Full sized sunset

Like the last post, but bigger......


Like the last post, but bigger......

Later that night...

What - no boats?

In Coleridge's "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" there is the great line "water, water everywhere, and not a drop to drink".

He probably meant the sea voyager eternal worry about fresh water, though of course it could also cover equally dangerous risk of running out of the sailor's trusted rum (or in the case of Robin Knox-Johnston, whisky).

However in my case its water water everywhere and not a drop to float on. For it's been a land lubbers summer so far, with distractions from the new flat and OU finance course.

On Saturday was off to lovely Whitstable (below) for a beach BBQ.

In previous years we have gone out in Alex's Dart, which is very fast and wet, but now he was responsible dad attending to the sausages and burgers.

But we did have useful discussion about outboard motors for my brother's inflatable - though it does still seem quite small for the Thames.

Hence another discussion (this time in Dorset) with my uncle about getting a proper boat for journeys up and down the Thames. He raised the interesting question of why if there are hybrid cars there are no hybrid boats?

It seems from articles like this one there could be a problem with power and you can't charge the batteries by breaking as you can on a car.

Oh well, it was a lovely sunset again....

Water Rats

Apologies for silence but this weekend was locked to desk writing an assignment for the OU course on Financial Strategy I've been studying.

On Saturday night I escaped for an hour for another bike ride along the Thames path. On the way I disturbed what looked like a rat - after all they do say that anywhere in London you are no more than a few metres from one. I hoped it was no normal rat, but a water rat, hero of the lovely Thames based classic story "The Wind in the Willows".


It was ratty who said - as many have said afterwards - "there is nothing - absolutely nothing - half as much worth doing as simply messing about in boats".

Of course the Thames where the story is set much further upstream, mild mannered and slow moving, a safe place for ratty's small rowing boat. However near me the current is too strong, with the tide rushing in and out faster.

I saw this classic heavy rowing boat one evening with three occupants that was loosing the battle - how ever hard they tried they were going backward, being dragged out towards the sea. In the end they gave up and as the water level fell, beached their craft and disappeared, not doubt to have a drink at the local pub.

Latter that evening I saw them again (below, under Putney Bridge). The sun had set and the tide had turned and they were heading back up river. Even though the day hadn't gone just as they planned I can't but help thinking that ratty would have been proud to have been proved right yet again.

Boats and Bikes

This is not a boat, I accept that. But it is still an essential tool to enjoy river life. Yesterday I got one and today it sped me along the Thames path from Putney to Kew in 45 minutes to meet others for a picnic.

It felt very civilized - like one of those European countries where everyone looks very healthy riding on bides with two advert-cute blond babies looking out from their trolley.

The path looks a bit like this:

At times it is so narrow you can feel the bushes on either side and have to stop in a passing place if anyone comes the other way. On one side (in the photo above the left) is the river and there are stunningly pretty views - a place called Strand on the Green caught my eye looking as twee yet pretty as music by Elgar at his English-lyrical best.

Of course it would have been better to have been on the river - like the dinghies racing by Hammersmith Bridge.

Or even like this gentleman who not five minutes ago passed outside heading gently upriver....


The bike shop sold many accessories - but amongst all the clips, helmets, pumps, shorts, lights and so on, for some reason they didn't try to sell me a pair of bright yellow floats!

House Boats & the Property Ladder

It is well known that us Brits are absolutely obsessed about property. An Englishman's home is not just his castle but his once little nest egg that has increased by [enter huge number here] in the last 6 months alone.

The TV schedules are full of programs from self-build to how to buy abroad - and last week one such called Property Ladder covered an interesting project to convert an abandoned barge into a houseboat (above you can see a photo of the barge during the program shoot).

A house boat is a lovely idea - to be actually on the river, rising and falling with the tide, gently rocking in the wind, hearing the lap of waves and cry of gulls can be magically. And it can make great sense costing less than the equivalent in bricks and mortar (or even steel and concrete).

However there are problems that the program skirted round. The developers want a reported £ 270,000 for a sixty year lease of the mooring. However the Port of London Authority reserve the right to evict anyone with just 3 months notice. And the thought of a quarter of a million vanishing into smoke is not exactly the best way to encourage prospective buyers.

But the risk might be low - look at this property sale - and note the comment about the lease length.

Its a shame as there are empty berths and house boats looking for places. But the annual charge of £ 9,000 for the boat above is again too high for many tastes.

But then again property prices in London seem to be able to only head in one direction - upwards.

Profit ratios and the Tudor Pull

It's a bank holiday weekend here in London, which means two things. Firstly - and by definition - its a 3 day weekend, as Monday is a public holiday. Secondly - and too predictably - the British weather has responded with cloudy skies and relentless rain.

So its a day inside with the books of B821, Financial Strategy, learning about profit ratios.

However half way through Unit 2 something caught my eye out the window, several old rowing boats, like the one in the photos above, heading downstream, with rowers dressed in some sort of costume.

Outside about a dozen similar boats were braving the elements and heading towards Westminster. A quick Google revealed it to be "The Tudor Pull" - organised by the Thames Traditional Rowing Association which, as the LPA's site puts it:

The Tudor Pull is a ceremonial event for Thames Watermen's Cutters which is organised by the Thames Traditional Rowing Association (TTRA) in May each year.

The cutters escort the Thames Royal Shallop 'Jubilant' rowed by members of the Company of Watermen and Lightermen from Hampton Court Palace to the Tower of London to deliver a 'Stela' to the Governor of the Tower for safekeeping. The 'Stela' is a piece of medieval water pipe made from a hollowed tree trunk which stands on a base of timber from the old Richmond Lock and bears the coat of arms of the Waterman's Company.

The cutters are rigged with full ceremonial canopies and flags and are rowed with four oars by fully-liveried crews. In keeping with the traditions of the Watermen's Cutters, a passenger must be carried.

I watched the fleet going by and returned to my numbers. Despite the rain I think they were having a much better afternoon than me!

10 Ways to Sell the America's Cup

On the day that Oracle BMW got knocked out of the America's Cup I watched the BBC news sport roundup. And what did I see? rugby, football, tennis, golf, and motorbikes, but no boats.

As Yachting World has also noticed, the America's Cup just isn't getting any coverage or indeed significant following. It's a shame as its one of sailing's top trophies, so what can the organisers do about it? Well apart from including a ball somewhere in the activity (don't laugh, thats clearly the common denominator in most of TV sports) how about this:

1. Make sure it's shown live. It makes a huge difference to watch recorded sailing, when you know the result, to seeing it live - and compare the figures for a football World Cup game to the replays. Make sure who ever gets the rights puts them out live (i.e. not like Sky here in the UK)

2. That means schedule the races at times convenient for broadcasters. Yes it's a bore but thats the reality of modern life

3. It also means have regular races. In the UK Formula 1 is regularly on one network on weekend afternoons, and that can build habits (and anyhow the first time half the audience will just be going "What the?")

4. Make the course shorter. The best bit is seeing the boats going round the mark raising and dropping sails and generally fighting for position. The long beat to windward in particular slooowwwsss things down. And Formula 1 has shown TV audiences are very happy watching vehicles going round and round and round and round and.....

5. Have more multi-boat races - much more exciting to see a fleet battle it out than just two.

6. Bring in cheerleaders. Just an idea.

I'd say also get more teams involved - so more countries have a local team to support - but I'm sure the organisers have been trying hard to get that already.

Of course there are also things the teams can do too:

7. Bring in the WAGS. Thats the wives and girlfriends, and it kept the UK tabloids busy all summer with their stories of shopping, clothes, drink, and general bad behaviour. At least one of the sailing WAGS should have a single out, another do a kiss and tell, and another be the subject of a reality tv show.

8. Behave badly. For heavens sake what has happened to the reputation of the sailor? In the Volvo there were all these really nice chaps spending time with their wives and being really good dads to their kids. What happened to girl in every port? Look at the England cricket team: complete failures again but Andrew Flintoff did the right thing in going out late drinking, been seen with series of girls in nightclubs, and then falling off a pedalo! Now thats the way to get a bit of attention for your sport.

9. Scandals. How about having one of the teams throw a couple of races due to a payoff from some far-Eastern betting syndicate?

10. Sinking. Why are all the boats still afloat? Surely what the America's Cup needs is a sinking or two or at least break a mast!

America out of the America's cup

Shock result yesterday when Oracle BMW was knocked out of the America's Cup by Luna Rossa (above) - or to be technical the Louis Vuitton cup.

I was surprised how pleased I was about this: maybe its yet another price the US must pay for GWB's madness.

But also its good to know that inshore yacht racing's top prize can't be bought by a billionaires' cheque book.

And as to why? Was it because confidence became over-confidence? Or were egos clashing and undermining the teamwork that is crucial for the crew to work as one?

But there's no doubt that Luna Rossa deserves its place in the final, sailing fast and well.

Cutty Sark Tragedy

This is the Cutty Sark on a happier day, welcoming Ellen back from her epic round the world record breaking journey.

But today its a smoldering wreck after a fire gutted the central area. Whether accident or deliberate either way its a tragedy.

At least a large part of the structure was not on site due to restoration work so is safe. Fingers crossed we'll yet again have a chance to visit and maybe even see this great tea clipper sail.

The American's Cup

Its been an exciting week at the American's Cup where hot favourites Oracle have found themselves on the point of being knocked out by those swarve Italians on Prada (above).

I haven't been following the Cup that closely to three reasons.

Firstly the TV coverage is restricted to pay channels such as Sky Sports and I'm not going to pay 34 pounds a month to a channel owned by Bush and Sharon supporter Rupert Murdoch just to watch one sailing race.

Secondly as an inshore round the cans race there is no opportunity to try and second guess the navigators and their tactics using the likes of the Stormsurf global wind forecasts. So it's a bit of a passive spectator look what happened role.

And finally there is of course no British entry!

Despite all that very tempted to fly down to Valencia to watch a race or two......

Sunday Mornings

It was such a lovely morning that just couldn't not go for a run along the Thames path. The sun was bright and strong but the path was cool under the shading trees, leaves freshly green.

And not surprisingly the path was packed with joggers and bikers, prams and dogs. And the river equally busy with rowing boats and support power boats (one of which got stuck in the shallows - if you ever wonder why they have on board a metal pole, the answer is they use it to push themselves off in such situations).

Now I'm back the clouds have rolled in and the temperature dropped and its time for some research. Really it should be on balance sheets as part of this course I'm doing.

But first the important question of what is the difference between Marmite and Marmite Guinness? - to which the answer is not much. The latter doesn't taste of Guinness, but is slightly less salty and creamier. Its not even in short supply as its still on sale in Putney Waitrose.

Can you guess which of the two above is spread with the original and which the Guinness variety?

Another ARC story

Thanks to Tillerman we've been sharing the stories we usually tell over a drink in the bar in the evening after the days sailing. So it wouldn't be surprising if we've been selecting them for entertainment as much as embarrassment factor.

So it might be there's a slight degree of censorship. I'm surprised there aren't more stories about mooring which gives so many opportunities for cock-ups, and with an audience standing by watching.

I remember one particular time when we were heading in to refuel, lined up, headed in, and it was when we were about 3 metres out that the three of us - each who claimed to able to skipper a yacht - noticed that no one had set even a single line. We bounced rather badly and yes I was driving.

Anyhow, time for another story from the ARC. One of our crew was mad keen on fishing and had bought a rod and line in Las Palmas. We'd only been across the start for about twenty minutes and he was itching to get a line out. And after a bit of badgering the skipper agreed.

Not a good idea, as there about 200 other boats all around us, and one decided to charge its batteries by towing a generator line, and yup, we got our fishing line tangled round it. We did the decent thing and cut our line but it must have made a bit of a mess.

Anyhow within a few days we'd lost sight of all other boats and forgot all about the incident. We made our way across the Atlantic, shredded one spinnaker and one pair of hands, and three weeks later crossed the finish line early one Sunday morning.

After beers, a shower, and a good nights sleep we went our separate ways. I shared the taxi to the airport with crew from other boats heading off to the same flight and enjoyed hearing their stories.

One in particular caught my attention. "We had just left Las Palmas and was towing our generator" said someone, "and you wouldn't believe it, it got caught up in the fishing line from some idiot's boat!"

"No way!"

(my small voice from the back) "Er, that was us. Sorry"

The Midnight Shredder

Tillerman has challenged us to report our worst mistake or most embarrassing moment while sailing.

Cracking idea.....

Now was it when I crash gybed a yacht in front of a rapidly on-coming Greek ferry? (nope, just learning then, doesn't count)

Or was it on the round the island race when our navigator got so sea sick he got stuck in the cabin unable to undo the lock to get out and then missed two buoys? (nope, wasn't me, so again doesn't count).

Or broaching a brand new yacht in the Solent with an inexperienced crew including some single women who for some reason didn't want to talk to me afterwards? (nope, probably some other reason for that).

So must be the case of the midnight shredder. I was onboard Boss's Ocean Wanderer with 5 others crossing the Atlantic on the Arc - gosh, back in 2003 - and we were only about 3 days out of St Lucia.

We were feeling pretty good - even confident - which can be very dangerous. We'd had a bad accident with the spinnaker halyard shredding one crew members hands to bits the previous week but since then moral had improved and we'd just done the spinnaker gybe so one watch could go below.

It was so nice on deck the off-watch remained to chat. The air was warm and the full moon rising high in the tropical night. I was at the wheel as we headed deep downwind, and we were exchanging jokes.

My attention slipped (it must have been a good joke), just for a second. And the spinnaker wrapped itself round the forestay, and kept wrapping round and round and round.

At first we were pretty relaxed - we'd had several wrap and a bit of heading into wind, pulling on the sheets and they had generally come free. This one just kept on getting worse.

The skipper and mate went forward to have a look and were baffled: the top half was wrapped one way the bottom half the other. They tried all sorts of tricks from unwinding manually (no good, which ever way they went the other half just got worse) to letting the kite fly (no good, it acted, er, like a kite, and was caught by the wind, at one point streaming horizontal. It looked rather beautiful lit up by the moon).

Then it started to shred. Boss are well known for accounting for each paper-clip, so loss of a whole spinnaker wasn't going to look good. This had to be stopped and fast - someone had to fix it. And that meant going up the mast and coming down along the forestay, unwrapping it as you went. So I volunteered.

Thing was, I was feeling really guilty. Yes, spinnakers do wrap, but I had let my concentration slip, and had been on the wheel at the time. So I got prepared and the bo'sun's chair was attached to one of the spare halyards.

Just as we were about to start the hoist the mate managed to unwrap the wayward sail. Maybe all the flying horizontal had ironed out some of the coils, but now the end was clearly in sight and soon the sail was done on the deck where the damage could be inspected. So I didn't have to go up the mast.

It was really really disappointing. I don't mind heights that much and going up the mast would have felt like balancing the mistake. And then there would have been the bragging rights "yeh, I've been up the mast, middle of the night too, it was nothing really".

But mostly can you imagine what it would have been like with the moonlight glittering off the waves and the mast swaying gently under the rolling waves that follow the trade wind from Africa?

It taught me to focus when on that point of sail - on all the information available, from the feel of the motion under foot to the sound of wind and sail. Since then (touching wood) haven't had another problem. Indeed during the Fastnet I helmed the most during our watches when the spinnaker was up - in particular at night.

Because the important thing about mistakes is they are the best of all learning experiences and if you don't get them you'll never really be able to sail.

Thames litter and paths

A series of hiccups have stopped posting for the last week. First there was the bug (or to use colloquial English, the lurgy) then work and travel then finally my broadband went out again - the second time in a month.

Even more annoying than BT's inability to provide what should be pretty basic technology for the 21st century is their use of call centres in countries where English is a second language and the over-reliance on robot like scripts. Grrr!

Anyhow the local engineer has now replaced both the line to the exchange and the equipment at the exchange so its all spanking brand new, and, at least for the time being, working.

So two river updates:

1. Rubbish: apparently there is a charity that helps clean up the litter along the Thames - see the Thames21 web site here.

2. Pathway: there is this great web site that describes the Thames paths and how they go 184 miles from the Cotswold above Oxford to Greenwich and the sea. As well as an interactive map they have a great set of downloadable walking ("hiking") maps from which the figure above was taken.

Can't wait to get a bike and head upstream to see how far I get!

Bottle and Boat

There was a report on the BBC web site that litter on Britain's beaches is up 90%. As the Thames outside my window is tidal then technically this counts as part of the coast and yes litter seems up here too.

Drifting by seems to be everything from footballs to plastic bags and from half submerged boats to used drinks bottles (above). When walking along the river side I did consider picking some bits up but there was just too too much.

The Port of London Authority removes larger items - such as this morning they dragged what looked like a whole tree out of the shipping lanes, but is anyone responsible for litter cleanup?

The tidal nature means the same bit of rubbish can go back and forth many times (anyone know how many times?) though today when its neaps the flow was, to say the least, sluggish.

Luckily my lurgy is going so unlike Father Thames I am feeling back in the flow.

Zong Video

Just uploaded this video of the Zong to YouTube - though doing so started wondering about the name Zong.

Sounds like he was Ming the Merciless's sidekick: all hail Zong the Zuton!

Running and Walking by the River

Its London Marathon day today and the sky is blue and the sun shining and a record 35,500 runners are out there pounding the streets. Best wishes to all, especially Tillerman!

Alas due to the lurgy remaining I'll not even be doing my Sunday morning 45 minute run here in Putney. But you don't have to run to enjoy the Thames path - one of my favourite walks and top tips for visitors is to go from Westminster to London Bridge (or even Tower Bridge) along the South Bank.

This area has been transformed over the past decade, and along the way you can pass:
- Big Ben
- London Aquarium
- Saatchi Gallary
- London Eye
- South Bank Arts Complex
- Second hand book stalls
- Oxo Tower Restaurant
- Tate Modern
- Millennium Bridge across to St Pauls
- Shakespeare's Globe
- Replica of the Goldern Hinde
- Southwark Cathedral
- London Bridge across to the Monument (of the great fire)
- HMS Belfast
- Tower Bridge across to the Tower of London

...to name but a few! Its a lovely walk and the views over the city (and indeed over The City) are amazing, day or night.

Last time I went that way (on route to the Zong) I popped into the Tate Modern and went on the Slides before they were dismantled. Very fast, a bit bumpy, and great fun!

One day before the mast

I've been stuck at home all week with a bug - its not been much fun. But there are many much much worse places to be sick, and the previous week I visited one.

It was a replica of the ship Zong that was moored in the pool of London for two weeks and I went along to have a look round. The story is pretty shocking - not just was it a slaver, but the centre of an insurance scam that resulting in slaves being thown overboard mid Atlantic when they got sick.

While it was pretty interesting there were two things that bothered me a bit.

Firstly it wasn't a true replica of the ship Zong - which was longer and had different layout below deck. It was just the ship used in the recent film "Amazing Grace" about the life of William Wilberforce.

Secondly the attitude of the tour guide and at least one of the others on the tour I found disquieting. Both mentioned skin colour as if that would or should be crucial in determining attitudes to the boat. "Why are you here, as a white person?" was a flavour of the questions.

I found this boggling to be honest. Slavery is a horror of humanities past, irrespective of what race you are. I don't feel I should feel guilty for what was done centuries ago by someone else for the irrelevance that we share a skin colour.

Its not just that some white people opposed slavery, and that some black people were part of slave trading. We are all mongrels and it doesn't feel right to define our identity or be defined from just one historical group.

So to a degree I switched off and started asking about the rigging, going to the rail and asking what each of the ropes were. Recently I've have been reading "Two years before the mast" which at times is quite technical in its description of the rigging of a tall ship, so a hands on Q&A session seemed just what the doctored ordered.

I found a trainee who was initially nervous but then by the end had her confidence boosted as she found she did know all the ropes, their names, and their uses.

On the tube home there was the usual cross section of races, religions, and nationalities. As a little girl staggered her way across the isle I exchanged smiles with the proud grandfather sitting opposite.

No doubt we could have exchanged national histories, found differences and reasons for grievances. Would that really have helped?

Boat Races

Tillerman asked the very good question as to why the Oxford & Cambridge Boat Race is called "The Boat Race" when there are so many races involving boats out there.

While trying to find out why (a quick look on Wikipedia) I noticed the date of the first race - back in 1829! So it pre-dates the America's Cup, which started in 1852, by a good 23 years. And the America's Cup is described as "oldest active trophy in international sport".

So thats 23 years in which it could really call itself, "The" Boat Race.

But now there are so many races involving boats - like the one in the photo above. All weekend a steady stream of canoes have been heading downstream like beetles on a pond.

Another quick Google and the answer came here. Its the Devizes to Westminster Race, a daunting 125 miles of river. It calls itself "The longest non-stop canoe marathon in the world".

There are two categories - the first full-on don't stop till you get there is for senior doubles, who paddle all through the night. And the second for juniors and single seniors taking four days and resting / camping on the way.

Thats an impressive distance to canoe: congratulations to all that made it!

The Boat Race

It was boat race day yesterday.

It was a lovely sunny spring day and the start, just round the corner from where I live, was absolutely packed. Putney Bridge and both banks heaved with not just thousands but probably hundreds of thousands.

Its amazing that a university level two contestant race for a minority sport that takes less than 20 minutes can bring so many out to watch. Ok, some will be students or ex-students. I was standing by what looked like recent graduates shouting support for my old uni, Cambridge, which made me feel at home.

I think its the combination of tradition with the competitiveness and closeness of the race. It really is open as to who will win. And as both crews were packed with internationals it was a fiercely fought all the way to Chiswick.

And Cambridge won!

Living by the river is wonderful....

Celebrity Yacht Race - Competition Results

There were no winners for the Celebrity Yacht Race competition, so Buff's t-shirt is safe!

The right answer is as follows:

- the winner of the last America's Cup and current defender is Alinghi

- Alinghi's founder (and frequent helm) is the Swiss billionaire Ernestor Bertarelli

- Bertarelli's wife is ex Miss UK Kirsty Roper

- As well as modelling, Ms Roper also considered a career in music

- The song "Black Coffee" was originally written for her

- It was later re-written and released by the All Saints

- It is said Ms Roper had a hand in developing the song and it relates to Bertarelli.

So now you know!


Picture from Alinghi site

Golden Balls and Boats

“Which one d’you like sweetie?” asked David Beckham.

Victoria Beckham looked at both boats carefully. “Well that one’s a Princess and got just a lovely walk-in wardrobe” she said.

“We’ll take it” David said to the sales rep, who beamed back.

“Wait a minute, let me finish. The other one is a Sun Seeker – now that sounds nice – and it’s got its own jacuzzi”

David smothered a groan and looked around at the London Boat Show. “There’s a hundred boats here, there’s got to be one for you here”.

“But you don’t understand, David, it’s got to be just right. When top international stars like us go to LA we’ve got to accessorise to show our class. I heard Paris Hilton and Britney Spears are getting a matching pair of speed-boats”

“Wish they’d get a pair of knickers”

Victoria gave David a slap. “Don’t say that – it’s those horrid paps”

“Yes, your paps are much nicer”.

Victoria smiled. “You know what I mean – look at how they were chasing that nice Kate Middleton, even after they promised they wouldn’t”.

“What-ever, you going to buy or what”

“I don’t know, does it come in pink?” she asked the sales rep, who nodded, smile fixed as if by superglue.

“Not pink, not pink again, call it Posh’s Palace, Brooklyn II, anything, just not pink”.

“It’s my boat, you get to choose the other toys”

“Yup, iPhone and all the best from the Macworld”

Victoria sniffed. “You spend too long on that Apple – who is this Michelle Manhart I found you searching for”

“You wouldn’t be interested” Beckham quickly said, “she’s a US military sort in Iraq, its international politics, very boring, not your cup of tea at all”.

“Oh”. Victoria had lost interest.

“Come on, I’ve got a meeting with the Florida Gators management team. Someone called Yvonne Decarlo or something like that.”

“Maybe not a boat” said Victoria, “but a car”.

“Now you’re talking” said David, perking up, “let’s go to the Detroit Auto Show”.

Updates

It's a slow period for sailing when the nights are long and the days cold. So for the foreseeable future this will be a once a week blog.

This week I'm trying an experiment suggested by Ken Levine on his blog - post an entry with all the top search phrases and see how it impacts the hit-rate. In this case it was to include all the terms in Google's Zeitgeist in a boating related piece of fiction.

Hope you enjoy the results.

Boat Show Round-up

So I went - but it was only just worth it. It doesn't help that the exhibition centre Excel is the edge of beyond (ok East London) and it didn't help that there was a signal failure on the Docklands Light Railway which meant a 20 min hike through the wilds of Canning Town (which is clearly a place you should leave your valuables at home before visiting).

It should be a plus that the place is so huge it feels empty, but it lessons the character and atmosphere. Maybe in an attempt to generate some excitement that many of stands went interactive, with demos of how to lay an anchor, competitions to haul up a dinghy's mainsail or grind a volvo, and a fog tunnel.

I was most interested by the America's Cup boat on display, BMW Oracle. Particularly impressive was the size of the track - understandable given the loads involved.


There wasn't enough time to look round the boats or do any shopping as was the last two hours on Thursday. But its my favourite time to go as the stands hand out free drinks and hire bands.

So many thanks to the Laser stand for the beer and music. But alas they were out budgeted by Sun Seeker(who else) who had hired a The Committments style band (below) for their stand.

Now that was fun!

But what does it say about a boat show when the best bit was the beer and the band?

What's the point of Boat Shows?

Its that time of year again. The Christmas decorations have been put away for another year and England is grey and wet, so it must be time for the London Boat Show.

But I can't get enthusiastic and wonder why bother going. It's not like the year I was thinking of buying a dinghy so had fun checking out Lasers and Toppers. It's not like the year I met up with a couple of friends in the champagne bar, nor the year another friend was exhibiting.

If I go at all it will be the late Thursday night where there seems to be an open bar at most stands. But at the moment its only 50:50.

But yes, this sailor does think a spinnaker is much like a bikini top.

River Life

Happy New Year!

One of my favourite quotes comes from The Wind in the Willows. As Ratty introduces Mole to the river he says "Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing -- absolute nothing -- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats". It is of course so true.

Almost all the action of the book takes place beside the River Thames, which I can now see gliding gently past my new flat.

The river is fascinating, ever changing. Tides come and go, birds flock and feed, clouds rush by, while flurries on the water show gusts of wind. This afternoon we saw a melancholy Christmas Tree - floating upstream as the tide was in full flood. If I wait a few hours I'll see it come back down again.

I love watching it so no doubt more river stories in the future.

Anyhow, hope you all had great holiday breaks!

Moving

Captain JP is moving at last!

I've have been too busy to post for the last few weeks and I don't think unpacking will be much easier - so this might be the last update till xmas. It's not helped by BT being unbelievably slow in connecting the new build flat to broadband.

In the mean time a show of how it's possible to make an ocean yacht race viewer without the hassle - get Google Earth to do the hard work for you as was done by the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC). Check out their web site where you can download the kml files for the fleet and also grib data, which when loaded looks something like this:


This should be required viewing for the less than professional crew behind the Velux 5 Oceans site. I've sort of lost interest in that race, especially with both Golding and Thomson are now out of the running - even if the drama on both boats did temporarily raised its profiles.

Though again the best way to follow events was by either the Mike Golding or Yachting World sites - the former of which included a (free) video of the abandonment of Hugo Boss and interview by Elaine Bunting who had to think of what to say to Mike who must feel he is under some sort of sailing curse.

I'm finding it more fun to follow the Arc which brings back memories of doing the crossing in 2003. My old boat, Ocean Wandering, is repeating its annual migration - as is another boat we remember from 2003 called Steamy Windows, now with a new owner and skipper.

From the emails coming back it sounds like there is some great trade wind sailing go on.

Something to dream over from a stormy center of London, surrounded by packing boxes.

Following the 5 Oceans

Frustrated at being unable to follow the 5 Oceans? Unable to get the official web site to work? Fear not! Here is your cut out and keep (Blog lawyer: you can't say that!) - ok your print out and keep tool-kit to following the fleet to Fremantle.

Firstly head to Mike Golding's web site to get the rankings and positions, like this:
The top four are in South Atlantic and last three close to the equator. The DTL closing is clearly out, but it looks like Mike is falling behind. Checking the tracks it appears Alex Thomson is heading as if towards the wrong Cape - towards the Horn not Hope.

To understand both these, lets check out the weather down there. On Stormsurfing this is the forecast for tomorrow morning.

The leading boat's progress is blocked by a high. Bernard Stamm is close to getting out the other side. Alex Thomson is thinking of heading around the high to the west - which could be a smart move. If you run the animation you can see the high drifting east, following Stamm, breathing down his neck - which can't be a good thing.

To find out how each of the skippers are doing, check out their respective sites:

- Mike Goldings knows he's got problems - Stamm ahead and Alex out-flaking him.

- Alex Thomson's listening to Snow Patrol and Razorlight and plotting his route west

- Bernard Stamm is writing in French. I can't understand it without really concentrating....

- Kojiro Shiraishi is writing in Japanese. I really can't understand it at all!

- Graham Dalton is not writing on his site - any ideas if he is anywhere else?

- Robin Knox-Johnson hasn't written for a bit - but there's a reason for that....

Robin Knox-Johnson is having problems - there's a series of stories on the Yachting World site, including him:
- having a Chinese gybe
- reporting all the battens in his main broken
- struggling with modern technology

The last is a fascinating insight into how sailing has changed since Robin was in "A world of my own". The old school sailor is having to adjust to the modern technology of grib files downloaded by satellite rather than simply tapping at the barometer and peering at the sky.

But one thing hasn't changed for Knox-Johnston - the wee dram of whisky.

See - all that coverage, and not need to go to the official site.

Butterflies And Hurricanes

There's a great video on Bernard Stamm's web site of Cheminees Poujoula storming along - and the musics not bad too. Turns out Stamm is a Muse fan, and it's that classic track "Butterflies And Hurricanes".

A good choice - one of those to add to the rough weather mix. I took it on the delivery from Lisbon to Gibraltar, but it's not really fine weather chill out music.

The lyrics are pretty appropriate for a round the world sailor:

Change everything you are
And everything you were
Your number has been called

Fights and battles have begun
Revenge will surely come
Your hard times are ahead

Best, you've got to be the best
You've got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is now

Change everything you are
And everything you were
Your number has been called
Fights and battles have begun
Revenge will surely come
Your hard times are ahead

Best, you've got to be the best
You've got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is now

Don't let yourself down
And don't let yourself go
Your last chance has arrived

Best, you've got to be the best
You've got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is now

Fixing the Five Oceans

Some suggestions to fix the crap 5 Oceans web site:

1) Make all content free - the limited video clips are not worth 20 quid and it appears from posts here that it hasn't been tested on Macs

2) Having made all content free, return the money to those that have paid for the so-called "ultimate coverage"

3) Get rid of the current race viewer and check the terms of the contract with the company that developed it: it doesn't appear to be fit for purpose

4) Replace it with something simple like the Google Maps mash-up used by the Mike Golding web site.

5) Put a regular space for the weather forecast and wind charts preferably overlaid with the position of the fleet

6) Give option to download the .kml files that allow race info to be viewed in Google Earth

7) Make sure there's a version of all pictures that can be quickly viewed without a huge (c) on it or having to register

8) Create more content - there are so few stories its hardly worth visiting. Making all the emails and photos sent from the skippers accessible would help - there's no reason not too given the media savvy like Mike Golding have their own sites where its posted for free whatever the 5 Oceans site does

9) If you can't afford more writers then get some bloggers in to create some

10) Create more space on the web site for content and reduce the clutter of adverts

11) Add a forum section for interaction with users - templates for these can be bought are off the shelf for not much money

12) Have a regular link to keep readers informed with status of the revamp

13) Check out the other race web sites - such as the very successful Volvo Ocean Race web site - and borrow shamelessly

14) Do something quickly before the race becomes a write-off

Any others?

Lost and found

This is where my sailing chum Jonathan's Class 40 was lurking. When the rest of the Route du Rhum was blasting its way across the Atlantic his Friends of the Earth was being hoisted at Cowes for repairs.

Hope it is soon back on the water racing - as in this video here.

The giant squid, the sinking boat and the whisky bottle

More drama for both the 5 Oceans and the Route du Rhum:
- Mike Golding's boat Ecover (above, in the Bay of Biscay storms) has been attacked by a giant squid
- French skipper Didier Levillain was whisked by helicopter to safety as his monohull sank beneath him
- Multi-hull Orange had the central of three hulls damaged by collision with a container
- Mast climb for Nick Bubb to retrieve a stuck halyard in rough conditions
- Multi-hull Switch.fr capsized when in third position, crew now rescued
- Concern about leaky whisky bottles on Robin Knox-Johnston's boat Saga Insurance (now that's serious)

Given all this drama its amazing how little of it is reported in either the print or tv news. So many sports gets so much coverage why (oh why) is so little time available for sailing? How can the stories above be less interesting than something like Formula 1, where cars just go round and round and round in circles?

Of course it would help if there were better ways of explaining what is happening during an offshore yacht racing - and more importantly why. Tools such as Virtual Spectator should be universal rather than the exception, where animations show boat positions and weather systems so tactics can be clearly explained.

It isn't helped by crap web sites like the 5 Oceans one, which has recently issued this belated apology (anyone interested in following that race can find a race viewer that actually works on Mike Golding's site here).

But that should be a story in its own right, a bone of contention that few can argue against. Unlike last year's fake controversy created by some sailing magazines (Yachting World you know who we mean) that criticized the new Volvo 70 class - false because those most involved (the sailors) were fully behind it, and it will continue to be the basis for the next race.

In the mean time the RdR fleet continues to power its way to the Caribbean, nice trades aligned with the direct great circle path. Must be fun out there.


Images from www.mikegolding.com, www.stormsurfing.com and www.routedurhum.org

Routing the Route du Rhum

While the Route du Rhum web site is obviously better than that of the 5 Oceans it still falls short of the arm-chair navigators favorite, the Volvo Virtual Spectator software. So routing and tactics must rely on overlaying two sites, the forecast and the RdR's charts, as done below.

Chart as of 19:45 on 1st November:

Wind forecast for 6Z on 2-11-2006:
So it looks like increasing easterlies for the fleet up to 30 - 35 knots. The multi-hulls way ahead of the main pack can be seen to be heading south to get those winds just to the north of that mini-low.

More on this later - till then, anyone know a better approach? I see there is a RdR Google Earth link, but it seems to be less up to date than the web site charting tool.

Also does anyone know of any GRIB files in Google Earth format?

Cheers



Graphics from www.stormsurfing.com and www.routedurhum.org

Route du Rhum's Missing Yacht

After the disappointment of the Velux 5 Oceans it's good to see a proper offshore yacht race and web site. The Route du Rhum race shows how it should be done, with a huge fleet (for offshore races) of 86 registered multis and mono-hulls, and a web site with easy to find and free news, pictures, and videos. The charting tool may be basic but at least it works. If its rum cocktails all round make mine a mojito.

In particular I was really excited to see that my old sailing chum Jonathan Crinion was one of those registered. He was on my watch when doing the Fastnet last year and I found it slightly embarrassing to be watch leader to a single handed sailor. But it was hopefully a two way exchange and I for one certainly found his stories full of interest.

But alas since then Jonathan and his boat, Friends of the Earth (pictured above) have gone missing. I know from his web site that he reached Falmouth on the 20th October after an interesting leg up from South Africa where he experienced rough weather and a knock down. But since then nothing - fingers crossed he will be ready for the next race.

Will let you know when I get news.

6 reasons why the 5 Oceans web site has lost the plot

This is a great photo of a great race, spoiled by the vandalism of a short sighted web site. The 5 Oceans web site might not have had the budget of the Volvo, but it is failing on too many points to ignore.

1. Paying for content - this is a bad idea as previously blogged. All boats are funded by sponsorship, and for them the more hits the better. Driving the prime audience away just doesn't make any sense.

2. If you do sell content make sure it's good - for yes, I would stump up if it were worth it. But from what they demo it's a little more than sub YouTube postage stamp sized pixellated annoyance. Now that there is broadband everywhere we should get at least standard TV quality - maybe even HD.

3. Limited news content - there have only been a handful of stories of the web site despite the dramatic events of the last few days. Maybe there is more open to those prepared to pay £20 but guess I'm not going to find out.

4. Poor quality race viewer - god I loved the Volvo Virtual Spectator software. For comparison here is the start from last year where that fleet too hit huge seas and several boats retired. Ain't that beautiful!

In comparison the Velux 5 Oceans is unusable. With my browser (Firefox) it is an irritation of flashing blocks of colour, sluggish response and unintuitive controls. I've given up every time I've tried it. Last time it locked up Firefox so I had to kill it and re-launch the browser. And it has to be downloaded each time you look at the chart. It doesn't have to be all wizzy like the Volvo - look at the simple Mid Sea position plotter.

5. Crippled pictures - as you can see above with a huge (c) in the middle. Yes, you can register for downloads but the agreement does not cover blogging. It covers web sites of newspapers and magazines which publish in hard-copy - not pure web sites. Its also a pain if all you want is a desktop picture.

6. Too many adverts, crowding out content. The point of the web site should be to inform, not be a "profit center".

Conclusion: all this wouldn't matter if there was coverage of the 5 Oceans on TV, but in the UK we only get to hear about yachting when there are force 10 storms and a British competitor and some dramatic film clips.

The 5 Oceans Race, the sponsors, the back-up teams, and most important, the skippers out there at sea, deserve better.


Edited to expand point 4 and add point 6.

Slow Mid Sea

The Rolex Middle Sea fleet have had a lovely view of the volcanic island of Stromboli off Sicily. Stars gleaming bright, lava glowing as it oozes from the crater, and rosy sunset reflecting in the still water.

A long lovely view.

.......

Is that mountain still there?

When oh when will the wind fill in?

Oh god, not another drifting race again!

Velux in choppy water

Mistakes galore for the Velux 5 Oceans. Out on the water the skippers on the little fleet are struggling in gale force winds. But if you want to find out more you'll have to pay £19.99 for the "ultimate coverage".

This is really stupid. All the boats are sponsored by companies looking to maximise coverage and what better way to put people off than charging an up front free.

The internet over the last year has seen a great change. Sites that charged for content saw their traffic, their hit count, collapse. Sites like YouTube that allow videos to be uploaded and downloaded for free have seen their traffic increase exponentially and this site was recently valued in the billions of dollars.

Sailing is a minority sport and we should be encouraging as many as possible to follow. Putting up barriers like this puts off even enthusiastic yacht race bloggers like me.

Compare this to the Volvo - which not only a huge site with all content free, but offered for download the superb 3D viewer Virtual Spectator that makes the Velux equivalent look pretty shabby.

I hope this short sighted attitude can quickly be changed.

Pirates of the Mediterranean

Pirates, the scourge of the seas, dread menace to boat and crew alike, are real life threats in many waters around the world. But would you expect them in the apparently mellow Mediterranean?

Captain JP has heard of a highly suspicious and potentially serious incident that happened to one of the competitors of the recent Rolex Swan Cup in Sardinia.

Due to poor organisation, this yacht was forced out of the marina to anchor close to the shore. To the skipper and crew this was routine - from many years sailing they knew that with calm seas and gentle winds the anchor and chain laid was amble to hold her steady. And so they headed off to eat - annoyed at the race organisers inability to book sufficient berths but not concerned about their yacht's safety.

During their meal a fellow competitor warned them there were intruders onboard - uninvited guests who turned out to be divers. Their story was that the boat was drifting, and they therefore saved her and could claim salvage but would accept a "mere" 1,000 Euros for their troubles.

With the collective experience of those involve it seems extremely unlikely that there was a risk of drifting - if so, what was it? It could be anything from a misunderstanding to attempted blackmail - we will never know.

But the moral is clear: watch your boats. And watch those that watch the boats.

Challenge's End?

October has brought the sad news that Challenge Business has entered receivership with (according to Yachting World) £9m worth of debts.

There have been rumours all year of the company being in trouble, but it was still a shock to hear that the company behind the Global Challenge has hit the rocks. They and their charasmatic leader Sir Chay Blythe have been a fixture of the sailing circuit, their signature steel cutters familiar sights not just in the Solent but around the world from Cape Town to Sydney.

I had a great time sailing one of the Challenge 67s around the Canary Islands a few years ago (above) watching dolphins and eating bread dipped in the local sauce, Mojo. I hoped one day to go again, maybe a trip to the far north to Spitsbergen or even a Round Britain.

Its clearly tough being a sailing company - last year's casualties including Girls for Sail and Formula 1. Fingers crossed that restructuring can quickly bring back Sir Chay and his boats back on the water.

Mid Sea Wind Forecasts

For those of you lucky enough to be flying off to Malta for the 2006 Rolex Mid Sea Race, (or is it? - the web site says 2005) the cruicial question is what will the wind be like?

Will it be another frustrating slow race drifting round the way points or a bruise and sleepless night inducing battle through storms, thunder and lightning? I haven't yet been in really strong winds - 30 knots gusting 45 on the ARC was my tops - but from that I'd choose rough over the smooth every time.

But for the yacht tacticians out there, Angelika's pointed me at this great Turkish site. I particularly like how the sea area around southern Italy is called "Boot".

Bon voyage to all competitors and a safe return to harbour.

Dolphin Video

Having got the YouTube account set up I'd thought I'd post you a little video of some dolphins we saw playing around the bow of our yacht as we sailed across the Celtic Sea last year during the Fastnet race in 2005.

It was wonderful - there were so many dolphins it actually got on the BBC. We were having a hard time drifting in the light winds so it was a great pick us up.

Enjoy!