When we got to Cork, we had to get past Maximus, who was tooling around rather quickly outside the harbour. She's a gobsmackingly large boat.
Looks like an AC, but biggerer.
26.7.06
Picdump
Obligatory sunset shot #2 - this time on the way out.
When we got to Cork, we had to get past Maximus, who was tooling around rather quickly outside the harbour. She's a gobsmackingly large boat.
Looks like an AC, but biggerer.
When we got to Cork, we had to get past Maximus, who was tooling around rather quickly outside the harbour. She's a gobsmackingly large boat.
Looks like an AC, but biggerer.
Wolf Rock
We passed the closest I've ever been to it - 100 yards, tops. Depth down to around 50 feet under the keel - plenty. I was on the helm at the time. Slight puckering moment as it lost 30 feet in two seconds.
Throwing more shapes
Too much chop and too little apparent to keep the main going properly, hence the soft leech and far-too-flat head. Meh. When we could get it set up right, however, it was a pretty decent shape.
All going a bit Duran Duran.
All going a bit Duran Duran.
New Code Zero on the muthaship
Seemed to set alright, although I don't have any experience of Code Zeroes, so had no idea how soft to set the luff. We flew this sail for most of Saturday on the trip back - it gave us about a knot and a half of extra SOG.
Careless Whisper
Running aground is something that happens to most boats and most sailors pretty regularly. But for Whisper, a Reichel-Pugh 78 competing at Cork Week, the whole process was carried out in full view of most of her competitors. Motoring back up the river after the first day's sailing, she made a turn to moor up and got stuck - in the middle of the channel.
One guy on the boom? That won't shift it.
The big boat fleets have to wait outside the river until Whisper can move off.
Three blokes on the boom also fails to shift it - this is an 80 foot boat, remember, and even with the leverage from that ginormous boom, three people won't shift it.
Attaching the main halyard to the support RIB and then driving off to the other side of the river to get a bit more leverage possibly not the brightest move...
One guy on the boom? That won't shift it.
The big boat fleets have to wait outside the river until Whisper can move off.
Three blokes on the boom also fails to shift it - this is an 80 foot boat, remember, and even with the leverage from that ginormous boom, three people won't shift it.
Attaching the main halyard to the support RIB and then driving off to the other side of the river to get a bit more leverage possibly not the brightest move...
25.7.06
Random boat shot
... from the delivery trip back from Cork. As we rounded the Lizard, a bunch of boats came racing past in the other direction. Most of the shots were crap, as I was too lazy to work out if the camera had image stabilisation. This one came out OK, however.
24.7.06
Half of the world's greatest fresh salsa manufacturing team
...he'll probably berate me in Brummie for such an unflattering shot.
Hamble - Cork delivery
Obligatory sunset shot.
Lizard Rock.
Sailing off the wind - lumpier than pictured.
Lands' End and Wolf Rock.
'cos Jon's mum asked especially...
A pic of us heading out to the final race last Friday. Shot taken by the fair Catherine from the mothership. The big yellow thing on the right is Creightons, a famous Maxi from the good old days of the Whitbread Round The World Race, from before it was the Volvo Ocean Race.
L-R: Yours truly, Kelly, Jon, Allan, Gordon.
Full Cork Week 707 results here, by the way.
Full Pelt X
Our pitgirl, Kelly, sails on this beastie as well as Swallow, so it was only natural that Jo Richards ask to leave her moored outside our mothership for Cork Week.
Built for Stephen Fein, she's a Richards 36 with a keel that cants through 55 degrees. The wings on the side of the boat unbolt so she fits on a standard road trailer.
Pointy is an excellent word.
just forward of the yellow bucket are two controls. The red ball in the cage allows the crew to release the keel and let it swing over to the other side for the new tack. The cage was added after various people tripped over it repeatedly, releasing the keel in comedy fashion.
The big metal pole is the lever for the hydraulic ram - pump it and the ram swings the keel from one side to the other.
Huuuuge carbon boom. Pretty much every structure on the boat appears to be custom fabbed. Very pretty.
She's normally used for lake racing, like the Out '95 (AKA the Blue Bat, or the Lewmar boat).
Oh, and the best bit of kit on board? The placcy box containing a camping stove, kettle, mugs and enormous amounts of teabags for fresh cuppas. Terribly English...
Built for Stephen Fein, she's a Richards 36 with a keel that cants through 55 degrees. The wings on the side of the boat unbolt so she fits on a standard road trailer.
Pointy is an excellent word.
just forward of the yellow bucket are two controls. The red ball in the cage allows the crew to release the keel and let it swing over to the other side for the new tack. The cage was added after various people tripped over it repeatedly, releasing the keel in comedy fashion.
The big metal pole is the lever for the hydraulic ram - pump it and the ram swings the keel from one side to the other.
Huuuuge carbon boom. Pretty much every structure on the boat appears to be custom fabbed. Very pretty.
She's normally used for lake racing, like the Out '95 (AKA the Blue Bat, or the Lewmar boat).
Oh, and the best bit of kit on board? The placcy box containing a camping stove, kettle, mugs and enormous amounts of teabags for fresh cuppas. Terribly English...
Ready to go
Swallow on her trailer, all packed up and ready to go on Thursday 13th.
On our return yesterday, we got her back to RSnYC and had the mast up by 1pm, thanks to a quick return trip on the mothership. Alan and Kelly were'nt so lucky with the Cork - Swansea ferry, getting in a scant three hours ahead of us. More on that later.
Back from Cork Week
More shots to follow - this is from the delivery trip out on the mothership.
We got some mixed results. A couple of real blinders and a couple of races that went out the back, but there is potential. The boat is going faster this year, and we know how to make it go fast.
Oh, and the beer was good, too. Especially Cronin's, an ace pub in Crosshaven. The smoke free bar thing is a great, too - can't wait for it to come in over here.
10.7.06
And this model...
Mister Crankslave models the latest in headwear. You need a strange curly 'do as well, obviously.
Apologies for pic qualtiy - taken at night ona a cameraphone while drunk...
Apologies for pic qualtiy - taken at night ona a cameraphone while drunk...
