Wooden Boat Plans Australia | Atlantic Cup Class 40

Wooden Boat Plans Australia

This new event, in its second year is a success. To have been able to attract 15 boats on this side of the Atlantic, for what is essentially an European sort of thing is a major achievement. The double-handed race started in Charleston to New-York city, then on to Newport. I like the Class, the size, the speed, the concept. I drew one a few years ago to get a sense about the design, and the following text will give you an idea behind the thinking. I am always up dating the basic plans as time goes on to get abreast of the evolution of this class.

" The Class 40 Tango follows parameters set by the Box rule, to the maximum of all dimensions.
The result is a platform with a fine entry, a wide beam and transom. The shallow Veed stern is carried all the way forward to the mid section at a constant angle to keep the buttocks as straight and flat as possible. A true chine boat. The lines are carried towards the bow in a deep and sharp section. The overall simplicity of the hull shape hides the reasons behind everything.

The twin outboard rudders, placed well to the sides are out of the wake exit and are perpendicular to the bottom angle. In case of hitting something, the rudders swing aft, thanks to a "fuse" line built into the system.

The keel is designed to carry all of its lead into the shape of the bulb for maximum stability. The blade is designed to maximize the aspect ratio available with an optimized sweepback angle.

The sail plan represents an effort to place the mast as far aft as dictated by balancing the rig with the below  waterline appendages.

The deck pl;an, reflects the need of sailing the boat single or double handed with the necessity of getting protection from the elements.

The Accommodation Plan in its simplicity, offers a couple of options, all within the same built for strength structure.

Here we go. "

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Boat Plans And Kits | Atlantic Cup 2014 Class 40

Boat Plans And Kits

The Class 40 renewed their Cup for this 2014 edition. 

Fewer boats, but equally good competition over the legs.

Starting in Charleston to New-York, then on to Newport.

With inshore races over the weekend, marred by the 

demise of Dragon hitting a rock in the Passage.

I am fond of this Class, but like said one of the designers; 

"It is so hard to get racing going in the US". Yes, for 

smaller or bigger boat you still a few one offs built but

for some reason there is little grip elsewhere.

Especially for single or double handed racing events.

Next year, I believe that the new generation of Class 40 will follow the success of David Raisons Mini Transat by increaing the width at the bow within the constraint of the new adopted rule to minimize the "scow effect". I designed a 40 representative of what the breed will be like

.

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Boat Plans Bateau | Farr 38 40

Boat Plans Bateau

No discussion of a Farr boat can avoid some discussion on Bruce Farr (O.B.E.) himself. Certainly I am out of my depth, and at a loss for words, when it comes to discussing this great man, clearly one of the most successful designers of performance yachts ever.

Born in Auckland in 1949, Bruce was an accomplished and keen Dinghy sailor. By his late teens he was designing and building very fast dinghies. By his early 20s he had a number of fast and light keelboats to his name. The Farr 38/40 reviewed here was drawn in 1978 - Bruce will have been 29 years of age.

A quick glance at the design list on www.farrdesign.com left me in a slight state of shock. There are literally hundreds of designs (I didnt have time to count them all) - but so many big name boats I hadnt known were his. For example Ceramco (early Whitbread maxi), the new Farr 40s, Transpac 52s, Mumm 36s, some of the super Maxis eg Mirabella and the big Wallys, many of the lead Volvo 70s, half a doxen Open 60s and Whitbread 60s - it goes on and on and on). Did I mention the Americas Cup yacht KZ-1, many of the recent Bavarias and Beneteaus? Anyway, the Farr 38/40 sits right in the middle of the list as a small "performance cruiser" if you dont mind! I had a good chuckle when I read the brochure, describing this as unashamedly a cruiser! 
See http://www.farrdesign.com/pdfs/172brochure.pdf if you dont believe me! Its an instructive read. Felt like I was laughing in church! Where I come from this is quite a mean machine. They go like hell, are capable of winning anything in our club classes and occasionally even line-honours amongst some large modern thoroughbreds. The local Farr 38/40 "Al" has been well campaigned and just proves the performance credentials of this design. As for a cruiser? - well think of taking the family on holiday in a four-seater Ferrari, instead of the Volvo this year. 

 HBYCs Faraway in fresh conditions off Hout Bay beach.

HBYCs Faraway in light conditions under Chapmans Peak.

Farr 38/40 Sailplan and Layout. Click for fullsize.

As a designer, Farr stands out as someone who really made the case for light boats, and safe, seaworthy, light boats at that. The yachting world was really quite shocked when his designs first appeared - refusing to believe that such relatively light boats could be seaworthy. I wouldnt say he was the first - even van der Stadt was doing this - but nobody popularised the case better than Farr. The other thing Farr seems to excel in is optimising the proprtions and dimensions of a boat for a given race or task. Ceramco (68) was such a yacht - skippered by Sir Peter Blake in the 81/82 RTW Whitbread Race. It weighed about 2/3 that of its main competitor, Flyer-2 76 (S&S, Conny van Rietschoten), yet they sailed almost within sight of each other around the world. But for an unfortunate dismasting on the last leg I think, Ceramco would have clearly won . . .

Farr 38 /40 Hull Profile. Note the bulb keel, deep high aspect spade rudder,

and the 2 sugar scoop on this one.

Back to the Farr 38/40. Unlike many of the others in this blog, Bruce Farr is not a South African designer (we make a very special case for Kiwis though!). However this design has been very popular here, as a very good offshore-racer, club-racer and class-racer. They are seldom campaigned under IRC as the ratings are just too punitive -  as this class was designed in a conscious departure from any rating systems.

You will note this class is often referred to as the Farr 38 (40) class. The original design is for a 38 footer, and the 40s have an extended sugar-scoop stern - presumably for downwind racing. The example I am most familiar with - viz. HBYCs "Faraway" has recorded consistent speeds at around 17 knots for extended periods on the Cape to Rio race - so clearly they can plane well. Notably, this boat was rolled 360 degrees by a large breaking wave near Saldnaha Bay on the return from Rio - it righted promptly, with only a broken vang, and a fair bit of mess down below!

"Faraway" - above - has tiller steering, running backstays, the sugar scoop extension, no lazy-jacks, and generally no roller furling. In my humble opinion, she is dam hard work, and the owner skipper - Chris Sutton, a hardy and wild old 72-year old (also our ever popular Commodore) show no sign of repenting on these matters, as long as he can muster 6-8 crew! This is not a good example for shorthanding, and single-handing is totally unthinkable. In truth - this is not actually what Farr intended. With suitable rigging, she would be dead easy to sail shorthanded, as indeed some are. She also sails beautifully under main alone. I am not sure whether she was originall drawn with a tiller or a wheel - both examples are common here - but certainly the tiller is great, and she sails like a dream. In the rough conditions around Cape Town (not to mention Hout Bays own horrific squalls), she is safe and quite forgiving, and always fast. In light airs she is also very impressive. This truly is a safe all-weather boat. The cockpit is ample and well suited to a busy racing crew, while also nice for cruising. The open stern and sugar scoop make boarding exceptionall easy. The accommodations are really basic on this example, but in many cases are very comfortable and well fitted below. Not huge for a 38 footer below - but certainly acceptable for a long downwind race.  . . .

This is Hocus-Pocus - also at Hout bay - a very clean example with

wheel steering and a single backstay. This is also predominantly

a racer, so no lazy-kacks and roller furling either.

Clean deck lines on Hocus-Pocus.

Design Specifications
	LOA: DWL: Beam: Draft: Displ: Ballast:	11.66 m/383" 9.50 m/312" 3.66 m/12 1.94 m/64" 4800 Kg/10600 Lbs 1850 Kg/4100 Lbs

Farrs own commentary, per their website:
Design #72 Farr 11.6/38
November 1981
The Farr 11.6 metre (38 ft) fast cruising sloop continues to gain popularity around the world. At present there are 85 boats sailing in 8 countries. Designed in 1978, the yacht was inspired by a trend away from the IOR Rule restrictions towards a pure design concept to produce a fast, comfortable, easily handled and relatively economical yacht. Changes to the IOR Rule in 1977 and 78 were obsoleting yachts the year following their launching as well as distorting hull shapes. It was time to look toward the one-design concept that offered security of invenstment and pleasureable sailing.
The Farr 11.6 metre has achieved these aims. It does not rate very favourably under IOR - but it was never intended to. It is simply a very fast cruising boat but will race boat for boat with the best of the 2 tonners. In general terms, the style is for a light (ish) displacement hull form, moderate beam by modern standards with powerful sections, a wide stern and fin bow. The powerful hull coupled with a good percentage of ballast set low in a high aspect keel with fine bow sections makes the boat stiff and ensures excellent performances to windward (particularly in rough water).
This rig is non-masthead swept spreader arrangement with no complicated runners. It has easy to handle headsails and a mainsail large enough to drive the boat by itself for nonchalant cruising. The boat has a high sail area-to-displacement ratio to ensure downwind speed.
The interior design is definitely cruising oriented. It features wide safe companionway steps, 2 or 3 double berths, big galley with fridge and freezer, separate navigation area, separate head and shower. There is an abundance of storage space in the main cabin area and in the wide stern. The boat can cater comfortable for up to 9 people.
Initially the boat was designed for 2 Auckland yachtsmen who previously had owned and competitively sailed one of Bruce Farrs first cruising yachts, and who wanted a fast cruiser/racer to compete in 2nd division Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron series. The first wooden boat, GOLDEN EAGLE, was launched in January 1979. By that time some 16 wooden boat plans had been sold and production for a one-design class yacht was underway in New Zealand and Australia, the first glass boat being launched in Auckland in August 1979. The Farr 11.6 metre was adopted by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron as a class for one design racing. Hightly competitive racing has developed in New Zealand and Australia with yachtsmen crossing the Tasman to compete in events. Owners Associations formed in both countries control class restrictions and racing.

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Boden Boat Plans Australia | Cape Cutter 19 Cape Henry 21 Cape May 25 new Cape Charles 32 preview

Boden Boat Plans Australia

(See end of post for updates on Cape May 25 and Cape Charles 32)

Lovely pic of a CC19 as appeared on 

Small Craft Advisor

 "Tiptoe", Ian Allens beautiful CC19 in Picton, NZ

Note the generous protected cockpit, small outboard in the well.

 CC19s are ideal for gunkholing and getting in shallow beaches.

Pretty as a picture....

Standard hull with lifting centreplate, she rides easily on a trailer behind a fair size car.

Note the beautiful and traditional lines on the lapstrake (clinker) hull.

I have decided to cover the Cape Cutter 19 (CC19) and the Cape Henry 21 (CH21) together as they cover a number of variations on a single theme. The prospective owner or builder will doubtlessly spend quite a while mulling over these before choosing one!

Boats, even leisure boats, exist for different reasons - racing, cruising, liveaboard, fishing, etc - and they all have their place in the sun. Day boats however, are the most special kind, because they exist purely for the fun of being on the water, for gunkholing, picnicking, camping, and simply going out to clear your head. They are generally smallish, traditional and good looking, and in my opinion maybe the purest design form available - pure art really! The CC19 and the CH21 are both brilliant examples of this.

The CC19 was conceived by one Nick Voorhoeve - from memory about 1998? They were intended to compete in the "Cornish Crabber" market, popular in the UK and Europe. At that time the SA Rand was very weak against foreign currencies, and it was intended it would be built locally and exported in a 20 foot container. Dudley was commissioned to do the design - it is one of his own favourites and certainly one to be very proud of. See http://www.dixdesign.com/inspir19.htm for Dudleys own commentaries on this one.

The design is very traditional and practical at the same time. She was designed originally for GRP production (or wood) with a lifting centreboard. The hull has a lapstrake look, quite beamy with a traditional looking cabin top. The gaff rig is easily demountable, and easily handled from the cockpit.There is a very neat well for a small inboard (this is a great feature). Rudder hangs over the traditional transom. Below, the space is quite vast for a 19 footer, and nicely laid out. Very adequate for a few nights aboard.

CC19 Layout

CH21 Layout

Layouts are almost identical - the CH21 has slightly longer berths and a bit more elbow room. Note the option of fixed or bilge keels avoids the centreplate arrangement inside.

Galley

V-berth, looking forard

CH21 Rig and Profile

The rig is a gaff with two headsails, both on roller-furlers, to be flown either/or - it is not actually a cutter rig - but offers great flexibility and offers a very traditional appearance.

How do they sail?

In nearly all conditions, astonishingly well. In light airs they fly like dinghies. In moderate winds they handle well, and in strong winds they manage much better than youd expect.Lots of this is due to the very flexible sail plan, and the generous beam. 

While sailing a very large cat recently in Table bay, a CH21 crept up on us from a few miles behind. At first we couldnt see what it was, with many comments about how an old boat with a gaff rig could be moving that fast. Well in fact an old boat with a gaff rig simply cant go that fast - I then realised it must be a new boat and likely the new CH21 launched in Cape Town recently.  Well it was - I snapped a pic of it near Sunset Beach. This particular one was built by Peter Randle, and has bilge-keels. It was doing a steady 6 knots in about 10 knots of wind on the beam, and slowly it slipped past us!

It is in strong winds that I was most surprised however. I ran a cruising rally / race from Hout Bay to Cape Town a few years back - we left in very fresh winds (I departed under jib alone in fact), with about 30-35 knots and a fair chop. Some boats declined to leave. I was really quite surprised to see our resident CC19 joining the fleet - single-handed. Certainly it was quite well reefed, but managing without too much fuss in these wild conditions. It arrived in Cape Town quite safely, and not far behind the big boats. Going back to Hout Bay was also challenging that year, all upwind too, but again the CC19 arrived safely and in a respectable time. It is actually quite rare to be sailing in conditions such as those.... 

The Stability Curves for each of these boats show an A.V.S. slightly better than 120 degrees, which is really quite respectable, with plenty of reserve at 90 degrees. You can expect the bilge-keel version to be at least as good or better.

 

A number of interesting voyages have been undertaken by CC19s, not the least of which is a circumnavigation of England! Their ability in classic races is almost legendary, see news under http://www.capecutter19.com/news.htm

So which one to chose?!

The CC19

• Built up GRP boat from Cape Cutter Yachts at http://www.capecutter19.com/default.htm
• Plans from www.dixdesign.com, for D.I.Y. construction (kits are not commercially available for the CC19)
• Lifting Centreplate Keel
• Light Displacement 870kgs

The CH21

• Available for construction in lapstrake / marine-ply from CKD boats in South Africa, or many other suppliers worldwide - see http://www.dixdesign.com/kits.htm.
• The CH21 can be built with lifting centreplate or fixed bilge-keels
• Light Displacement 1160 kgs

CC19 has advantages where towing and trailer-cruising is the priority, or you want to buy a ready-made boat. Active association at http://capecutter19association.org/

CH21 has advantages in larger accommodation, challenging waters, and availability of kits for D.I.Y. The bilge-keel option may also be an attraction for drying-out moorings. 

So now you can make up your mind. Q.E.D. 

STOP PRESS: But now there is word on the street a 25 version may be on the near horizon..... what can I say - you first heard it here!   NEWS: See the Cape May 25 on Dudleys Website here....

STOP PRESS 2: News from Dudley is that the Cape Charles 32 is imminent - its at a stage where I think he would take an order? See the preview on Dudleys website. This one is substantially larger at 32 LOD, and will make a very decent and versatile cruiser. It will be offered with the option of a modern Marconi rig which looks quite interesting. 

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Boat Plans At Mystic Seaport | Hout Bay 30 33 40 50

Boat Plans At Mystic Seaport

"Spirit of Victoria" is a Hout Bay 50 open excursion boat operating daily
from the Cape Town Waterfront. Licensed for 40 passengers.
Operates in up to 50 knots of wind - the picture above shows 40+.
Normal crewing complement of two!

After taking a good look at these traditional (Dudley Dix) designs I sometimes wonder if the current design culture of "modern" cruising yachts has completely lost the plot!

For me, it has been a startling revelation to find these traditional steel "low-tech" Hout Bay designs are actually superior to most modern designs of high-tech sloop-type cruising boats, in respect of practically all things that matter to cruisers... Their only compromise being nth-degree upwind performance, for course racing etc. Or to put it another way, the obsession with upwind performance has massively compromised the design of contemporary cruising boats in all but one area - that of upwind racing, which is of course the one exact thing that doesnt really matter to cruisers.

Nearly everything that makes a sailboat expensive has to do with upwind racing. Be it the tall multi-spreader rigs, the winches, furling systems, carbon-fibre bits, deep bulb-keels, lightweight hulls and engines -  these things serve limited or zero purpose off the wind! And worse than that, they actually compromise almost every aspect of a sailboats function when not actively beating - in which case a bulb keel is a drag, a low aspect rig is better, a longish keel for tracking and stability, light bendy masts not required etc etc.

This is a fine looking Hout Bay 33, home built in Knysna,
and now resident at Hout Bay Yacht Club.

Thats not to say simple traditional rigs dont sail well upwind - they really do these days as long as they have decent keels - which the old gaffers seldom did unfortunately. The Hout Bays do have decent keels - they sail very well upwind. And now I will argue they do better at everything else that matters to cruisers, commercial workboats or charter boats, at a fraction of the price!

Strength:
The Hout Bays are all of robust steel construction. I have nothing against Ply and GRP - they have their merits - but when it comes to things that go bump in the night, tying up in fishing harbours, rafting for Panama, or the occasional grounding - steel has a definite advantage. Leave your boat in a foreign port for a few weeks while you have to go home or whatever, or on the hard during hurricane season - you sleep better with a steel boat for sure.

Simplicity:
The simple rigs, steel hull and generally low-tech nature make for easy maintenance that anyone can do anywhere. Everything comes from the hardware shop, not the boat shop. Given the Hout Bay 40 and 50 gaff rigs, I think they could be sourced entirely from the farmers co-op! Even the mast is a simple steel pole, with galvanised wire rigging.... Spectra, stainless steel, fancy winches not required. Homemade blocks are used and large wooden spars.

Rig on "Spirit of Victoria" - Hout Bay 50
Solid Steel poles for the masts, galvanised wire stays.
Simple halyards with blocks.
Its all open and accessible and fixable.

Passagemaking:
These traditional rigs do very well on all points of sail, and the low aspect gaffs really do well off the wind and while reaching. But these Hout Bays have huge load carrying capacity - for example the Hout Bay 50 is rated for 10T of load! This makes it possible to install a large simple engine and a few tons of diesel. And we all know passage-making times are often determined by the fuel available. Never mind ghosting over the ITCZ with drifters etc when you have loads of fuel and a long-life engine. Consider also bringing a boat back from say the Caribbean to South Africa. Motor straight back through the ITCZ and the South Atlantic high in about 4 weeks, or sail down via Brazil and the Southern Ocean in double that time, in rough seas and cold? Rhetorical question for most. These are excellent long-range motor-sailers. Under sail alone, the Hout Bay 50 "Cape Rose", a Gaff Schooner, once covered 1200 miles in 6 days under sail, a very credible log for even a racing boat.

Accommodation
Internal capacity of the Hout Bays is unbeatable for their length. Big tick for liveaboard, charter or workboat. There is a lot of boat in the length. A Hout Bay 50 displaces almost 21T to the waterline. The hull designs are moderate and fairly deep, with fine bows, making them comfortable in a seaway. They are also amazingly stiff. Because you saved so much on the build, the furnishings below can be awesome....

This is a HB70 example interior. That champagne is a Magnum!

Example interior of Cape Rose, an HB-50.
Engine midships under the saloon table,
 great for access but also weight distribution.

Handling
The generous rudders placed well aft allow good steering under sail and in marinas. The moderate (longish) keels make for excellent tracking and stability - in many cases self-steering isnt even required. I recall reading how one of them sailed straight without auto-pilot for about ten days returning from St Helena I think. The traditional rigs offer a relatively low centre of effort, and present far less rolling and broaching opportunities than a "tallmast" outfit sailing downwind. The "Spirit of Victoria" is a Hout Bay 50 operating from the Cape Town Waterfront. It is a Gaff Schooner, and is operated by just two crew, with up to 40 passengers, in winds up to 50 knots. The other rigs will be even easier.

Longish /Moderate keels.
Rudder well aft.

Looks

The Hout Bay 30 and 33 are fine looking boats with a classic and practical look about them. Understated and elegant, they look the business. This one is a nice plain simple sloop.

Hout Bay 33 in Hout Bay!
Very easy on the eye, it will go anywhere.

Simple transom-hung rudder with tiller.
Steel railings.

The Hout Bay 40 and larger are spectacular and traditional, especially the Schooner options - either the Gaff or the Marconi Staysail Schooner. You can do the Chesapeake Classic Schooner race in one of these! For some reason I am beginning to prefer these to Sloops. One has to admit, the looks of a boat are really quite important to the whole sailing experience. Nothing worse than arriving in port with an ugly slab-sided boat - people think youre an aesthetically challenged squatter. Well maybe there is one thing worse - a fancy modern tupperware - in which case you come across as a poser from Wall Street or some such thing. But arrive in a Gaff-Ketch with traditional sails and people will buy you beer (maybe even rum), whilst admiring your senses of taste, traditionalism, wisdom and wonderful seamanship. Add a pipe and a beard and you will soon be fully booked for pirate parties. Bonus - no-one will know you have a brilliant motorboat hidden below all those ropes and climbing ladders!

How can you beat this for sheer spirit?

Rigs

Beautiful Gaff  Schooner  for the HB 40 and up.
Versatile, inexpensive, low-tech.

Marconi Staysail Schooner on the HB 40 and up.
Very easy handling.

Various other rigs are available - including a Gaff cutter, and a Marconi Cutter, each with their own merits. Links are provided below to the detail specs of each design on Dudleys website.

Versatility

I have already mentioned these boats sail well, motor well and are practical for all sorts of options and places. The gaff rig particularly appeals because the air-draft is quite low (Inland waterways), while the Hout Bay 40 offers the option of a shallow keel (1.3m) - European canals anyone? The gaff masts would be fairly easy to lower and stow on deck. And then of course you could go around the Horn or the North West passage too.

So which does one chose from the Shearwater, the Dix 43, or the Hout Bay 40 or 50? I dont think I can afford the wine for that debate - but I reckon one could cobble together a Hout Bay 50 gaffer for about the same budget as a Shearwater 39 or a Dix 43. Just saying....

So there you have it - a simple traditional boat that works better, looks better and is far cheaper than that cruise-adapted race boat you used to think was perfect. Or maybe that was me.... Anyway - theres a whole lot more to these great boats than meets the eye!

Links:

• Hout Bay 30
• Hout Bay 33
• Hout Bay 40
• Hout Bay 50

There is also a Hout Bay 70, and 65. See www.dixdesign.com

One other thing - the Pratique 35 is really part of the same family.

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Boat Plans Catamaran | The Sad Story of SV Tara

Boat Plans Catamaran

This post is dedicated to the memory of George Mills and Rachel Daly, 

and in support of PJ Daly, the sole survivor of this tragic accident.

Tara, a beautiful 47 Holman and Pye Traditional Wooden Yawl.
Solidly constructed of Mahogany Planks over Oak frames,
she was a strong and well-found vessel displacing 13 Tons.

Images of Tara before the wreck courtesy of Roy McBride of CKD Boats. See his excellent blog here.

George Mills, Taras most recent owner. Larger than life, and very humble at the same time.
George was a true Scot, a true sailor, happy soul, and an enthusiast of Traditional Scottish Music.
You just have to see this impromptu recording of George in action at HBYC just a few days before this accident.

Taras most recent owner was George Mills, a member of both Hout Bay and Royal Cape Yacht Clubs. Sadly, George perished along with Rachel Daly at approximately 3 a.m. on Monday 1 Feb 2016, when this boat was wrecked near Bokpunt on the Cape West Coast (near Yzerfontein, South Africa). We have a short tribute to him and the crew (all wonderful people and well known at HBYC) - on the club website. Georges death was widely reported in several UK newspapers including The Sun, The Daily Record, The Daily Mail, The Scotman as well as a number of local news agencies.

George spent a lot of time on this boat and kept her immaculate.
Tara also served as the Committee Boat for the previous two
Admirals Regattas at HBYC, with George at the helm.

Yesterday, just six days after the accident, a gathering was held up at the site of the wreck, in a small bay (now called Tara Bay by those who knew George). This is a very remote and wild piece of coast, access possible only with 4x4s or similar vehicles. A number of folk arrived on horseback too from Ganzekraal.

Some beautiful bunches of flowers placed in a remnant of the hull,
 in memory of George and Rachel.

A few of the 4x4 arrivals from HBYC at Bokpunt.

The stern section of the hull was the only piece "in shape"

Friends of George, PJ and Rachel examining the wreck.
Tara had received a severe pounding on the rocks and the remnants
had been prepared for recovery in small piles.

"Bill" (surname unknown to me) - manager of the Bokpunt conservation area - related the events as he recalled. Tara had wrecked at around 3 am Monday morning, in pitch darkness and heavy mist (suspected possible auto-pilot error - but  investigation still in progress). PJ had scrambled ashore and found the vehicle track along this part of the shore. Fortuitously he followed it Southwards and found the (completely unlit) cottage of Bill about two kilometres further down. He (PJ) banged loudly on the door, as one would expect. An equally shaken Bill responded and together they set off back down the track to locate the wreck in the dark. The managed to spot a small section of the mast pointing upwards and so found the wreck. Bill (via his wife in Cape Town at the time) raised the alarm and a fast and well coordinated disaster plan was effected, including National Sea Rescue and all the related disaster teams. By 9 am the project was complete, save for the visit of SAMSA (SA Marine Safety Authorities), who arrived just two hours later.

I came to know of this tragedy earlier in the week, and we posted a piece in memorial in the HBYC Club website, and laid flowers in the club. I knew George personally via HBYC and had many good drinks with him. But I must confess that this memorial visit to the wreck was absolutely chilling. Besides the human aspect, seeing this beautiful yacht so completely smashed up - along with the rawness of this bleak and vicious coastline - was quite disturbing. To think it all happened in the middle of the night, with dense fog, must have been a complete nightmare.

Go well George, Go well Rachel. 
Our thoughts are now very much with PJ.

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