope is then run through the pulley on the bow anchor and runs until it reaches the rear anchor chain where it runs through another pulley block. The end of that rope then has another stainless steel clip on it. This clip attaches to a rope hawser loop , the ends of which attach to the two rear port and starboard fairleads. I will draw out a picture of the system and post it in a separate post when I get a few moments peace and quiet again.

the pulley rope (yellow floating line) attached to the anchor...this is the rear anchor ...do they call it a kedge anchor? It gets stored in a tray which is bungie clipped to the floor on the port forward well alongside the centre case. A thick 1" rubber mat goes over it and the whole lot is bungied into place so that it does not tip out in event of a capsize. I can also stand on top of it quite happily without damaging me delicate feet!

You can see how it will work. I approach Cawsand beach which is a shingle beach with a fair shelving slope on it. I drop the bow anchor about 20m out, assuming it is a rising tide, having clipped the yellow floating line shackle onto the bow eye very carefully beforehand. I then continue to motor in until Arwen’s bow gently touches the beach, the floating rope running down the port side of the boat AWAY from the slowly running engine mounted on the starboard side of the transom. Pulling up centreboard, rudder and engine, I then jump out with the stern anchor and run up the beach and bury it. I clip the shackle from the yellow floating line onto the hawser running from the transom, Push Arwen back off the beach and then I haul on the yellow rope. Now if everything works, Arwen’s bow should head back out to sea for a little distance...so that she isn’t in the small waves and broaching sideways. I can tie off the floating rope on the anchor chain on the beach and hey presto....I have a picnic stop. I keep an eye on the line, letting more out periodically. When read, I pull the rope so that Arwen comes back to the beach. I gather up the anchor and the floating rope and stow the anchor. I then pull on the floating rope to pull Arwen back off the beach. In the deeper water, down go engine, rudder and centreboard; engine is started and kept in neutral; up comes the anchor on the floating rope and it gets stowed; and then off I go!

Arwen on the drive....I'm resisting taking out the sails for winter stowage just in case the weather gives me one last day at a weekend for some sailing......but I suspect i live in hope more than possibility. It is November, the nights have drawn in, it's colder, the wind is gusty, it's wet.......I am such a wussy fair weather sailor aren't I......I should be ashamed of myself!

Well that’s the theory of Arwen's new anchor pulley explained! I’ll let you know how the reality goes asap!

I'm looking out the window and........

2011-10-27T12:41:00.000+01:00

I think the guys on JW’s forum are taking the mick........in a very nice way. We have been suffering howling gales and heavy autumnal rain here in Plymouth for the last week........and they are running a very interesting forum thread on.......................sailing in light winds!
Ha! Ha! I say as I watch the trees around me losing leaves and bending near double....ha Ha very funny!

It's a good question: how do you sail effectively in light winds

can you have a different set of sails to cope with it?

Despite the irony of the situation which I know will be lost on them all – there has been, as always, some really interesting dialogue and thinking. I don’t want to repeat it all or the subtle variations and nuances in ideas. People should join the forum if they want that level of detail. But here are some main points.

It started when Thomas asked if there were any thoughts for light air sails for his pathfinder. Big overlapping lightweight jibs and a top sail were some suggestions which then raised questions about the need for a roller furler; the need for a forestay and a bowsprit extension. How much might the overlap on the jib be? Perhaps more roach in the main with full sized battens could be an alternative?

Some advice was proffered...set the jib flying on an extra halyard with a double halyard on a block at the head of the sail to tension up the luff; in this way the normal jib could be furled and stowed and the extra large jib could be dropped when the wind rose.

Another line of thought was about the skills needed to sail in very light winds....forget altering the boat....learn these skills and any boat will do better in light winds. Would the book by Tom Cunliffe, "Hand Reef and Steer" have any worthwhile advice and tips in it for arranging rigs and light airs sailing?
John had this to say about sailing in light winds.........

“Sailing in light weather is a skill, needs practice, and patience. The boat

does not feel "lively" or powered up no matter what you do, but in the hands of

someone who has been interested enough to learn the ways, can cover a lot more

water than those who have not and as a consequence are stuck there like a raisin

in a pudding”.

He went on to explain that patience and relaxing were vital in light winds; having the boat correctly orientated to the wind, never lower than beam on and preferably about 60 deg off the wind direction was good; running a silk wind stream from mast head or yard was a good tip too.

The trick? Ease the sails out until the leach tell tales fly and then gradually pull in the sail until they stall and then ease the sail out a fraction. No sudden movements so the boat doesn’t rock and slow......and then the boat should start moving albeit slowly.

Once moving, steer for optimum pointing angle AND DON’T PINCH or sail close to wind as speed will fall off. Watch you don’t sheet in too much which will stall the wind flow across the sails. Keep feeling for the stall point and use the leach tell tales.

With regard to sail setting John advised they should be set full, easing the outhaul and the halyard, moving the jib sheet fairlead forward and inward a little. Trim the boat – bow down and heeled slightly to leeward and the stresses ‘sit still’!

Minute tiller movements and if sailing downwind, go at 150 deg off the wind direction so there is some flow past the boat.

As John put it.........

“The objective here is to get the boat moving, keep it moving, build speed, and use that tiny breath of wind. It’s fun, can be very satisfying, especially when you are sailing with a group or another boat where the crew don’t know what you do”!

Others noted that good sailors know where to find the light airs and most wind and that some suggest the use of a GPS to judge speed and to help make these small adjustments. Avoid excessive turns on the rudder as it acts as a big brake. Hold the tiller in one direction; allow the boat to find its own way. Try using a logger too!

My thanks to Steve, JW, Robin, Anders, Thomas, George, Hajo, Osbert and others for some illuminating discourse.
Of course you could always switch on the outboard.................................I can’t believe I just said that. I go now to wash out my mouth with coal tar soap and water!

Steve

pssst a secret confession.....

2011-10-26T23:15:00.000+01:00

Number one son and I like narrow gauge railways in Wales.........I cannot believe we have confessed to this....but there we are. It's part of our heritage...we come from engineers, both sides of the family, all of whom loved steam engines. One grandad even worked on one of the narrow gauge welsh railways as a chief engineer for many years......so steam is sort of in our blood really.

Which is why we headed north to the welsh highland railway at Caernarvon this weekend just gone. Opened recently, it now runs all the way to Porthmadog, through the famous Aberglaslyn Pass. Twenty five odd miles of magical welsh highland scenery, on the flanks of Snowdon. Twists and turns, switchback loops, passing through places full of slate mining history. I won't bore you with the details but actually it was a good journey.

we travelled first class on the way down the line: inside the pullman carriage

going along the Aberglaslyn pass

taking on water again: the gradient on this line is truly impressive!

we were in the last carriage...which shows you how tight some of the bends were!

towards the end of the journey, the mountains are left far behind as you approach the coastal plains.....these are the tiny mountains by the way; the railway skirts the highest mountain in England and Wales!

It's a tough landscape with many an abandoned farm house

Then we went camping in the Forest of Dean in South Wales....during the storms.......and it rained...and rained.....and rained......and the wind blew gale force with weather warnings....and the tent withstood it all. To cap it all we even saw deer and wild pigs in the forest and put in to practice our tracking skills learned from Ray Mears!

saw this cheeky little chap but so far have failed to get a positive identification of what bird it is

Ha...couldn't see the woods for the trees...so to speak!

found some wonderful reflections

an amazing old log covered in mosses and lichens

a reminder that it is a working forest

it was in here we ran into the wild pig and the deer...too fast to get photos though - sorry!

Time with my son is time well spent. He's quite the knowledgeable outdoors man although I drew the line at eating beech leaves!

Nothing to do with boats.....but there was a neat little harbour at Caernarvon in front of the castle!

Narrow gauge railways, scenery, wonderful people, male voice choirs, quarrying, farming, fishing and coal mining, Celtic history, home to king Arthur, home to Torchwood and generally centre of the known universe.....Wales.............and castles of course.....in abundance.....built to keep us welsh in by the terrified English! Funny how times change, now we welsh are doing 'missionary work' in English schools educating them!!!!!!

Steve

anchoring off a beach......

2011-10-19T17:58:00.000+01:00

has baffled me for some time ....how do I land on Cawsand beach and then not have to stand there holding the boat to stop it going broadside?
I could drop a stern anchor on the way in and then anchor fore and aft....but I couldn't quite work out how that would work. Then some discussion appeared on the JW forum and all of a sudden...some smart ideas started to appear.

Pete kicked it off with a great description which went like this.......

"You will need two anchors unless you have a convenient tree on land.

Fasten a long line (painter) to the bow ring. Attach good block onto each anchor. Reeve the line from the bow through the block on the bow anchor then through the block on the stern anchor and fasten it onto the stern. As you approach shore, drop the stern anchor a reasonable way out and feed out the line from the stern as you approach shore. Disembark.

Now set the bow anchor into the sand (rocks) on the beach. Pull in the line coming from the stern anchor. The boat will be pulled out to sea and the excess line will pass through the block on the bow anchor and go out with the boat. Retrieve the boat by hauling on the bow line.

This keeps the hull clear of rocks and out of harm’s way. Use good line and check your knots or splices!!"

Then there were various discussions about the merits of pulley blocks versus stainless steel rings versus very large shackles with very smooth interiors............

Then Joel came up with a neat simple solution (one which I really like). In fact he’s detailed it on his own blog at http://navigatorjoel.blogspot.com/2011/10/small-boat-saturday-at-cama-beach-state.html

Then ‘Smilicus’ came to the rescue as well providing us with a very neat diagram (thank you because I had offered to try and draw one out and put it on the blog...but now I am saved the thinking...and feeling somewhat tired and slightly defeated this week, I really appreciate that break).

In fact Smilicus went on to say ...........................

"We used to camp next to a tidal river and we used a system similar to this to change the position of our boat (reel in to board at high tide or move the boat further out at low tide. It worked pretty well and you could almost get in without your feet getting wet. The System - drop your anchor in deeper water with enough anchor chain and a small length of rope. At the end of the rope secure a good quality marine pulley. Then you create a loop of rope with two hook clips on (boat length apart on that loop - to clip you boat on to)

Then there is another anchor on the beach with a line that is connected with a pulley to the loop. This way you can reel your boat in and out from the boat or from the beach. If in the boat, you use the other side (the side where no hook clips are) to cleat it off at the correct position you want your boat.

It sounds complicated, but once you set it up once it is a piece of cake."

.The blog of Smilicus can be found at http://sailingcatch22.blogspot.com/

So there we have it. A cool, simple to use system, which can be used for those short beach picnic stops. It will work well off the shingle beach at Cawsand I think; or over at Barn Pool near Mt. Edgecumbe...or perhaps off one or two of the beaches at East Portlemouth over at Salcombe. I’m looking forward to rigging this system and trying it out sometime. I always carry two anchors in Arwen so it is a case of getting sufficient quantity of good quality rope to form the loop...oh and some really large, smooth stainless steel shackles I guess.
Steve

and here is even more to cheer us up when a new navigator gets launched

2011-10-18T16:50:00.000+01:00

Happy birthday Wayne and congratulations on a fine launch, a lovely family day out and a brilliant looking boat called 'Good enough'.......brilliant name and the boat......well it looks far better than its name my friend!

I believe they call this the 'happy boat builder' photo

Copyright Wayne!

Read about the family day out and launch at : http://donumvitae.wordpress.com/2011/10/17/o-frabjous-day/

I love it when another navigator gets its first launch. Actually I love it when any boat gets its first launch. This has cheered me up no-end!

and into the water goes 'Good enough'

copyright Wayne

I've just realised something. Having build some odd canoes etc.....Arwen is my first boat proper and she's white hulled. All the rest were the same green as 'Good Enough'. How weird.......I wonder why I changed?

Wayne, may you and your family have many long voyages in her and once again....happy birthday!!

Steve

The Happy family

copyright Wayne or Joel (sorry guys can't remember which one took it...sorry!!)

here is something to cheer us all up.......

2011-10-18T16:48:00.001+01:00

I can't remember whether I've drawn attention to these three YouTube videos of Navigators...but here they are and enjoy............

Well done to Shanghai948.....nice boat and nice sailing too......I needed a little cheering up

Steve

things can only get better

2011-10-17T21:30:00.000+01:00

the words of that song have been rattling around in my head for the last few days.............

We have had a disaster with 'Stacey', my son's much loved motovespa 125 super 1971 scooter. It is catastrophic and we are both reeling somewhat. We are at a loss on how we missed it having spent hundreds of hours poring over every small frame photograph we could find......but there we are. We've read every book, trawled every photograph on the internet; checked in weekly with progress reports to the forum; asked for their advice frequently and acted up on it.......but nowhere did we see this one coming..............

The bad news is in the photograph below, missed by everyone on forums, until one eagle eyed person asked the question......................

'What is that arch shaped hole in the front legshield and why on earth did you put it in?'

Number one son and I bought the scooter with that already there hidden behind the front wheel and mudguard. We assumed it was just as it should be......but clearly not. A request for photographs of the underneath by forum members then led to a catalogue of troubles..........the rear brake plate is not an original - it is homemade and would appear to be inadequate for the job it has to do. The floor plate seems to have too many welds in it and therefore there may be structural integrity issues. The missing arch section is definitely a structural issue!! What it should look like is like this..........

Net result........we need to sandblast her back to bare metal; weld in a new front section level with the rest of the legshield to strengthen and hid the missing arch bit; we need to weld in a new one piece floor panel. We then need to refill the holes drilled for the brake plate we had and buy a new rear brake pedal and fit that.

After that we need to re-epoxy prime her; respray her etc etc.

My son is gutted. I can barely look at him because I've let him down so badly although he doesn't blame me one bit. I missed the 'bleedin obvious' as they say around here......I'm still at a loss how I did this......it was literally staring me in the face! Over £1000 about to go down the drain; and then another £1000 to redo it all again. I'm at a loss for words......other than "how could I have been so stupid as to miss something so bleedin obvious"?
Well we need to call in some experts on scooters and get them to come and check her out.....but I'm not very hopeful. I think we may have to bite the bullet and put back our plans for a finishing date so that we can start a savings plan again over the next year or two. In the meantime, two very kind gents from the smallframe scooter forum have offered to come down from Bristol and take a look as long as we pay petrol, provide a cuppa and then take them out on a trip on Arwen........who would have thought it....two scooterists who like the sea AND small boats......they are indeed truly blessed gentlemen.

A very chastened Steve

a short clip of Saturday's 'reflective motor/sail'

2011-10-17T17:00:00.000+01:00

Below is just a short clip of being out and about on Saturday. I need to get a new camera. My little red one isn't that good........which is beside the point, as it too, gave up the ghost on Saturday and uttered its last little shutter sound...........I take care of my equipment so carefully.....but lets face it........the last two outings have not been good.....written off.......one outboard engine; one radio; one video camera and now one small digital camera...................it defies belief and logic! I have never ever had so many equipment issues in one short space of time. I'm the man still using rucsacs, mountaineering and travel clothing 25 years old because I've looked after it so well.....baffling!

I also forgot about and rediscovered this link to a nice navigator build in progress at the moment -

http://guilfordboatyard.blogspot.com/

Wilfried's navigator build is still ongoing and can be seen here as well......

http://users.skynet.be/modelbouw.wilfried/

and talking of navigator builds.....Wayne had his boat blessed over the weekend and there is a nice report at

http://donumvitae.wordpress.com/2011/10/16/boat-blessing/

I think he was launching it today. I know it will have gone well and I'm really looking forward to hearing his news and the photograph reports

Steve

2011-10-16T15:26:00.003+01:00

I needed to get out on the water yesterday. It has been a painful week and I needed space to think, reflect and thank God or the spirits or whoever it is for my blessings.

I rose early and was preparing Arwen at QAB before the sun had fully risen. It was promising to be a calm- ish day with winds SE 8 knots and temperatures of around 17 Celsius as a ridge of high pressure pushed up from the south, blocking the depressions and fronts building off the Atlantic.

It was an opportunity to try out the new outboard and radio as well after my disasters of the Fowey trip in August. The motor started promptly and chugged away; stalling a a few times until I got use to the new type of choke. The rest of the controls are much the same although a twist grip throttle takes a little bit of getting used to. it performed beautifully throughout the morning, starting first time and gently pushing me through whatever currents came my way.

A high spring tide of 5.4m at 8am gave plenty of water beneath me at the pontoon; rafts of seaweed lying on the ramp at the highest point of the tide. As the sun rose, it bathed everything in a warm orangey glow. There were few about. The sea was perfect , mirror glass with clumps of seaweed, sticks, odd pieces of wood and the odd plastic bits of flotsam drifting out on the outgoing tide. Occasionally invisible puffs of wind would ripple the surface of the sea, darkening it slightly. I followed an old fishing trawler out from Sutton harbour lock gates and got a friendly wave from its skipper. I had no specific plans....I just needed to chill and think.

I motored past Mountbatten breakwater and waved to the fishermen who were casting lines from its outer edge. They'd been there through the night to catch the top of the tide, a prime time for mackerel, pollack and conger, that day break period. A few waved back. Out in to Jennycliffe bay on the eastern side and there I came to rest and I drifted around for a time. There was no wind and so I motored across to the north of Drakes Island and practiced motoring up to and tying up at one of the large yellow buoys.

Across from me Mt Edgecumbe woodlands were brightening in the warm embers of the rising sun, the strips of grass becoming more visible as daylight became brighter, the lawns sweeping up to the old house at the top.

I have always maintained that this is a diary of my adventures and sails in Arwen and it records where we go, what we do and how we feel. Sitting in Arwen yesterday gave me some private time to mourn the passing of a dear friend this week. I attended his funeral on Wednesday. we had known each other for thirty one years and had been really close during our late teens and twenties. Growing apart during our forties because of different work, interests and growing teenagers, we'd come back together in the last couple of years. he had fought valiantly against cancer for a number of years. I never heard him moan; he always put others before himself and he was a remarkable man. Practically to all intents and purposes, a Buddhist, he was deeply spiritual, intellectually sharp, constantly curious and had that insatiable appetite for knowledge that you see in young children. As his closest friend said, he was always asking the 'why' question. He was humble, warm humoured, would genuinely do anything for anyone and accepted me for who I was.......I have always struggled in the adult world.......I don't understand its codes, conventions and practices. I spend most of my time terrified in social situations. Teenagers and children though, I really get! My friend understood this about me. I won't say any more about him.......he was honest, humble, kind, compassionate, inquisitive and had more integrity and honour than most other people I know. I will miss him and I hope through my bumbling words last Wednesday, at his funeral, I did him justice.

My friend loved the outdoors, the moors and woodlands. I don't like woodlands, never have! I love open spaces and vistas, wild mountains, coastal scenery. However, he would have appreciated the views across to Mt Edgecumbe yesterday morning and so in memory of him, I took a little potter that way...so I could see the woodlands that he always liked........even if it was from a boat (he was never too keen on boats!)

There were a number of private small fishing boats out and about. One was speeding up from in front of me and I thought he were about to cross my bows as some arrogant speedboat types do and create huge waves for Arwen to bounce across....but he didn't. right in the middle of the sound, he slowed down and then went behind me, with a wave.....it was really quite touching and restored my faith that here are small motorboat owners out there with a sense of chivalry! I sailed alongside one for a time, the wind so light that I drifted past him. We were able to chat about what he was fishing for; what lures he was using and how his summer had been. Nice guy...he admired Arwen, asked how she sailed and what her 'quirks' were. It was a pleasant few minutes shared between two people who like being out on the water. I like that camaraderie.
As we chatted a cormorant popped up, took a look at us, decided he didn't like what he saw and so ran across the water building up speed for a take off.......boy did those little webbed feet run across that water.

A sailed on across the sound towards Jennycliffe and reflected on the other sad news of the week. Someone I know and love and care for very deeply has lost her first baby, being a few months pregnant. She (and her lovely husband) are distraught and there are no words of comfort I can offer either of them. I am clumsy with words...they do not come easily to me. despite being a teacher, I am not articulate and I will often remain quiet and hold my own counsel rather than speak.......but it doesn't mean I don't feel the despair that these two good people feel. I will give them a few more days to come to terms with their sad situation and then I will contact them. By then I hope to have found the words that might at least offer them a grain of comfort and solace.

After an hour or two, I'd had enough which is strange. But it was time to come back in. I followed a small crabbing boat back in...we were merely yards apart. The weather beaten skipper sluiced down his small floor and emptied various crates. some lobster pot small fish bait were tipped over the side for the noisy seagulls flowing behind, who swooped and dived in a stunning display of aerial acrobatics. He waved across to acknowledge my presence and then set about his business again...sorting things out so that when he came alongside the Barbican fish market he'd be ready for his crates of crab and lobster to be swung up off his decks and out onto the quayside. As we came close to the Cattedown, one of the dockyard tugs was manoeuvring backwards, the skipper showing his amazing skill, holding a course steady and true.

I needed to be out on the water yesterday to think about these things. My friend, he was always good at enveloping you in a bubble of calm, peace and tranquility which would shut out the noisy, intrusive and busy outside world. The other person I know has a similar ability and also has a heart of gold, ready to do anything for anyone. I know she will be hurting deeply right now but I will be there for her when she is ready for me.
Arwen does that you know. She gives me a sense of peace and space, she brings me closer to a sense of the spiritual. It is difficult to put in to words, but yesterday just a few hours in her on the water in my beloved Plymouth Sound, helped me put my head in order. Both helped me think out what I need to to to support my friend's family in the near and longer term future; and to start thinking about the words that I will say to a lady and her husband, who have lost so much this week as well.
Life is fragile and transitory at best. Sometimes in the hurly burly of daily life, work and expectations of others, we forget what is important and most dearest to us......our friends, our family, our loved ones.

Steve

something to cheer you all up

2011-10-11T19:48:00.001+01:00

...until I can get out on the water.......enjoy some new video clips from Kevin and 'SlipJig'

copyright kevin Brennan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aEBPqWfRXs&hd=1 and

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__uYgwxsKu4

copyright kevin brennan

Enjoy.........and Kevin.........THANK YOU!

Steve

not getting out and about

2011-10-08T17:24:00.000+01:00

...in Arwen as much as I would like to be. School work seems to be dominating weekends again and the weather hasn't really been brilliant. I don't want to get the sails wet because at the moment I cannot stretch them out in the garage to dry on account of a half finished motovespa 125 super from 1971!

'Stacey' with her new wires hanging out

I haven't even been able to try out my new outboard yet. Reddish marine in Salcombe are doing the brokerage for me on the old one which seemed to be fixed quite quickly. Mike told me that Tohatsu 2 strokes sell quickly because they are lightweight, robust and well regarded. He's had a few people offer him money for it but they have been 'chancers' offering way below what a second hand Tohatsu is worth. On the other side, at the recent Newton Abbott Boat Jumble (see previous post) there were three 2 stroke 3.5hp Tohatsu's and each one was being sold for £350+ which seems a little excessive. I am not greedy and I will settle for a fair price. I'm not out to rip off anyone or make a profit. I wouldn't want people doing that to me and so wouldn't do it to others. Fair is fair.

and the other end...wires at the top of the steering column slot

Number 1 son ( I have only one so he's number one by default really as he pointed out to me) came and did some work on 'Stacey' the vespa today. 'About time'.........sort of circulated my brain but I said nothing and played the encouraging father! He did well and achieved quite a bit in four hours. He cut a bracket which had been holding the rear number plate in the wrong position and then stretched out the plate a little so that the rear tyre rim could fit correctly.

The rear light was wired up (thanks to Al at Beedspeed, who kindly looked at our photographs and then emailed them back telling us exactly what wire went with what other wire and which should be soldered together or not etc). The white rubber seal around it replaces the rubber mat that used to be the backing for the light - apparently getting a white mat is rarer than 'rocking horse sh-t' as one person told me over the phone! Colourful I must say....hadn't heard that expression before!

A quick email to the 'smallframes forum' elicited the reply we'd been dreading......

'yes you amateur newbies...the black plastic cylinder cowling does have to go on and yes you will need to drop the rear shock absorber bolt, swing down the engine and slide it over the top.....next time put it on before putting the engine back in its compartment'.

Lesson learned! We felt very rueful!! But its a job now done. The shiny flywheel protector has been added and the wiring loom inserted (and electricians we are definitely not!!!!!!!!). We've drilled new holes to accept the rear brake pedal plate, attached the rear brake pedal cable; attached the legs (that took soooooooooooooooooooooooo long!). We still haven't attached the leg retraction spring. Neither of us have the muscles to actually stretch it the distance it needs to go despite some comical efforts....so we need a plan B on that one....and we haven't thought that up yet!

The engine compartment cover took some gently persuasive bending before it would fit...even now it is not quite right but is the best we will get it without fracturing the paint job and that would be a disaster. We've done some soldering and joining of wires - hoping that we've linked the right ones with each other......otherwise there will be a lot of 'unsoldering' to do!

And that is about it.....four hours work. Not bad for amateurs who genuinely have no idea what they are doing. Secretly, I want 'Stacey' done....I want to store my sails, make space for some winter oar making etc etc. On the other hand I enjoy our father/son time and I wouldn't rush it for all the stars in the universe........so 'Stacey' will take her time, however long that may be..........and winter oar making.........well that may well be a summer project in 2013!

Steve

can you see us?

2011-09-24T20:52:00.000+01:00

well can you see us.................?

Look for the legs dangling down on the middle tier above the white wall. The legs on the right hand side belong to the Missus.....I'm leaning on the railing next to her...........last Saturday, AWCS match race final day........

It has been soooooooooooo quiet around here this week. SOOOOOO QUIET!!

Steve

whoever is doubting.........

2011-09-24T17:47:00.002+01:00

that there is a recession would haven't have needed to go much further than the Newton Abbott boat jumble today.

Lots of 'bits and pieces' this year of variable quality too

....and not as many people I thought although I could be wrong...it's a perception rather than a fact....

another one missing was the man with the great hat who sells blocks, old tools, masts, sails and books

Seriously down on the number of stalls and occupied pitches, there were familiar faces missing. My stainless steel nuts and bolts man wasn't there; nether was the Compass Marine 'fender' seller. it was rather thin on the ground.

...strange not thinking about buying epoxy and spatulas!!

I'm sure I saw some of this last year.......

I like the 'artistic slant' but who buys this stuff?

Not only were there fewer stalls but the quality of what was being sold was lower than perhaps I've seen in the past. There was a lot of second hand gear that really was 'well used'. A lot more 'junk' would be a little uncharitable but you will all know what I mean.

was almost tempted...would one be useful to carry on Arwen for moving in the shallows instead of the outboard.......dunno!

I just liked the colours and the patterns!

One surprise was the cost of second hand outboards. My little tohatsu 3.5hp was fetching £300. there were several available and they were being sought after. Which left me slightly enraged given that I left mine with a company in Salcombe who are doing brokerage on it and claimed the most they can get for it is £120 (of which they want 10% commission and VAT). I'm furious and first thing Monday will be ringing them to get it back. I'm not greedy and I'm not going to sell it for £350 but if I was able to get £250, that would pay for the marine radio and some contribution back to the family budget for the new outboard I bought at the end of August. Apart from which, I'm honest and I expect everyone else to be the same with me!

this nicely done model caught my eye.......I used to make these myself

horribly expensive......a rip off or should that be a 'rope off'....ha ha ha......over never mind!

stuff for big boats

an array of fishing rods...some of which are very old.......

Anyway, I managed to get the nuts and bolts I needed for 'Stacey' my son's motovespa 125 super 1971 restoration project. I didn't manage to get the cushions I wanted for back rests for Arwen.....the cushion person wasn't there this year!

It does look sparse on the ground

whatever it is for, a fender one assumes, it is an extraordinary piece of craftsmanship

Well, we are being predicted an Indian Summer this forthcoming week, so maybe, just maybe, Arwen and I will get a trip in next week

Steve

2011-09-21T20:21:00.000+01:00

some navigator updates:

Wayne has been painting his boat and it's beginning to develop a personality - funny how putting on the paint does that to a boat...or is it just me that thinks that? His dilemma.......to varnish the transom or not? Well how long have we got to debate that one......?
Find out about his progress at http://donumvitae.wordpress.com/2011/09/21/painting-second-coat/#comment-98

Joel has posted some excellent reports about the Port Townsend boat festival - videos, fantastic photographs, enlightened commentary; a sail with JW himself (the lucky man.....Joel that is.....although when you see Joel's boat, you'll realise how lucky JW would have felt sailing it). Joel's reports are excellent and will need a few evenings if you are to gain fully from them. Like Rob D (and his wonderful boat 'Annie'), Joel is a natural writer and philosopher as well, so put some time aside and ......enjoy!

You can access Joel's site at http://navigatorjoel.blogspot.com/2011/09/port-townsend-wooden-boat-festival-part_19.html

For those of you who keep a mild interest on our other love 'Stacey', my son's 1971 father/son motovespa 125 super restoration project.....well progress is slow but we are one step closer to understanding the wiring, thanks to the the very kind people at Beedspeed, here in the UK. They made the wiring loom for us and we also bought the rear light and handlebar light switch from them. The wiring diagrams whilst very good left us confused because the colour wires in the loom didn't necessarily match up with the same colour wires in the light, the stator plate and well pretty much anything else electronic for the bike. We sent out a plea for help with some photos and Alan came back to us with a step by step idiots guide on how to join up what colour wire to what other colour wire elsewhere....it must have taken him ages. There really are good kind folk out there who will support newbies like us.

My good friend Dave will be accompanying me to the boat Jumble at the weekend and that's really good. It makes an event a bit more special and fun when out and about with him. I really enjoy him sailing with me in Arwen.....I learn something new each time......and there are very few people who can tolerate any time spent with me.....so I really look forward to when he's out and about with me. It will be fun and I'll post pictures and thoughts on the jumble at the weekend.

In the meantime I have been giving some thought to the issue of sailing in rough seas. Now, when I mean rough, I'm talking as an inexperienced new sailor who has never sailed in anything above a force 6 tops. Watching the America's cup crews tackle some pretty extreme conditions last week has set me thinking though and this comes on the back of sailing Arwen to and from Fowey in 'bouncy seas' (top end of force 4 - for Pete's sake listen to me - I make it sound like a Fastnet force 8 gale tragedy don't I - Sorry!!). I spent a pretty uncomfortable day sailing down to Fowey in the summer, right into the prevailing winds which ran parallel with the coastline and caused some rolling waves for long periods of time (the ones with steep crests and damn big troughs). I sort of managed to sail through them but should there have been some specific techniques I could have used that would have made it more comfortable?

force 6 and plenty of white topped waves in Plymouth Sound last weekend

So.........whilst watching the ACWS, I asked some 'serious sailor types' also watching it what they thought I should have done! (I assumed these people were serious sailors......a salty weather beaten look about them; cotton trousers of various shades of blue, salmon, red; smocks or not; serious sailing clothing; binoculars with some serious knobs to twiddle on; clearly people who could analyse and understand manoeuvres of the crew immediately they made them; etc etc)

And this is what I got back....things to reflect on..............I have no idea whether they are right or not but I'm up for trying it out....nothing ventured, nothing gained. (One very professional looking sailing person did comment that I was mad to go down to Fowey in a 14' open dinghy but that he admired my 'obviously very well developed but misplaced sense of adventure'.......I'm not quite sure what to make of that.....He clearly isn't a member of the dinghy cruising association whose feats would probably have had his hair standing up on end and him going through several bouts of tutt tutting!). Anyway, advice proffered went like this......

knowing how to steer through big waves is essential! Didn't expand on that though! Gee thanks!
try steering around breaking wave crests and avoid taking wave crest beam on.
watch the transom swinging away from the wind as big waves pass underneath the hull (is Arwen long enough for that to be an issue...dunno?) This will cause the boat to luff up into the wind and so more rudder needs to be applied to hold the planned course. Bear away quickly and for very short time stops this from happening!!
try not to turn downwind or else an accident gybe may ensue....yeah I've got that one understood having done that several times!!
trim the mainsail carefully to stop the top part of sail from twisting and don't over sheet the lower sail part or else it will cause excessive weather helm.......I'm always confused by weather helm but go by the rule that if the tiller is tugging to hard and I'm having to pull it too much to keep course - I have too much canvas up!
when running - pole out the head sail.....I'm not sure whether that is applicable to a jib on Arwen or not - it's something I'll have to look up and work out what it means that's for sure!!
don't go downwind in windy squally wavy weather....it's asking fro trouble (is this true, if so why? Is it to do with gybing? Surfing excessively....which I thought was rather fun when it happened.......oops!) Or is it to do with pitch poling (now there is a new term I learned from watching ACWS in the Sound......everyone wanted the boats to do it....why?)
sail to windward close hauled is a safer option couple with
go further offshore because waves will be less close together and more likely to roll under boat with less impact......probably true and its the advice my friend Dave gives me....so it must be right as far as I am concerned........but...it is a brave man who goes 4 miles off shore in a 14' dinghy and with limited experience.......I know technically it is right.....but self preservation sought of kicks in.......it feels so wrong!!!!!
luff just before the boat meets an approaching wave and then turn away as you go down the back of it which helps avoid that slamming....now this I did do and I can say this does work.......trust me on this one...but it does take concentration and constant hand on the helm
of course, don't bother going out when conditions are going to be like this...in my defence, the weather forecast given was completely wrong regarding wind speed, wind direction, wave size etc....so not really my fault!
if on a lee shore and I was, keep a flat sail with maximum depth well forward - it maximises drive and minimises heeling ( I found this tip in a boat magazine......with one or two others on this topic...only I can't remember what magazine......and the Missus put it out in the recycling rubbish bag.....oops again!!)
reefing obviously, which I do whenever I get scared...which is frequently!
furling the jib and sailing on main or dropping main and sailing on jib and mizzen or dropping jib and mizzen and sailing on reefed main...basically reduce sail area
using the engine - motor sailing to windward - it helps reduce leeway; especially if you head 20 - 25 degrees to the apparent wind (I think I remember that from that magazine that got thrown in the recycling ahem!!!
lying hove to until worst is over is sometimes better than fighting the squalls and waves
lying to a sea anchor

in a force 6 last weekend, this sailor seemed to be doing the right things?

I suspect there are plenty of useful tips but its working out which apply to small boat sailors isn't it. I need to do more research, reading and thinking about this. It is important to sail out in moderate winds to get the experience but I really wouldn't like to have to try and right Arwen from a capsize........I'm pretty sure I'd struggle to do so!

Steve

why have we had so much fun?

2011-09-19T21:59:00.000+01:00

Well this video will show you. It is long, around 45 minutes, but if you watch only the first 10 minutes you will get the picture. It has been exciting stuff!

Pushed for time? Then perhaps the abridged version of what can only be described as a day of pushing it to the limit.....day 7 the final winner takes all fleet race with wind speeds in excess of 25 kts!

Comm'on folks........secretly.......wouldn't you have loved to just be here with us to have seen some of this stuff live?

And guess what.........there is talk that they MIGHT bring it back to Plymouth again because they have so enjoyed themselves......oh yeah.......BRING IT ON.........Arwen and I challenge Oracle 5 to a head to head match race....winner takes the prize...........a packet of gummy bears!

I'm in the middle of editing just a few short video clips of what I saw and will post this week.

In the meantime Arwen is under wraps on the drive. I'm hoping for a break in the weather so that we can get a voyage in before the winter gales arrive.......er - delete that last sentence.......what am I thinking? They have arrived and with a vengeance too.

I'm off to the boat jumble this weekend with a shopping list of things including

some stainless steel bolts of various sizes with nuts and washers for 'Stacey' our Motovespa 125 super 1971 Father/Son restoration
some long narrow cushions to put onto the thwart back panels because they can be rather hard on long voyages as I discovered on the way to Fowey, especially if you wear just a life jacket and not a padded buoyancy aid
some little turn stud button thingies which will push through the holes at each corner of aforementioned cushions, so securing them to the thwart sides
to talk to a man what does interesting things with canvas - could he make me a cheapo canvas tent and simple frame for Arwen? And then can he sell me some sensibly priced canvas to make some canvas flaps which will press in to those stud thingies - to be placed across the oval holes in Arwen's thwart backrests. In the rain - they get water in them and so anything stored in these areas under the deck gets wetter than it should. I noticed that Steve on Spartina has such a canvas flap somewhere to protect an area where I think he keeps his radio and ditty box.
a trailer clamp of some form to attach the spare tyre to the trailer in such a way that it is out of the way and also padlockable
to talk to a man who is an electronics expert - can we install an aerial on the mast which plugs into my new handheld VHF, in order to extend its range - feasible? practical? needed?

And then there is the Bacon butty and latte coffee; the normal chat and donation to the RNLI people; a good nose and rummage around peoples stalls and car boots; the excitement at the fishing tackle stall (what's new; what's catching; all those rubber and plastic lures to marvel at!!!!!). There will be the 'I can't believe you have the cheek to sell that broken down crock of an outboard to some mug who will buy it without seeing it working - dur!" stall run by some very dodgy looking gent; the guy who sells discount paints (with a 1902 sell by date scratched off the tins....so do look hard before you buy!). There is the rope seller (very fair prices and excellent quality); the epoxy people (ditto about advice and prices) and then the general public who are selling whatever didn't get used this season....they bought it on a whim and realised over the summer it was next to useless and so now they want to pass it on to me! You know the kind of thing I mean.......the mooring pole that extends and has one of those hook contraptions which pushes your warp through the mooring buoy loop and returns it back to you but then fails to release itself from the actual mooring buoy so that as your boat goes by.....you, reluctant to let go of the expensive contraption.....get pulled overboard (you can tell I've been there, done it and got the cap badge.....just don't ask)!
We'll queue to get in, have a chat, chew the cud and have a moan about the price of marinas; there will be gossip about the Americas Cup including the heated debate about whether multihull sailing and this new fangled approach to the cup is in fact real sailing......the mono hull boys will, I'm sure, reflect nostalgically on the days when big hulled boats competed for it, using a handicap system no one understood, out in the offshore waters where nobody saw what was going on......

us dinghy cruising boys, a solitary and hardened breed, will recognise each other from our weather beaten tanned faces with a haunted expression on them. we will gather in little clusters in little corners and share horror stories.........."Honest to God mate, force 8 , bouncing up and down like a YoYo and I met my vomit on the way back up the wave crest"

I can't wait - I love the Newton Abbott boat jumble - it is fun, quaint, quirky and good value. Roll on Saturday!

Steve

thrills and spills galore......

2011-09-18T20:42:00.000+01:00

...in the final fleet race - winner takes all. And Spitall taught all the boys a lesson in seamanship today!!

Welcome to my LAST blog on the 34th America's Cup World Series - the Plymouth Leg!!

copyright Gilles Martin-Raget ACEA OR Ricardo Pinto

the ACWS website doesn't say which one - so my apologies

what is equally as important is - can see me in the crowd.....can you make me out........on the raised bit at the foot of that white tower, towards the lower left hand side?

It was a change of course, change of tactics and a change of location for me, as I scuttled across to the Mountbatten side of the sound for this the last race. The wind, force 6 was gusting directly from the north west in to our faces, making even the job of holding a small camera lense steady, a feat of consumate skill and patience!

spectators started arriving in boats

amateur photographers jostled for position

the officials started to patrol the red zone borders

fleet security just shot about everywhere

QHM turned up to check all was well

and Artemis came out to practice for 30 minutes or so before the start

And, whatsmore, ITV 4, a national TV station here in the UK did a half hour's programme about this weekend, miracles of mircales and wonders will never cease. Well done to ITV, even if you did put it on your fourth station!!

the race officicals made sure all knew where to moor safely

and the crowds this side and on the Hoe got bigger

bow men folded and re-folded sails in preparation

Mr Coutt's shot about everywhere before the start

and the Coastguard took the opportunity to make a seriously important announcement

the Team korea coach boat went along side

Artemis started REALLY warming up

and Mr Coutt's kindly gave all spectators on the Hoe a real good close up

With 2 minutes to go, the french team Corum managed to capsize on their approach to the start line; Green Comm managed the spectacular feet of actually parking their rear port aft hull on top of an oracle boat, the rudder locking both hulls together. China capsized a little later on, as did Artemis, and on one boat, one poor unfortunate crew member actually plunged straight through the wing sail into the briny below - it was a huge hole....but he was safe....shaken but safe!

2 minutes to the start and as we say in rugby......it's an up.....

.................wait for it.............

yep.....it's an 'up and under.......'

with a near collision thrown in for good measure

time to hang on for grim death.....gutting the clock is counting down to the start

sorting out the tangles

time is counting down - get that line on

come on tow it back upright.......we still have time

YES, YES, YES......on her way back up

and splash down and BACK in the race!

Well done Team Corum!

Oracle Coutts and Oracle Spitall battled it out for much of the race with New Zealand chomping at their heels. Some clever tactical play by Team New Zealand took them into second place and it was really close rounding the last marks, but as ever, that wily aussie skipper kept the lead and crossed the line a few seconds ahead of Team New Zealand.

the strain shows on the faces

Team New Zealand, match race winners yesterday, intent on building on this success

and Oracle 'Coutt's' determined not to let them .....

Team China's coach crew look on anxiously

whilst race officials politely explain the consequences of being mown down by a 39 kph AC45 to some interlopers

crowds build on the Hoe

I wonder what old Francis Drake would have made of this......certainbly disturbed his game of bowls almost as much as the Spanish Amarda!

'where have they all gone?'

the problems of putting one marker way over in Jennycliffe Bay on the eastern side of the Sound

Coutt's comes 'tanking' down one leg doing about 39 knots

and then its for most of the race Coutt's versus Spitall with neither prepared to give quarter

there really was a 'burn up' contest going on between the two Oracle boats

and there was very little in it

the point at which Green Comm turn across Team New Zealand and manage to get their hull lifted up onto the bows of the Nespresso AC45!!

the Umpires boat holds position just off Mountbatten pier

A brilliant afternoon's racing, here is the edited highlights - enjoy!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-XAbVQUAo4&feature=channel_video_title

The crowds on Plymouth Hoe increased throughout the week, as the city embraced the World Series and the teams.

“Plymouth has been buzzing with excitement since you arrived,” said Councillor Vivien Pengelly. “It is estimated that over 115 000 people have lined the Hoe over the past week to see some of the most exciting racing to ever come to British waters. I have to take my hat off to all of the teams. Your skills are amazing. We’ve been thrilled to have you here.”

And I think our Vivien has summed that up rather nicely!

And my final video efforts from all of this week condensed down to only 5 minutes will appear sometime mid week. Next weekend - it is tamer things, the Newton Abbott boat jumble! I know, you can barely contain your excitement can you?

Steve

ACWS results

2011-09-18T12:09:00.000+01:00

This link will take you to all the results for ACWS 2011 Plymouth leg.

copyright for all photographs is

Gilles Martin- Raget ACEA or

Ricardo Pinto

Steve

last day....and the fleet race championship....

2011-09-18T10:00:00.000+01:00

for the Plymouth leg of the ACWS takes place this afternoon at 3pm. I haven't been able to make head nor tail of the courses as they seem to change according to the weather conditions at the time. I was very impressed with the 'Big Screen' commentary and live camera work up on on the Hoe yesterday though. Really impressive. i do have some video material which I need to put together over the next few weeks but in the meantime....here are the shots from the AWCS that are slightly different and non AC45 related

medical boats

marker boats

boats for the World's press

TV cameras and reporters

crowds at the village

a pause to catch breath for support crews

maintaining boats

'getting the prime location to see it all'

Crowds on the Hoe

a tent village in Millbay docks

some awesome cutting edge technology

time to play baseball!

a World wide communication centre

a bolt hole to retreat to for bacon butties and tea

the restored Lido

rather breezy at times

constant changing of courses

excited spectators from all parts of Europe and the UK

remembering to dodge the Ferry

ignoring the harbour speed limits

chaos on the water

thrills....and some spills

pain, sweat, frustrations, and bags of commitment

ancient castles and modern boats

low flying helicopters

crowds on very vantage point

desperately wishing you had a ticket for a seat on THAT boat

or even for this one

floating advertising

umpires and race officials

the sight of the Missus actually coming to a boating event with me.....wow!

rain, rain and more rain.....

getting out the big guns!

dodging those rain bands

music lovers

constant updates

live bands on the Hoe after the races

I've just realised something......................it is going to be very boring around here next week!

ACWS people, we have loved having you in Plymouth. It has been a joy and privilege sharing your trials, tribulations and successes with you. We hope we have done you proud. You have certainly done that for us.

THANK YOU for coming to share your lives with us and we hope that you will come back again one day and do it all again.

ACWS sailors and support teams - Plymouth salutes you!

and it was almost a fairy tale ending

2011-09-17T23:26:00.000+01:00

..........but not quite. Team Korea, a nearly all British crew, couldn't quite do it and came second in the ACWS Plymouth match racing leg, to the bookies favourite Team New Zealand. having won both quarter and semi final heats......they looked slightly exhausted. team New Zealand didn't have any races before hand. well that's the way the cookie crumbles and of course, the New Zealand skipper is more experienced.

Today was thrilling racing and around 25,000 lined Plymouth Sound again. It has been a fantastic week and we are all looking to the fleet race finale tomorrow. So, here for your enjoyment, are my best shots of the day.

Steve

Umpires boat and countdown clock to first race

match racing: two boats go head to head

whilst support crews and coach boats look on

burning 4000 calories in an afternoon's races

the fittest of the fit

jumping from one side to another constantly

all under the scrutiny of helicopters

Artemis showing a fast turn of speed

as helicopters get lower and lower to get those 'head on' shots

the ex navy seal umpires whizz about on upgraded jet ski's

Team china warming up for their match race

whilst getting some coaching encouragement

thousands watch on the big screen on the Hoe

Team Korea......almost but not quite....but wow, didn't they do well

at some starts boats are less than a metre apart

Tomorrow, shots and videos from this weekend and a selection of the odd shots I've taken over the week.

well who would have thought it

2011-09-16T22:58:00.000+01:00

The Skippers

New kids on the block Team Korea seem to be doing pretty well!!

Match race spectacular

Team Korea wins three in a row to advance to the semis, while both ORACLE Racing crews are knocked out on the first day of match racing.

QUALIFYING RACES

Green Comm Racing defeat Aleph; 1-0

Team Korea defeat China Team; 1-0

ORACLE Racing Spithill defeat Green Comm Racing; 1-0

Team Korea defeat ORACLE Racing Spithill; 1-0

Team Korea defeat Energy Team; 1-0

SEMI FINAL ONE

Emirates Team New Zealand defeat ORACLE Racing Coutts; 2-1

Here is the report from ACWS team about today:

Today was always going to see six teams knocked out of contention for the Plymouth Match Racing Championships title, but the big surprise was that both ORACLE Racing boats would be among them.

After beating China Team in his opening match of the day, Chris Draper and Team Korea pounced on ORACLE Racing Spithill when his team was struggling with a faulty jib clutch. Once Spithill fell behind, the Korean team never looked like giving up their surprise lead and went on to take an upset victory. Then, the Koreans dispatched Energy Team to move into the semi-final phase tomorrow; a best-of-three match against Artemis Racing.

The first Semi-Final between Emirates Team New Zealand and ORACLE Racing Coutts, brought two former team mates head to head, Russell Coutts and his fellow Kiwi and former apprentice Dean Barker. With each team scoring a come-from-behind win in the first two matches, it went down to the third before Dean Barker and the Kiwi team prevailed over the Defender in a close deciding race, to sail into the Final.

"We made it hard,” Barker said. “Those guys are pretty quick and start the boat well, and it was pretty close in all three races. But we're a lot happier with the way we finished off the last race.”

With another big crowd enjoying the racing from the seafront of Plymouth, the crowd witnessed many dramatic matches, starting with Green Comm Racing’s contest against Aleph when Vasilij Zbogar pounced on errors by the French team to move to the next phase.

Aleph now sit out the racing tomorrow, and will be scored as ninth place in the Match Racing Championship. Green Comm Racing sailed well against Spithill, but never really threatened the reigning America’s Cup skipper. The Spanish team goes up against China in tomorrow’s matches to decide seventh and eighth.

Team Korea dominated China Team in their match, leading from start to finish. Then Draper came from behind to win his next two races, first against Spithill and then against Energy Team. Loick Peyron’s start was excellent but handling errors allowed the Koreans back into the game. Draper seized his chance to earn his spot in the Semi-Finals.

Three victories from three matches was a perfect score for a team with very little match racing experience. It also marks the second time that Chris Draper has handed out a match racing lesson to the Defender, having also toppled Russell Coutts in Cascais a month earlier. "I've nothing against ORACLE,” said Draper. “We are trying to improve our match racing skill. The changing format has given us some more opportunity. Our experience in match racing is limited but we have some smart guys on board."

Spithill was generous in defeat: “Certainly Korea has caused some problems to ORACLE Racing but full credit to those guys. They hung in there. We had a few issues with the gear and we made a tactical error on the run. We got what we deserved.”

Tomorrow is another busy day as the Plymouth Match Racing Championships reaches its climax. First up is the best-of-three Semi Final between Team Korea and Artemis Racing, who sat out today’s competition after winning the fleet racing phase yesterday. Then come the matches to decide the minor placings, and then a best-of-three Finals.

copyright Ricardo Pinto

Of course, there is no need to point out that the winning team, TEAM Korea, is an all British crew..............but I'm going to anyway!!

I'll report for last time on ACWS tomorrow night. Tomorrow looks like its going to be real fun!!!!!!!!!!

Steve

ACWS update

2011-09-15T22:14:00.000+01:00

It is hard being in school when you know that ACWS is going on 3 miles away!!

Here are some photographs from Wednesday and today - all copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/ACEA

I'm trying to find out what happened here

nice to see that the crowds are still turning up even on a week day

Here are some video updates about the sailing too

Weather wise, it looks like the nice little high pressure lull is coming to an end - blustery and heavy showers for Saturday and Sunday....so I suspect going out in Arwen may not be an option for weekend viewing of the races

The weather forecast can be checked here

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/sw/sw_forecast_wind.html

I'm still trying to work out the race course from last weekend and will try and update tomorrow what the course was and what the new match racing course is for the weekend.

Steve

from AC 45's to small boats again

2011-09-13T19:37:00.000+01:00

Remember 'Jaunty'? 'Jaunty' was Dave P's navigator in which he made some fantastic voyages. Well a new video clip has just appeared on YouTube of 'Jaunty' and here it is below

If you are tiring of my current obsession with the America's cup, firstly I apologise and secondly I hope this goes a little way to addressing the current imbalance. Enjoy.

I hope to get out in Arwen this weekend when I'll be able to report on the new outboard and some modifications to the lazy Jacks. Of course it will be weather AND America's Cup course dependant!!

I'd hate to have a collision with one of the AC 45's. One of the boats did stray outside the course on Sunday and there is a great bit on the local news about one poor spectator minding his own business at anchor inside one of the designated spectator zones (he was in a 19' white boat with a little cabin), when he heard loads of yelling. Sticking his head out of the cabin, he wasn't too amused to find a whacking big AC 45 about to wrap itself around his anchor warp!! I've never seen a guy in a small boat move so fast!! Ah! the disadvantages of having on board cameras - they capture EVERYTHING!

Finally here is a dilemma..........I've been offered a place on one of the spectator boats for Sunday's final fleet 'winner takes all' race in the Sound. Now Sunday is marking and work preparation day....so in the words of the song.....'should I stay or should I go now; should I stay or should I go now?'

Duty over sheer pleasure..........tough call!

Steve